IPhone XR mah capacity. Battery life and Verdict

iPhone XR Battery life – Excellent endurance

If I was to pick one standout feature with the iPhone XR, it would be the battery life. It’s comfortably the longest-lasting iPhone Apple has released in 2018, and the first to equal the iPhone Plus series phones for endurance. it’s slightly behind the new iPhone 11 Pro Max, though.

After taking the phone off charge at 8am, the iPhone XR will easily see me through to midnight without requiring low-power mode and with roughly 30% remaining. That’s with multiple email accounts, photos constantly being backed up, and the usual array of browsing, messaging, gaming and calls.

Standby time is great too, so even with 30% left at night, it’ll only drop a couple of percentage points overnight.

In Trusted Reviews’ more synthetic selection of battery tests, the iPhone XR still impressed. An hour of Netflix ate through 4-5% and 8% after about 30 minutes of Asphalt 9. All these tests were carried out with the display set to automatic, and with the usual array of settings you’d expect to have turned on: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and cellular.

Even though it’s become commonplace for even budget Android phones to ship with a fast charger, the iPhone XR still comes with a disappointing 5W plug. That’s the same plug you’d have got with the iPhone 3G.

If you want to enable fast charging (something the phone does actually support), then you’ll have to splurge on both a higher-wattage plug and a USB-C to Lightning cable. There’s no excuse for not including this, even with the new reduced price.

The lack of fast charging means charging times can be up to three hours to go from zero to 100%. And it’s not the kind of phone that can be plugged in for a couple of minutes and receive a notable battery boost. This is one area where the iPhone XR feels behind the times. Qi wireless charging is here and, while it’s easy to plonk the phone down on a pad to get some juice, it’s again very slow.

Why buy the iPhone XR?

The iPhone XR is an excellent phone now at an even better price. It offers a lot of the features of the new iPhone 11 and even comes in some colours you might prefer.

Some might argue the screen lacks a high resolution. While they’re not wrong, the display here is still nice and colourful. The camera also isn’t as good as the dual-lens array on the iPhone 11.

For a similar price, there are plenty of competing Android phones. The OnePlus 7T lacks the camera prowess of the XR, yet it’s expected to come in cheaper and with 128GB storage. There’s also the Pixel 3A, which is cheaper than the XR and has a better camera.

But if you’re on the lookout for an iPhone and don’t want to completely break the bank, then this is the one to go for.

Verdict

Still a great all-round iPhone. Though if you can afford it go for the iPhone 11 due to its better camera.

Why the iPhone XR has the Best Battery Life of the New iPhone X Series

If you care about battery life on your iPhone, you may want to take a closer look at the XR.

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If you care about battery life on your iPhone, you may want to take a closer look at the XR. It has the best battery life of any iPhone before it, despite being the most affordable in the new lineup.

So, how does it offer the best battery life compared to the other new devices? This is thanks to a couple of things.

A Closer Look at the Battery Capacities

Recent filings have exposed the battery capacity for each of the new iPhone models:

By comparison, the original X has a 2,716 mAh battery, the iPhone 8 has 1,821 mAh battery, and the 8 Plus packs a 2,675 mAh battery.

So, the XR has a larger battery than the original X, the 8, and even the 8 Plus. This makes the fact that it has a claimed improvement of 90 minutes over the 8 Plus unsurprising.

But according to Apple, the XR’s battery life matches the XS Max on most counts, and even surpasses it in others, despite having a smaller battery. For example, Apple claims the XS Max gets 25 hours of talk time, 13 hours of internet use, 15 hours of video playback, and 65 hours of audio playback. By comparison, the XR matches all of those numbers, save for one: it gets 16 hours of video playback.

It may seem like a minor difference, but better battery life is still better battery life-even if this is a best-case, theoretical scenario.

So How Does the XR Achieve the Best Battery Life Yet in an iPhone?

Despite the XS and XS Max both having much more efficient OLED displays, the LCD-packing XR still manages to best both models when it comes to theoretical battery usage.

It makes sense when compared to the XS-the XR has a larger battery. But what about when compared to the XS Max?

For that, we have to take a closer look at the display itself. Despite having a traditionally more power-hungry LCD, the XR uses the panel to its advantage to improve battery life. How? With the display resolution.

Where the XS Max has a 2688×1242 display resolution (458 PPI), the XR sticks to a 1792×828 (326 PPI) panel. This means that despite having a panel that uses more power, the CPU and GPU don’t have to work as hard to push the pixels to the display.

