At €879 for a 64 GB LCD iPhone, I'm going to say it does not bring value. What it does however it bring the price of iPhones higher than last year. Higher and higher. What Apple has actually done in the past two years is of benefit mostly to shareholders. And the spoiled kids of rich people.
Apple's obligation is to its shareholders (i.e., its owners). It makes no sense to criticize a company for benefiting its shareholders. More logical, if accurate, would be a criticism that price increases hurt shareholders by reducing profits.
Appel is a typical corporation, yes. My criticism is of the word "value" used in the title of the article. It's a very expensive phone.
Another person who doesn’t know the difference between “value” and “cheap”. What’s in the water where you live?
The new XR and the XS phones and future iPhones may take away color too.. This new move to face id and all the sensors on the front of phone means that the era of phones with a white face may be over! It is probably a safe bet that Apple will very soon within a year or so begin phase out of iPhone 8, after all this will show everyone that their face id is great and they were right about it and will simplify the product line by having everyone use their face id. it's just shame that the white face iPhones will be no more. So, now we enter an era of all black face phones.
At €879 for a 64 GB LCD iPhone, I'm going to say it does not bring value. What it does however it bring the price of iPhones higher than last year. Higher and higher. What Apple has actually done in the past two years is of benefit mostly to shareholders. And the spoiled kids of rich people.
Good news! The iPhone 7 is what, $499? "Value" very much depends on who's making the assessment.
Mike great review ... but it leaves me with more questions than answers, I really like my iPhone 7 Plus and wonder if this is worth an upgrade? Cost isn't an issue I just don't buy things I don't need and all I do is read Safari and Mail when in waiting rooms or use it as a phone (quaint eh? lol) although truth be told I use my Watch more for that these days and an Watch v4 is on the way. The iPhone's man use for me is wirelessly pairing and enabling my Car Play to be honest. Now, on the other hand, a new Mac Pro is a definite yes. I carry my Sony A7 III most everywhere so I'm not worried about camera features on a phone either. So ... I am trying hard to think of a reason to go for a newer model iPhone. I suspect once it can't run the lastest iOS that will be my trigger.
Yes, with iPhones lasting longer now -- getting away from the 2 year cycle, who wants to sink a grand into soon to be obsolete technology?
Perhaps this is where Apple's Upgrade/leasing program provides a real advantage?
You write: For a start, the resolution of 1,792 by 828 pixels is a lot lower than the Super Retina versions in the XS and Max. This also brings the pixel density down to 326 pixels per inch versus the 458ppi of the other two variants, which may seem disappointing.
You can’t fairly compare pixel resolution between the two technologies. The OLED is pentile which means the resolution only applies to the green color and those green sub-pixels share very, very low resolution red and blue sub-pixels.
In fact, the lower resolution LCD display on the XR has MORE sub-pixels per inch (978) than the Super Retina Displays on the XS and XS Max. (916)
Above 150-200 pixels per inch, the human eye cannot discern the difference, unless a person has 1-inch thick reading glasses, I wouldn't worry about it.
Well I can certainly see the difference between my XS screen and the wife’s 7 . It’s night and day in terms of how good text looks on the XS compared to the 7’s 326ppi LCD. Just go to the store and look. Stating academic fact means nothing when the difference is literally staring you in the eyes. It’s even noticeable on the 7 plus at 401ppi compared to the 7. Stating otherwise is just simply incorrect... otherwise Apple wouldn’t bother with anything greater than 200ppi if you were right.
I have compared them and I only see a difference with videos. Looking at text, I can't tell the difference.
At €879 for a 64 GB LCD iPhone, I'm going to say it does not bring value. What it does however it bring the price of iPhones higher than last year. Higher and higher. What Apple has actually done in the past two years is of benefit mostly to shareholders. And the spoiled kids of rich people.
Good news! The iPhone 7 is what, $499? "Value" very much depends on who's making the assessment.
