iPhone 11 rumors: Price, specs, features and everything else we know

UPDATED: Bigger batteries and reverse wireless charging? Also, first 2020 iPhone details...

We just got the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR, but the Apple rumour mill never stops churning – and it's already spilling some potential details on what's coming in 2019.

Will it be the iPhone XI? How about the iPhone 11? Honestly, we don't know yet. It's very early still, so we only have a couple of solid tidbits to work with, but there's sure to be a growing flood ahead of Apple's usual autumn release window.

Here's what we know so far about Apple's new iPhones in 2019, and check back often as we'll be updating this regularly with new rumours and leaks.

               WHEN WILL THE APPLE IPHONE (2019) BE OUT?

If we had to take a guess, we'd say September. Why? Because Apple almost always launches its iPhones in September. That's why.

We haven't heard anything specific about its 2019 plans in this regard, and it's worth noting that the iPhone XR didn't ship until October. However, keep in mind that in 2017, the iPhone X released in November and Apple still followed it up with the iPhone XS (shown) the following September. That's the usual Apple window.

FACT OR FICTION?

Unless we hear something else in the coming months, we're expecting both the launch and release in September 2019.

HOW MUCH WILL THE APPLE IPHONE (2019) COST?

All of these things are true: Apple sold a huge amount of iPhones in 2018 and made a boatload of money on them. Apple has also revised its earnings forecast due to expected underperformance, and customers widely grumbled about the new iPhone prices.

In short, Apple will still sell millions of iPhones at £999+, but there's a sense that the wider consumer pool isn't happy about the continual rise in pricing and that the iPhone XR didn't find quite the market that Apple expected at £749.

Does that mean that the 2019 iPhones will see a price drop? Not necessarily. Apple might believe that other economic factors are at play and that the higher spend-per-device is ultimately a metric worth holding onto. But given the response this year, we'd be truly surprised to see Apple raise prices this time around.

FACT OR FICTION?

Purely speculation for now. We'll have to wait for solid leaks here.

WHAT WILL THE APPLE IPHONE (2019) LOOK LIKE?

There's a growing expectation that 2019's big Android flagship trend is going to be punch-hole screen cutouts for front-facing cameras, rather than larger notches. That's what we got with Samsung's Galaxy S10 and the Honor View 20. One leaker says that Apple won't be going that route – not this year, at least.

That's according to Ice Universe, a noted leaker with a proven track record, who suggests that Apple will keep the familiar iPhone XS notch in 2019… but opt for a hole in the display in 2020. If true, then it seems fair to assume that 2019 will be another revision year, and 2020 will see the next major shift in iPhone design.

As the above concept image - designed by Ben Geskin based on current leaks - shows, there may be a larger change on the back. That enormous camera bump on the iPhone XS Max successor comes from renders leaked by OnLeaks and Digit (see below in the Camera section), who claim that they are Engineering Validation Test (EVT) stage renders produced by Apple.

9to5Mac adds that the EVT stage is followed by design validation test (DVT) and production validation test (PVT) – in other words, these aren't final if they are legitimate at all. However, key features should be mostly locked down by now, pending further testing.

To be honest, it doesn't look quite as refined as what we'd expect to see from Apple. Surely there's a lot more finesse that can be put into presenting a triple-camera array… right? IceUniverse says that they are legit based on his own knowledge, however.

On the other hand, there's this design. Developed by OnLeaks and shared via CompareRaja, this concept render is purportedly based on a completely different Apple leak.

Instead of the clunky, square-shaped triple-camera setup seen in the previous render, this one shows a sleeker horizontal module in the upper center. It includes a circular flash around the middle camera, and is definitely less awkward-looking in the process. As you'll note, both of these design leaks point to a smaller notch on the front, although Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes the notch won't shrink for 2019's iPhones.

Why are there two very different designs attributed to an Apple leak? Well, one possible scenario is that one of them is based on bad or false information, which is always possible with early leaks - although OnLeaks claims that it is legit. Another possibility is that Apple has been playing around with multiple designs, but will only go with one for the final version.

