Apple's iPhone XR Offers a More Budget 2018 iPhone Supporting iOS 12 and Dual SIM

Given the more expensive Apple iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, iPhone fans can still go for the lower priced Apple iPhone XR to get the latest iOS experience. Just expect the iPhone XR to similarly come without a home button and fingerprint sensor as the XS and XS Max since Apple has been quite consistent with its newest models following the previous Apple iPhone X. That said, all three latest iPhone's support iOS 12 on Apple's owned A12 Bionic chipset as well as eSIM technology for the first time.  

The iPhone XR can now make use of eSIM to operate on a mobile network without having a physical SIM card. This also means the iPhone now supports dual SIM as also seen on its Android based Google Pixel 3 XL competitor. The iPhone still allows using traditional Apple SIM cards from supported mobile carrier networks but just make sure to use nano SIM cards with the iPhone XR.

In terms of main features, it's not surprising the iPhone XR falls slightly behind the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max given its less premium pricing. These include having lower RAM and storage capacity as well as only a LCD screen on the iPhone XR compared to the higher resolution OLED display supported by the XS versions. The iPhone XR is also missing out on dual cameras that came with both the iPhone XS and XS Max and instead offers only a single 7MP front camera just like the iPhone 8.

All the three iPhone models still keep the legacy Lightning connector even though the Apple 11-inch iPad Pro (2018) has started to adopt the USB Type-C connector. The Lightning connector supports USB Power Delivery 2.0 fast charging technology while the iPhone's also came with Qi wireless charging.

The younger iPhone audience should more likely prefer the different colors the iPhone XR comes in over the limited black, silver or gold option for the higher end XS models. The one below has a nice shade of red that blends very well with the black screen of the iPhone XR that we bought recently.

The iPhone XR typically shares the same accessories as the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max to also include a 5 watts (5 volts @ 1 amps) charger, Lightning based audio headset and USB Type-A to Lightning cable inside the box.

For those willing to forgo the minimal differences between the iPhone XR and the more premium XS models, the iPhone XR won't cost a bomb and still allows getting most out of what iOS 12 can deliver. 

Using the USB Power Delivery Compliance C2 Tester from Granite River Labs to run just a subset of the full USB Power Delivery compliance test suite, we can see that the iPhone XR supports fixed PDO of 12.75 watts (5 volts @ 2.55 amps), battery power of 18.75 watts @4.75-15.75V and variable power supply of 9.22-30.56 watts range (4.75-15.75 volts @ 1.94 amps) for charging. Note a compliance failure was also observed. 

DUT Information

Manufacturer	iPhone Xr
Serial Number	-1_CE

Test Information

Date and Time:

20181119_170834

Controller and Instrument Information

Parameter	Value
GRL USB-PD_C2 Serial No.	084.109.084.066.134.
GRL USB-PD Software Version	1.3.8.0
GRL USB-PD Firmware Version	1.3.8.0.0
GRL USB-PD Eload Firmware Version	9.4/9.4
Board Calibration	Calibration Success.
App Mode	COMMUNICATION_ENGINE_TESTS
Tx Mask	true
Rx Mask	false
RX mask Power selection	Neutral Power
Device Type	Consumer Only
Cable IR drop Imp(R)	0
Cable Type.	USB-Type-C-Cable
COMMUNICATION_ENGINE_TESTS CTS Version	1.09
Noise Pattern Generation:	Two-Tone Noise
VIF info	*Since VIF was not loaded below test results are information Only.
Test cases Execution Time:	0h:0m:0s

Product Capabilities

Parameter	GetCapabilities
VENDOR_NAME	Apple
TID	0
STRUCTURED_VDM_VERSION	Version 1.0
PD_SPECIFICATION_REVISION	2
SOP_CAPABLE	YES
SOP_P_CAPABLE	NO
SOP_PP_CAPABLE	NO
SOP_P_DEBUG_CAPABLE	NO
SOP_PP_DEBUG_CAPABLE	NO
SECURITY_MSGS_SUPPORTED	NO
MANUFACTURER_INFO_SUPPORTED	NO
UNCHUNKED_EXTENDED_MESSAGES_SUPPORTED	YES
MODAL_OPERATION_SUPPORTED	YES
USB_VID	0x5AC
PID	0x167D
BCDDEVICE	0x2001
XID	0
DATA_CAPABLE_AS_USB_HOST	NO
DATA_CAPABLE_AS_USB_DEVICE	YES
NUM_SVIDS_MIN	1
NUM_SVIDS_MAX	1
SVID1SOP	5AC
SVID1Modes Min	1
SVID1Modes Max	1
SVID1Modes Fixed	NONE
SVID1Mode1 Enter Mode	NO

Power Capabilities

Parameter	GetCapabilities
PD_POWER_AS_SINK
NO_USB_SUSPEND_MAY_BE_SET	NO
GIVEBACK_MAY_BE_SET	NO
HIGHER_CAPABILITY_SET	YES
NUM_SNK_PDOS	3
Supply Type #1	Fixed
Voltage #1	0x64(5V)
OP Current #1	0xFF(2.55A)
Supply Type #2	Battery
Min Voltage #2	0x5F(4.75V)
Max Voltage #2	0x13B(15.75V)
Op Power #2	0x4A(18.5W)
Supply Type #3	Variable
Min Voltage #3	0x5F(4.75V)
Max Voltage #3	0x13B(15.75V)
Op Current #3	0xC2(1.94A)

USB-IF High Level Mapping Summary

Sl No	Test Category	Test Group Description	Test Result
1	PHY_PRIMARY_TX	BMC Physical Layer Transmitter	PASS
2	PHY_PRIMARY_RX	BMC Physical Layer Receiver	FAIL
3	PHY_PRIMARY_MISC	BMC Phyiscal Layer Miscellaneous	PASS
5	POWER_PRIMARY	Power Source/Sink Primary	PASS

Result Summary

Sl No	Test ID	Test Name	Test Result
1	TDA.2.1.1.1	TDA.2.1.1.1 BMC PHY TX EYE	PASS
2	TDA.2.1.1.2	TDA.2.1.1.2 BMC PHY TX BIT	PASS
3	TDA.2.1.2.2	TDA.2.1.2.2 BMC PHY RX INT REJ	FAIL
4	TDA.2.1.2.1	TDA.2.1.2.1 BMC PHY RX BUSIDL	PASS
5	TDA.2.1.3.1	TDA.2.1.3.1 BMC PHY TERM	PASS
7	TDA.2.2.1	TDA.2.2.1 BMC PROT SEQ GETCAPS	PASS
9	TDA.2.2.4	TDA.2.2.4 BMC PROT SEQ VCSWAP DFP	INCOMPLETE
13	TDA.2.2.10	TDA.2.2.10 BMC PROT IGN PPS	PASS
14	TDA.2.3.3.1	TDA.2.3.3.1 POW SNK TRANS C CP	PASS

BMC Eye Diagram