The Apple iPhone 6 was a big change from the iPhone 5s in terms of design and screen size. Apple then launched the bigger iPhone 6 Plus—to take on phablets such as Samsung’s Galaxy Note—posing a conundrum for buyers: Which iPhone should they pick? Its “s” successors have not made it easier to answer the question.
Apple follows the “Tick-Tock” cycle with iPhones—“Tick” means there is a completely new design in addition to other features, while “Tock” is all about improving the specifications of existing iPhones. This year, it’s been all about the tock cycle, with refreshes to 2014’s iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.
We take a look at how critical aspects of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus compare with the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.
Design: same, yet different
Apple has retained the beautiful design of the iPhone 6 as well as the rather useful screen-size options. While the 6s and 6s Plus don’t look very different from their predecessors (except for the small “s” logo on the back panel), there are two new colour options, gold and rose-gold, in addition to space grey and silver. If you want to be seen with the very latest phone, you know which colour to pick.
They have had to make some sacrifices, however, in the overall dimensions and weight. The rather handy iPhone 6 has dimensions of 138.1x67x6.9mm, while the iPhone 6s measures 138.3x67.1x7.1mm—what stands out is the slight increase in thickness, which means that the same cover or case accessories may not fit. But the 6s remains a very handy phone, convenient for single-hand operation. The 158.2x77.9x7.3mm iPhone 6s Plus is also slightly thicker than the 158.1x77.8x7.1mm iPhone 6 Plus.
While minor dimension changes don’t affect usability, both phones are considerably heavier too—6s weighs 143g (14g heavier); 6s Plus weighs 192g (20g heavier). The increased bulk is bad news, particularly for the 6s Plus, though it is slightly less slippery than its predecessor.
One of the reasons for the weight increase is the use of a different and stronger aluminium. The iPhone 6 Plus had suffered from the “Bend gate” disappointment, which warranted an upgrade from the Series 6000 aluminium alloy to the Series 7000 aluminium alloy.
Screen: rivals are pushing ahead
The iPhone 6s has a 4.7-inch screen, with a resolution of 1,334x750 pixels, the same as the iPhone 6. This already seemed inferior last year when compared to the 1,920x1,080- pixel screens which were becoming common in Android phones. This year, the iPhone screens have fallen further behind in specification-sheet comparisons. Mind you, the user experience is still extremely good, and these screens reproduce more accurate colours than rivals do. But in 2015, a 720p screen just doesn’t cut it any more.
The iPhone 6s Plus’ bigger 5.5-inch screen retains a 1,920x1,080 resolution, which is more in line with what one would expect from a big-screen phone. This is comparatively sharper, while exhibiting the same prowess with colour accuracy and crispness. If you can handle the bigger device, the 6s Plus is undoubtedly the better option.
Apple also says the display glass is stronger than before. That doesn’t mean you can drop the iPhone recklessly, but it will suffer fewer scratches from coins and other knick-knacks in the pocket (though we suspect most users will still add a screen protector as added insurance).
3D Touch: truly future-ready
It is quite interesting that while Apple hasn’t upgraded the display specifications, it has added a feature that it hopes will become an integral part of the user experience. Called 3D Touch, this is available in both new iPhones. There is a pressure-sensitive layer behind the screen that detects the pressure of the finger to open a series of peek previews or menu options.
Let us illustrate how this works with some examples. Imagine you are searching for one particular mail from your boss. In the old world order, you would have to open each one to find the one you want. With 3D Touch, press down on each message for a “Peek”, and press harder to open it (“Pop”). The idea behind this feature is to reduce the navigation within an app.
Similarly, long-press on the Messages icon and the pop-up shows the option of creating a new message from there itself, or responding to the contacts you have recently conversed with. At present, 3D Touch works with Apple’s own apps (Camera, Maps, Music) as well as Instagram, Dropbox, Evernote, Twitter and Shazam, among others.
Along the way, we expect more app developers to introduce these features into their apps. The 3D Touch is unique, it just doesn’t feel very natural because we aren’t used to it. Persist, however, and it’ll become a habit. Unfortunately, iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus users will not get this feature because it is reliant on a piece of hardware that isn’t present in the older iPhones.
Hey Siri: there you are
The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus use the M9 co-processor to keep the Siri voice assistant on constantly without having to long-press the home button to activate it. Utter the phrase “Hey Siri,” and it is ready to help you with a query. With iOS 9, Apple matches your voice so that Siri can recognize it and not get confused with someone else speaking into their iPhone. During our tests, we noticed that you need a completely silent room to successfully set up the recognition feature. And it didn’t always understand our accents instantly, which is always a hurdle.
Camera: finer details
The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus had rocking 8-megapixel cameras, with the latter also getting image stabilization. The 6s and 6s Plus get a 12-megapixel camera.
On paper, there are some potential issues. First, the smaller iPhone still doesn’t have the image-stabilization feature. Second, Apple has decided to stick with aperture F2.2, while Samsung has moved to F1.9 in its newer Galaxy flagship phones—the lower the “f” number, the larger the lens opening and the greater the amount of light that can reach the image sensor.
However, what Apple misses out on the specification sheet, it more than makes up for with boldness and ingenuity. Its robust image processor does not make images soft (Sony smartphones), unnaturally boost light (LG phones) or try to tweak the colour into something unnatural (Asus phones). Click the same photo with the iPhone 6 Plus and the 6s Plus, and you won’t notice much difference between the two shots initially. Look closely, however, and it is evident that the colours look better in the newer iPhones. And the 6s and 6s Plus pick up significantly better detail, something you’ll notice when you zoom in to a photo.
Then there is the Live Photos feature, which packages 1.5 seconds of video and audio around a photo. HTC did the same with its Zoe camera feature in its One smartphones many years ago. Except that Facebook will now support animated profile photos, and, suddenly, everything seems to be clicking into place.
FaceTime calls and selfies will be clearer too because the front cameras are now 5 megapixels.
Upgrade or not?
The real attraction of the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus is the 3D Touch feature, which is extremely addictive. We are sure future iterations of the iOS operating system will put this centre stage.
We have seen the future, and it requires fewer taps on the touch screen to get stuff done. If you already own an iPhone 6 or 6 Plus, you shouldn’t be in a tearing hurry to upgrade. However, older iPhone users will find a significantly better user experience waiting for them.