Actually, that two year old 32 GB iPhone starts at €539 here. But I’m clearly talking about new iPhones continually increasing in price. And the reality is at a certain point value doesn’t depends on who’s asking. €50 toilet roll is €50 toilet roll, and a new LCD phone that starts at almost €900 starts at almost €900. Shareholders, apologists, people with a lot of money and Apple bloggers—very few other people defend these price increases. It’s telling that Apple execs are all multi-millionaires. I’m not denying Apple make good hardware, I’m just pointing an awareness to the reality of new iPhones continually increasing in price.
I feel your pain. It's a legitimate complaint.
But, there is (as always) another side to that story: The iPhone has become so potent and powerful that it has, for many replaced the need for separate cameras, landlines and even desktops and laptops (or at least pushed them into to background).
So, yes! That's a ridiculous amount of money for s stupid, damn phone -- until you realize how much it's saving you!
Or until you realize it’s not a phone. It can do phone jobs, but these are computers, cameras, scanners, etc. Should be pretty obvious by now.
Good point and well said but: Uh, well, that's what I said!
At €879 for a 64 GB LCD iPhone, I'm going to say it does not bring value. What it does however it bring the price of iPhones higher than last year. Higher and higher. What Apple has actually done in the past two years is of benefit mostly to shareholders. And the spoiled kids of rich people.
No, it really doesn't bring the price of iPhones higher at least in this country. And no, most people who own Apple products aren't the spoiled kids of rich people.
I don't know why some people bother posting comments.
The question i have is...why do we all expect prices to stay the same? For example, let’s look at cars. Does a 2019 Toyota Camry cost the same as a 2018 Camry? No. And a lot of the time, there are not even any changes to a car from year to year, yet prices go up by $500 or more.
Comparing Xs to X, Apple improved slightly the display, improved slightly the speakers, made HUGE improvement to the camera with new hardware and software, and made HUGE improvement to the processor.........YET, kept the prices the exactly the same!! Who does that?!
Does OnePlus (the Walmart of smartphones) keep prices the same from year to year? Does Samsung? Does Pixel??
Answer: No. No. No. YET, some here complain endlessly about Apple prices...and yet Apple is the ONLY one that have kept prices the same from last year despite HUGE improvement overall to the phone!
In fact, i would argue that Apple was quite generous in keeping Xs prices the same as X!!!
Xr is just a great value, even when compared with Android. Top notch camera and processor with 5+ years of FULL software support and great customer service. Oh and that resale value of iPhones is class-leading by a large margin...which should take into account the initial cost of purchase.
I have a 4K smart TV that cost me about half what I paid for my first flat screen TV. Apple’s iPhone are more expensive because they can be. Apple knows most people aren’t buying the phone outright but paying over time. Adding $200 to the price of the phone doesn’t add that much to a monthly payment.
Oh man that’s so boneheaded. You must not work with technology... A TV is way less complicated than a minuturized computer. Most TVs are the same commodity panels and little more, while iphones have tons of tech and new layers and things every year.
So how is Apple able to sell a brand new iPad for $329? How were they able to sell new phones in the past without raising the price? How come the 2010 MacBook Air was better and cheaper than the 2008 model?
I have a 4K smart TV that cost me about half what I paid for my first flat screen TV. Apple’s iPhone are more expensive because they can be. Apple knows most people aren’t buying the phone outright but paying over time. Adding $200 to the price of the phone doesn’t add that much to a monthly payment.
Oh man that’s so boneheaded. You must not work with technology... A TV is way less complicated than a minuturized computer. Most TVs are the same commodity panels and little more, while iphones have tons of tech and new layers and things every year.
So how is Apple able to sell a brand new iPad for $329? How were they able to sell new phones in the past without raising the price? How come the 2010 MacBook Air was better and cheaper than the 2008 model?
IPad $329 comes with some compromises...non-laminated display (less anti-reflection) and 2 years old processor. And this is why iPad Pro is so much more expensive.
I have a 4K smart TV that cost me about half what I paid for my first flat screen TV. Apple’s iPhone are more expensive because they can be. Apple knows most people aren’t buying the phone outright but paying over time. Adding $200 to the price of the phone doesn’t add that much to a monthly payment.
