iPhone 11 Pro XS Max died. Worth buying a nearly new 11 Pro Max at £800?

[TJ82]

So I thought people buying the 11 were clown last year as clearly it was the bastard child of corporate ********, hence it lacked the key 2019 feature all other flagship models had - 5G.

Anyway, my XS Max just died yesterday an it looks like an out of warranty hardware repair costing God knows what. Likely more than it would cost to buy a used one on eBay. I might just get some local shop to fix it but I'm being quoted two weeks to source the IC Chip (if it is that, not confirmed).

Anyway. I can get an 11 Pro Max for about £800 on eBay. Now the 12 is coming up and it's a stupid time to buy a new phone, but I'm thinking that the 12 is going to be really expensive and I'm not keen on a big mobile contract these days. Much prefer to bargain hunt a handset and pay outright, then pick my sim contract.

I'm also sort of coming around to the idea than 4G is good enough for me and 5G might not be really anything that would give me a quality of life improvement (phone spends most of its time on WiFi apart from at the moment as I'm waiting on new internet at home as I've just moved, but that's atypical).

I don't follow the 12 news so I was wondering what I might miss if I cheaped out and went for the 11 and if there's anything I might find an upgrade in actual use compared to my XS Max. Will the screen really look any better. Will photos be nicer etc. Is it maybe faster feeling. Anything at all?

Struggling to decide what to do so figured you guys could sort me out hah!

 

[MarkX]

Get the 11 Pro Max, you won't be disappointed.

 

[TJ82]

Get the 11 Pro Max, you won't be disappointed.

You don't think maybe it'd be just like buying an XS Max and it'd feel just the same day to day with no quality off life improvement (I use a case).

 

[CharlesShaw]

Sorry about your XS Max. If I were in your situation, I would treat this an opportunity to make do with the cheapest new iPhone I could get (SE?), knowing that it will later become my "peace of mind" backup phone incase something happens to the awesome new iPhone purchased next year.

 

[MisterMillz]

You don't think maybe it'd be just like buying an XS Max and it'd feel just the same day to day with no quality off life improvement (I use a case).

Yes, it will be like buying a used XS Max—6.5” screen, rounded body. It will have a black face and a notch at the top. You’ll get noticeably better battery life, a bit brighter of a screen, night mode and an ultra wide lens. Only you can decide if that’s enough “quality of life” improvement. The 12/Pro will likely inch forward on that with a more squared body and camera/screen improvements. It’s just a phone. A single year jump (up or down) isn’t going to make too much of a difference—I doubt 5G will either.

 

[John dosh]

Definitely is a fair price for a pro max I would go for it.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

I’d borrow an old iPhone for a few months and get the iPhone 12 Max for the same money personally. The 11 Pro Max is a good phone though.

 

[Royksöpp]

If you can wait just buy a cheap 6s or 7 on eBay and hold off until the 12. The moment the 12 comes out everything before it will immediately look outdated. It's only 2 months away. Besides, Touch ID really comes in handy with the mask requirements.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

If you can wait just buy a cheap 6s or 7 on eBay and hold off until the 12. The moment the 12 comes out everything before it will immediately look outdated. It's only 2 months away. Besides, Touch ID really comes in handy with the mask requirements.

I’m not sure the outdated thing matters to most but you’re right in that the iPhone 12 will bring better features than the 11 at a similar price to what it is now. I would t want to pay a premium now knowing in 3 months for the same price I could have had the current model.

 

[TJ82]

Had more time to think about what you guys were saying and it did put me off the 11 Pro Max a bit, as I'm sure it will just seem like my XS Max day to day.

Now I've seen a refurbished green 12 Pro Max for £746. Only 64GB but I can live with that.

What you think, that's a pretty appealing price. And maybe the 12 won't seem any different in practise either once the case is on. I'm sure a 12 will be like 1150 or more. Prices are going up.

I just watching a Youtube video comparing each stat side by side. Honestly, not really seeing any decent upgrade between the two. Screen is the same resolution, battery in 11 Pro Max already excellent, and the 12 Pro Max is actually bit bulkier. 5G is the only thing there I'd find interesting but in practise seems to be a non-starter right now.

