The iPhone 6 Review
by Joshua Ho, Brandon Chester, Chris Heinonen & Ryan Smith on September 30, 2014 8:01 AM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Apple
- Mobile
- iPhone 6
With every launch of the iPhone, Apple seems to have everything to lose and not much to gain. Apple’s iPhone line accounts for the majority of profits in the smartphone space, and as the smartphone market marches towards maturity it seems inevitable that companies like Xiaomi will be able to deliver largely similar experiences at much lower prices. The same once happened with Apple in the days of the PC industry where Apple approached irrelevance. Yet generation after generation, Apple seems to be able to hold on to a majority of profit share, and they’ve managed to tenaciously hold on to their first-mover advantage.
This brings us to the iPhone 6. This is now the eighth generation of the iPhone, and the fifth generation of the iPhone’s industrial and material design. We should note right now that this review is specifically for the iPhone 6; for the iPhone 6 Plus, please see our iPhone 6 Plus companion review. At this point, it’s not really possible to revolutionize the smartphone, and on the surface, the iPhone 6 seems to be directly inspired by the iPod Touch. However, instead of the chamfered edge where the display meets the metal unibody we see a continuous curve from the sloping glass to the metal unibody that looks and feels great. While the M8 was one of the best phones for in-hand feel, the iPhone 6 goes a step further due to the reduced weight and rounded side. I've always felt like the HTC 8X had one of the most compelling shapes for a phone, and the incredibly thin feel of the iPhone 6 definitely reminds me of that.
Along the left side, we see the standard volume buttons and mute switch that continue to have the same solid feel and clean clicking action. As I discuss in the iPhone 6 Plus review, going by Consumer Reports' data it seems that there is a weak point near the bottom of the volume rocker, although it's far less likely to be an issue on the iPhone 6 due to its smaller size. Along the top, there isn’t a power button because it’s been moved to the right side of the phone so there’s nothing notable on the top.
On the right side, we see the previously mentioned power button and also the SIM tray, which is ejected by inserting a pin into the eject hole. Similarly to the volume buttons, the power button has a solid feel that gives a distinct click when triggered and continues to be quite unique when compared to phones other than recent iPhones.
The bottom has the Lightning connector, speaker, a microphone, and 3.5mm headset jack. The placement and design of all these elements are largely similar if not shared directly with the iPod Touch.
The back of the phone continues to share elements from the iPod Touch. The camera, microphone, and LED flash are almost identical in their appearance, even down to the camera hump’s design. The LED flash does look different to accommodate the second amber flash, but the shape is identical. The only real difference is that the antennas of the iPhone 6 are the metal pieces on the top and bottom, with the associated plastic lines instead of a plastic RF window.
The front of the phone is decidedly more similar to the iPhone 5s though, with the Touch ID home button. While the earpiece hasn’t moved, it seems that the front facing camera has been moved back to the left side of the earpiece, and the sensors for light and proximity are now above the earpiece. For the most part, there’s not much to comment on here but after using the iPhone 6 for an extended amount of time I’m definitely sure that the home button is relatively closer to the surface of the display glass than before. In addition, the home button has a dramatically improved feel, with short travel, clean actuation, and a reassuring click in most cases.
Overall, while I was undecided at the launch of the iPhone 6 I definitely think the look of the new iPhone has grown on me. The camera hump’s accent serves as an interesting design touch, and the feel of the design is definitely much more comfortable and ergonomic than before. I’m not really sure that the extra reduction in thickness was necessary, but it does make for a better first impression. In the launch article I was a bit surprised that Apple chose to have a camera hump but given the fact that the iPod Touch has the same design it seems that there is precedent for such a move. I personally feel that the design wouldn’t be worse by increasing thickness to eliminate the hump and improve battery life as a result.
Apple has also introduced a new silicone case, which brings a lower price point than the leather cases. Surprisingly, this is a rather high quality case, and as far as I can tell it doesn’t carry any of the issues that silicone cases traditionally have. There’s a nice lip to make sure that the display glass doesn’t touch a surface if the phone is put face down, and the material doesn’t seem to stretch or attract pocket lint the way most silicone cases do.
