The iPhone X is officially here — and it's a radical new take on Apple's most successful product. A decade after shattering the norms about what a mobile phone should be, the tech giant has a new vision — one with fewer buttons, no screen bezels, seamless gesture controls, using your face instead of a password, and personalised emoji.
Impressive Bezel-Free Design
The most dramatically redesigned iPhone since, well, the original, looks just as impressive as it functions. With a shiny stainless steel frame, glass back, and vibrant, bezel-free display, the iPhone X commands attention like no other iPhone has in years. It looks different, futuristic, and, ultimately, really desirable.
Lacking display bezels makes the iPhone X much easier to handle than its 5.8-inch display size suggests. The phone's footprint is barely bigger than that of the iPhone 8, so you can easily use it with one hand.
Design purists might frown upon the small notch that's sitting on top of the display. The much-talked-about component does not affect the user experience, so we don't find it to be a distraction. Videos you watch will automatically play in a cinematic 16:9 ratio, so the notch will not eat into the content; the same goes for video games.
A technological marvel in its own right, the tiny strip above the iPhone X display packs a total of eight (!) components, including a speaker, a microphone, two camera sensors, and a dot projector (for Face ID), among others. It is essential in bringing groundbreaking new experiences such as Face ID, portrait mode for selfies, and Animoji.
In a manner befitting its price tag, the iPhone X feels better crafted than any of its predecessors. Replacing the original aluminium for stainless steel in its frame has given the device a decidedly luxurious feel, which is not typical for a product that's available on such scale. The phone is also water- and dust-resistant.
Sharp OLED Display
The 5.8-inch Super Retina OLED display of the iPhone X is simply gorgeous and well worth an upgrade alone. It delivers exceptional contrast and colour accuracy, as well as Apple's signature True Tone tech. The latter utilises the phone's ambient light sensor to ensure that colour temperature of the screen is always in sync with the light around you.
With a resolution of 2,436 by 1,125 pixels, and a pixel density of 458 ppi, it's the sharpest iPhone display to date (up from 401 ppi in the iPhone 8 Plus). The iPhone display also supports both HDR10 and Dolby Vision, so you can enjoy Stranger Things on Netflix, or your iTunes rentals, with even more wow-inducing colors.
Foolproof Face ID Replaces Your Fingerprint
You can now open your phone with your face! The Face ID feature in iPhone X replaces your fingerprints with a 3D map of your face, captured by the phone's sophisticated TrueDepth camera. It maps your face by projecting tens of thousands of invisible dots onto it. Setting up the feature is even easier than getting started with Touch ID — all you have to do is slowly scan your face twice by making circular motions.
Face ID works in the dark, as well when you are wearing glasses or a hat. You cannot fool the feature with a photo, because 2D images lack depth information.
In case you are worried that using your face is not secure enough, don't be. Face ID is actually even more reliable than a fingerprint — the probability of a random person being able to unlock your iPhone X is 1:1,000,000 (versus 1:50,000 for Touch ID).
The best bit about Face ID is that it replaces Touch ID without even a hint of fuss, despite it being a cornerstone of the iPhone experience since its introduction alongside the iPhone 5S in 2013 . All of your favourite Touch ID apps will work with the new security feature from day one. There is no need to wait for app developers to add support for the new functionality via an update.
Intuitive Gestures Replace the Home Button
An hardware fixture since 2007, the home button has been replaced with several gestures in the iPhone X. Swiping up from the bottom of the screen is the one you are going to use most often — it will take you to the home screen every time.
Older iPhones use the above gesture to access Control Center. In iPhone X, you can do so by swiping from the right side of the notch on top of the display.
Opening the app switcher requires you to swipe up from the bottom and pause for a moment. An even cooler and arguably more convenient way to toggle between your open apps is by sliding your thumb left and right across the bottom of the display.
Calling up Siri takes place by long-pressing the power button (or your voice). Double-clicking the power button, on the other hand, activates Apple Pay.
Speaking of the power button, to turn off the iPhone X, you need to press and hold the power button and one of the volume buttons. To take a screenshot, you need to simultaneously press the power and the volume up buttons.
Your iPhone will walk you through the new gestures when you set it up. Getting used to them takes surprisingly little time — Apple deserves a hat tip for making the process of adjusting to them so effortless.
Improved iOS
The iPhone X runs iOS 11 out of the box. The latest iteration of Apple's mobile platform includes improved Siri and Photos experience, better Apple Maps, a dedicated files app, and a customisable Control Center, as well as access to stunning augmented reality apps and games.
Apple iOS 11 also comes with a completely redesigned App Store. It makes discovering new apps and games easier than ever.
Exceptional Performance
Like the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus, the iPhone X packs the company's latest A11 Bionic chip with six-core processor and a dedicated neural engine. Handily the most powerful chip currently available on any smartphone, the A11 Bionic makes the X deliver an exceptionally fluid experience, regardless of the task on hand.
The stereo speakers are great, too. They deliver loud and crisp audio with a surprisingly distinct bass punch that's not typical for built-in smartphone speakers. It's really impressive that Apple managed to fit audio drivers of such high quality into the compact body of the iPhone X.
During our testing, we easily got a full day of battery life from the iPhone X. If you decide to be frugal with your screen-on time, you can get even more time between charges. Nonstop augmented reality gaming, on the other hand, might result in an early trip to a charger.
The iPhone X is the third Apple phone to support wireless charging.
Better-Than-Ever Selfies
The iPhone X has two 12 MP camera sensors — a wide-angle one with f/1.8 lens, and a telephoto option with f/2.4 lens. Both sensors have optical image stabilisation, which is a first for an iPhone — the iPhone 7 Plus and iPhone 8 Plus have OIS only on their wide-angle sensor.
The iPhone X will also help you take your selfie game to a whole new level. Its 7 MP front-facing camera can deliver amazing Portrait Lighting photos by utilising the device's depth sensor. There are five effects you can choose from, even after you have already captured your photo.
There are no surprises here: The iPhone X takes exceptional photos on all occasions, including in low light — its image quality will be an industry benchmark until its successor arrives. Like in iPhone 8 Plus, you can capture amazing portrait photos using the Portrait Lighting feature.
How the iPhone X Stacks Up
The iPhone X is a massive leap in design, craftsmanship, and user experience, making other smartphones feel like they are a generation behind. Best of all, despite all of its groundbreaking hardware and all-new user interface, the iPhone X remains intuitive and seamless to use just as your would expect an Apple product to be. The tech giant deserves praise for making the new user experience so effortless.
This is the iPhone to buy, so long as its price tag fits in your budget. The iPhone X the most expensive Apple smartphone to date. It is also the most sophisticated smartphone out there, so in a market where Samsung and Google charge similar prices for their latest big-screen offerings, we find it to be well worth the extra charge.
Get a front-row look at the iPhone X here:
