Like previous S models, the iPhone 6S is almost identical to its predecessor, with only enhanced hardware and some ingenious features as an addition. It's a good device again, but not as revolutionary as Apple wants to believe us.
However, Apple was able to break its own sales record with the iPhone 6S . In the opening week, the company sold no less than 13 million copies of the 6S and 6S Plus, which makes the new iPhones better than the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus in the same time last year (10 million sold devices).
Thus, the new iPhone appears to be a success even before the release in the Benelux, despite the fact that it has become more expensive and offers little innovation at first sight. The fact that the 6S is based on its predecessor's strong base seems to be enough for many users to upgrade.
Design: New hardware in a famous jacket
For the design, you do not have to change your iPhone 6 at all for the 6S because there's hardly any change. The new iPhone is only available in a new color (rose gold) and a fraction has become thicker (0.2 millimeter) and heavier (143 versus 129 grams). In practice, however, you do not notice anything about it. We expected the extra weight to be detrimental, but the new iPhone is at least as handy as its predecessor.
The 6S has the same aluminum housing with rounded corners as its predecessor, with a low scratch-resistant glass on the front to prevent scratches. To prevent bendgate's last year's effects, Apple has also provided a stronger aluminum. This should prevent the housing from bending, even though this is normally impossible with normal use of the iPhone 6 . In addition, the housing is made of wear resistant.
Nice and familiar format
The only thing that betrays that we have a new iPhone here is the S logo at the back. Like its predecessor, the 6S has a sublime finish and a very nice size. The 4.7 inch screen is large enough to operate with one hand without any problems. Less about the design we find the antennas on the back and the camera lens that still protrudes. In spite of that, the iPhone is simply stable if you lay it flat on a table. The camera lens is also provided with sapphire glass, so you do not have to worry about scratches.
The iPhone 6S also feels familiar with the placement of buttons and inputs. On the left side you will find the volume keys and mute button, on the right the power button and SIM card lock, and at the bottom of the headphone and lightning jacks, microphone and speaker inputs. At the front of the unit is the home button with TouchID.
The 6S fingerprint scanner works more accurately than its predecessor, which is noticeable for example when unlocking the phone. The iOS homescreen then appears just faster. Also, when authorizing purchases in the App Store and logging in to apps like LastPass, your fingerprint is recognized faster.
The Fingerprint Scanner Works Faster And More Accurately
Screen Quality and Features
Like the iPhone 6, the 6S is available in two screen sizes. The regular model has a 4.7 inch resolution with 1334 by 750 pixels, while the larger iPhone 6S Plus (which we will discuss at a later time) does it with a 5.5 inch screen with a resolution of 1920 at 1080 pixels. In the picture below, you'll see the iPhone 6S (black) next to its predecessor from 2014 (white).
With regard to size and number of pixels per inch (326), the iPhone 6S has changed little and screen quality also has little difference with last year's model. The brightness and color reproduction are just as good, although the display of the 6S seems a bit more contrasting. However, this difference is so minimal that you only see it when you're laying the iPhone 6 and 6S side by side. The screen should also shrink less quickly in case of unforeseen fall; Convenient for users who care less carefully with their phones.
3D Touch: biggest innovation of the iPhone 6S
The screen of the iPhone 6S seems unchanged at first sight, but it offers something new in 3D Contrast. Apple grew up with this screen technology during the presentation of its new flagship, which allows the iPhone to distinguish the difference between hard and soft pressures. Below the screen are sensors that measure the distance between the glass and the backlight. Pressing the screen will change that distance and you can perform specific actions, with the new Taptic Engine providing you with vibration of feedback.
Previous iPhones could only distinguish the difference between long and short pressures, for example, when removing or rearranging apps. 3D Touch offers many more options, even though there are currently few apps outside Apple's own use. A good example is the camera. With a single tap, you open the app, but pressing on for a while will give you a vibe and a context-sensitive menu will appear. Then you can choose to make a selfie (slow motion) video or normal photo. Pressing the Maps app, you can quickly navigate home (see the picture above).
3d Touch Has A Lot Of Potential, But Does Not Work Anywhere
Do the same with Safari, which lets you quickly check your reading list and bookmarks or open a new (private) tab. In some cases, the shortcut menu is handy, though not all apps are working at all. Press hard on Facebook, WhatsApp or LinkedIn, for example, nothing happens. It's hoped that more developers soon optimize their apps for 3D Touch, because now it's unclear where you can and can not. In practice, therefore, you will more often open the app instead of pressing harder for a shortcut menu.
Incidentally, 3D Touch brings more than just quick menus. For example, if you use the mail app, you can get a preview of a message by pressing it a while. By pressing something harder, open the message. Similarly, you can view Mail and Safari on the left without leaving the current mail or page.
The so-called 'Peek' and 'Pop' (Open) get used to, but works because of the slight vibration you receive as a feedback. 3D Touch has a bit of a right click on the PC or Mac and we are very curious about what other features Apple and app developers are thinking about technology.
