Earlier this week I bought a brand new iPhone. My previous iPhone was an iPhone 8 Plus which was a secondhand unit. I can’t justify buying a brand new iPhone so a used one makes more sense. The downside of getting a phone that was used by somebody else is, the previous owner decided to (foolishly) stick a camera lens protector cover and the camera lens. I know he meant well but the thing left a scratch mark round the camera bump which didn’t bother me really much since I’ll be using a case anyway but it somehow did because I know it’s there?
Unlike the iPhone 8, this iPhone XR is brand new. Of course I will be paying for it until two-three years later because you know, whoever finishes paying their credit card bills. I was contemplating whether to get this or a second hand iPhone X unit. But then a brand new iPhone X is strangely enough a tad more expensive than the XR. And after my experience with the secondhand 8 Plus, I don’t want to take that gamble again. So iPhone XR it is. You know matte black is my thing but for my new iPhone, I decided for a white unit. The black version to me was not really black like a metal iPhone but more like greyish in color which would not do.
This is also my first iPhone with a notch which means Face ID and I must say it’s the feature that I love the most about these new iPhones. Touch ID is nice and all but Face ID is truly revolutionary. Apart from unlocking the phone in less than a second without touching anything, you can also buy apps and login to banking or other apps by just looking at the phone. I know that might not sound much but it’s just super convenient to have. Some people might be disturbed by the notch but I didn’t even notice it after a while.
Size-wise, the XR is slightly taller than the 8 Plus but with similar width. Being a glass sandwich, it feels about as heavy as the 8 Plus if not only slightly lighter. But I would trade the weight for the wireless charging capability that is a must for my daily driver phone. Unlike the 8 Plus, the XR only has a single camera lens but it still take beautiful portrait mode photos, but only with objects with a face. Without a second camera, you can’t take depth of field photos like you can with the 8 Plus or X/XS models. Which is not a big deal for me because this single camera still take beautiful pictures every time with little effort. The photos are still better than the best Samsung, Huawei or Xiaomis out there.
The 64GB space is quite adequate for my apps, photos and videos. I was subscribed to 50GB iCloud for a while since it’s ridiculously cheap - RM3.90 per month (less than a dollar). Eventually I concluded that I don’t need that much space for backups so I cancelled and subscribed to 100GB Google One instead which is cross-platform. This iPhone supports eSIM although I have no urgency to register for one since I thought someday, I would want to be able to swap out my regular SIM card when I get out of the country. Imagine cancelling my eSIM profile and then applying for one again. Much inconvenient.
I’m quite satisfied with the battery performance of the XR. One up side of using an LCD screen instead of an OLED screen like the X/XS is that it used much less power. My XR could easily last until early in the evening on normal use from a full charge. I know the iPhone XS has better specs and an extra camera, for the price, the XR is just the perfect iPhone for my budget. It is no coincidence that the XR is the best selling iPhone in the world right now. Yes even outselling the X and the XS. I got the feeling I will be using the XR for a few years, 4 years at least. My next iPhone would be a 5G-enabled phone or at least one with two cameras. Those would be terribly expensive at launch so I’m in no hurry to get my hands on them.
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