But that design has been made slightly better: the water resistance is a little better, and Apple says the glass on front and back is a little stronger. The camera bump on the back is now milled right into the glass, which is kind of neat, but it’s still a camera bump. The whole design remains a little surfboard-y, and it’s definitely not small. If you’re looking to upgrade from an iPhone SE, this thing is going to feel huge.
GOOD STUFFExcellent cameraTerrific battery lifeLower price
BAD STUFFiOS 13 is buggyJust one fairly large sizeGet out of here with this 5W chargerThe garden is beautiful, but the walls grow ever higher
This is one of the simplest reviews I’ve ever had to write: the iPhone 11 is the phone most people who are upgrading to a new iPhone this year should get. It’s an excellent phone, with one of the best cameras I’ve ever seen on a smartphone and terrific battery life. Apple’s also dropped the price by 50 bucks: the iPhone XR started at $749, but the iPhone 11 starts at $699.
None of this means the iPhone 11 is a perfect phone or that it has all of the best specs and features you can get. It doesn’t. But it’s great where it counts, and it’s totally fine everywhere else. If you want to live on the bleeding edge of tech, you can spend $300 more and get an iPhone 11 Pro, which I also reviewed this week, or look at one of the many high-end Android options available. But most people don’t need to overthink it: just get an iPhone 11. You’ll be happy.