I thought the 12 Pro Max would have had a killer feature like removing the notch, but it's still there.

Anyone able to sell me on the 12 Pro Max before I go for the 11?

Current conclusion is both the 12 Pro Max and 11 Pro Max with case on will look like the XS Max and feel like it day to day.

The only real upgrade will be having a 3rd camera (which I think is pretty cool, I use the camera quite a bit taking crappy cycling shots mid rides) and that's the only thing that I'd get value from.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

Had more time to think about what you guys were saying and it did put me off the 11 Pro Max a bit, as I'm sure it will just seem like my XS Max day to day.

Now I've seen a refurbished green 12 Pro Max for £746. Only 64GB but I can live with that.

What you think, that's a pretty appealing price. And maybe the 12 won't seem any different in practise either once the case is on. I'm sure a 12 will be like 1150 or more. Prices are going up.

I just watching a Youtube video comparing each stat side by side. Honestly, not really seeing any decent upgrade between the two. Screen is the same resolution, battery in 11 Pro Max already excellent, and the 12 Pro Max is actually bit bulkier. 5G is the only thing there I'd find interesting but in practise seems to be a non-starter right now.

I thought the 12 Pro Max would have had a killer feature like removing the notch, but it's still there.

Anyone able to sell me on the 12 Pro Max before I go for the 11?

Current conclusion is both the 12 Pro Max and 11 Pro Max with case on will look like the XS Max and feel like it day to day.

The only real upgrade will be having a 3rd camera (which I think is pretty cool, I use the camera quite a bit taking crappy cycling shots mid rides) and that's the only thing that I'd get value from.

Does it have to be a Pro model or would the iPhone 12 Max not be a consideration?

 

[Tsepz]

Had more time to think about what you guys were saying and it did put me off the 11 Pro Max a bit, as I'm sure it will just seem like my XS Max day to day.

Now I've seen a refurbished green 12 Pro Max for £746. Only 64GB but I can live with that.

What you think, that's a pretty appealing price. And maybe the 12 won't seem any different in practise either once the case is on. I'm sure a 12 will be like 1150 or more. Prices are going up.

I just watching a Youtube video comparing each stat side by side. Honestly, not really seeing any decent upgrade between the two. Screen is the same resolution, battery in 11 Pro Max already excellent, and the 12 Pro Max is actually bit bulkier. 5G is the only thing there I'd find interesting but in practise seems to be a non-starter right now.

I thought the 12 Pro Max would have had a killer feature like removing the notch, but it's still there.

Anyone able to sell me on the 12 Pro Max before I go for the 11?

Current conclusion is both the 12 Pro Max and 11 Pro Max with case on will look like the XS Max and feel like it day to day.

The only real upgrade will be having a 3rd camera (which I think is pretty cool, I use the camera quite a bit taking crappy cycling shots mid rides) and that's the only thing that I'd get value from.

Apparently the 12 Pro Max will have a smaller battery than the 11 Pro Max. Who knows how true that is though, but it is worrying considering that it will have 5G which is not exactly efficient right now.

End of the day it is up to whether you are willing to wait or not. I don’t think you can go wrong with either, but will you be happy to have bought a phone now when the new one releases in a few months?

 

[gnasher729]

Anyway, my XS Max just died yesterday an it looks like an out of warranty hardware repair costing God knows what. Likely more than it would cost to buy a used one on eBay. I might just get some local shop to fix it but I'm being quoted two weeks to source the IC Chip (if it is that, not confirmed).

Obviously the first thing is to find out exactly what the repair will cost. In the UK, it costs at most £596. Screen is a lot cheaper. So I wouldn't pay £800 for a used phone on eBay.

PS. "Out of warranty repair" means: Some employee takes your phone, throws it in a big box that will go to China to be turned into a "refurbished" phone if possible or has usable parts extracted, and gets another phone identical to yours from another box and hands it to you.

PS. Hadn't actually noticed this was in the UK. Yes, if it's less than two years old then the seller needs to fix it unless you broke it. And the iPhone XS was released in September 2018, so that applies to every single iPhone XS.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

Obviously the first thing is to find out exactly what the repair will cost. In the UK, it costs at most £596. Screen is a lot cheaper. So I wouldn't pay £800 for a used phone on eBay.

