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00:00These are the most expensive iPhones Apple have ever made.
00:05Some might say they're even a little bit excessive.
00:10Excessive, no.
00:13Hey guys, I'm Tom, a tech chap,
00:15and this is the new iPhone XS, and this is the XS Max.
00:20Now, terrible names aside,
00:22if you're looking to buy a new top-of-the-line iPhone,
00:25which one of these two should you go for?
00:27I love listening to audiobooks,
00:29especially when I'm driving or on the train,
00:31which is why I've teamed up with Audible,
00:33who are kindly sponsoring this video.
00:35I'm about halfway through the X-Files at the moment,
00:38don't judge me,
00:39which is one of their exclusive Audible Originals.
00:42You can actually get two Audible Originals,
00:44plus any book from their huge library, completely free,
00:48if you use my link in the description
00:49or go to audible.com slash tech chap,
00:52and sign up for a free 30-day trial.
00:54Stay tuned to the end of the video
00:56to find out more about Audible,
00:58but for now, let's get back to the iPhones.
01:00So obviously, the biggest difference
01:02between these two is the size.
01:04The XS has a 5.8-inch display
01:07versus 6.5 inches on the XS Max.
01:11Aside from that, the screens are identical.
01:13They both have True Tone OLED panels
01:15with the same 458 PPI sharpness
01:18and support for Dolby Vision and HDR10 High Dynamic Range,
01:22and they both still have the notch,
01:23which means when you're watching YouTube videos
01:25or Netflix movies,
01:26you have some pretty chunky pillar boxing going on,
01:28unless, of course, you zoom in,
01:30but then the notch kind of gets in the way.
01:32Now, you probably wouldn't believe it
01:33just by looking at them,
01:35but the Max does actually have
01:36ever so slightly thinner bezels.
01:39You get a 84.4% screen-to-body ratio on the Max
01:42versus 82.9 on the XS,
01:46but you really can't tell.
01:48It's funny, the first time I actually picked these up
01:51and used them side by side,
01:52I thought the XS Max was huge,
01:55but after a few minutes,
01:55after getting to grips with them a little bit,
01:58actually, it feels like the XS is the one that's small.
02:01I've been using quite a few big phones recently,
02:03like the OnePlus 6 and the Galaxy Note 9,
02:06so for me, the XS Max actually feels like a...
02:10Shut up, Twitter.
02:11So for me, the XS Max actually feels like a better size,
02:15and if you're coming from an iPhone Plus model,
02:17the 6 Plus, 7 Plus, 8 Plus,
02:19the XS Max feels just the same size in the hand.
02:22They're both 7.7 millimeters thick,
02:25but the Max is 6.5 millimeters wider
02:29and 14 millimeters taller.
02:32So next to each other, that's quite a big difference,
02:34but personally, I do prefer the size of the Max,
02:37although as I say, I am used to slightly bigger phones.
02:40If you can, though, I would pop into an Apple store,
02:42try them for yourself,
02:43because really that's the only way
02:45you'll get a good impression.
02:47What I was most surprised about, though,
02:48and actually slightly disappointed, I guess,
02:51is that even though you have all this extra screen real
02:54estate on the XS Max,
02:56it's not really used to any great effect.
02:58There's no user interface difference between them.
03:01Obviously, everything is bigger,
03:03and games and movies do feel more immersive,
03:06but you don't get anything extra.
03:07You can't use it horizontally,
03:09something previous Plus models could do,
03:11and going on to Instagram or Twitter,
03:13you don't actually see any more posts.
03:15It's just enlarged.
03:16And of course, performance is identical.
03:18They both ship with iOS 12.
03:20They both use the new A12 Bionic chip
03:22and have four gigs of RAM.
03:24In Geekbench 4,
03:25they scored within a couple of percent of each other,
03:27so no real substantial difference in speed.
03:30But if you're watching movies or playing games,
03:32like Asphalt 9, which just looks stunning on these phones,
03:35between the two, I do prefer the Max.
03:38It's not only faster,
03:39but the bigger screen does just make it feel more immersive
03:42and more enjoyable.
03:43So far then, the only real difference is the size,
03:46but actually, the Max does have one more trick
03:49up its sleeve.
03:50Well, a bigger battery up its sleeve.
03:52The XS has a 2,658 million power cell
03:56versus 3,174 on the XS Max.
04:01Neither of those batteries sound big,
04:03especially compared to the Huawei P20 Pro
04:05or the Galaxy Note 9
04:06with their massive 4,000 million power cells,
04:09but iPhones have always been more optimized.
04:12And actually, the XS Max lasts longer than my Note 9,
04:15but I'll come back to that in a different video.
04:18After one hour of gaming,
04:19one hour of watching YouTube videos,
04:21and one hour of listening to Audible,
04:23the XS had 68% of its battery remaining
04:26versus 71% on the Max.
04:29In real-world use, I found this translates
04:31to about an extra hour of battery life per day,
04:34which is pretty much bang on what Apple claims.
04:36At the end of a normal day,
04:37I have about 30% left on my XS and about 34% on the Max,
04:42so it's not a major difference.
04:44It's probably not a big enough reason
04:45to buy the Max over the XS alone, but it is a nice bonus.
04:50So the big upgrades this year
04:52really are the A12 processors and the better cameras,
04:55with both phones offering significantly better dynamic range
04:58in photos compared to last year's iPhone X.
05:01But there's no difference between the XS and the XS Max.
05:03They have exactly the same cameras.
05:07I don't know, I just felt
05:08there would be more to it than this.
05:09The XS Max really is just a bigger XS
05:12with a slightly better battery life.
05:14Now, as for the price, as you'd expect,
05:16these are ludicrously expensive.
05:18The XS Max starts at $1,000 for the 64-gig model
05:22versus 1,100 for the XS Max.
05:25So actually, there is only a $100 difference between them.
05:29I think I would go with the Max.
05:32I'm used to bigger phones,
05:34and I do like to watch movies and play games on it,
05:36and that bigger screen does just feel better
05:39to do those things on.
05:40And actually, in the scheme of things,
05:41a $100 difference isn't a whole lot more,
05:44and that extra hour of battery is a nice extra.
05:47I hope you enjoyed the video.
05:48Hit that like and subscribe button if you did,
05:50and I'll see you guys next time right here on The Tech Chat.
05:53So I listened to Ready Player One
05:55as an audiobook on Audible before I watched the movie.
05:59I definitely prefer the book.
06:01Audible is a lifesaver when I'm traveling or commuting.
06:04They've got such a huge library of audiobooks,
06:06and I can just download them to my phone, and away I go.
06:10It'll suggest new titles based on what I like,
06:11it saves my place so I can come back to it whenever I can,
06:14and there's just so much variety,
06:16including their awesome Audible Originals,
06:18which is a new range of exclusive titles.
06:21All I'd say is give it a try.
06:22Sign up for a free 30-day trial
06:24by going to audible.com slash techchat,
06:27or click on the link in the description,
06:28or text techchat to 500-500 if you're in the US
06:32to get a free book and two free Audible Originals.
06:36So a big thanks to Audible for sponsoring this video.
06:38Go and check it out, and I'll see you guys next time.
06:41So a big thanks to Audible for sponsoring this video.