Apple unleashes iPhone 11 Pro with XDR display, Ultra Wide camera

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iPhone 11 Pro
It's the toughest iPhone yet. And it comes in new colors!
Photo: Apple

The iPhone upgrade you’ve been waiting all year for has finally landed.

Apple today unleashed iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max, with huge camera improvements, an improved Super Retina XDR display, and an even faster A13 Bionic chip. They’re also some of its toughest handsets yet.

Here’s everything you need to know about the 2019 iPhone lineup.

iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max might look a lot like iPhone XS and XS Max, but don’t be fooled. There are a lot of improvements under the hood that make for a worthwhile upgrade — especially if you’re into photography.

This year’s iPhone lineup is the fastest, most durable, most impressive yet. But don’t expect any price cuts.

The fastest iPhone yet

iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max are powered by Apple’s newest A13 Bionic chip. It’s the fastest chip ever integrated into a smartphone, Apple says, with even more impressive processing and graphics performance.

The A13 is 20% faster than last year’s A12 Bionic in both processing and graphics, with the ability to handle a staggering 1 trillion operations every single second. That means greater games, faster multitasking, and the best machine learning yet.

iPhone-11-Pro-performance
Even more power in your pocket.
Photo: Apple

Despite all that power, and a jaw-dropping 8.5 trillion transistors, the A13 is Apple’s most efficient chip to date. It uses an advanced 7-nanometer manufacturing process and improved low-power cores that makes it kinder on battery life.

An XDR display you can take anywhere

Just when you thought the iPhone’s display couldn’t get any better, Apple delivers an XDA display you can take anywhere. The Super Retina XDR display is a custom-designed OLED panel that boasts a 2 million-to-one contrast ratio.

It’s also brighter, reaching up to 1,200 nits, and features wide color support for more immersive HDR videos. But there is no 3D Touch. iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max offer the same Haptic Touch functionality as iPhone 11 and iPhone XR.

This display is combined with an incredible upgrade in audio. iPhone now features spatial audio, which provides an immersive surround sound experience and Dolby Atmos support.

iPhone 11 Pro packs cameras … lots of cameras

By far the biggest reason to upgrade your iPhone this fall is for even better cameras. iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max deliver the best yet, with an additional lens for better low light photography and greater shooting options on the go.

The new 12-megapixel Ultra Wide camera lets you capture dramatic panoramic photos. It boasts 2x optical zoom out that lets you fit four times more into a single frame, and it makes for some incredible landscape snaps.

iPhone-11-Pro-cameras
It doesn’t get better than this.
Photo: Apple

The 12-megapixel Telephoto camera has been improved with a wider f/2.0 aperture that captures 40% more light. You get the same 2x optical zoom, but with even brighter, more detailed results. And all these sensors now feature 100% Focus Pixels.

A pro camera in your pocket

Those lenses work alongside a new image signal processor, which allows for better low-light performance. iPhone finally offers Night mode, which is activated automatically in the right conditions and dramatically improves camera performance in the dark.

You get next-generation Smart HDR, too, which boasts semantic rendering for the prettiest Portrait shots you’ve ever seen — a 36% brighter True Tone flash. There’s also a new feature called Deep Fusion that’s coming this fall.

Deep Fusion captures 9 images every time you hit the shutter button. It then uses machine learning to combine them for the sharpest details and lowest noise. It enables the best photos you’ve ever gotten from a smartphone.

The best video recording

As if that wasn’t enough, the new iPhone lineup delivers the best video quality ever in a smartphone, Apple says. You can enjoy super-sharp 4K video recording with extended dynamic range and cinematic video stabilization.

You also get Audio Zoom for the first time. This matches your audio with the video framing for more dynamic sound, so your homemade movies sound better than ever.

iPhone-11-Pro-camera
Advanced editing features baked right in.
Photo: Apple

Editing your videos is easier, too, with advanced features now baked right into the Photos app. You can adjust video exposure, rotate and crop your clips, and apply filters without having to install a single third-party app.

Much better battery life

This year’s iPhone lineup finally delivers the battery life improvements we didn’t think were possible in a super-slim smartphone. iPhone 11 Pro delivers up to four hours more use than iPhone XS, while the Pro Max delivers five hours more than XS Max.

Those are significant improvements that should mean your iPhone never gives up before the day is done. But if it does, you now have faster charging.

Dazzling, durable design

The first thing you’ll notice about iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max is that they come in a new midnight green color options. Silver, space gray, and gold are also available, and they’re now coating in a new matte-textured finish.

But more importantly, the new iPhone lineup is now more durable. Apple is using PVD-coating glass that won’t crack and shatter anywhere near as easily as before, and you now get IP68 water-resistance.

That means your new iPhone can sit in up to 4 meters of water for up to 30 minutes. And it’s protected against everyday spills like coffee and soda, too.

Order yours Friday, September 13

“iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max are the most powerful and advanced smartphones we have ever made,” said Apple’s Phil Schiller. “They are packed with sophisticated technology that pros can count on to get their work done, and for anyone who wants the very best device made, even if they are not a pro.”

iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max will be available to preorder at 5 a.m. PDT on Friday, September 13 before they hit Apple Stores on September 20. Prices start at $999 for the 64GB 11 Pro and $1,099 for the 64GB Pro Max.

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