Apple's iPhone 11 2019 crop isn't be a breathtaking upgrade over the XR, XS and Max but it adds enough new features and under-the-hood specs improvements to stand up to Samsung's freshest juggernauts - Note 10 and 10+. What precisely?
Needless to say, no enhancements in screen resolution, RAM or battery capacities will ever measure an iPhone to a Note but that's not what Apple is having in mind. Read on our iPhone 11 Pro vs Note 10+ specs and features comparison to find out.
Note 10+ vs iPhone 11 Pro Max design
Samsung did wonders with the design of these two puppies. So much so that it managed to make a 6.3" Note 10 that is way smaller than the 6.5" iPhone XS Max, thanks to the Premium Hole Infinity design (we ain't even kidding) that shrunk the top bezel and increased screen-to-body ratio drastically.
The iPhone 11 Pro Max - yep, that's what it's called - is meanwhile slightly thicker and heavier, but with the same looks at the front as the XS Max. The back, though - well, just have a look.
The largest 2019 iPhone is slightly shorter, thicker and heavier than the Note 10+ but basically the same width. Samsung's unsurpassed screen-to-body ratio shines here and there will be much more display canvas to draw on than the difference in screen diagonals suggests.
Needless to say, Apple's Face ID module prevents it from reaching such display ratios, as Samsung opted for an in-display finger scanner when it comes to biometric identification, leaving a small equidistant from the edges front camera for selfie purposes.
Apple didn't try to chase the Note 10's most distinctive features with Pencil support on the 11 Max as rumored, and didn't introduce a "rainbow" finish option for the housing, similar to the Aura Glow finish on the Note 10 and 10+. On the contrary, it went with a funky textured matte finish, and a new Midnight Green option.
Note 10+ vs iPhone 11 Pro Max specs
As usual, one element the iPhone 2019 excels at is the processing power. Arriving with a second-gen 7nm process, the A13 chipset brings a performance boost that surpasses Samsung's new Exynos 9825 that is in the Note 10 and is made with the same process. While the Exynos is the current crowned king in synthetic benchmarks on the Android side, the A13 challenges it more than with the slight bump that the A12 enjoys now.
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Note 10+ 5G will have the ultimate upper hand before the iPhone 11 2019
Besides the S Pen functionality (and the amount of RAM, hehe), there is one area where the iPhone can't fight the Note 10 to save its life. In one fell swoop, Apple cut its self-inflicted Gordian knot of 5G modem supply and paid Qualcomm undisclosed amount to settle the patent litigation and secure a multi-year contract for 5G iPhones. Effective as of April 1, Qualcomm went for a six-year global patent license agreement with Apple, with the option to be extended for two more years, and a seemingly endless chipset supply contract.
The Note 10+ 5G's Verizon exclusivity would be the norm, however, not the exception. It won't be before the second half of 2020 when we see modems that support all of the 5G spectrum be integrated into chipsets like the Snapdragon 865, or whatever the Exynos and Kirin departments are cooking for next year. There is one more major mobile chipset maker out there that lucked out on 5G, though - Apple.
By lucked out we mean Apple's unwillingness or inability to solve its patent issues with Qualcomm sooner that deprived the 2019 iPhone 11 of 5G connectivity. Looking at the fragmented state of the next-gen networks in the US, and what is happening with the Note 10+ 5G availability, Apple might have been all the better to wait for next fall to introduce a 5G-enabled iPhone. That, plus the fact that the Note 10+ 5G starts off at $1300, and we shudder to think what an iPhone with mmWave modem would have cost had it been released next month.
Note 10+ vs iPhone 11 Pro Max camera features
Currently, the Note 10 and 10+ have the more versatile camera set, what with the wide-angle lens and the time-of-flight cameras that the iPhones don't have. The iPhone 11 Pro and its Max version, however, added ultrawide angle lenses for a tri-camera roster on the back of the Pro models.
Say what you will about its square "hotplate" design tucked in the top left corner of the rear, but if history is any indication, the 2019 iPhone 11 camera kit will be one of the most capable out there.
If Apple adds night mode and with the automatic wide-angle perspective correction and unsurpassed video editing, it should catch up to the Note 10, and then some. Actually, we can't wait to pit the Note 10+ against the iPhone 11 Max, Pixel 4, and the upcoming Mate 30 Pro, as these will be the most capable mobile cameras the world has ever seen.
The iPhone 11 Pro Max vs Note 10+ prices and release
The two phones share identical chipset production processes and they couldn't be more different in things like screen size and resolution, memory and storage, camera kits and extra features, but their prices don't differ all that much.
After all, $999 is a common psychological threshold now that nobody dares to exceed without a compelling reason, yet the best phones from Samsung and Apple do just that. The iPhone 11 trio goes for preorder on Friday, September 13, for a September 20 release. Can't wait to pit it against the Note 10 and Note 10+ soon thereafter.
128GB
256GB
512GB
Galaxy Note 10
-
$949
-
Galaxy Note 10+
-
$1099
$1199
Galaxy Note 10+ 5G (Verizon)
-
$1299
$1399
Apple iPhone 11 Pro
$999
$1149
$1349
Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max
$1099
$1249
$1449
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Daniel, a devoted tech writer at PhoneArena since 2010, has been engrossed in mobile technology since the Windows Mobile era. His expertise spans mobile hardware, software, and carrier networks, and he's keenly interested in the future of digital health, car connectivity, and 5G. Beyond his professional pursuits, Daniel finds balance in travel, reading, and exploring new tech innovations, while contemplating the ethical and privacy implications of our digital future.
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