OnLeaks also suggests that it could be showing two different models, with the successors to the iPhone XS and iPhone XS featuring significantly different backing designs, but we'd be surprised if that's the case.

Here's another glance at this purported design from CompareRaja, showing the familiar three iPhone XS colours and a new blue akin to the iPhone XR. The site's source suggests that this design will indeed see the light of day later this year.

It's a concept render based on what they've heard, but it's an interesting look at what could be coming down the pipeline later this year. Another potential shift in design could be frosted glass on the back, instead of the usual glossy finish. That's what analyst Ming-Chi Kuo suggests, and it could help differentiate 2019's iPhones from the previous models without more dramatic tweaks in the mix.

FACT OR FICTION?

To be honest, we don't know what to believe here. Neither looks entirely right based on size and positioning, although we certainly prefer the second one with the center-mounted module. And we're keen on a smaller notch, too!

WHAT ABOUT THE APPLE IPHONE (2019)'S SCREEN?

The iPhone XS and XS Max have two of the best-looking smartphone screens today, with crisp OLED panels at 5.8in and 6.5in respectively. We don't expect any dramatic changes there.

However, the technology behind the panel could help reduce some heft from the iPhone. ETNews reports that Apple will use Samsung's touch-integrated OLED panels in 2019, which could make for thinner and lighter iPhone XS successors.

The other big question is: Will Apple improve the iPhone XR screen this time around? The 750p LCD panel still looks decent enough, but it's vastly under-specced for a £749 flagship phone. That's especially true with the new Samsung Galaxy S10e, which beats it on both screen quality and price alike.

The Wall Street Journal suggests that Apple will stick with an LCD on the iPhone XR successor, but there's no word on whether it will see a resolution bump in the process. Given Apple's tendencies in this department, we won't be shocked if there's little change on that front.

What you're seeing above is a new speculative render based on the square-shaped triple-camera module rumour, with this one taking on more of the shape of the Huawei Mate 20 Pro. It's from Macotakara, which says that Chinese suppliers leaked info of a design like this.

FACT OR FICTION?

We're just speculating for now, but we expect modest enhancements to the iPhone XS line's screens… and hope for larger enhancements to the iPhone XR successor.

HOW MUCH POWER WILL THE APPLE IPHONE (2019) PACK?

As of this writing, Apple's A12 Bionic chips rule over the smartphone field, just like the A11 Bionic chips before them. They're vastly powerful, and we expect that trend to continue.

Apple will surely unveil an A13 chip with the new iPhones, which will promise more processing speed and enhanced capabilities, and arrive alongside a silky-smooth iOS 13 update. Whether the A12 Bionic remains the smartphone power champ before the A13 arrives remains to be seen, but Apple's put up an ever-growing benchmark lead with these latest chips.

Meanwhile, CompareRaja suggests that the 5.8in iPhone XS successor will see a big battery bump - up to a whopping 4,000mAh.

That's close to some other flagships of late, but Apple has long been stingy about battery capacity, even shaving off a little bit in recent iterations since software efficiencies helped maintain the same average uptime total as the previous device. The iPhone XS has just a 2,658mAh cell within, so that would effectively be a 50% boost if true. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo also believes that this year's iPhones will see larger battery packs, and has since speculatedthat the 5.8in model will get a 20-25% boost, the 6.5in model will see a 10-15% bump, and that the iPhone XR successor may only see as much as a 5% increase.

He also points to bilateral wireless charging - in other words, the kind of "reverse charging" seen on the Huawei Mate 20 Pro and Galaxy S10 models. That allows your phone to wirelessly charge another phone, or the new AirPods case. Kuo suggests that the larger battery packs are intended to enable that feature, although it would be a nice bump even for those who never use the functionality.

FACT OR FICTION?

Apple's own silicon is leading the smartphone pack, and that's unlikely to stop anytime soon. We're dubious about the battery life claim, however. We'd love to see it, but that's just not Apple's style...

WHAT KIND OF CAMERAS WILL THE APPLE IPHONE (2019) HAVE?

Given the rise in triple-camera setups in Android flagships, it's not that surprising to think that Apple might follow suit in 2019. And as you've seen above, there are a couple of potential leaked designs going around right now.

