Home Phone comparison Apple iPhone XR and Apple iPhone Air - Which is better?

Apple iPhone XR vs Apple iPhone Air

51 out 100
Apple iPhone XR
VS
88 out 100
Apple iPhone Air
Apple iPhone XR
Apple iPhone Air

Compared 2 smartphones : Apple iPhone XR Manufactured in October, 2018, with display 6.1 with chipsetApple A12 Bionic, vs Apple iPhone Air, Manufactured in September, 2025with chipsetApple A19 Pro. Below are specs, tests, pros and cons for each device

  1. Differences
  2. Review
  3. Specs
  4. Benchmarks
  5. Battery Life
  6. Cameras
  7. Comments (0)

Key Differences

Device key advantages
Reasons to choose Apple iPhone XR
    Reasons to choose Apple iPhone Air
    • Larger display: 6.5in
    • Higher pixel density: 460ppi
    • Higher refresh rate: 120Hz
    • Lighter design: 165g vs 194g
    • Higher battery capacity: 3149mAh vs 2942mAh
    • Newer Bluetooth version: 6.0 vs 5

    Versions

    Available versions and configurations
    Memory Options - 3/64 GB
    - 3/128 GB
    - 3/256 GB    		 - 8/256 GB
    - 8/512 GB
    - 8/1024 GB

    Review

    Key Specs Apple iPhone XR and Apple iPhone Air
    Display
    Color accuracy, sharpness & brightness
    Camera
    Main & front camera tests
    Performance
    App & system performance
    Games
    3D gaming performance
    Battery
    Battery life, charging speed & type
    Connectivity
    Connectivity features
    NanoReview Score
    Overall score by NanoReview
    Adjust each parameter’s importance to find the best match for you.
    Customize your score
    Function
    Importance (Weight)
    Display:
    Camera:
    Performance:
    Gaming:
    Battery:
    Connectivity:
    Higher weight means greater impact on NanoReview score.

    Tests & specs

    Specs & test comparison
    Smartphones:
    Apple iPhone XR
    vs
    Apple iPhone Air

    Display

    Display quality comparison
    Type IPS LCD OLED
    Size 6.1 in 6.5 in
    Resolution 828x1792 pixels 1260x2736 pixels
    Aspect ratio 19.5:9 19.5:9
    Pixel density 326 ppi 460 ppi
    Refresh rate 60 Hz 120 Hz
    Adaptive refresh rate No Yes (1-120 Hz)
    Max brightness 625 nits 3000 nits
    HDR support Yes Dolby Vision Yes, Dolby Vision
    Screen-to-body ratio 79.9 % 88.9 %
    Features n/a - DCI-P3
    - Always-On Display
    Display test
    Peak brightness (auto)
    Apple iPhone XR
    635 nits
    Apple iPhone Air
    n/a
    sRGB gamut100 %n/a
    Response time32.8 msn/a
    Contrast1920:1n/a
    Sources: NotebookCheck [Apple iPhone XR]

    Design & Build

    Design and ergonomics comparison
    Height 150.9 mm (5.94 in) 156.2 mm (6.15 in)
    Width 75.7 mm (2.98 in) 74.7 mm (2.94 in)
    Thickness 8.3 mm (0.33 in) 5.6 mm (0.22 in)
    Weight 194 g (6.84 oz) 165 g (5.82 oz)
    Water resistance IP67 IP68
    Back panel Glass Glass
    Frame Metal Metal
    Colors - White
    - Black
    - Blue
    - Red
    - Orange
    - Yellow    		 - White
    - Black
    - Gold
    - Blue
    Fingerprint sensor No No
    Screen-to-body ratio
    Apple iPhone XR
    79.9 %
    Apple iPhone Air
    88.9 %

    Performance

    Testing Apple iPhone XR and Apple iPhone Air In benchmarks
    Processor
    Chipset Apple A12 Bionic Apple A19 Pro
    Max Frequency 2490 MHz 4300 MHz
    CPU Cores 6 (2 + 4) 6 (2 + 4)
    Architecture - 4/1.6 (Tempest)
    - 2/2.49 (Vortex)    		 4/2.51 ()
    Process TSMC TSMC
    Transistor Size 7 nm 3 nm
    Neural Processor Neural Engine Neural Engine
    Graphics Apple A12 GPU n/a
    GPU Cores 256 n/a
    GPU Frequency 1100 MHz n/a
    FLOPS 576 GFLOPS n/a
    GeekBench v6
    Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
    Apple iPhone XR
    1167
    Apple iPhone Air
    3756
    Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
    Apple iPhone XR
    3020
    Apple iPhone Air
    10670
    Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)11673756
    Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)302010670
    AnTuTu 10
    AnTuTu 10
    Apple iPhone XR
    656253
    Apple iPhone Air
    2118157
    CPU203013511982
    GPU155478790667
    Memory134836370651
    UX162926444857
    NanoReview Score6562532118157
    3DMark Wild Life
    3DMark Wild Life
    Apple iPhone XR
    5205
    Apple iPhone Air
    n/a
    Max Surface Temp.42.6 °Cn/a
    Stability69 %n/a
    Graphics Test31 fpsn/a
    Graphics Score5205n/a
    Sources: 3DMark [Apple iPhone XR]

    Memory

    RAM
    RAM Size 3 GB 8 GB
    Memory Type LPDDR4X LPDDR5X
    Memory Frequency 2133 MHz n/a
    Channels 2 4
    Storage
    Storage Capacity- 64 GB
    - 128 GB
    - 256 GB    		256 GB
    Storage TypeNVMeNVMe
    Memory CardNoNo