The XR’s display is comparable to the iPhone 8’s 1334×750 panel, which comes in at an identical 326 PPI. But, thanks to its bigger footprint, Apple was able to use a battery that’s almost 1,000 mAh larger than what’s in the iPhone 8, though it’s only slightly larger than the battery in the 8 Plus (about 300 mAh difference).

But again, thanks to the lower PPI in the XR compared to the 8 Plus-326 vs. 401-Apple was able to achieve the best battery life it’s ever had in an iPhone.

The question you have to ask yourself is whether or not you’ll even be able to tell the difference in display density. Research indicates that the human eye can’t discern anything beyond 300 PPI, so the odds are-unless you’re really looking-you won’t miss those extra pixels.

Just something to consider when trying to decide which new iPhone you should buy. The XR continues to show why it could be the best bang for your buck out of the new iPhones.

iPhone 12 vs iPhone XR: two years is a long time in smartphones

Has much changed between the iPhone XR and the iPhone 12?

As our iPhone 12 review explains, this phone represents a stark departure from its predecessors, courtesy of a completely refreshed design and some notably improved components.

So while our iPhone XR review was very positive, many owners of that phone will be due for an upgrade, and the iPhone 12 is one phone that’s likely to be in their crosshairs. So how much of a step up does the iPhone 12 present? And is the iPhone XR still a viable purchase in 2022?

The two-year gap between the release of these handsets represents a long time in the smartphone world. Our iPhone 12 vs iPhone XR comparison will show whether Apple has put that development time to good use. or whether you should consider one of the other best iPhones.

iPhone 12 vs iPhone XR: price and availability

The iPhone 12 landed in shops on October 23, 2020. for Apple’s current flagship range from 799 / £799 / AU1,349 for the 64GB model, to 949 / £949 / AU1,599 for 256GB. The 128GB model tucked in-between costs 849 / £849 / AU1,429.

Two years prior to the iPhone 12 hitting shops, the iPhone XR went on sale. From October 26, 2018, you could grab the 64GB model for 749 / £749 / AU1229, the 128GB model for 799 / £799 / AU1299 for 128GB, and the 256GB model for 899 / £899 / AU1479.

If you think this is a nostalgic look back at an obsolete phone, think again. Apple is still offering the iPhone XR as new, with the 64GB model costing 499 / £499 / AU849 and the 128GB model available for 549 / £549 / AU929. This makes it the cheapest large-screen iPhone in the range.

It also means that a brand-new 64GB iPhone XR costs a not-inconsiderable 300 / £300 / AU500 less than a brand-new 64GB iPhone 12. It’s a rare and precious win for the creaking iPhone XR.

iPhone 12 vs iPhone XR: design

That difference of two years between these two phones is apparent when you look at the devices side by side. In fact, you could say that gap appears even wider.

At the time of the iPhone XR’s arrival, its soft, rounded design was starting to become stale. We first saw this look with the iPhone 6 in 2014, and it was only modestly revised with the iPhone X in 2017.

In our review, we noted that the iPhone XR was essentially an all-screen version of the iPhone 7 and the iPhone 8 – which is fitting description. We also pointed out that the XR was a lot chunkier than its more premium sibling of the time, the iPhone XS.

Measuring 150.9 x 75.7 x 8.3mm, and with a weight of 194g, the XR is certainly far chunkier than the iPhone 12. Apple’s latest phone is a relatively diminutive 146.7 x 71.5 x 7.4mm, and it weighs just 164g.

Despite being slimmer and lighter, the iPhone 12 appears to be more rugged than the XR. Its IP68 rating makes it more water-tight than the IP67-certified iPhone XR, while Apple’s new nano-crystalline Ceramic Shield screen delivers four times the drop-resistance.

The iPhone 12 also sports a far more stylish and unique design. While plenty of comparisons have been made with the iPhone 4, the iPhone 12’s perfectly flat edges and sharp corners stand out a mile in this curve-obsessed smartphone landscape.

When it comes to colors, the iPhone XR offers a choice of six: Yellow, White, Coral, Black, Blue, and Product Red. That’s one more than the iPhone 12’s Black, White, Red, Green, and Blue – although the latter signature color, in particular, is an alluringly deep tone.

iPhone 12 vs iPhone XR: display

Despite the discrepancy in body size, the iPhone 12 display and the iPhone XR display are exactly the same size. Both measure 6.1 inches corner-to-corner, which is generally considered small-to-medium in today’s wider smartphone market.

