I decided not to rush into reviewing the iPhone 11 in order to get the most complete picture of the usability of the smartphone. Two weeks is quite a normal period to understand all the advantages and disadvantages of the device.
There are not as many impressions as Nikita Goryainov’s from the iPhone 11 Pro. There were not enough practical changes and innovations, although no one expected them, since this was a minor update of the devices.
After using this iPhone for a couple of weeks, I absolutely understood that it would be extremely popular . Same as iPhone XR.
A design you're not ashamed of
I think you all remember how, after the first iPhone XR 2 leaks, everyone complained about the terrible camera design. No less than on the iPhone 11 Pro.
If in the “firmware” this was explained by the presence of three lenses, then in the “eleventh” there were only 2 of them left. Only the telephoto was replaced with a wide one. And you know, I like how it looks in real life.
Apple did the right thing by not painting it black. Now the cameras are not very noticeable, and the backing for them is generally transparent, it is almost invisible. Due to this, the block fits harmoniously into the body of the device.
And how I like the Apple logo placed in the center. It seems as if it has always been this way, and he is in his place. At the same time, we got rid of all unnecessary inscriptions.
Yes, in Russia and other European countries there are waste bin markings (proper disposal) and CE (certification). But they are almost invisible. To discern the presence of these symbols, you need to look closely in bright light. Respect that they are as hidden as possible .
There is no matte finish here, the glass remains glossy. It collects absolutely all prints, even if you lightly touch the back panel. I didn't notice any difference with the previous generation.
I went before with an iPhone Xs Max, everything went wrong in exactly the same way. It hasn't gotten better or worse, that's absolutely certain. So, if you want to keep your smart phone in perfect condition, cover it with a case. Otherwise, you will be constantly irritated by the abundance of stains on the back panel .
Processor and memory
It's surprising, but all versions of the iPhone 11 have an A13 Bionic processor. This is the fastest processor currently available. The A13 Bionic has four high-performance cores that are 20 percent faster and consume 40 percent less power than the A12 Bionic, and two more cores that are 20 percent faster and 30 percent more efficient. That is, from a performance point of view, all 2022 iPhones are equally cool and you won’t notice any difference. In practice, I will say that this is indeed the case. I'm currently playing several demanding games such as Asphalt 9 and Grimvalor, and I don't notice any difference, only in the size and quality of the image.
iPhone 11, iPad mini, iPhone 11 Pro are on a MacBook Pro. Who is more powerful?
But if we talk about memory, there is a difference. iPhone 11 comes in 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB storage options. The Pro versions have 64, 256 and 512 GB of memory for applications and files. If you have or are going to buy iCloud, then there is no difference, you will still send most of the files to the cloud. And for applications, a minimum volume of 64 GB is sufficient. I’m a bit retrograde in this regard and prefer to store photos on a smartphone, so I need an iPhone with 512 GB, and the 11 Pro is, of course, ideal in this regard.
The variety of colors is mind-boggling
To be honest, I was not at all impressed with the colors of the iPhone 11. The iPhone XR looked much nicer, each color brought out bright emotions in the sun.
And now... now everything is rotten, the iPhones have become noticeably paler . This is especially clear when comparing yellow models. Joy disappeared and was replaced by melancholy and sadness.
And I'm apparently not alone. In Russia, all green and purple iPhones have already been sold out. Why?
1. White and black colors are classic. Already boring.
2. Yellow is dull. Completely ordinary and unremarkable.
3. Green, red and purple are unusual shades. Apple clearly enjoyed making green iPhones this year, and they gained their popularity due to the rarity of the color itself. And we still have to try to find a purple smartphone. And the red one... well, it's just red, stunning as always.
Last year, editorial opinions on iPhone XR colors varied. But this year everyone agreed on one thing: green is the best of the presented line .
In any case, I strongly recommend not to blindly order the iPhone 11. Don’t be lazy and go to the store, turn the iPhone in your hands for a couple of minutes. Then you can definitely understand whether you like this or that color. No photo will convey the true color of the devices.
What's the price?
Recently, Russian websites trumpeted with one voice that Russia has the most expensive iPhones. At the same time, dear editors for some reason forgot that comparing the price in America without taxes and the Russian price including VAT of 20% is at least strange. Anyway.