Oh man that’s so boneheaded. You must not work with technology... A TV is way less complicated than a minuturized computer. Most TVs are the same commodity panels and little more, while iphones have tons of tech and new layers and things every year.
So how is Apple able to sell a brand new iPad for $329? How were they able to sell new phones in the past without raising the price? How come the 2010 MacBook Air was better and cheaper than the 2008 model?
IPad $329 comes with some compromises...non-laminated display (less anti-reflection) and 2 years old processor. And this is why iPad Pro is so much more expensive.
Yup. And it’s much bigger than a phone thus less constraints. The tech and miniaturization that goes into a phone-sized computer is amazing.
This person knows that tho, they’re just trolling over price, wants Apple to give him/her stuff for free because they’re rich, etc... Seen all the same comments before, never acknowledges the “why’s”
As a stockholder, I hope people still want "slab" phones worldwide, but I do not. The smaller phone is king for me.
I bought a Xr yesterday to replace my 7. I wasn’t sure about getting Face ID but I’ve found it really fast and almost never hesitates. In fact I found Touch ID more temperamental. It’s very impressive. The screen feels hugely superior to my 7, I don’t mind the bezels and I love the colours (I got blue - I always loved the Cyan of the Nokia Lumias). I was surprised that ios12 was meant to be an enhancing update - I still found it a bit clunky on the 7 but it zips along now. However, my one beef is the size. I can live with it but I really don’t want a handset this big. The dimensions of my 7 were about right and I’d like an all screen phone of that size. This also feels overly elongated. I’d like the same width but shorter height. This feels more like the 5 in ratio, which I found oddly proportioned for me until the 6. So yeah, slab is my only beef but happy with the rest. Especially the blue.
I have a 4K smart TV that cost me about half what I paid for my first flat screen TV. Apple’s iPhone are more expensive because they can be. Apple knows most people aren’t buying the phone outright but paying over time. Adding $200 to the price of the phone doesn’t add that much to a monthly payment.
Oh man that’s so boneheaded. You must not work with technology... A TV is way less complicated than a minuturized computer. Most TVs are the same commodity panels and little more, while iphones have tons of tech and new layers and things every year.
So how is Apple able to sell a brand new iPad for $329? How were they able to sell new phones in the past without raising the price? How come the 2010 MacBook Air was better and cheaper than the 2008 model?
IPad $329 comes with some compromises...non-laminated display (less anti-reflection) and 2 years old processor. And this is why iPad Pro is so much more expensive.
This person knows that tho, they’re just trolling over price, wants Apple to give him/her stuff for free because they’re rich, etc... Seen all the same comments before, never acknowledges the “why’s”
Exaggeration much? Nor do you acknowledge the "why's", apparently.
About the topic of the value of the iPhone vs. the competition, Android phones, there are several things to consider.
1. Ads vs. privacy. Data mining and selling ads subsidizes Android and the entire ecosystem. Apple can protect privacy better compared with the Google Android ecosystem because Apple does not depend on data mining and selling ads to exist.
- Android funnels users to Google services with its data mining and lack of privacy. If anyone here wants that, go ahead and buy a cheap Android phone.
Ad revenue isn’t an important income category for Apple (There is ad revenue from the Apple News app. But opting out of that is easy. I don’t use Apple News.)
A person can protect their privacy with an iPhone so that even law enforcement can have a difficult time as shown in a well known case.
- That’s why Apple can protect user privacy much better than Google. I choose privacy over “free” stuff using my data for ads and I’m willing to pay more for that.
2. OS updates; Android phones may offer 1 to 2 years of OS updates. That’s one reason many Android phones are very cheap because the user is pushed to buy another Android phone. If someone wants that, go ahead and get a cheap phone using Android. I have an iPhone 6. Apple is offering updates for 5 years. I’m still getting OS updates. I’m willing to pay more for that.
