What You Need to Know About The Apple iPhone 11

Are You Ready To Upgrade To iPhone 11?

The long awaited iPhone 11 is finally here, but is it everything you have been expecting? There are 3 models; the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max.  It has several new features such as the triple camera, improved color options, and a new processor. What do all of these things do though? Let's take a closer look.

Screen Resolution and Sizes

The iPhone 11 has the same display as the previous iPhone; a Liquid Retina LCD display measuring 6.1 inches. This features wide color support and True Tone to increase viewing experience.

The iPhone 11 Pro comes with a 5.8 inch OLED display. This includes the Super Retina XDR technology. The 11 Pro Max has a 6.5 inch screen with the same Super Retina XDR screen display. This XDR display is designed to enhance the experience of watching videos, providing an HDR experience with 1,200 nits of brightness. This also include the previous features with True Tone and wide-color displays. The contrast for black has a 2,000,000 - 1 ratio, improving the battery efficiency for the phone.

One big change in the new iPhone 11 screen is the touch technology. In all three new models, Apple has ditched 3D touch to replace it with Haptic Touch.

Battery Life

The battery life has always been a concern with iPhones. Even if it is great when you first get the phone, it tends to lose maximum charge fairly quickly. With the new releases, we are unsure of how fast this will happen, but the initial battery life is expected to be longer than the phones' predecessors.

The iPhone 11 advertises all-day battery life, rating it to be an hour longer than the iPhone XS. The iPhone 11 Pro is rated to have an extra 4 hours of battery life, and the Max has 5 more hours.

In addition to these, the new iPhones come with fast-charge, 18-Watt power adapter. This significantly decreases the charge time for the new batteries. This is a major upgrade from the previous 5-Watt power adapter. The power adapter is the block that plugs into the wall on one end and you plug in the charging cable on the other.

The Apple logo on the back of the phones has a new position as well, and this is more than just for cosmetic reasons. This is to mark a center-point of the phone to place on wireless charging pads.

Color Options

The iPhone 11 has a new selection of color options to choose from. These include Purple, Green, Yellow, White, Black, and Red. The back glass on these phones are precision cut from a single glass piece, using the strongest glass yet in an iPhone. These are also water resistant for 2 meters, up to 30 minutes, according to the IP68 resistance rating.

The iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max has 4 options to choose from for color. The Space Gray, Silver and Gold are nothing new, but the Midnight Green is a new addition to the iPhone Family. These upgraded phones feature a textured matte finish, as well as the more durable glass. The IP68 water resistance ratings on the 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max are up to 4 meters for 30 minutes.

The A13 Bionic Chip

The A12 Bionic chips that the last models of iPhone utilize is no longer in use with the new iPhone 11 models. The A13 rating puts it at 20% faster than the A12, and Apple is calling it the "fastest CPU and GPU in a smartphone." CPU is computer processing unit and GPU is graphics processing unit. This A13 Bionic chip is designed for machine learning, improving the AI functions of the phone. It also provides for faster photo and video analysis with the cameras, using a faster Neural Engine. There are new Machine Learning Accelerators that allow for delivery of up to one trillion operations every second.

A new part of this A13 technology include a new sensor, the U1. This is also known as "R1" or "Rose" and it helps with giving the iPhone a better sense of location in reference to 3 dimensional objects. The older M series sensor would take data from the compass, gyroscope, microphones, accelerometer and barometer. This new sensor uses all of those in addition to the ultra-wide camera for optical tracking and motion capture as well as the new Bluetooth 5.1 features and inertial measurement unit (IMU). This will also optimize facial recognition for multiple angles and make it 30 percent faster for unlocking your phone.

The Cameras

These are probably the most talked about feature of the new iPhone 11 models, mostly because they are so prominently visible. Everyone is talking about the 3 cameras on the phone, but not all models have this, as the iPhone 11 only has 2. The 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max have the third camera in them.

The dual lens feature for the iPhone 11 includes a new range of sensors as well as an ultra wide angle lens. This gives the user the ability to shoot photos and videos with a 120 degree field of view and the ability to switch between wide and ultra-wide angles quickly.

The third lens on the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max is a telephoto lens, allowing for a 4 times range for optical zoom. Each of the cameras also has the capability to record in 4k, allowing cinematic video stabilization and an enhanced range of dynamics. This also has includes a built in audio zoom, allowing for frame and audio sync to create dynamic sound and enhanced cinematic.

Deep Fusion

All three of these new models also include a Deep Fusion system. This improves the processing of images using the A13 Bionic chip. The machine learning advancements allows for individual pixel processing of photos, creating a higher quality and more natural looking image. This includes the advancement of shadowing between the object and background, while smoothing the photo's texture.

Night Mode

The night mode is another new feature in all of the new iPhone 11 models. This is an automated feature that turns on when the light level hits a certain point, illuminating the entire scene. This new interface also previews the wide angle view on the edges of the screen. This allows users to quickly switch if they like the wider view. You can also begin recording from camera view by holding down the capture button and swiping left.

Front Camera

The front facing camera on the new iPhone 11 models has also gotten some upgrades. This TrueDepth camera now features a 12 mega-pixel wide angle lens. This lens also works in landscape mode, allowing you take take better group selfies. This cameras also supports slow motion video recording. The TrueDepth front facing camera records in 4k at 60 frames-per-second, or 120 frames-per-second in slow motion.

Audio

The audio has also gotten a significant improvement in the new iPhone 11 series. It now supports Dolby Atmos. This Atmos system provides an in-depth listening experience using surround sound technology. This uses spatial audio to create the surround sound effect.

Wireless and Charging

The iPhone 11 series still supports the LTE technology as before, as well as WiFi-6. The iPhone Pro line can support speeds up to 1.86 gigabytes per second. The charging allows you to use either wireless QI technology, or the standard lightning style charger. The new lightning charging cords connect to the power adapter with USB Type C connections instead of the standard USB A connection. The old style charger will still work, but may not charge as fast. It is expected that in early 2020, Apple will change the charging port on the phone to USB C so the cord will have the same piece on both ends.

If this sounds appealing to you, I would contact your local Apple authorized retailer to see what options you have to upgrade, and if there is a wait. These new models are on sale now and tend to go on back-order rather quickly so go get yours today.