iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max Review Roundup: Should You Upgrade in 2018? [LIST]

Apple’s embargo has lifted on iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max reviews, as select media outlets provided units to go hands-on with (for less than a week) have published their reviews.

Here’s a quick roundup of the reviews published so far, which should provide you with ample reading leading up to Friday’s iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max launch:

• Nilay Patel / The Verge: APPLE IPHONE XS AND XS MAX REVIEW: SMOOTHED OUT
• Matthew Panzarino / TechCrunch: Review: iPhone XS, XS Max and the power of long-term thinking
• Brian X. Chen / New York Times: The iPhone XS and XS Max Review: Bigger Is Now Definitely Better
• Scott Stein / CNET: iPhone XS review: A slight notch above the iPhone X
• Joanna Stern / Wall Street Journal: iPhone XS and XS Max Review: Sit Tight for the XR
• Todd Haselton / CNBC: Apple’s iPhone XS and Max are the best phones you can buy, but skip them if you already have an iPhone X
• Tom’s Guide: iPhone Xs Max and iPhone Xs Review: This Is Obscene
• Paul Thurrott / Thurrott.com: Let’s Talk About the iPhone XS (and XS Max) (Premium)
• John Paczkowski / BuzzFeed News: The iPhone Xs Is The Best iPhone Since The Last One
• Patrick O’Rourke /MobileSyrup: iPhone XS and XS Max Review: Expected iteration
• Lauren Goode / Wired: REVIEW: IPHONE XS AND IPHONE XS MAX
• Edward C. Baig / USA Today: iPhone XS and XS Max review: Apple’s beautiful big-screen beasts exact a small ransom
• James Titcomb / Telegraph: iPhone XS Max review: The jumbotron phone for those who want it all
• Raymond Wong / Mashable: iPhone XS and XS Max: Going for the gold
• Gareth Beavis / TechRadar.com: iPhone XS review
• Rhiannon Williams / iNews: iPhone XS review: Apple’s latest model is a worthy iPhone X replacement
• Cam Bunton and Stuart Miles / Pocket-Lint: Apple iPhone XS Max review: It’s all about the display
• Madeline Buxton / Refinery29: I Tried Apple’s New iPhone Xs, & This Is How To Know If You Should Buy One
• Eddie Eng / Hypebeast: EXCLUSIVE: Virgil Abloh Reviews the All-New Apple iPhone XS Max
• Emma Brannam / Newshub: iPhone XS Max: Five days with Apple’s most expensive iPhone yet
• David Phelan / Independent: IPHONE XS AND XS MAX REVIEW: APPLE HAS MADE THE MOST DESIRABLE PHONES IN THE WORLD – BUT SOMETHING ELSE IS COMING
• John Gruber / Daring Fireball: The iPhones XS

Overall, the reviews note the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max are definitely “S” upgrades, and those with an iPhone X should only update if they’re jonesing for the latest iPhone. People are also urged to wait to see what the iPhone XR holds (it doesn’t launch until later in October).

We’ll keep updating this post as more reviews come in. We have our own iPhone XS Max coming this Friday and we’ll share our early thoughts shortly afterwards as well.