3. Customer service and tech support; For decades I’ve dealt with lousy tech support from companies which sell cheap products. If someone wants a cheap Android phone with bad customer service/tech support, go ahead and get it. Apple has outstanding support by phone. There are over 500 Apple Stores around the world which provide top notch in person tech support. All that costs money. I’m willing to pay more for that.
4. OLED vs LED. A good OLED panel is more expensive than a good LED panel. I’m not talking about the lousy Pixel 2 XL panels but the high quality OLED panels such as the ones made by Samsung. So, Apple’s OLED phones are a new category of device which is naturally more expensive. A better price comparison is between the iPhone 8 (LED) and the iPhone Xr (LED). They are comparable in price. If I want a cheaper iPhone, I could buy a 7 or 8.
If I decide to buy an OLED iPhone, I understand that the price of the high quality of the OLED panel itself will raise the price of the phone.
At €879 for a 64 GB LCD iPhone, I'm going to say it does not bring value. What it does however it bring the price of iPhones higher than last year. Higher and higher. What Apple has actually done in the past two years is of benefit mostly to shareholders. And the spoiled kids of rich people.
Good news! The iPhone 7 is what, $499? "Value" very much depends on who's making the assessment.
Mike great review ... but it leaves me with more questions than answers, I really like my iPhone 7 Plus and wonder if this is worth an upgrade? Cost isn't an issue I just don't buy things I don't need and all I do is read Safari and Mail when in waiting rooms or use it as a phone (quaint eh? lol) although truth be told I use my Watch more for that these days and an Watch v4 is on the way. The iPhone's man use for me is wirelessly pairing and enabling my Car Play to be honest. Now, on the other hand, a new Mac Pro is a definite yes. I carry my Sony A7 III most everywhere so I'm not worried about camera features on a phone either. So ... I am trying hard to think of a reason to go for a newer model iPhone. I suspect once it can't run the lastest iOS that will be my trigger.
Yes, with iPhones lasting longer now -- getting away from the 2 year cycle, who wants to sink a grand into soon to be obsolete technology?
Perhaps this is where Apple's Upgrade/leasing program provides a real advantage?
Even if 5G proves to be every bit as good as the phone companies suggest it will be, there's little reason to think it will be available so quickly that it will make phones bought today obsolete.
At €879 for a 64 GB LCD iPhone, I'm going to say it does not bring value. What it does however it bring the price of iPhones higher than last year. Higher and higher. What Apple has actually done in the past two years is of benefit mostly to shareholders. And the spoiled kids of rich people.
Good news! The iPhone 7 is what, $499? "Value" very much depends on who's making the assessment.
Mike great review ... but it leaves me with more questions than answers, I really like my iPhone 7 Plus and wonder if this is worth an upgrade? Cost isn't an issue I just don't buy things I don't need and all I do is read Safari and Mail when in waiting rooms or use it as a phone (quaint eh? lol) although truth be told I use my Watch more for that these days and an Watch v4 is on the way. The iPhone's man use for me is wirelessly pairing and enabling my Car Play to be honest. Now, on the other hand, a new Mac Pro is a definite yes. I carry my Sony A7 III most everywhere so I'm not worried about camera features on a phone either. So ... I am trying hard to think of a reason to go for a newer model iPhone. I suspect once it can't run the lastest iOS that will be my trigger.
Yes, with iPhones lasting longer now -- getting away from the 2 year cycle, who wants to sink a grand into soon to be obsolete technology?
Perhaps this is where Apple's Upgrade/leasing program provides a real advantage?
Even if 5G proves to be every bit as good as the phone companies suggest it will be, there's little reason to think it will be available so quickly that it will make phones bought today obsolete.
It doesn't -- if you only consider the state of the tech this time next year. But over the 5 year life of the phone, I wouldn't want to be saddled with a slow, obsolete, LTE phone
At €879 for a 64 GB LCD iPhone, I'm going to say it does not bring value. What it does however it bring the price of iPhones higher than last year. Higher and higher. What Apple has actually done in the past two years is of benefit mostly to shareholders. And the spoiled kids of rich people.