The shared 60Hz refresh rate – which really is unforgivable in the case of the iPhone 12 at a time when rivals offer 120Hz – is where the similarities end. The iPhone 12 display is leagues ahead of its older sibling.

The iPhone 12 display is a Super Retina XDR OLED, while the iPhone XR’s is a Liquid Retina IPS LCD. Breaking those arcane terms down, the iPhone 12’s 2532 x 1170 Super Retina is sharper than the iPhone XR’s 1792 X 828 Liquid Retina – and by some margin.

Even more consequential is the iPhone 12 display’s OLED attributes, as opposed to the iPhone XR’s use of old IPS LCD technology. This ensures the newer phone delivers far punchier yet more natural colors, as well as truer blacks and infinitely higher color contrast.

Like we said, it would have been nice to see the iPhone 12 stretch its legs when it comes to refresh rate. But make no mistake, the display on this device is superior by an order of magnitude, with the iPhone XR left looking rather dated.

iPhone 12 vs iPhone XR: camera

The iPhone 12 has been a huge step up from the iPhone XR so far, and that gap doesn’t decrease when it comes to their respective photographic capabilities.

The iPhone 12 features two 12-megapixel cameras to the iPhone XR’s one. Besides the usual wide lens, the iPhone 12 also gets a 12-megapixel ultra-wide with an f/2.4 aperture. As a result, it can capture those sweeping landscape shots that simply aren’t possible with the XR.

The secondary sensor also aids the iPhone 12’s portrait mode, with the additional depth data resulting in a more accurate separation of the subject and background. The iPhone XR has to do all of this in software, and it’s a lesser alternative.

The iPhone 12’s main 12-megapixel image sensor is accompanied by an f/1.6 aperture, while the iPhone XR has a narrower (although by no means narrow) f/1.8 equivalent. Both benefit from OIS, however.

When it comes to shot quality, the iPhone 12 wins in every respect – and this has little to do with their respective lenses or sensors. With Apple’s improved algorithms and the image-crunching advances of the A14 Bionic chip (more on that in a bit), shots taken with the iPhone 12 tend to be brighter, sharper, and more natural-looking. Advanced features such as Smart HDR 3 ensure that the iPhone 12’s images pack superior dynamic range, too, so you’ll be able to rein in those bright skies and shadowy bushes.

Night mode is a huge distinction here, enabling the iPhone 12 to take spookily sharp images in extremely low-light conditions. The iPhone XR doesn’t even have access to this magical mode; Night mode made its debut in the following year’s iPhone 11.

Both phones shoot crisp 4K 60fps video, but the iPhone 12 wins again with advanced features such as Dolby Vision for better dynamic range.

iPhone 12 vs iPhone XR: specs and performance

Apple routinely improves the power of its phones by around 20% year-on-year. To put it crudely, then, we can expect the iPhone 12 to be around 40 to 50% faster than the iPhone XR.

The iPhone 12 runs on Apple’s latest A14 Bionic CPU, while the iPhone XR is powered by the A12 Bionic. While Apple doesn’t talk about memory, we know from teardowns that the iPhone 12 is backed by 4GB of RAM to the iPhone XR’s 3GB.

It creates a sizeable advantage, but the question lingers over how meaningful that performance gap is, aside from those aforementioned image-processing improvements. Apple consistently builds ample headroom into its phones, which means that a two-year-old iPhone XR continues to run fast and smooth.

It also means that, in 2021, there isn’t an app or task that can really make the iPhone XR stumble. Perhaps the latest 3D games won’t be at their absolute smoothest or most visually alluring on the older phone, but you can bet that they’ll still run well, barring the odd stutter.

Of course, the iPhone 12 has that same headroom built into its performance, which means that it will remain fast and smooth long after the iPhone XR starts creaking and groaning. Around two years longer, if we were to hazard a guess.

In terms of storage, both phones offer 64GB as standard. Like that shared 60Hz screen refresh rate, this is a lot more forgivable in the iPhone XR than it is in the iPhone 12.

Both handsets also offer options for 128GB and 256GB of storage, although Apple has removed the 256GB iPhone XR from the equation on its official online store.