    Software

    OS iOS 12 (Upgradeable to iOS 18.3.2) iOS 26
    OS Size 11.1 GB n/a

    Battery

    Volume 2942 mAh 3149 mAh
    Max Charging Power 15 W 30 W
    Battery Type Li-ion Li-ion
    Removable No No
    Wireless Charging Yes Qi (10 W) Yes (20 W)
    Reverse Charging No Yes
    Fast Charging Yes (50% in 30 min) Yes (50% in 30 min)
    Full Charge Time 1:43 h n/a
    Battery Life Test
    Battery Life
    Apple iPhone XR
    20:45
    Apple iPhone Air
    n/a
    Web Browsing08:01 hn/a
    Video Playback11:59 hn/a
    Games04:34 hn/a
    Standby Mode106 hn/a

    Main camera

    Matrix 12 MP 48 MP
    Photo resolution 4032x3024 pixels 8064x6048 pixels
    Zoom Digital Digital
    Flash Quad LED Dual LED
    Stabilization Optical Optical
    8K Recording No No
    4K Recording Yes (Up to 60 fps) Yes (Up to 60 fps)
    1080p Recording Yes (Up to 60 fps) Yes (Up to 60 fps)
    Slow Motion 240 fps (1080p) 240 fps (1080p)
    Lenses count Standard: 12 MP Standard: 48 MP
    Features - Bokeh effect
    - RAW support    		 - Bokeh effect
    - Pro mode
    - RAW support
    Main lens
    Matrix12 MP48 MP
    Aperturef/1.8f/1.6
    Focal length26 mm26 mm
    SensorApple iSight Xn/a
    Sensor size1/2.551/1.56
    Pixel size1.4 μm1 μm
    AutofocusPhase autofocusPhase autofocus (Dual Pixel)
    StabilizationOpticalOptical
    Main camera DxOMark results
    Photo quality
    Apple iPhone XR
    103
    Apple iPhone Air
    n/a
    Video quality
    Apple iPhone XR
    96
    Apple iPhone Air
    n/a
    Overall camera score
    Apple iPhone XR
    101
    Apple iPhone Air
    n/a

    Front camera

    Matrix 7 MP 18 MP
    Photo resolution 3088x2316 pixels n/a
    Aperture f/2.2 f/1.9
    Focal length 32 mm 23 mm
    Sensor CMOS n/a
    Pixel size n/a 1.12 μm
    Autofocus No Phase autofocus
    Stabilization Digital Optical
    Video resolution 1080p (Full HD) at 60 fps 2160p (4K) at 60 fps
    TOF 3D sensor No Yes

    Connectivity

    Wi-Fi version Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) Wi-Fi 7 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be)
    Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
    - Wi-Fi MiMO
    - Wi-Fi Hotspot    		 - Dual Band
    - Wi-Fi MiMO
    - Wi-Fi Direct
    - Wi-Fi Hotspot
    - Wi-Fi Display
    Bluetooth version 5 6.0
    Bluetooth features SPP, PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, LE, HSP, HID, HFP, HDP, GAP, GAVDP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP LE
    USB type No USB Type-C
    USB version 2 2
    USB features - Charging
    - OTG    		 - Charging
    - USB Storage Mode
    - OTG
    DisplayPort n/a No
    GPS - GPS
    - GLONASS
    - Beidou
    - Galileo    		 - GPS
    - GLONASS
    - Beidou
    - Galileo
    - QZSS
    - NAVIC
    NFC* Yes Yes
    Infrared Port No No
    Connectivity
    SIM Count*1n/a
    SIM TypeNanoeSIM
    SIM Moden/aDual SIM Standby
    eSIM Support *YesYes
    Hybrid SlotNoNo
    2G BandsGSM 850, GSM 900, GSM 1800, GSM 1900n/a
    3G BandsHSDPA 850, HSDPA 900, HSDPA 1900, HSDPA 2100UMTS/HSPA+/DC-HSDPA 850, 900, 1700/2100, 1900, 2100 MHz
    LTE Bands*LTE (B700/B800/B850/B900/B1700/B1800/B1900/B2100/B2600)LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B13/B14/B17/B18/B19/B20/B25/B26/B28/B29/B30/B32/B66/B71)
    LTE category12n/a
    5G SupportNoYes

    Sound

    Speakers Stereo n/a
    3.5 mm Jack No No
    FM Radio No No
    Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
    Speaker Test
    Max Volume
    Apple iPhone XR
    87.3 dB
    Apple iPhone Air
    n/a

    Other

    Class Flagship Flagship
    Announced September, 2018 yr September, 2025 yr
    Release Date October, 2018 yr September, 2025 yr
    Launch Price ($) 750 n/a
    MSRP ($) n/a 999
    Sensors - Barometer
    - Proximity Sensor
    - Gyroscope
    - Accelerometer
    - Ambient Light Sensor
    - Compass
    - Face Sensor    		 - Barometer
    - Proximity Sensor
    - Gyroscope
    - Accelerometer
    - Ambient Light Sensor
    - Compass
    - Face Sensor
    Charger Included n/a No
    * Attention! Config, frequencies, NFC, and other specs may vary by region.

    Results

    After analyzing the data, we consider Apple iPhone Air the clear winner in this comparison.

    Survey

    Which smartphone would you pick?
    0 (0%)
    3 (100%)
    Total Votes: 3

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