The Ultimate (and honest) iPhone X Review - iPhone 6 vs iPhone 7 vs iPhone 8 vs iPhone X
iPhone X is finally here! But at the end of the day, it’s just another iPhone. Sure it has a several neat features but it’s going to do what every iPhone in the last few years has allowed you to do. So will it be really worth it? Find out in our iPhone X Review!
Like the video? Make sure you subscribe to our YouTube Channel!
RELATED VIDEOS: iPhone X Camera Tests & Is the iPhone X Screen Really 5.8 inches?
Let’s get straight to the point. If all youʼre looking for is to upgrade an older iPhone 6 or 6s, you could get away with the iPhone 8 or 8 Plus. BUT if you can pony up the extra $300 dollars, there are several notable new, iterative features that are going to make your iPhone slightly easier to use. Maybe even provide you with a glimpse into the future.
Personally, we’re glad we got the iPhone X. It is by far our favourite iPhone upgrade in a recent memory. But we’re not sure if itʼs because the features are that great or because Apple finally came up with something mildly different than the incremental upgrades theyʼve been offering over the last few years.
In this article we will talk about our honest answer to the question “Should I get the iPhone X?”, We will highlight DEAL BREAKERS! that should help you decide whether the iPhone X is the right for you. As an added bonus, we will also discuss if iPhone 8 or iPhone 7 is the one right for you, if the iPhone X isn’t.
the "5.8 inches" oled screen
The iPhone X comes with an OLED screen. Now your iPhone is on-par with most Android devices. Which means there is one less reasons your Android family/friends can say their devices are better! The one thing you’re going to notice? The screen is going to be MUCH brighter.
BUT for everybody to get the most out of the new screen, youʼre going have to wait for a while because certain types of apps like games arenʼt optimized to work on the iPhone X’s screen.
Now Apple did something odd with the iPhone Xʼs screen as it technically has a 5.8 inch screen but parts of the screen are covered up by the True Depth camera and the corners of the screen are rounded so if you were to measure from corner to corner, you donʼt actually get 5.8 inches. It’s even less with certain games which we’ll cover below.
Now in a brave move, Apple decided to eliminate the home button on the iPhone X and replace with a gesture. Weʼve just been calling it a home swipe gesture. Now this design feature allows Apple to show more content in native apps such as Safari as the text reaches the bottom of the OLED screen and it still runs into the TrueDepth camera space at the top of the iPhone X.
But other apps such as Facebook and Instagram end up with a bit of dead space at the bottom of the screen. Now we call it dead space because visually there isnʼt anything there. But it is functional in the sense that you swipe that area to access the multitasking feature of the iPhone X, which is something youʼd have to double tap the home button on the iPhone 8ʼs.
Hereʼs the disappointing part of the new screen. Most of the games we play at this moment donʼt take full advantage of the screen. When we play one of the latest games from Rovio, the app automatically scales down to a screen size thatʼs the same as the iPhone 8.
Cropping occurs on the sides and at the bottom of the app so youʼre giant, beautiful OLED screen now has giant bezels along the side and a semi-dead space right below the app.
So if youʼre a gamer, the iPhone X might not be the best upgrade right now. If you need more information, check out the detailed screen comparison video that weʼve done. All the dimensions for this issue are listed there. DEAL BREAKER!
But as a side note, the camera and flashlight are now easily accessible on the home screen. We’re not sure why Apple didnʼt include this on all iPhoneʼs as itʼs been especially handy.
handling- does the new form factor and battery life any different?
In this section, we will break the discussion into two parts: the form factor and the battery life.
The new form Factor
The iPhone X has a bigger screen but a smaller form factor than the iPhone 8 Plus. Thatʼs a sentence that doesnʼt really make sense but itʼs true!
Prior to the iPhone X, we generally gravitated towards the Plus-sized iPhones because of the the bigger screens. But one-handed usage was awful and near impossible without a bit of help because the device was incredibly large. We personally love Loopy Cases and the product has allowed us to use the Plus-sized iPhones with any issues. In fact, a lot of the non-stationary footage we have is shot with a Loopy Case.
We don’t have the same reachability issues with regular-sized iPhones.