PS. "Out of warranty repair" means: Some employee takes your phone, throws it in a big box that will go to China to be turned into a "refurbished" phone if possible or has usable parts extracted, and gets another phone identical to yours from another box and hands it to you.

A hardware failure on an iPhone under 2 years old should qualify for a replacement as long as it’s not accidentally damaged. Apple often replace within 24 months on hardware failures. My wife’s Apple Watch was nearly 2 and a half years old and Apple said had she bought it directly from them, they would have replaced it for her.

 

[TJ82]

Apple customer support said it would have to be paid for as it's out of warranty unfortunately. They linked me to an example price list and the costs were ridiculous. Cheaper to be an XS Max refurb on eBay, or a mint condition used one than their costs.

I have a local guy said it might be an IC chip and he'd charge about 60 to 100 quid for it. Think I'll do that then eBay the phone. Already bought an 11 Pro Max 256GB for £800 yesterday. Looked like a bargain, well under market value so snapped it up. Hope that lasts a good 4 years at least.

 

[1rottenapple]

You don't think maybe it'd be just like buying an XS Max and it'd feel just the same day to day with no quality off life improvement (I use a case).

This. thats why I didn’t upg. Day to day I would not notice any difference. Why not buy a cheap iPhone to tide you over till September.

 

[TJ82]

This. thats why I didn’t upg. Day to day I would not notice any difference. Why not buy a cheap iPhone to tide you over till September.

Well in the end it was significantly more expensive with little upside. The phone alone would cost £400 to £500 more if bought upfront (Used 11 Pro Max 256GB v New 12 Pro Max base). Then add in the loss from resale of the cheaper phone though maybe wouldn't be more than £50 to £100.

All in it's a lot of cash, even more if you took out an inflated monthly contract.

I was okay with the idea until I started watching 11 v 12 video comparisons. I can't see anything there that will make me feel day to day this is a new experience. 12 will still have that notch, screen res won't be much different either. Slightly bulkier going to the 12.

From XS Max to 12 Pro Max the big thing is the camera, which I've now played with. That wide mode is wicked. Loving it so far. Going to get some outdoor shots if I get out for a ride later today.

5G was the other main one, but on reflection I spend most time on wifi and 4G isn't slow for me here so it could be a few years until 5G is giving me a QOL upgrade in practise.

In the end, it was the 3rd camera and a nice eBay snipe on a £800 256GB 11 Pro Max that pushed me over the edge. Great deal that. 12 will be a better phone, but so will 13 and 14 etc. I wanted a value proposition here so this worked. I was happy with the XS Max, if that didn't break I'd have held on for another couple of years.

Other thing to note is I ride with the phone in a back jersey pocket, so it's always at risk of getting trashed.

 

[Brian Y]

Seriously, if you're in the UK, look up your consumer rights.

It'll be your retailer, not Apple (unless you bought it from them directly), but you'll be amazed what companies will do when they realise you know what they are legally responsible for.

 

[TJ82]

Seriously, if you're in the UK, look up your consumer rights.

It'll be your retailer, not Apple (unless you bought it from them directly), but you'll be amazed what companies will do when they realise you know what they are legally responsible for.

I did speak to Apple late last night telling them about the 2 year EU warranty and the guy said he'd get me a call back, then it didn't happen. Busy I guess. Actually forget who I bought this from originally, need to look that up.

Will try again tonight. Pretty damn shoddy for a £1000+ phone to die within two years then the manufacturer asks £400 to £600 to repair it.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

I did speak to Apple late last night telling them about the 2 year EU warranty and the guy said he'd get me a call back, then it didn't happen. Busy I guess. Actually forget who I bought this from originally, need to look that up.

Will try again tonight. Pretty damn shoddy for a £1000+ phone to die within two years then the manufacturer asks £400 to £600 to repair it.

Yeah a smartphone under 2 years old shouldn’t be suffering a hardware failure which is expensive for the consumer to fix. I would imagine under the sale of goods act you’ll be covered and I’d be surprised if Apple don’t replace or repair it for free. Just don’t lose your temper when speaking with them and they usually go above and beyond to help.