Phones & Portable Devices / iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus

Announced on 9th September 2014, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus were in Irish shops approximately a month later and have undergone rigorous testing in our independent labs to emerge with high scores all round. For years, Apple has steadfastly stuck by its 3.5- and 4-inch screens despite the ever-increasing display size provided by many major rivals, but with its latest offerings the Cupertino manufacturer has embraced the larger smartphone with the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and has entered “phablet” territory with the massive 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus. Other changes may be less striking – such as higher resolution, swifter processing and an enhanced camera – but they all go to make two outstanding new smartphones from Apple.

The redesign

Available in “space grey”, silver and gold and with an aluminium frame, these new devices have curved corners rather than the square look normally associated with Apple’s phones and are even slimmer than the iPhone 5s. Compared with a thickness of 7.6mm on the 5s, the iPhone 6 Plus is just 7.1mm and the 6 is even thinner at just 6.9mm. The increased screen size on the new iPhones delivers a clear advantage when it comes to typing emails, watching videos, viewing maps, playing games and so on, but one-handed operation can be tricky with bigger phones and some may find them uncomfortably large, with the very sizeable dimensions of the 6 Plus posing a particular challenge. To help longtime Apple users adjust to the larger screen and facilitate one-handed use, a “reachability” feature may be used to slide the phone desktop down to the middle of the screen, bringing the top apps and controls closer to your thumb. Available on both the new phones, this feature makes most sense on the larger screen of the 6 Plus but even here some testers have found it cumbersome to use.

Improvements

The new devices are the first Apple phones to sport the manufacturer’s Retina HD display, providing bright, detailed images with great colour representation and excellent viewing angles. Whereas the iPhone 6 has a resolution of 1334 x 750, the 6 Plus sports 1920 x 1080 resolution – neither of which are equal to the resolution of some top-of-the-range Android rivals but still make for a very satisfying viewing experience. And with the introduction of a new polarised layer in the glass, readability in bright sunlight is much improved.

The new Apple phones have swapped the A7 chip of the 5s for a 64-bit A8 chip with the aim to further increase already-very-fast speeds and indeed the 6 and 6 Plus handle heavy loads with ease, multitasking effortlessly and providing smooth and swift operation when surfing the web and loading and playing games.

Camera function

Compared with many other smartphone cameras, the resolution on both the new iPhones’ rear-facing cameras is a fairly modest 8MP, equal to that of the 5s, but the new devices also come with several enhancements – such as higher video frame rates, quicker focusing and an improved sensor – to deliver even better quality images than their predecessor. The image quality competes well with other top models and these phones deliver excellent video and sound recording. In addition, on the 6 Plus, the introduction of an optical image stabiliser should minimise the problem of camera shake and produces great results in low-light conditions. One thing to watch out for is that the camera lens sticks out a bit from the chassis on the back, though the sapphire glass that covers the lens should keep it safe from scratches. If you are a fan of taking selfies and making video calls, the 1.2MP camera on the front of these phones will do a good job even in less-than-ideal lighting conditions.

Bending…the truth

One issue that has received much publicity online and elsewhere is that these very thin devices reportedly were bending when kept in the back pockets of tight jeans. Our sister consumer organisation in the US, Consumer Reports, decided to put this aspect of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus through its own tests and found that these devices are not as bendy as had been suggested. The new phones underwent a stress test known as a “three-point flexural test” that involved supporting the devices at either end and applying an increasingly strong force to a third point on the top. For comparison purposes, Consumer Reports also tested the LG G3, the Samsung Galaxy Note 3, the HTC One (M8) and the iPhone 5. All the phones on test were found to be fairly tough and both Apple phones outperformed the sturdy HTC One, with the iPhone 6 withstanding 70 pounds of force before bending and the 6 Plus able to take up to 90 pounds. The other phones showed themselves to be even more robust but the Consumer Reports results indicate that despite their slimline design, the new iPhones should have no problem standing up to typical use.

What else?

Both phones were tested with iOS 8, which experienced some initial teething problems that the iOS 8.0.2 update aims to fix. The test results below are for the 16GB versions of these phones but Apple also offers 64GB and 128GB models for those who need the extra storage.
The iPhone 6 Plus has a bigger battery than its smaller sibling, which translates into longer battery life – in our tests, the iPhone 6 managed a very decent 14 hours permanent call time in 3G whereas the Plus delivered an impressive 24 hours.
Like the 5s, the iPhone 6 and the 6 Plus have a fingerprint identity sensor built into the Home button for fast and secure access. These iPhones are touted as coming with NFC (near field communication) but its use will be limited to the new mobile payment service known as Apple Pay. This contactless payment service became available to US iPhone 6 and 6 Plus owners in October 2014 but will not reach this side of the Atlantic for some time, making the NFC capability somewhat redundant here for a while.

Big or bigger?

If you love your iPhone but have been looking enviously at the generous-sized screens of many Android smartphones, the iPhone 6 could be ideal. Most people find it comfortable enough to hold in one hand but it is a major leap up in terms of size so it is important to get your hands on a model before you buy to make sure it will suit you. The 6 Plus is a very large phone and is difficult to use one-handed, so it will not appeal to everyone. However, you will get a more iPad-like user experience with the 6 Plus on a device that is significantly smaller than a tablet and that will still – just about – fit in a pocket. The longer battery life of the 6 Plus also could sway it for you and the bigger phone’s camera is better with optical image stabilisation, if you are planning to take lots of snaps. These are both excellent phones, depending on what you are looking for, but, as ever with Apple products, they come with very substantial price tags – from €650 for the iPhone 6 and from €750 for the 6 Plus for the 16GB versions on prepay – so be sure you like the feel of them before opting to go large.