There’s definitely a lot more to talk about though, and to get a sense of the major differences I’ve put together our usual spec table below.
| Apple iPhone 5s | Apple iPhone 6 | Apple iPhone 6 Plus | |
| SoC | Apple A7 | Apple A8 | Apple A8 |
| Display | 4-inch 1136 x 640 LCD | 4.7-inch 1334 x 750 LCD | 5.5-inch 1920 x 1080 LCD |
| WiFi | 2.4/5GHz 802.11a/b/g/n, BT 4.0 | 2.4/5GHz 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, single stream, BT 4.0, NFC | |
| Storage | 16GB/32GB/64GB | 16GB/64GB/128GB | 16GB/64GB/128GB |
| I/O | Lightning connector, 3.5mm headset | ||
| Size / Mass | 123.8 x 58.6 x 7.6 mm, 112 grams | 138.1 x 67 x 6.9 mm, 129 grams | 158.1 x 77.8 x 7.1 mm, 172 grams |
| Camera |
8MP iSight with 1.5µm pixels Rear Facing + True Tone Flash 1.2MP f/2.4 Front Facing |
8MP iSight with 1.5µm pixels Rear Facing + True Tone Flash 1.2MP f/2.2 Front Facing |
8MP iSight with 1.5µm pixels Rear Facing + True Tone Flash + OIS 1.2MP f/2.2 Front Facing |
| Price | $99 (16GB), $149 (32GB) on 2 year contract | $199 (16GB), $299 (64GB), $399 (128GB) on 2 year contract | $299 (16GB), $399 (64GB), $499 (128GB) on 2 year contract |
As you can see, this is a major release even at a high level. While the design might take some inspiration from the iPod Touch, the hardware is a completely different beast. There’s a new SoC, the A8; the iPhone 6 also includes a bigger and better display, newer WiFi module, bigger battery, and a better camera. Of course, there’s a lot more to the story of the iPhone 6 than a spec sheet. The first major difference that we’ll talk about is the SoC.
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kyuu - Tuesday, September 30, 2014 - link
So please explain the issues with Safari tabs constantly reloading on even the latest iPhones and iPads. Is it the lack of RAM or just crappy OS/browser design? It can only be one or the other.michael2k - Tuesday, September 30, 2014 - link
Applebot claimed the ram had negative effects on performance, specifically graphics performance. No one disagreed that the ram constrained the browser, only that it constrained performance and graphics performance.akdj - Saturday, October 4, 2014 - link
Good Lord! After reading this review and the tests and benchmarks of the latest iPhones ...it's HARD to believe the devestation Apple would bring down on each of its 'colleagues!' if Applebot is correct, and somehow half or a third the RAM in the iPhone is destroying its competition like this maybe it's just Apple being 'humble'. They don't want to hurt the Android camp TOO badly by increasing speeds even more;)Sorry kyuu, I'm with the others, Im not having challenges with safari reloading on my 5s or Air. In fact ...I had started a comment this morning, put the iPad up n went to work. Coached baseball, had dinner, came to the office and BOOM! Comment still in the box, no reload or relaunch of anandtech, just half my comment sitting there.
Anyway, fired up to receive my 6+. As a Note 3 and 5s owner I can personally vouch for the 'differences' between twice the cores and twice the speed with three times the RAM. My 5s ...on apps with parity destroys the UI and experience of my Note. Hell, not sixty seconds off a cold boot it's using 2.2GB! And that's without sync, background apps (of choice) or a 17 year old kid's phone. I use it solely for business, but no matter what the the task, editing video or playing Asphalt 8, the 5s and its siblings, the Air and rMini are significantly more 'fluid' overall.