One big spec difference that’s only going to become more meaningful over time is the iPhone 12’s 5G connectivity. The ability to hook into the latest mobile network might not appear to be a killer app today, especially if you live in a rural or suburban area that’s still wholly reliant on 3G and 4G – but that’s changing rapidly.

iPhone 12 vs iPhone XR: battery life

When Apple launched the iPhone XR, it claimed that it offered the best battery life ever in an iPhone. We found that to be true at the time, but we didn’t expect that the case would continue to be made for the phone two years later.

Apple has arguably taken a step back with the stamina of its smartphones in recent years. That’s perfectly illustrated by comparing the iPhone 12 to the iPhone XR. We specifically noted in our review that the iPhone 12 simply didn’t last as long as the iPhone XR between charges.

Both handsets will get you through a day of moderate use, but the iPhone XR will do so with considerably more headroom. If you’re fairly frugal with your usage, the older phone may even get you through a second day.

There are a couple of reasons for this performance shortfall in the newer device. For one, the iPhone 12’s battery is smaller than the iPhone XR’s, at 2815mAh compared to 2942mAh.

Another crucial difference is between the two displays. The iPhone 12 pumps out way more pixels than the iPhone XR, which inevitably takes its toll on battery life.

Finally, there’s that matter of 5G connectivity. Hooking into the intermittent broadband-like speeds of 5G (and typically back to 4G again in short order) really takes it out of a tiny smartphone battery. It’s early days for the next-gen network, and phone manufacturers are having to adapt to its mercurial capabilities.

Both phones support wireless charging, although the iPhone 12 supports faster 12W compared to the iPhone XR’s 7.5W. Fast 20W wired charging is also possible with the iPhone 12, with the iPhone XR restricted to 15W.

iPhone Battery Sizes (mAh) – iPhone 3GS to iPhone 13

Apple’s iPhone has developed rapidly over the course of the last decade. You have changes to how it functions, near-constant changes to its CPU, updates to its camera tech, and changes in its features.

Apple has also radically altered the design of its iPhone a couple of times too; the latest iteration saw the removal of the home button with the iPhone X.

As technology has developed, increased demands have been placed on iPhone. And one particular area has had to continually grow – the iPhone’s battery.

Over the years, from the iPhone 3G to the iPhone 13, the battery sizes used inside iPhones have changed massively. As you can see in the table below, there has been a huge jump in size for iPhone batteries since 2007…

iPhone Battery Sizes – iPhone 3GS to iPhone 13

iPhone 13 Resource Hub: All The Latest News, Updates, Pricing Guides

With the iPhone 13, Apple really doubled down on battery performance, adding in larger batteries across the board. The reason this was done was that the iPhone 12’s battery performance just wasn’t up to the task, thanks to the power-draining effects of 5G.

With the iPhone 13 range, Apple increased the physical sizes of the batteries to ensure better performance. It worked too. The iPhone 13 range boasts vastly superior battery performance than the iPhone 12, especially on the Pro and Pro Max models.

The first “large” iPhone was the iPhone 6 Plus and it carried the biggest battery ever fitted inside an iPhone at the time, a 2915mAh.

The increase in battery size was required to power the iPhone 6 Plus’s larger display which, because of its increased size and resolution, had more pixels to power.

From the iPhone 6 Plus to the iPhone 8 Plus, we see a steady increase in the overall size of batteries used inside both Plus and standard iPhone models – from 2915mAh in the 6s Plus to 2675mAh in the iPhone 8 Plus.

As you’d expect, each incremental increase in battery size brought with it palpable improvements to overall battery life on Apple’s handsets.

Apple’s iPhone 11 range was the first iPhone to break the 3000mAh barrier; the iPhone 11 uses a 3110mAh battery, while the iPhone 11 Pro Max uses a 3969mAh battery, the largest ever used inside an iPhone.

And this, combined with Apple’s exceptional A13 chipset, is why battery life is so good on Apple’s latest iPhone range.

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Do Larger iPhones Have Better Battery Life?

When something gets bigger, it needs more energy – this applies to car engines, human bodies, and iPhones.

The rise of phablet-sized iPhones, beginning with the iPhone 6 Plus, was the first instance where a larger-than-normal battery was used inside an iPhone. This trend has continued with Apple’s Pro and Pro Max models.

The iPhone 13 Pro Max features the largest battery ever fitted to an iPhone; it uses a massive 4353mAh battery.