The Wall Street Journal affirms that Apple is considering a triple-camera setup, but suggests that it might only be on the largest model, the iPhone XS Max successor. That would continue the earlier trend of the Plus models having a camera advantage over the core iPhone, although the iPhone XS and XS Max opted for feature parity the last time around.

Bloomberg reported in December that Sony's latest generation of 3D camera sensors, which use time-of-flight technology to measure distance, have drawn interest from Apple. That might be what we're seeing in these renders, and what we'll see on the new iPhones.

OnLeaks and CompareRaja suggest that two of the back sensors will weigh in at 14 megapixels and 10MP, respectively. Additionally, they expect the front-facing camera to be at 10MP, with analyst Ming-Chi Kuo suggesting a new front-facing flood illuminator in tow to improve Face ID functionality.

As for the iPhone XR follow-up, The Wall Street Journal claims that it may bump up to dual back cameras, like the current iPhone XS and XS Max.

FACT OR FICTION?

Adding a third back camera on the top model makes sense, but we'll have to see how the design shakes out.

IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE I SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THE APPLE IPHONE (2019)?

5G network connectivity is about to arrive, and there are many handsets that will carry the technology in the coming months, including Samsung's Galaxy S10 5G and Galaxy Fold, as well as LG V50 ThinQ 5G. However, Apple's next iPhones reportedly won't be among that batch.

That's according to Bloomberg, which reports that Apple plans to wait until at least 2020 to add 5G connectivity to new handsets. The report suggests that Apple wants to avoid issues like inconsistent initial coverage and other hitches, as it did by waiting for 3G and 4G LTE to ramp up before adopting those earlier technologies.

On the other hand, it might have to do with Apple's alliances and the tech available this year. Bloomberg suggests that Apple's switch away from Qualcomm chips will play into the decision, as new supplier Intel won't have 5G chips ready for a full-scale rollout in the next iPhones.

According to Barclays, via 9to5Mac, the new iPhones might incorporate Wi-Fi 6 technology - so while you may not get faster 5G speeds on the go, at least you might get speedier service at home if you have a compatible Wi-Fi 6 router. Additionally, Barclays suggests (via MacRumors) that the 4x4 MIMO antenna design from the iPhone XS and XS Max will also make its way to the iPhone XR successor.

Macotakara also reports that Apple may switch to a USB-C connector for the new iPhones, like it did with last year's new iPad Pro models, although that has reportedly not yet been finalised. CompareRaja and OnLeaks, on the other hand, suggest that current prototypes still feature a Lightning port, and TF International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo agrees that all three models will stick with Lightning this year.

Lastly, Macotakara believes that the new iPhones will pack in more internal storage, although it's unknown whether that'll be more starting storage or simply more on the super-expensive top end.

FACT OR FICTION?

Unfortunately, we believe it: Apple has never seemed in a big rush to adopt the latest cellular advances, so anyone eager to jump on the 5G train in 2019 might be looking elsewhere for a new handset.

WHAT ABOUT 2020?

Is it too early to start talking about 2020's new iPhones? Probably. But that won't stop the rumour mill from churning, so here's what we've heard.

DigiTimes issued a report in early April that suggests that Apple will release three iPhones with OLED screens in 2020. Right now, the iPhone XS and XS Max use OLED screens, while the cheaper iPhone XR uses lower-quality LCD panels.

It also suggests different sizes for these models' screens, at 5.42in, 6.06in, and 6.67in. Today's range spans 5.8in (iPhone XS) to 6.5in (XS Max), with the 6.1in iPhone XR in the middle. If true, the report points to Apple looking back down the size chart after committing to larger devices.

The report claims that Samsung will likely remain Apple's primary OLED supplier in 2020, and that its Y-Octa technology – or perhaps LG's TOE touch technology – could provide cheaper panels for the 5.42in model.

FACT OR FICTION?

We're not putting much stock in anything at this point in time, but 2020 would be a reasonable time to refresh the iPhone lineup and potentially introduce new sizes along the way. Stay tuned for more rumours and leaks as they come...