iPhone 6S Vs iPhone 6, iPhone 5S, iPhone 5: Should You Upgrade?

Alongside its bigger brother, the iPhone 6S Plus, the iPhone 6S is now on sale. The problem is this also means Apple now sells no less than five different models of iPhone: the iPhone 6S, iPhone 6S Plus, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and iPhone 5S. Upgrade decisions have never been more complicated...

So today I’m going to ignore phablets and look at your smartphone options to help you decide whether or not the iPhone 6S is worth the upgrade. To do this I’m lining the iPhone 6S up against the iPhone 6, iPhone 5S and iPhone 5. If you use an iPhone 4S or older, I would automatically suggest that a 4+ generation jump is worth the upgrade.

For everyone else, let’s start breaking things down...

Design And Size - Bigger, Heavier But Stronger

Despite many complaints, Apple has so far shown no interest in making another circa 4-inch iPhone. This means any potential iPhone 6S upgraders will have to accept a bigger handset. What’s more the iPhone 6S has put on a little more size and weight since the iPhone 6:

• iPhone 5 – 123.8 x 58.6 x 7.6 mm (4.87 x 2.31 x 0.30 in), 112 g (3.95 oz)
• iPhone 5S – 123.8 x 58.6 x 7.6 mm (4.87 x 2.31 x 0.30 in), 112g (3.95 oz)
• iPhone 6 – 138.1 x 67 x 6.9mm (5.44 x 2.64 x 0.27 inches), 129g (4.55 oz)
• iPhone 6S - 138.3 x 67.1 x 7.1mm (5.44 x 2.64 x 0.28in) and 143g (5.04 oz)

Let’s be real here: moving from an iPhone 6 to an iPhone 6S you aren’t likely to notice the size increases, but weight is a different issue. The iPhone 6S is over 10% heavier than the iPhone 6 and nearly 30% heavier than the iPhone 5 and iPhone 5S.

For the latter group of upgraders in particular, this is potentially an issue. Apple has been criticised for not producing more compact designs and given the 5.7-inch Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ is just 10g (0.35 oz) heavier than the 4.7-inch iPhone 6S, it is easy to see why.

Read more - iPhone 6S Vs iPhone 6S Plus: The Differences Between Apple's New iPhones

Couple this with Apple’s ongoing determination to make iPhones as slick and slippery as possible and it means you going to need a case with the iPhone 6S, which will again be heavier than a case for the 4-inch models. But unless Apple magically produces a new 4-inch model next year the only option will be to wait and see if a redesigned iPhone 7 makes more nips and tucks.

On the plus side, the iPhone 6S retains Apple’s outstanding build quality and this time it's tougher than ever. Following the ‘Bendgate’ fiasco, the new iPhone 6S is constructed from Series 7000 Aluminium (used in aerospace) which makes it so much stronger than its predecessor that video evidence shows bends are a sign of the past.

Displays - Is 3D Touch Worth It?

Looking at the iPhone 6S display on paper nothing seems particularly revolutionary to what has come before:

• iPhone 5 – 4 inch LED-backlit IPS LCD, 640 x 1136 pixels, 326 pixels per inch (ppi)
• iPhone 5S – 4 inch LED-backlit IPS LCD, 640 x 1136 pixels, 326 ppi
• iPhone 6 – 4.7 inch LED-backlit IPS LCD, 750 x 1334 pixels, 326 ppi
• iPhone 6S – 4.7 inch LED-backlit IPS LCD, 750 x 1334 pixels, 326 ppi

Furthermore in comparison to many iPhone rivals using 2K (and even 4K) native resolutions the tech here looks positively dated. So as much as Apple has optimised the iPhone 6S display to be as good as it can be, it isn’t going to be ousting the likes of the Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 Edge+ from their eye candy top spots.

That said the iPhone 6S display is ‘good enough’ and it features a potentially revolutionary feature: 3D Touch.

Quite frankly, if you’re in the market for the iPhone 6S, it is highly likely ‘3D Touch’ is one of the big reasons why. The science behind how it works isn’t radically new, but how Apple plans to integrate it into iOS 9 has the potential to change the smartphone landscape.