Good news! The iPhone 7 is what, $499? "Value" very much depends on who's making the assessment.
Mike great review ... but it leaves me with more questions than answers, I really like my iPhone 7 Plus and wonder if this is worth an upgrade? Cost isn't an issue I just don't buy things I don't need and all I do is read Safari and Mail when in waiting rooms or use it as a phone (quaint eh? lol) although truth be told I use my Watch more for that these days and an Watch v4 is on the way. The iPhone's man use for me is wirelessly pairing and enabling my Car Play to be honest. Now, on the other hand, a new Mac Pro is a definite yes. I carry my Sony A7 III most everywhere so I'm not worried about camera features on a phone either. So ... I am trying hard to think of a reason to go for a newer model iPhone. I suspect once it can't run the lastest iOS that will be my trigger.
Yes, with iPhones lasting longer now -- getting away from the 2 year cycle, who wants to sink a grand into soon to be obsolete technology?
Perhaps this is where Apple's Upgrade/leasing program provides a real advantage?
Even if 5G proves to be every bit as good as the phone companies suggest it will be, there's little reason to think it will be available so quickly that it will make phones bought today obsolete.
This. Most estimates say it will be at *least* 2 years before its widely available. Beyond that, I have yet to see any compelling reason to think 5G will give a significant benefit to the average cell phone user beyond 4G LTE. I think it’s more an issue of having a phone that *has* the capability rather than actually having the ability to use the capability.
I have a 4K smart TV that cost me about half what I paid for my first flat screen TV. Apple’s iPhone are more expensive because they can be. Apple knows most people aren’t buying the phone outright but paying over time. Adding $200 to the price of the phone doesn’t add that much to a monthly payment.
Oh man that’s so boneheaded. You must not work with technology... A TV is way less complicated than a minuturized computer. Most TVs are the same commodity panels and little more, while iphones have tons of tech and new layers and things every year.
So how is Apple able to sell a brand new iPad for $329? How were they able to sell new phones in the past without raising the price? How come the 2010 MacBook Air was better and cheaper than the 2008 model?
IPad $329 comes with some compromises...non-laminated display (less anti-reflection) and 2 years old processor. And this is why iPad Pro is so much more expensive.
Yup. And it’s much bigger than a phone thus less constraints. The tech and miniaturization that goes into a phone-sized computer is amazing.
This person knows that tho, they’re just trolling over price, wants Apple to give him/her stuff for free because they’re rich, etc... Seen all the same comments before, never acknowledges the “why’s”
Yep I want Apple to give me free stuff. *rollseyes*
So I just left the Apple store after looking at the Xs and the Xr. They have them strategically placed on separate tables on opposite sides of the store (intentionally, according to one of the sales people,) so it’s impossible to make a direct side by side comparison, but after going back and forth a couple times, I think the vast majority of people would have a very difficult time noticing any difference in day to day use.
Just like Ike there are some audiophiles for whom a $5000 amp actually does make a difference, I’m sure there are some people that will notice the difference, but I’m willing to bet that there are far more people who pay more because they want a better display but would never notice the difference.
I have a 4K smart TV that cost me about half what I paid for my first flat screen TV. Apple’s iPhone are more expensive because they can be. Apple knows most people aren’t buying the phone outright but paying over time. Adding $200 to the price of the phone doesn’t add that much to a monthly payment.
Oh man that’s so boneheaded. You must not work with technology... A TV is way less complicated than a minuturized computer. Most TVs are the same commodity panels and little more, while iphones have tons of tech and new layers and things every year.
So how is Apple able to sell a brand new iPad for $329? How were they able to sell new phones in the past without raising the price? How come the 2010 MacBook Air was better and cheaper than the 2008 model?
IPad $329 comes with some compromises...non-laminated display (less anti-reflection) and 2 years old processor. And this is why iPad Pro is so much more expensive.
What compromises did the 2010 MacBook Air have over the 2008 model? If a new retina MacBook is announced next week do you think it should be more expensive than the current model? Because some here seem to be arguing that when Apple introduces a new product it should be more expensive than the product it’s replacing.
