Source: Karen Freeman/iMore
Best iPhone iMore 2019
The phone you carry with you every day is your most important and most personal device. It's got to be fast, reliable, and have the most advanced features you need every day. Since Apple changed the landscape of iPhones in 2019, the iPhone 11 is now the best iPhone for most people.
- Best Overall: iPhone 11
- Best on a Budget: iPhone 8
- Best for Photographers: iPhone 11 Pro
- Best for kids: iPhone XR
This Black Friday, we're hoping we'll see some fantastic discounts on the entire iPhone lineup, whether it's the iPhone 11 or an older model. If you're on the lookout for a new iPhone, this buyer's guide will help you make the right choice. It might be smart to hold out just a little bit longer if you can because, with Black Friday just around the corner, you might see a drop in price that you won't normally get. The iMore deals team will be keeping a close watch on all the possible discounts for the iPhone in the coming weeks and will let you know as soon as the prices drop. Be sure to keep this page bookmarked and check back often because here's where you'll find the best iPhone deals for Black Friday.
Best Overall: iPhone 11
Source: iMore
The iPhone 11 is practically perfect in every way. It has a 12MP dual-camera system with wide and ultra-wide lenses, Apple's fastest A13 Bionic chip, a Liquid Retina HD LCD display, and a 6.1" screen size.
It uses Apple's advanced Face ID biometric scanning (which also means the True Depth FaceTime camera), supports Animoji, slo-mo selfies (or, "slofies" as Apple has marketed), 4K video recording support, Portrait mode for the front and back-facing cameras (including non-human subjects), Night mode, and a whole lot more.
The iPhone 11 has nearly every single amazing feature the iPhone 11 Pro has except the three-camera system (which includes a telephoto lens) and the Super Retina OLED display. At a fraction of the price of the Pro model, this is why the iPhone 11 is the best iPhone for most people.
Pros:
- Dual-camera system
- Nearly all the same features as the iPhone 11 Pro
- Six different colors
- Really great price
Cons:
- No telephoto lens
- LCD screen instead of OLED
Best Overall
iPhone 11
Practically a Pro but at a lower price.
The iPhone 11 is the right phone at the right price for most people and comes in an array of great colors.
Best on a Budget: iPhone 8
Source: Rene Ritchie/iMore
If your pocketbook has you restricted, the lowest-priced iPhone is the 4.7" iPhone 8. It sports Apple's A11 Bionic chip, a 12MP dual-camera system with wide and telephoto lenses, 4K video recording, and plenty of advanced technology. It's not Apple's latest and greatest, but it will continue to receive software support for years to come, and you can get it for a song (comparatively for an iPhone). This is the only phone with a Home button in Apple's current lineup. So if you prefer fingerprint scanning to facial scanning, this is the iPhone for you.
Pros:
- Least expensive iPhone
- Home button
- Telephoto lens
Cons:
- 2-year old processor chip
- Missing a lot of the new camera features of the iPhone 11
Best on a Budget
iPhone 8
The perfect entry-level iPhone.
If you're just entering the smartphone game or you're upgrading from the iPhone 6, this is a fantastic iPhone at an incredibly low price.
Best for Photographers: iPhone 11 Pro
Source: Rene Ritchie/iMore
The one thing that makes the iPhone 11 Pro noticeably different than the iPhone 11 is in the camera system. It's a 12MP triple-camera system with wide, ultra-wide, and telephoto lenses. With three lenses, you can zoom in or out 2x and digitally zoom up to 10x. It's any photographer's dream and might even replace some people's daily camera carry. If you want the absolute most advanced camera system, this is the pick for you. The iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max also have the longest battery life of any iPhone ever by a lot.
As a secondary note, if you prefer a slim iPhone design and don't mind spending the extra cash, the iPhone 11 Pro is also the thinnest of the entire lineup.
Pros:
- Triple-lens camera
- Super long battery life
- Super Retina OLED screen
Cons:
- Most expensive iPhone
- No bright color options
Best for Photographers
iPhone 11 Pro
Most advanced everything at a premium price.
If money is no issue and you really want that triple-camera system, the iPhone 11 Pro has it all and then some.
Best for kids: iPhone XR
Source: iMore
Let's face it; your kids are going to be secretly disappointed (or maybe openly disappointed) if you buy them an iPhone 8. It's a great phone at a great price, but they want the new hotness. The iPhone XR was Apple's best-selling iPhone in 2019 and was the most popular model until the iPhone 11 came along. It comes in six bright colors, supports Face ID and Animoji and Memoji, features Portrait mode (though only for humans), and is a great first iPhone for your kids.
Pros:
- Great price
- Bright colors
- Face ID
Cons:
- Not an iPhone 11
Best for kids
iPhone XR
Thanks, mom and dad. You're the best!
The iPhone XR hugely popular and comes with some of the best features you can get right now. Your kids will love it.
Bottom line
Because the iPhone 11 has all of the same features as the iPhone 11 Pro except the telephoto lens and the Super Retina display, but at a fraction of the price of the Pro model, it's hands-down the best iPhone for most people and our pick this year.
If you want the most advanced camera system in an iPhone, and arguably in any phone, you're going to want the iPhone 11 Pro. It's got the longest battery life of any iPhone every by a lot and will make any of your pics look practically professional.
Some advice for shopping for Black Friday iPhone deals
An iPhone is a personal thing; it's so personal that it knows more about you than your spouse or your parents. If you're upgrading from an iPhone SE, the iPhone 11 Pro is the closest in terms of size. It's thinner than any other model. If you want a big screen, an iPhone 8 Plus is a bargain option, but the iPhone 11 Pro Max, with its nearly edge-to-edge display, has the largest screen real estate of any iPhone.
For Black Friday, you're not going to see a whole lot of big discounts on the iPhone 11 lineup, but there's a good chance that retailers and carriers that still have older models are going to offer special package discounts. You could get an iPhone 8 for even lower than the already low price it already sells for.
We recommend keeping a close eye on carrier sales. If you have or want a Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, or T-Mobile plan, you may find an incredible bargain on Black Friday through one of these carriers.
Of course, the iMore deals team will be scouring the web during the entire Black Friday weekend (let's be honest, it's more like a week), looking for the best deals on iPhone devices, which we'll be sure to share with you. So keep this page bookmarked and check back often to find the best deals on all models of iPhone this Black Friday.
Credits — The team that worked on this guide
Lory Gil is the Managing Editor of iMore and knows here way around an iPhone. She's known as the four-inch iPhone fan (R.I.P.).
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