The Apple iPhone XS and the XS Max is available in and here is the review of iPhone XS. In this review I have covered the handset performance, quality, played PUBG game, shared some camera samples and the battery performance.

Apple iPhone XS is a really premium handset that comes with a really premium price tag, now many compare the iPhone with Android and everything comes down to the price. But if you think logically the iPhone is not that costly. A iPhone XS for example will not get outdated even after 2 years and the performance will be the same, but when it comes to Android smartphones, forget 2 years in every 6 month a new model or a new hardware is announced.

Having said that, iPhone are pricey but if you use it (and most iPhone users do) for over 2 years, in the long run it is not that costly, plus you do not feel like the handset is outdated – as a new iPhone is launched every year compared to a new Android phone being launched almost every month.

Apple makes its own hardware and its own software – the iOS. And they have really optimized the hardware and software, so well, that once you use an iPhone you will fall in love with its smooth performance. You do get smooth performance on Android too, but the difference is clearly noticeable (much, much better on Apple).

The iPhone XS is running iOS 12 out of the box. Screen quality is awesome and specially the 3D touch (can sense touch pressure) is pretty impressive. The typing experience on the iPhone XS was also a lot different much better, much smoother. One thing you will notice is that the iPhone responds instantly be it opening an app or saying Hey SIRI.

Design and Display

The handset feels premium to hold and use, really premium. Glass on the back does make it a bit slippery. I am comfortable with iPhone XS but if you need a bigger screen then there is the iPhone XS Max.

Screen is 5.8 inches, Super Retina HD display, OLED multi touch display with 2436 x 1125 pixels resolution and yes it does come with notch. Screen quality is really premium with 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio – viewable in any lighting condition.

The iPhone XS sides are stainless steel and weight is 177 grams. The new iPhone is IP68 certified that makes is splash, water and dust resistant.

Performance and PUBG Game play

Inside the hood there is Apple’s own A12 Bionic Chipset with next gen neural engine. This is hexa core CPU. On Android you can get octa core, but as mentioned Apple has full control on its hardware and software and when you use the handset you will know the difference.

Talking about Antutu score I got 301974.

I played PUBG game, in HDR / Ultra Graphics quality mode – really impressive. The game play was buttery smooth and best part is the instant response and the smoothness when taking aim. Indeed the best experience I had when playing PUBG.

Handset hardly heats up.

Security

iOS 12 is more secure than the Android and if you have been a Android user it will be a little weird getting simple things done like transferring files, movies, music from PC to iPhone XS.

There is no finger print sensor but there is Face ID (face unlock) and it works great. When registering for Face ID it takes over 1 minutes or so, as it records every angle of your face.

Dual SIM support on iPhone XS

This handset comes with a nano SIM slot and there is a eSIM. This eSIM is integrated SIM but for now it is not enabled in India, the company will roll out an update soon to enable iPhone XS eSIM for Indian users. Also note that for now only Reliance Jio and Airtel offers eSIM support.

Camera

On the rear there 12MP dual cameras a wide angle and a telephoto lens with f/1.8 and f/2.4 aperture respectively. You get 2x ZOOM. There is dual optical image stabilization and you can shoot smooth videos in 1080p resolution.

The iPhone XS can shoot 4K videos at 60fps with stereo sound recording. There is also time lapse video with stabilization, plus you can shoot slow motion in 1080p at 240 fps. You can check the samples in the video review.

Still shots are pretty impressive, really good edge detection and natural blurring (bokeh) effects. There are couple of lighting effects that you can select before or after the image is captured. The 7MP front camera can also capture perfect selfies with bokeh mode.

When you shoot in bokeh mode after the image is captured you can control the depth. Animoji and Memoji also supported.

Overall iPhone XS image quality is excellent. Low light shots are great but there are premium smartphones out there that can shoot better in low light.

iPhone XS camera Samples

Battery

The iPhone XS comes with 2658 mAh battery that may look too low if you are thinking from the Android perspective but, but, but, this battery capacity is more than enough. I easily got over a day of mixed usage.

The charger provided is normal charger but the iPhone XS supports fast charging and wireless charging. With normal charger provided in the box it takes about 2 hours 30 minutes to charge but with fast charger, charging is much faster about half the time.

I am getting an easy over a day of battery life better than when compared with my Galaxy S9 Plus.

Verdict

iPhone is different, makes no sense comparing with the Android phones. Also in terms of price the iPhone looks really costly but as mentioned you will be using it for 2 to 3 years easily as the iPhone XS will not get outdated for another 2 to 3 years.

An excellent buy if you are looking for a completely different user experience and if you have the money to spend initially. You can either go with the iPhone XS or the XS Max.

You can buy the iPhone XS / XS Max from – http://fkrt.it/R5Xo~KNNNN

Watch the iPhone XS video review

By Rajeev Rana

Founder and Chief Editor - gogi.in