So where does the iPhone X fit in when it comes to usage? Is it small enough to use without a Loopy Case or will I still need one? Spoilers, we still need the Loopy case.
The iPhone X reminds us a lot of the iPhone 5 series. The iPhone 5 had a bigger screen than the iPhone 4 but instead of scaling the screen size normally, Apple decided to make it tall. Itʼs a similar case with the iPhone X.
Itʼs difficult to reach the top of the screen and we personally arenʼt a fan of the reachability functionality of the iPhone. The reachability function is easier to use on the iPhone X but still, it’s a hassle in our opinion.
So if youʼre a clumsier person, the iPhone X might NOT be the right device for you. DEAL BREAKER!
the battery life
Apple claims that the battery life lasts 2 hours longer than the iPhone 7. But from what we can gather, it isnʼt an extra two hours of internet browsing or video watching. So where do we get the extra two hours? We canʼt be sure but we’re guessing the extra two hours comes into play for standby time which is a technical specification that Apple left out on their site.
From our week of usage, the iPhone X drains much quicker than the iPhone 8 Plus. We have to plug it in every night. This is something that we had to do with the iPhone 8 but not the iPhone 8 Plus. In fact, we weren’t so diligent in keeping our iPhone 8 Plus charged because the phone would always have 1/2 a day of power left.
Now all of Appleʼs new iPhoneʼs come with fast charging but that doesnʼt occur out of the box. The charger included is a normal 1 Amp charger. If you want the fast charging capability youʼre going to need to buy a 29W charger at the minimum and an USB-C to Lighting cable. The entire package will run you approx. $75 bucks. This is almost a SCAM in our opinion.
Also, it should be noted that the iPhone X has a stainless steel body instead of an aluminum one. Will you notice a difference? Did you notice a difference on the photo above? Probably not. Does it handle any differently with other iPhones? Not that we notice.
gestures- the new home button!
Surprisingly, there wasnʼt a lot of fuss about Apple removing the home button. We thought that it would receive the same flak as the headphone jack removal but it was relatively quiet.
With the iPhone X, Apple has introduced a new way to interact with the device and it involves more swiping than pressing. Apple has changed a few things such as the control center. So if you donʼt like learning how to use your iPhone again, maybe stay away from the iPhone X. DEAL BREAKER!
But once you get use to the change, the home gesture actually feels more natural than pressing the home button. The home gesture is quite easily accessible, even with cases with high lips. We havenʼt noticed an incident during the last 21 days where it was frustrating to use the home gesture.
Itʼs easier now to switch between apps as all you do is swipe the bottom of the iPhone and bringing up multi-tasking is as simple as swiping up and holding for a split second.
The first thing that bothers us about gestures is how you close apps. To close an app on the iPhone 8ʼs, you double-tap to bring up multi-tasking, then you swipe up to close the app. This method of closing apps make’s it easy to rage-quit during games.
On the iPhone X, on the other hand, you swipe up and hold to bring up multi-tasking and then you have to press and hold the home gesture, pass on the app and wait for the close app icon to show up. Basically it takes the fun out of rage-quitting.
The second thing that bothers us is that the home gesture changes. On games, itʼs on the bottom of the screen. So if you put your iPhone to sleep while playing a game, the game will be the first app you see when you log back into your iPhone. Now to reach the home screen, you need to reach over to the side and close the app. It was much simpler on the 8ʼs to double tap the home screen.
But with all things considered, removing the home button on the iPhone X and adding gestures has been a positive experience.
faceid- the successor of the touchid
At the end of the day, FaceID isnʼt really a new feature per se. Itʼs more of an upgrade to an existing feature which is TouchID. And both technologies have one job, to secure your iPhone. Instead of using your fingers, youʼre going to use your face.
To be honest, FaceID is probably the coolest thing weʼve used of Apple since the AirPods. We do like it better than TouchID because it is going to be more accurate over time.
Our biggest issue with TouchID is the need to reset and re-add our fingers over time. We workout a lot so our hands get beat up from the chalk and the city we live in is exceptionally dry during the winter so our fingers will literally wither up. Which means the TouchID will stop working. Which means that every once in awhile, we go through a small hissy fit when our iPhone doesnʼt unlock.
