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I recently switched my old iPhone 6 Plus to brand new iPhone XS Max. To people who don’t pay attention, that’s 5 updates since iPhone 6. There was 6S, 7, 8, X and only after that XS, during this 4 years passed by.
So let’s see with what new features Apple came up during 4 years of hard technological research.
New features that stand up
Big Screen and Design
Finally after years and 5 model updates they came up with new screen and design, that doesn’t look like it’s from 2000s. The screen is noticeably bigger and place iPhone XS Max among biggest smart phones on the planet. It’s also good looking.
Face ID
I have to admin that new Face ID is kind of cool, and makes the use of your phone a lot easier, especially when you are wearing gloves. But this is still only a cool toy and does not add any usability benefits, rather than quick unlocking of the screen.
Optical Zoom on Camera
iPhone XS finally has 2x optical zoom. 2x is not much, but even it is noticeable and fun to use. Of couse optical zoom on smart phone is nothing new, since Samsung had 10x zoom on their Galaxy S back in 2013.
New features that are barely noticeable
UI of the Big Screen
Yes screen again. Although the screen is noticeable bigger, the Apple hasn’t figured out how to use this bigger screen. For example the keyboard is exactly the same size as it was before, and in horizontal view, instead of making the keyboard buttons bigger, they just filled the space in the sides with grey color. How stupid is that!
Faster processor
Although iPhone XS is noticeably faster than iPhone 6, it’s mainly because Apple is slowing down iPhone on purpose. Even thought iPhone 6 had slower processor than iPhone XS, it was still as fast when new as the XS. They just made new iOS heavier so that older phones could not run it fast anymore.
Camera
Although new camera is better on paper (and there’s actually 2 cameras in the back) I didn’t notice any difference compared to the iPhone 6. If I had 2 photos taken by these 2 phones, I could tell which one is which. Maybe for some Instagram freaks, this is important, but not for me. I only liked the optical zoom feature.
Bigger memory
The only reason you need bigger memory is because the UI, the apps and the photos take more space now.
No update
Battery
iPhone 6 Plus has 2915 mAh battery and iPhone XS Max 3174 mAh, which practically almost the same. New iPhone of course feels to have better battery, but this is due to the fact that after years of use the batter of iPhone 6 is almost dead.
No change in IU
The only noticeable change between iPhone 6 and XS was 3D-touch, which a way to access some features of the add without actually opening it. That’s all in 4 years!
New cons
Glass back
Did you know that it costs now $599 to repair broken back glass on your iPhone XS Max? Compared to full metal body of iPhone 6 that’s a huge con. I don’t see any other reason for this solution than scamming Apple users of their last buck. Luckily you can buy protection to put on both your screen and back, but what’s the point of that? It will just make your phone thicker. A terrible design!
Price
Just to mention that iPhone XS Max costs $1099-$1499, which is more than what iPhone 6 costs back then. I understand that many people who buy Apple don’t care about the price, since they are not poor, but even then paying 2–3 times more for your phone does not sound reasonable.
No Audio jack
Even though I don’t use audio jack often and you get free Apple headphones with lightning connector, it’s worth mentioning that this standard audio connector is gone and lot of people will miss it.
Summary
Quite a nasty price for couple of new toys and a bigger screen, which is actually not that big. You can get a perfectly good 6.9 inch phone with 5500 mAh battery for around €300, from Xiaomi, that will not be worse than iPhone XS Max, since it has MIUI user interface that is based on Android but looks like iOS.
Why iPhone is an expensive piece of shit was originally published in Hacker Noon on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
Disclaimer
The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not reflect the views of Bitcoin Insider. Every investment and trading move involves risk - this is especially true for cryptocurrencies given their volatility. We strongly advise our readers to conduct their own research when making a decision.