Despite the popularity of Apple’s iPhones - and products in general - and its unique ability to retain customers, its smartphone tech isn’t a cut above the competition like it has been in years past.
Every smartphone manufacturer has its own USP, but Google's Pixel range has comfortably overtaken Apple in both the camera and AI abilities. The premium customers pay for Apple products is becoming harder to justify, especially when you consider how brazenly OnePlus is dragging prices down.
The upcoming iPhone XR2 will likely be as popular as its predecessor (the iPhone XR wildly outsold all other iPhones last year), but what can Apple do to improve the device technically and stave off impressive competition?
Bundling the best
I’m not sure Apple will ever compete on price, even with the XR range. It’s just not how the company does business, nor does it need to (despite the introduction of the ‘budget’ range). Google’s Pixel 3A XL starts at $479, whereas the cheapest XR sells for $749. It’s a stark difference. Combined with trade-in deals, you could pick up the 3A XL for under $200.
But Apple does have one thing over Google: a popular - and functioning - wireless headphone range. The AirPods have been the success story that Google dreamed about with its Pixel Buds. Given how well the AirPods sell, I’m not sure if Apple would bundle them in with an iPhone XR 2, but it should.
With Apple’s already decent trade-in offers, there are a few ways the iPhone-maker could compete on value without having to directly drop prices. Leveraging the popularity of the AirPods and combing its two of its most sought-after products is a way to do exactly that.
A more complete smartphone
I don’t know if the XR2 will compete with the Pixel 3A in terms of its camera skills, because Google is so far ahead of the pack. But the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3A are deficient in couple of areas - namely speed and design - which gives Apple an opportunity to capitalise.
The last two Pixel devices have struggled with performance. The 3A is better because the specs are less demanding, but there’s a noticeable syrupy sluggishness in day-to-day use that's clear if you’re used to top-end smartphones. That’s less the case with the XR, even though it has 1GB less RAM than the XS (it does slow down under heavier tasks, though). I hope Apple continues to offer fast performance for the XR2.
In terms of design, the XR is already streaks ahead of the Pixel. In fact, the Pixel range is quite far behind most of the competition when it comes to aesthetics. I suspect that’ll be the case with the XR2 as well, but I think Apple has some room to maneuver with thickness. Bulking out the device a bit more, to fit a larger battery, is something the Cupertino-based company should take slightly further than it already does and cross the 3000mAh line. Price, battery and camera are the most important features to consumers, so making a device that hits all three - even at the expense of Apple’s strict design principles - will probably be a wallet opener.
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