Positioned in addition to iOS’s recognition of short and long presses (also common to Android and Windows Phone), 3D Touch measures the pressure with which you touch the screen to bring up extra options. This has been compared to a right mouse click and Apple demonstrates this with its integration into core apps, such as:

• Pressure touch to peak into emails in Mail
• Pressure touch to jump to GPS navigation in Maps
• Pressure touch the camera icon to jump straight into different modes
• Pressure touch photos to view ‘Live Photos’ (video shot around them - more later)

...and so forth. But the real 3D Touch benefits will only come when app makers (in particular games makers) hop aboard. Create some truly compelling examples in very popular titles and new iPhones will fly off the shelves even faster than anticipated.

Read more - Apple iOS 9: 11 Important Changes To Know

But how realistic is this to happen? I’d suggest it is inevitable, but the bigger question is time. A handful of major apps like Dropbox, Instagram, Shazam are already aboard, but it will take much longer for smaller developers to adapt and caution will be expressed by some knowing usability must remain equally intact for older iPhones - which still make up the vast majority of users.

In short: 3D Touch is unlikely to come into its own until the iPhone 7, but that doesn’t mean eager upgraders won’t enjoy it over the next 12 months.

Next page: cameras, performance and battery life...

New Cameras - An Improvement And A Problem

Let's look at all the specs:

• iPhone 5 –  8MP sensor, f2.4 aperture, 1080p video recording; 1.2MP Front Camera, f2.4 aperture, 720p video recording
• iPhone 5S – 8MP sensor, f2.2 aperture, 1080p video recording; 1.2MP Front Camera, f2.4 aperture, 720p video recording
• iPhone 6 – 8MP sensor, f2.2 aperture, Focus Pixels, True Tone Flash, DIS; 1.2MP Front Camera, f2.2 aperture, 720p video recording
• iPhone 6S - 12 megapixel sensor, f2.0 aperture, Focus Pixels, dual-LED flash, 4K video recording. Front: 5 megapixel sensor, f2.0 aperture, 1080p video recording

Having stuck with an 8MP rear camera since the iPhone 4S, Apple has finally bumped the iPhone 6S to 12MP which brings with it 4K video recording and - importantly - given the front facing camera a major boost to 5MP and 1080p video recording. Plus both get improved apertures. But it isn’t all great news.

First the good stuff: iPhone 6S photos are an improvement over the iPhone 6 and a major leap forward for anyone coming from the iPhone 5S or earlier.

Then again, they don’t deliver the industry redefining leap we have seen on successive iPhones for the last 4 generations. In particular Samsung has caught up with its image processing (a key Apple strength) and the improved f1.9 and f1.8 apertures of the Galaxy range and LG’s G4 mean better low light performance and shutter speed. Again thanks to incredible image processing, the iPhone 6S can compete with these rivals, but it is doesn't stand out as clearly the best.

This is particularly true for 4K video recording on the iPhone 6S. Unlike the iPhone 6S Plus (and iPhone 6 Plus), the iPhone 6S still lacks optical image stabilisation (OIS) and while its software-based digital image stabilisation (DIS) does a fine job recording 1080p it struggles to keep 4K video steady:

Apple got away with excluding OIS from the iPhone 6 last year, but I feel the controversial decision to again skip it in the iPhone 6S (especially when it has long been a staple of cheap phones like the 2013 Nexus 5) will come back to haunt it.

Meanwhile I’d strongly advise potential iPhone 6S owners to avoid the 16GB edition. 4K video uses double the storage space of 1080p and 12MP photos consume 50% more space than 8MP photos. In addition the Nokia Living Images/HTC Zoe-inspired ‘Live Photos’ feature (1.5 seconds of video recording wrapped around a photo) further doubles the size of the iPhone 6S’s 12MP photos.

Yes, you could switch all these features off, but it then weakens the case for upgrading in the first place.

Read more - iPhone 6S And iPhone 6S Plus: How They Succeed, How They Fail

Performance - Faster Than Screaming Fast

The title of this subheading is deliberately facetious. The iPhone 6S will deliver 70% greater CPU performance and 90% greater graphics performance compared to the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. This is great, but there is still nothing on the App Store that troubles these previous generation models. As such moving from an iPhone 6 to an iPhone 6S is simply a case of wanting an extra year’s future proofing rather than seeing an immediate tangible benefit.

• iPhone 5 – Apple A6 – 32bit, 1GB RAM, PowerVR SGX543MP3 GPU
• iPhone 5S – Apple A7 – 64bit, 1GB RAM, PowerVR G6430 GPU
• iPhone 6 – Apple A8, 64bit, 1GB RAM, PowerVR GX6650 GPU
• iPhone 6S - Apple A9, 64bit, 2GB RAM, PowerVR chip currently unidentified

Move from an iPhone 5 or an iPhone 5S, however, and the difference becomes notably greater. For example the iPhone 6 has a 20% faster CPU and 50% faster GPU than the iPhone 5S and the iPhone 5S doubles the performance of the iPhone 5.