With FaceID, thatʼs not going to happen because Apple has integrated a bit of AI into the feature that allows FaceID to learn your face over time. Since getting the iPhone X, weʼve seen two occurrences where FaceID failed and asked for a passcode. Both times occurred with my glasses off in low light situations, right before bed. That error hasnʼt happened in the last few days.
In terms of speed, we actually think FaceID “feels” a little quicker than TouchID. With TouchID, you press the home button and you wait for the iPhone to unlock. With FaceID, all you do is swipe and sometimes you might see FaceID trying to unlock your phone. We say it feels faster because your hand is still moving when it is unlocking. Youʼre not really waiting in a stationary manner like TouchID.
SEE ALSO: How SENSITIVE is FaceID on the iPhone X?
The coolest thing that we like about FaceID is that it can detect attention. Not only can FaceID detect your face, it can detect whether you are actually looking at the iPhone.
This ability to detect attention is going to be a game changer for mobile devices going forward. Imagine what can happen with augmented reality and attention tracking. Thatʼs going to be cool.
Now the downside of FaceID is the fact that you need to have the iPhone in the correct orientation to work. Weʼve been annoyed with FaceID when pulling our iPhone out of the pocket with one hand while having something else in another hand. Not to mention you have to move the iPhone around if it faces the wrong way with two full hands.
But this isnʼt a deal breaker. Itʼs the only thing that FaceID has been annoying that weʼve come across.
Camera- the front camera portrait mode and animoji's are the standout feature!
The iPhone X has the most powerful camera of any iPhone that Apple has released to date. BUT most of these new features may not be that useful/that noticeable when compared to the cameras on the iPhone 8.
SEE ALSO:iPhone X vs iPhone 8 Camera Comparison & Camera Comparison – iPhone 8 vs. iPhone 7 vs. iPhone 6s
The major question that hinge on the specs of the camera is this :”How important are your selfies?”Because if youʼre a selfie-monger, you’re going to love the iPhone X.
Hereʼs a quick rundown of whatʼs different on the iPhone X camera when compared to the 8.
The telephoto lens has OIS built into it. This means you get to shoot slightly better video and photos while zoomed in. Is the OIS going to be noticeable? Yes. BUT if youʼre serious about capturing moving footage, get a gimbal.
The front cameras has portrait mode and it allows you to bump up your selfie game using portrait lighting. This means that the front facing camera has all the features of the rear-facing camera, which is awesome. The only difference is that the front facing camera is 7MP compared to the 12 on the rear and you canʼt shoot 4k video with the front facing camera.
Something that Apple doesnʼt state is the fact that the front facing camera on the iPhone X is BETTER than the one on the iPhone 8. We have a feeling that the TrueDepth camera, used for FaceID is responsible for the selfies being better exposed.
The last thing with the front facing camera is Animojis. Which doesnʼt really add to your quality of life unless your quality of life is based on your ability to animate your face onto a turd emoji
iphone x not in you budget? GO with the iPhone 8 and not the iPhone 7!
If youʼve answered “no” to the iPhone X but still need to upgrade, go with the iPhone 8 over the iPhone 7. The iPhone 8 has two features that will “future proof” your iPhone usage.
SEE ALSO: iPhone 7 vs iPhone 8 – Which one should you get or upgrade to?
The iPhone 8 (and iPhone X) comes with Bluetooth 5.0 whereas the iPhone 7 only had Bluetooth 4.2. The biggest difference from our perspective is the range that Bluetooth 5.0 has. It is 4 times the range of Bluetooth 4.2 at 800 ft. This is going to be important in the next few years as many of our home devices are going to be “smart” and can activate based on your location.
Our house is quite long and there have been many times where we are unable to lock the back door when we’re at the front door so this improved range is going to be pretty awesome.
The second difference and it pales in comparison to the Bluetooth 5.0 is the improved GPS chip in the iPhone 8ʼs. The iPhone 7ʼs only pull location coordinates from two GPS systems, GPS and Glonass whereas the iPhone 8 and X now pullʼs from 4 systems. More systems means better accuracies during navigation which is never a bad thing.
So that’s all we have for our iPhone X Review! Have any questions? Leave them below! Definitely SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube Channel to stay on top of all the new things we are review!
If you want to know more about what we do, check out this page!