For an iPhone 11 with 64 GB you need to pay 59,990 rubles. Living with 64 GB of memory, in my opinion, is quite difficult, because the memory runs out. The system is becoming more and more voracious and takes up more space, plus correspondence with videos and pictures in instant messengers, home videos in 4K, games weighing several gigabytes. Yes, you can shrink if you want, but it’s difficult. So I advise you to still add five thousand rubles and buy an iPhone 11 with 128 GB - a more practical option.
It’s strange, but there are still very few multi-colored silicone cases for the iPhone 11. Only two colors: black and white.
The display is excellent, although not OLED
I won’t say anything special about the thick frames that I got from the iPhone XR. You already know everything yourself. Those who didn’t like the “piggy” will not go into the iPhone 11. They remained exactly the same .
Brightness at the same level - 625 nits ; less than the iPhone 11 Pro with its 1200 nits. But it is quite enough for being in the bright sun. How many times I walked down the street, I always saw everything clearly.
Some may find the LCD display not as clear compared to the iPhone 11 Pro, or even the iPhone Xs. I, too, used to belong to this caste of people, believing that OLED shows pictures much better than LCD.
But let's be honest, do you really need this ultra-clarity for everyday tasks? Do you seriously see all the pixels when watching YouTube videos, reading books or playing games? After the iPhone Xs Max, I hardly noticed . For an ordinary user it will be minimal.
The only thing that is really frustrating is that there is no support for full HDR, like in the iPhone 11 Pro. The colors are not as bright, contrasting or saturated. But this is more of a personal quibble than a global claim.
The new generation of Smart HDR can recognize people
The second generation Smart HDR technology, another distinctive feature of the eleventh iPhone line, has learned to recognize people and correctly process the light-and-shadow pattern of faces and skin tones. The mode turns on automatically when shooting brightly lit scenes, when the difference in brightness between highlights and shadows far exceeds the dynamic range of the matrix. At the moment of shooting, the camera captures nine frames, and begins to do this even before the shutter is released, placing the frames in a buffer - four frames are normally exposed, and a frame with exposure for the highlights is added to each of them. To this “stack” of eight frames is added a frame with shadow exposure. Artificial intelligence evaluates each frame, selects the best fragments and creates an image from them, preserving colors and details in highlights and shadows. If necessary, Smart HDR can be disabled in the camera settings.
Burst mode and a little luck were used to get this shot. Podsosensky Lane, Moscow. October 3, 2022. 52 mm, 20 ISO, 1/1845 sec. © Andrey Bezukladnikov / Photographer.ru
The circle is closed! From now on, you can shoot with your iPhone camera in any conditions and get excellent pictures. Night mode for dark scenes, Deep Fusion for gloomy mornings, and Smart HDR for sunny days.
All you have to think about is the plot and composition of the shot, the camera will do the rest.
However, perfectionists can continue to shoot in RAW using third-party applications such as ProCamera. With an undoubted loss in efficiency, the result may sometimes be better, but no one will notice this on website pages or Instagram.
Set. Where is the 18W adapter?
It’s frustrating that with the iPhone 11, the company decided to make the device as cheap as possible on all fronts.
This smartphone does not come with 18-watt USB-C charging, only 5-watt USB-A, although the new product supports fast charging. And I bought a new power adapter with a cable for it separately. So, if you want at least this bonus for yourself, feel free to add 5.5 thousand rubles to the price :
▪️ 18-watt USB-C power adapter: 3.5 thousand rubles ▪️ meter Lightning/USB-C cable: 2 thousand rubles
The inside of the box has become more ergonomic. Apple has moved away from rectangles even with pieces of paper: they have rounded edges, and it really looks nicer. But that's all the changes.
Additional Specifications
✅ Additional characteristics worth highlighting:
- updated Face ID;
- built-in magnetometer;
- WiFi 6 (802.11ax) with data download and upload speeds of up to 1320 Mbit/s (when MIMO is enabled, that is, the router must support this technology);
- BlueTooth 5.0.
FaceID works on iPhone 11.
It also claims to comply with IP68 specifications (its predecessor had IP67). That is, the case is dust and moisture resistant, the smartphone can withstand many hours of immersion to a depth of 3 meters.
But you need to take into account that, according to the warranty conditions, water getting inside the housing is considered a violation of operating rules under any conditions. That is, the warranty does not apply to such cases (this is also true for previous generations of iPhone).
There is also no headphone port (3.5 mm). And there is not even an adapter for connecting them. Instead, there are 2 speakers (1 combined with conversational speaker), as well as support for Dolby Atmos.
