If last year's iPhone XR is any indication, we can expect the iPhone 11R to be Apple's "budget" iPhone.
It's not clear just yet if Apple will stick to the same pricing structure it had last year — $750 for the "cheap" model, and $1,000 and $1,100 for the two premium models.
Here's hoping Apple opts for a similar — or cheaper! — price range. While $750 is still a lot of money, it's significantly easier to pay upfront than $1,000 or more, and cheaper in monthly installments, too. The iPhone XR costs about $32 per month right now compared to the iPhone XS, which starts at $10 more per month.
When the iPhone XR arrived last year, I was initially excited that Apple was embracing color for the first time since the iPhone 5C. Phones have gotten too boring, and Apple has been the ringleader for the last several years, opting for premium-looking, high-end colors (black, white, silver, gold, rose gold) instead of fun, eye-popping hues.
But when the wraps came off the iPhone XR, I was disappointed. The colors Apple chose — blue, yellow, coral, and red, along with black and white — were garish and cheap-looking. I had been set on buying an XR, but ultimately held off because, quite frankly, I couldn't decide on a color I liked enough to own.
Apple appears to have rethought its color scheme this year, however: The company is reportedly tweaking the colors to something more muted and stylish, according to Macotakara.
Plus, when Apple sent out invitations to its event, it provided what seemed like another hint as to the iPhone 11R colors:
Those little glass shards, along with the top and bottom colors on that Apple logo, are giving me a lot of hope that the iPhone 11R will come in prettier colors. If they're accurate, it looks like the most difficult decision I'll face this time around will be choosing between the green and the purple.
And here’s what appear to be your next-generation iPhone XR colors (lavender purple and green instead of blue and coral) as @idanbo reported earlier this week: https://t.co/KQQ6JKmZg9 pic.twitter.com/7k3WZC2ZUi
— Mark Gurman (@markgurman) May 14, 2019Of the three iPhones Apple unveiled last year, the iPhone XR had the second-largest screen. Smaller than the iPhone XS Max, but larger than the iPhone XS.
If Apple keeps the same dimensions for this year's iPhones, we can expect the iPhone 11R to be the same, and it's one more reason why I'm excited to buy it. At 6.1 inches, the size of the screen is something like the Goldilocks of iPhones — not too big and not too small. While I don't love that it also means the body of the phone is a bit bigger and heavier than the iPhone XS — or, theoretically, iPhone 11S — I can live with that.
One thing that may change this year is the display technology. One of the main features that differentiated last year's premium iPhones from the iPhone XR was that the iPhone XS and XS Max both had OLED displays, while the iPhone XR had an LCD display that Apple named "liquid retina."
That could change this year, however: Last May, Reuters described a report from the South Korean news outlet Electronic Times that said Apple may decide to go with OLED screens for all three models.
Truth be told, the iPhone XR already has a great camera — and it could be getting even better.
Apple seemed to take a page out of the Google Pixel playbook when it unveiled the iPhone XR last year: the phone featured a single-lens camera that relied heavily on software to achieve some of the features its more expensive siblings were capable of (namely, portrait mode).
The results were impressive, and there weren't many major differences between photos taken on the iPhone XR and iPhone XS.
Still, Apple is expected to upgrade the camera on this year's iPhones. The iPhone 11R is said to be getting a second rear lens for better zooming, which will likely feel like an improvement over last year's model. It's not clear if the selfie camera is getting an update, too, but that would be great — every little improvement helps.
Chances are, this year's iPhones will be similar to last year's iPhones. And if we're going by last year's prices and specs, it's hard to justify paying more for the top-of-the-line phone.
The iPhone XR cost $250 less than the iPhone XS and $350 less than the iPhone XS Max. It still has an excellent camera, an excellent screen, the same new A12 Bionic chip, plenty of storage, and wireless charging. Plus, it runs the same software as the more high-end phones.
No, you're not getting the premium-looking finishes, or the unspoken air of luxury that came with the iPhone XS. But you're still getting a very nice device, and one that does all of the things you need it to — and you have at least $250 to spend on something else.
I suspect this year's lineup to offer the same, and in my view, you're making the wiser choice by buying the "budget" iPhone.
Listen, it's not like my life is so tough. I have access to a lot of really nice phones because of my job, so I haven't been using my iPhone 6S full-time for a few months. But the thought of going back to it right now fills me with dread. To me, it feels antiquated and slow, the camera isn't up to snuff anymore, and the battery life is abysmal. Plus, the space gray color is just so .... boring.
Instead, I could be using a device that comes in a bunch of fresh, fun colors, and has a large, gorgeous display, excellent camera, wireless charging, and great battery life. It's sort of a no-brainer.
So while I'm not exactly excited to spend several hundred dollars in a few weeks, I still can't wait to buy the iPhone 11R.
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