And the reason for this is simple: larger displays use more power, so you need a sizable battery to power them. Ditto 5G.

And back then, Apple’s large, flagship phones were using LCD displays.

LCD displays require that every pixel on the screen is powered (OLED is different; black pixels don’t require any power), so when you increase the size of them by an inch, you have to increase the capacity of the battery too, or else you’d have terrible battery life.

I remember when I first tested the iPhone 6 Plus; it blew my mind! I’d never used an iPhone before that I could use all day and not worry about its battery life.

Prior to the iPhone 6 Plus, Apple’s iPhones, while great, all required top-ups throughout the day on account of their small-sized batteries.

The iPhone 6 Plus used a properly massive battery (at the time) and its effect was immediately palpable – all-day usage without making much of a dent in the battery life.

From here, Apple’s gradually been making improvements to the iPhone’s battery life, adding in more performance and increased longevity.

However, it wasn’t until the release of the iPhone 11 that solid battery life across all models became a reality.

Prior to the iPhone 11, if you wanted the best battery life, you HAD to go with the Plus model version.

As of 2019, Apple’s nailed the battery life problem. The iPhone 11, Apple’s entry-level model, had some of the best battery performance of any phone on the market right now. This changed with the iPhone 12 and 5G; the iPhone 12’s battery life sucked. But Apple fixed this with its iPhone 13 models.

And the larger, OLED-using iPhone 13 Pro Max has the best battery life ever seen on an iPhone.

This, along with a host of other reasons, is why Apple’s latest iPhone 13 range is by far and away the best iPhones Apple has released in years.

Which iPhone Has The Best Battery Life?

If you want the best of the best when it comes to battery life, Apple’s iPhone 13 range, specifically the 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max, is 100% where it’s at – the new A15 chipset and larger battery sizes deliver the best battery performance ever seen inside an iPhone.

The iPhone 11 range represented the first time Apple has used 3000mAh batteries inside its iPhones. With the iPhone 13, Apple upped the ante once again, adding in 4000mAh batteries on the 13 Pro Max.

If you want the best battery life performance, get the iPhone 13 Pro Max.

iPhone Battery Lifespan – How Long Do They Last?

Each iPhone battery has a lifespan; you get a certain amount of charges, and then things start to degrade.

Apple doesn’t offer up much information on this, however, though its most official statement on the subject claims after 13 months of use your iPhone’s battery life will have lost about 20% of its true potential.

iPhone batteries use Lithium-ion technology; the chemicals used in these types of batteries degrade over time. This is what is referred to as the battery’s lifespan.

The longer you use your iPhone, and the more you charge it from 0% to 100%, the shorter its lifespan becomes.

After years of this cycle, you will eventually have to replace the battery or get a new iPhone; the battery will no longer be able to perform properly.

It varies, but you will start to notice it after the three-year mark and from here it will get progressively worse until the phone dies completely.

“As lithium-ion batteries chemically age,” said Apple, “the amount of charge they can hold diminishes, resulting in shorter amounts of time before a device needs to be recharged. This can be referred to as the battery’s maximum capacity—the measure of battery capacity relative to when it was new. In addition, a battery’s ability to deliver maximum instantaneous performance, or “peak power,” may decrease.”

It added: “When the operations can no longer be supported with the full capabilities of the power management system, the system will perform a shutdown to preserve these electronic components. While this shutdown is intentional from the device perspective, it may be unexpected by the user.”

How To Replace iPhone Battery

If your iPhone’s lithium-ion battery dies, you can get it replaced. Apple recommends that you do it officially, via its battery replacement scheme.

If your iPhone is in warranty, there is no charge to replace the battery.

However, given the lifespan of lithium-ion batteries, this isn’t likely to be the case. Out of warranty, an iPhone battery replacement costs 69.

And to get it done, all you have to do is either visit an Apple Store or apply for it online.

What about third-party companies? You can use these to replace your iPhone’s battery life (or even do it yourself), but Apple DOES NOT recommend this.

Why? If something goes wrong your phone will be dead – and nothing will bring it back.

For this reason, it’s probably worth taking the 69 hit and getting it done officially by Apple.

A third-party battery refit won’t be much cheaper anyway.

If you’re in a position where your iPhone has become unusable because of its battery life, and you don’t want to pay full price for a new iPhone, perhaps it’s time you considered looking at buying a refurbished iPhone – they’re 40% cheaper than normal!