How to choose between the iPhone 11 Pro, 11 Pro Max, and 11
![a close up of a knife: Phil Schiller, Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing presents the new iPhone 11 Pro at an Apple event at their headquarters in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 10, 2019. REUTERS/Stephen Lam]({"default":{"load":"default","w":"80","h":"53","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/AAH68bG.img?h=1066&w=1598&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=2482&y=1825"},"dpi":2,"size3column":{"load":"default","w":"62","h":"42","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/AAH68bG.img?h=834&w=1248&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=2482&y=1825"},"size2column":{"load":"default","w":"62","h":"42","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/AAH68bG.img?h=834&w=1248&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=2482&y=1825"}})
More than any other iPhone event in recent memory, today's big launch was content-first. Apple began the show with several gaming demos from Arcade, before moving along to TV+ premieres. The new iPhone didn’t necessarily take a backseat, but there’s little question that this event was a key piece in shifting messaging for the company.
The big announcement also saw a shift in iPhone positioning against a backdrop of declining smartphone sales. There are a number of reasons why device sales are down across the board, of course — I along with everyone else in the industry have written about them dozens if not hundreds of times. Price creep is a big one, and the iPhone 11finds the company readjusting accordingly.
The device takes the spot of the R line — a big seller for Apple. This time the entry-level “flagship” is $699, while the Pro and Pro Max step in for the premium-tier devices, priced at $999 and $1,099, respectively. Apple set those prices with the iPhone X two years ago and hasn’t looked back.
Apple has also really settled into a style. The 11s are virtually indistinguishable from their predecessors, head on. The screens have been souped-up to "Super Retina XDR" on the Pros. Both are 458 PPI, at 5.8 and 6.5 inches, respectively.
![a group of people looking at a phone: Apple iPhone 11]({"default":{"load":"default","w":"80","h":"53","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/AAH61QZ.img?h=1066&w=1598&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=1547&y=905"},"dpi":2,"size3column":{"load":"default","w":"62","h":"42","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/AAH61QZ.img?h=832&w=1248&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=1547&y=905"},"size2column":{"load":"default","w":"62","h":"42","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/AAH61QZ.img?h=832&w=1248&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=1547&y=905"}})
© Provided by Oath Inc. Apple iPhone 11
The notch remains, even as companies like Samsung push into a subtler cut-out model (not to mention all of those companies currently experimenting with pop-up cameras). Ditto, unfortunately, for the Lightning port. Apple’s ditched it for USB-C on the iPad Pro and, honestly, I can’t wait for it to follow suit on the iPhone. I go through what feels like a Lightning cable a month, due to wear and tear on the connection.
That will have to wait until 2020 (fingers crossed). So, too, will 5G, though the company did allude to “faster cellular” in a quick rundown of all the features it didn’t have time to announce onstage. Ditto for the rumored improved FaceTime camera. That should work faster and from more angles, so you’ll (theoretically) be able to check messages while the phone is laying flush on a table. Huge, if true.