iPhone XR Release Detailed As Apple Expands iPhone XS Sales
Apple's iPhone XR will go up for preorder on Friday, October 19, the company has confirmed, while also announcing new countries where the more affordable smartphone and its iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max cousins will be available. Announced alongside the iPhone XS last month, the iPhone XR brings Apple's latest slim-bezel aesthetic to a more affordable price point, not to mention a welcome return to some brighter colors.
With a 6.1-inch screen, the iPhone XR will slot in-between the iPhone XS and the iPhone XS Max. Apple has used an LCD panel, rather than OLED, to help keep the price down. Similarly, on the back there's a single camera rather than a dual camera, though Apple promises you'll still get some Portrait mode functionality which it will deliver through software.
The result is a $749 starting price, $250 less than you'll pay for the cheapest iPhone XS. For that, you still get Face ID and the gesture navigation in iOS 12 that the iPhone XS debuted. Three storage variants will be offered: 64 GB, 128 GB, and 256 GB. Six colors, meanwhile, are available: black, white, blue, yellow, coral, and (PRODUCT)RED.
As of Friday, October 19 at 12:01am PST, preorders for the iPhone XR will open. Deliveries – along with in-store sales – will kick off on Friday, October 26. There'll be more than 50 different countries and territories you can pick up an iPhone XR:
Albania, Andorra, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Greenland, Guernsey, Herzegovina, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Isle of Man, Italy, Japan, Jersey, Kosovo, Kuwait, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Malaysia, Mexico, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Oman, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, the UAE, UK, US and US Virgin Islands.
That will expand come November 1, to Israel. The following day, November 2, the iPhone XR will launch in Armenia, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Macau, Maldives, Myanmar, Ukraine, and Vietnam.
As for the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, that will launch in countries like Chile, Colombia, Malaysia, and Thailand on October 26. Preorders in those locations will begin the week prior, on October 19. Come November 2, the flagships will arrive in South Korea and more than 10 additional countries and territories.