Powerful hardware and new camera
It will not surprise you that the new iPhone is again equipped with faster hardware. The 6S features the new A9 chip that, according to Apple, is twice as fast as the A8 in the iPhone 6. In addition, there's twice as much work-on-board memory (2GB), which must make switching between apps and features more smooth . The increase in speed is not dramatic; However, the iPhone 6S launches faster, loads websites faster, and commonly used apps if the camera is a faster startup. Additionally, the 6S seems to wake up faster if you press the home button, even though it may be the fingerprint scanner that works more accurately.
The games we've played run smoothly on the iPhone 6S, though there are no games that really make the device's hardware sweat. During the presentation, Apple used the Warhammer 40K Freeblade game to show the power of the new iPhone. The game that appears this fall contains options and effects that were previously unavailable. In addition, it's the first game that uses 3D Touch for control.
The Iphone 6s Does Not Feel Significantly Faster Than Its Predecessor
However, after a week of intensive use, we can say that the differences in speed between the iPhone 6S and 6 are not so big that you should run straight to the store to upgrade. Apple's flagship last year also feels very smooth and can run the latest apps and games without any problems. That device is also 110 euros cheaper, but lacks 3D Touch.
Camera options
In addition, the iPhone 6 on paper has a smaller camera than the one-year-old iPhone 6S. In the latter case, the 8 megapixel camera has been placed on the backside for 12 megapixels, while the front camera has received an even bigger upgrade: it now has a 5 instead of a 1.2 megapixel sensor.
We've been up to date with the refurbished cameras, and the 12 megapixel camera does not noticeably shoot better or worse photos. On rugged autumn days, the camera knows sharp, detailed and truthful images, but it was no different at the iPhone 6. However, the resolution of photos is larger, allowing you to zoom in without data loss. The quality is comparable, so the iPhone 6S is also at the top of smartphone cameras.
With the front camera the difference is a bit bigger. Self-portraits make the eyes sharper due to the higher resolution and are therefore much more useful. Also, the display can be used as a flash, which is useful when shooting in the dark, for example, when going out. When shooting the self-esteem, the image shines very sharply for a short while to better illuminate your face. This works surprisingly well especially in very dark situations.
In addition, you can now shoot with the front camera full-hd, while the camera at the back has got 4K mode. Thus, videos have significantly more detail, although the file size of a 4K video of course is greater. Unlike the 6S Plus, the regular model does not have optical but software image stabilization. As a result, motion blur in video clips is only partially captured. That's a pity, especially since many competing devices in this price range have long been provided with optical image stabilization.
Especially The Self-Camera Is Greatly Improved
Live Photos
By default, the new iPhone creates so-called Live Photos, with a video fragment being recorded one and a half second before and after the photo. The whole is bundled into a photo that can be brought to life with a push of a button. These pictures can be played in the gallery, but also as a background for the access screen, a Live Photo can be set.
Live Photos still get the most away from moving gifts that appear on forums and Twitter. Especially in times of high motion, such as during a sports game, it may be fun to make such a dynamic picture. Keep in mind that the photos take twice as much space. So do not be fooled when you shoot 60-70MB after shooting 10 photos.
Also, Live Photos are not yet really divisible. Only Facebook has announced to support the moving pictures in the future. If you want to share a Live Picture with someone who does not have iPhone 6S, you can only send him as a .mov video.
Live Photos Are A Little Extra, But Not Essential Yet
Another disadvantage that is solved with a future update is that after pressing the shutter button you always have to keep your device right. Otherwise, the Live Photo also includes a shot of the ground or your pocket.
Battery life: medium
The iPhone 6S features a non-removable 1715 mAh battery that is smaller than that of the iPhone 6 (1810 mAh). According to Apple, however, this does not adversely affect battery life. The battery still needs to be guaranteed for a call time of 14 hours and a standby time of 240 hours, which in practice will amount to an average duration of one to one and a half days. This is partly due to the more efficient A9 chip and the energy-efficient optimizations implemented in iOS 9.
In practice, the iPhone 6S needs to be charged daily. If you use the smartphone more intensively, for example, for games and movies in 4K, the device may still need to be charged to the charger before the end of the day. The battery is a little longer to use when you turn on the iOS 9 power-saving feature, but the device's performance is reduced and app synchronization limited. This is useful for emergencies, but of course not ideal.
In Practice, The Iphone 6s Needs To Be Charged To The Charger Every Day
We'd rather have seen that the 6S made the 6S a bit thicker to fit a larger battery, because now the battery life is no more than mediocre. In addition, the battery over time (and a few hundred charging cycles) will take less time, so you may need to charge more often after one year of use.
Conclusion iPhone 6S review
Apple has delivered a great flagship with the iPhone 6S, with more powerful hardware and some interesting new features. The internal hardware has been taken care of and the 3D Touch screen has a lot of potential for faster interface and app control. To keep this interesting, more developers need to add support for the technology to their apps. In addition, the self-camera and fingerprint scanner are improved and everything is just a little easier.
Huge differences with the iPhone 6, which are cheaper and still very capable, are not there. Thus, the battery life is not improved, and the new camera does not significantly improve photos. The addition of Live Photos is a little, but no more than that. It makes it so bad that Apple has chosen to make the new iPhone more expensive. In spite of the fact that the price difference is not really justified, we expect the company to buy many devices again.
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