Just my two cents and the 6/6+ seem faster than my A7 toys (played a while with one at Apple last evening, even put a 75 second 1080p video together and Air Dropped it to myself;). Rendering was FAST, finding my iPhone was immediate and the display is UNBELIEVABLE
As far as the whole phone itself, I'm incredibly surprised how little justice is done to the phone my 'picture' online, in a mag or on video. Totally different when you hold it and I'm pleasantly surprised
I remember listening to the 'RamNuts' a decade ago, five years ago ...and today we've got phones with. Ire RAM than baseline computers three years ago! A web page is BIG of its over 20MB. It's not the RAM that's forcing tabs to reload. It's the system itself ...no one can read 10 different sites at a time. It figures 'hey ...why not save bozo here some juice by releasing a few of these dynamic content filled sites that are eating the RAM, GPU & CPU ...the entire SoC for Lunch!
Burp it out
Release some pressure. End up with the fastest phone on the market with the best battery life and most extensive Eco system. Anyone that bases their decision on this 'idea' is silly. Developers are in the business to make money. They're NOT building apps that will run slowly on the past three years' iPhones. That's. Cool! Not to mention releasing the OpenGL ES pressure and overhead from the GPU with 'Metal!' Check out what the dudes at Unreal have done with their fourth gen engine...on iOS! Pretty astounding.
doobydoo - Wednesday, October 1, 2014 - link
'So please explain the issues with Safari tabs constantly reloading on even the latest iPhones'Um, they don't?
dmacfour - Wednesday, October 1, 2014 - link
Please tell me how many tabs you need to switch between on a regular basis.doobydoo - Wednesday, October 1, 2014 - link
'Safari browsing is a joke with paltry 1GB RAM as is intensive use graphics performance.'Way to prove in a single comment that you lied about owning an iPhone 6 Plus.
cjs150 - Tuesday, September 30, 2014 - link
This is a nice phone and, despite other comments, the review seems broadly fair.Lets talk about the design defects:
1. Minimal RAM - this is 2014 not 2008.
2. Lightnng connector - all phones should use the same mini-USB connector. Anything else is just an excuse to rip the customer off.
3. No Micro-SD slot. On a budget phone fine, on a full spec phone again this 2014 not 2008.
4. Safari - maybe others have had better experiences than me but of all the major browsers this is the weakest
Would I replace my Galaxy for iPhone 6, no - or at least not until the Galaxy died, even then I think it is overpriced compared to other phones
GeckoZ - Tuesday, September 30, 2014 - link
I agree, the tone seems fairly neutral despite what many commentators believe. Though, I wouldn't call the list you provided "design defects", they are essential areas in which apple needs to improve. Here are my thoughts:1) I do find the ram amount especially in Safari to be a limiting factor, 2GB would have yielded a better experience but I don't think it is a total deal breaker for many.
2) The price of the lightning connector is probably the biggest ripoff in iPhone's accessory department. However, I think the mini-usb's non-reversible and hollow plug design is far from being a good standard. My battery-charging case became defective when I accidentally yanked the Mini-usb cable and it broke my case's charging port; $2 cable ruined a $100 charging case. Perhaps, a new easy plug-in and pop-off usb design that's also cheap would be a better standard.
3) I agree, Micro-SD is a must for phones in this price range. Google and Apple are trying to push their cloud storage service at the expense of local expansion. Though cloud is convenient, it is still too expensive. The storage space in iPhone plays too big a factor in apple's pricing, expecting a Micro-SD slot from apple is but a dream. Maybe cheaper iCloud plan with more functionality would remedy this?
4) Safari is a very basic interpretation of a browser. I like the ad-free reader mode and the speed, though it looks dated. Perhaps, more functionality can be added.
gandhi_theft_auto - Tuesday, September 30, 2014 - link
Minimal RAM is ok if your OS is efficient enough to not need it. I don't understand how we got so far into this culture of putting spec sheets on a pedestal.Laxaa - Tuesday, September 30, 2014 - link
You can only optimise so much before you hit a wall, and the move to 64-bit certainly don't help in this case.