Photo Shoot – Comparison of the iPhone XS Max and the iPhone X

Among all the changes made to the iPhone XS and the iPhone XS Max compared to the iPhone X, the camera has seen the biggest retail work of Apple , with changes such as a new sensor on the iPhone XS Max, a brand new depth control feature and a new Smart HDR feature that is one of the biggest improvements.

We decided to take our iPhone XS Max and our iPhone X to Couer d'Alene, Idaho, and take pictures to see how much the camera has improved.

High dynamic range comparison

Starting from a selfie photo in harsh lighting conditions, both phones performed well. The iPhone XS Max had a better dynamic range. Part of the color in the sky is faded on the iPhone X.

To take a closer look, the iPhone XS Max is more detailed.

Pulling on the sun, the iPhone XS Max does a lot better in terms of dynamic range. He is also able to bring more color into the picture.

On a portrait mode photo against the sun, the subject's face on the iPhone X's image is extremely underexposed. On the iPhone XS Max, there is clearly more detail not only on the subject, but also on the environment.

Both phones do a great job with dynamic dynamics and sharpness. Interestingly, the broad lens of the iPhone XS Max has a wider field of view than that of the iPhone X, at the same distance from the subject and with the same zoom.

In this picture, we also see quite significant improvements in the dynamic range. The arms have a more linear exposure on the iPhone XS Max, although the background exposure is the same with both phones.

Portrait mode and depth control

With the new depth control feature on the iPhone XS and the iPhone XS Max, we can now adjust the depth of the background. This also regulates bokeh, which we will show you a little later.

The default setting is F4.5, but changing to F2.8 significantly improves the blur. F1.4 is the maximum and this really makes the photo stand out compared to the series of photos taken on the iPhone X.

Apple's new depth control feature offers an extremely wide range of adjustments from F16 to F1.4. It's much wider in practice, compared to other phones like the Samsung Galaxy Note 9, which can not go from its own scale to zero to seven in terms of blur in the background, which we assume to be order of F10 to F2.0.

Even images of objects like a wooden post may look better when blur is enabled on the XS Max. Here is the maximum distance at which you can take a picture in portrait mode.

There is also a huge difference in the dynamic range. The background of the iPhone X is extremely overexposed. The iPhone XS Max easily keeps the photo in balance and retains all the details.

The shots we took are very close to the minimum distance at which you can take a portrait shot – and they are uncomfortably close.

Selfie portrait photos look great on the iPhone X and iPhone XS Max, the iPhone XS Max offers more details. You can also adjust the depth of selfie portrait photos, which you can not do on other phones like the Galaxy Note 9.

With portrait photography in low light, the XS Max has many more colors. Although the white balance of the iPhone XS Max is colder than that of the iPhone X, the iPhone XS Max's bokeh is warmer, closer to its actual appearance.

Automatic comparison of the automatic exposure speed

We noticed that the iPhone X had undergone drastic changes in exposure while the iPhone XS Max adjustments were very fluid and sought after as uninteresting. In addition, the dynamics on the XS Max was far superior to that of the iPhone X during this test.

Photo detail comparison

When taking close-up photos of plants and flowers, the details were similar on both phones. However, the images of the iPhone XS Max seemed more balanced and a little flat compared to the photos of the iPhone X, which had more contrast, which made them more detailed.

In a close up of a tree, the iPhone XS Max had an extremely accurate white balance, where the picture of the iPhone X looked too cool. We also noticed a lot more details with the iPhone XS Max.

On more detailed plans, the XS Max has produced brighter colors on the flowers and in the sky, while maintaining an extended dynamic range.

With the telephoto lens, significant improvements have also been made to the details. The XS Max continued to bring out more colors in the sky and plants than the iPhone X has ever had.

With a normal selfie photo, the dynamic range of both phones was excellent, but the face of the iPhone XS Max was much more detailed, which shows that the details have been improved in every way.

Photo comparison in low light

Moving inland, we see an even bigger difference in the dynamic range. As you can see in this picture, the lamp and the table are extremely blown on the iPhone X. In addition, the iPhone X applies much more softening to the image than the IPhone XS Max, which you can see on the pants.

The iPhone XS Max presents an incredibly large dynamic range, and you can see every little detail of the painting.

An even greater difference in the dynamic range has been demonstrated in a dark environment with very bright lights at a distance. The picture of the iPhone XS Max was overall more balanced and you could see more colors and details in the background.

We found the darkest place we could find and took a picture. There was significantly less noise on the iPhone XS Max image, and it has many more details. We can also see how wide the lens is wider on the iPhone XS Max than on the iPhone X.

Later in the evening, we took a picture of the night sky with buildings and bright lights in the foreground. The iPhone XS Max has done better in terms of dynamic range, but we are still not completely satisfied.

Finally, we took a poorly lit portrait photo in the office to compare the blur. The colors of the bokeh on the iPhone XS Max were true to reality and the tree was properly exposed. After setting the depth of the iPhone XS Max on F1.4, the bokeh looks even better.

You can easily know how Apple deforms and rotates the bokeh balls according to the location in the frame. However, the increase in background blurring has a disadvantage: all problems with fuzzy edges become more noticeable.

The best iPhone camera to date

Overall, we are extremely impressed by the changes made by Apple to the camera in the XS & XS Max, after not expecting to start with big differences in performance. Given this performance increase, upgrades coming from an iPhone 6S or from an iPhone 7 Plus – the market on which Apple seems to aim the most – will see a monumental increase.

Offers on the iPhone X, XS and XS Max

If you have not yet ordered the Apple iPhone XS or XS Max, wireless service providers encourage buying by buying one, get a discount of $ 700 and up. Do you want to get your hands on a new iPhone as soon as possible? EBay sellers are also shipping units now.

Transport offers:

• AT & T Wireless: Buy an iPhone XS or iPhone XS Max, get a second discount of $ 700 when you add a line.
• Verizon Wireless: Buy an iPhone XS or iPhone XS Max, get a second discount of $ 700 when you add a line. Or save $ 100 with an eligible exchange.
• Sprint: Get the iPhone XS 64GB for $ 0 a month with eligible takeover and Sprint Flex lease.
• T-Mobile: Save up to $ 300 on the iPhone XS with an eligible iPhone exchange.

Those wishing to save $ 100 on the iPhone X can also do it at Verizon Wireless, AT & T Wireless, T-Mobile and Sprint.