Extrapolate these multiples and you’ll see anyone coming from an iPhone 5S or earlier is going to get a massive performance boost.

But raw speed isn’t the only area you’ll see benefits from the iPhone 6S. It also features a new generation of the Touch ID fingerprint sensor which is even faster and more accurate that the class leading fingerprint sensor in the iPhone 6. This should prove especially useful for those planning to make use of Apple Pay and with NFC not part of the iPhone 5 or 5S this combination could be enough on its own to get some users to upgrade.

Battery Life And Charging - Stagnation Not Progress

While every iPhone is inevitably better than the last, one area where Apple rightly deserves criticism is its policy towards battery life. Since the iPhone 5S, Apple has largely allowed its handsets to stagnate and again the iPhone 6S posts similar usage times to the iPhone 6 and iPhone 5S.

This is frustrating as Apple is getting ever greater efficiency out of its displays, chipsets and software but these gains have been compromised by a proportional reduction in battery size for each of the last two generations:

• 4-inch iPhone 5 - 1440 mAh battery capacity
• 4-inch iPhone 5S - 1560 mAh
• 4.7-inch iPhone 6 - 1810 mAh
• 4.7-inch iPhone 6S - 1715 mAh

Perhaps even more frustrating is Apple’s prioritisation of thinness over battery capacity. The iPhone 6S actually broke this trend by being larger and heavier than the iPhone 6, but it was to fit in the 3D Touch technology showing Apple will break convention for new tricks, but not to deliver the most basic improvement of all.

Read more - Apple iOS 9: Should You Upgrade?

As such potential iPhone 6S owners should expect a phone which lasts the day with light to moderate use, but cannot be far from a charger for those with more demanding needs.

This is made doubly worse by Apple’s ongoing exclusion of wireless charging and its Scrooge-like refusal to even bundle a fast charger with its iPhones to take advantage of their fast charging capabilities (which even then are still behind those of its rivals). Surely both these shortcomings must change with the iPhone 7.

Next page: Value and Verdict...

Value - Familiar, But Base Level Needs Upgrading

While Apple has raised iPhone pricing in some regions around the world, in the US it stays consistent with last years’ models:

• iPhone 6S - $649 (16GB), $749 (64GB) and $849 (128GB)
• iPhone 6S Plus: $749 (16GB), $849 (64GB) and $949 (128GB)

The big shock, however, is not the pricing but the fact the base model still begins at just 16GB. It is an obvious upsell tactic (and perhaps an option corporations mass supplying staff might enjoy), but it is also cynical as in 2015 a 32GB memory chip is only a few dollars more than a 16GB chip.

If you want to take full advantage of the iPhone 6S’s upgraded cameras and video recording, you’ll need to opt for the 64GB version or end up paying the money saved on additional iCloud storage and compounding it with the hassle of regularly offloading the content from your phone.

Read more - Apple Makes iPhone 6S And iPhone 6S Plus $100 More Expensive

Of course the flip side is iPhones don’t look that expensive anymore compared to its number one rival.

Samsung greatly increased the pricing of its Galaxy S and Galaxy Note ranges this year, though they do also start at 32GB. Meanwhile, for those not 100% committed to the Apple ecosystem, hugely credible bargains like the Motorola Pure Edition and OnePlus 2 offer near-flagship performance at half the price of Apple and Samsung’s ranges.

Early Verdict

The iPhone 6S delivers more than we are used to expecting from a ‘S year’: coupled with the usual speed, camera and design (in this case: strength) improvements is the potentially revolutionary addition of 3D Touch.

Still there’s also no hiding behind the fact this is Apple playing well within itself. Bezel sizes, display resolutions, camera apertures and base level storage (for the asking price) are all now well behind the competition and it appears a radical reinvention will come with the iPhone 7 in 2016.

Consequently for iPhone 6 owners I see very little reason to upgrade. Truth be told, Apple isn’t even really targeting you given the majority will only be half way through 2 year carrier contracts.

That said there’s enough here to make owners of iPhone 5S, iPhone 5 and older iPhones jump at the iPhone 6S. It is certainly the most rounded, consistent and exciting iPhone to date but there remains a nagging doubt that come the iPhone 7 it is once again time for Apple to ‘Think Different’...

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