Comments
I don't know why some people bother posting comments.
Comparing Xs to X, Apple improved slightly the display, improved slightly the speakers, made HUGE improvement to the camera with new hardware and software, and made HUGE improvement to the processor.........YET, kept the prices the exactly the same!! Who does that?!
Does OnePlus (the Walmart of smartphones) keep prices the same from year to year? Does Samsung? Does Pixel??
Answer: No. No. No. YET, some here complain endlessly about Apple prices...and yet Apple is the ONLY one that have kept prices the same from last year despite HUGE improvement overall to the phone!
In fact, i would argue that Apple was quite generous in keeping Xs prices the same as X!!!
Xr is just a great value, even when compared with Android. Top notch camera and processor with 5+ years of FULL software support and great customer service. Oh and that resale value of iPhones is class-leading by a large margin...which should take into account the initial cost of purchase.
This person knows that tho, they’re just trolling over price, wants Apple to give him/her stuff for free because they’re rich, etc... Seen all the same comments before, never acknowledges the “why’s”
About the topic of the value of the iPhone vs. the competition, Android phones, there are several things to consider.
1. Ads vs. privacy. Data mining and selling ads subsidizes Android and the entire ecosystem. Apple can protect privacy better compared with the Google Android ecosystem because Apple does not depend on data mining and selling ads to exist.
- Android funnels users to Google services with its data mining and lack of privacy. If anyone here wants that, go ahead and buy a cheap Android phone.
Google’s mines data from “free” services like Gmail, Chrome, Google Maps & Google Drive. As a result Google makes most of its money from ads. https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/020515/business-google.asp
https://bgr.com/2016/02/11/why-facebook-and-google-mine-your-data-and-why-theres-nothing-you-can-do-to-stop-it/
- Apple by contrast makes most of its money from hardware sales especially from the iPhone.
https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/04/08/how-apple-inc-makes-most-of-its-money.aspx
Ad revenue isn’t an important income category for Apple (There is ad revenue from the Apple News app. But opting out of that is easy. I don’t use Apple News.)
A person can protect their privacy with an iPhone so that even law enforcement can have a difficult time as shown in a well known case.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-wants-apple-to-help-unlock-iphone-used-by-san-bernardino-shooter/2016/02/16/69b903ee-d4d9-11e5-9823-02b905009f99_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.e76c3cc2a0b8
- That’s why Apple can protect user privacy much better than Google. I choose privacy over “free” stuff using my data for ads and I’m willing to pay more for that.
2. OS updates; Android phones may offer 1 to 2 years of OS updates. That’s one reason many Android phones are very cheap because the user is pushed to buy another Android phone. If someone wants that, go ahead and get a cheap phone using Android. I have an iPhone 6. Apple is offering updates for 5 years. I’m still getting OS updates. I’m willing to pay more for that.
3. Customer service and tech support; For decades I’ve dealt with lousy tech support from companies which sell cheap products. If someone wants a cheap Android phone with bad customer service/tech support, go ahead and get it. Apple has outstanding support by phone. There are over 500 Apple Stores around the world which provide top notch in person tech support. All that costs money. I’m willing to pay more for that.
4. OLED vs LED. A good OLED panel is more expensive than a good LED panel. I’m not talking about the lousy Pixel 2 XL panels but the high quality OLED panels such as the ones made by Samsung. So, Apple’s OLED phones are a new category of device which is naturally more expensive. A better price comparison is between the iPhone 8 (LED) and the iPhone Xr (LED). They are comparable in price. If I want a cheaper iPhone, I could buy a 7 or 8.
If I decide to buy an OLED iPhone, I understand that the price of the high quality of the OLED panel itself will raise the price of the phone.
Just like Ike there are some audiophiles for whom a $5000 amp actually does make a difference, I’m sure there are some people that will notice the difference, but I’m willing to bet that there are far more people who pay more because they want a better display but would never notice the difference.