Mobile Technology

Apple unveils its 2017 iPhones, including the premium iPhone X

Apple unveils its 2017 iPhones, including the premium iPhone X
The iPhone X is revealed in Steve Jobs Theater at Apple Park
The iPhone X is revealed in Steve Jobs Theater at Apple Park
View 6 Images
Apple says the iPhone X is the future of smartphones
1/6
Apple says the iPhone X is the future of smartphones
The top tier iPhone X is unlocked with your face, not your thumb
2/6
The top tier iPhone X is unlocked with your face, not your thumb
The iPhone 8 Plus gets better cameras and faster internal components
3/6
The iPhone 8 Plus gets better cameras and faster internal components
The iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus look similar to last year's models, but have some spec bumps inside
4/6
The iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus look similar to last year's models, but have some spec bumps inside
What sets the iPhone X apart is its upgraded, bezel-free display and its advanced face unlocking feature
5/6
What sets the iPhone X apart is its upgraded, bezel-free display and its advanced face unlocking feature
The iPhone X is revealed in Steve Jobs Theater at Apple Park
6/6
The iPhone X is revealed in Steve Jobs Theater at Apple Park
View gallery - 6 images

It had long been rumoured that Apple was working on something special for the iPhone's tenth anniversary, and so it's proved: the bezel-free, face-scanning iPhone X is the new premium-level Apple flagship phone, and has been joined by the iPhone 8 and the iPhone 8 Plus for 2017.

At its traditional September iPhone launch event, Apple revealed not two but three flagship phones. The iPhone 8 and the iPhone 8 Plus are more minor upgrades over the phones we saw last year, while the iPhone X is being billed as Apple's vision of what smartphones will look like in the years ahead.

Let's start with the iPhone X Edition, which is likely to grab most of the headlines, even if the $999 starting price puts off a lot of potential buyers. Following the lead of Samsung and LG, Apple has virtually banished the bezels from the front of the device, adding a 5.8-inch screen with a tiny notch up at the top.

The top tier iPhone X is unlocked with your face, not your thumb
The top tier iPhone X is unlocked with your face, not your thumb

With a resolution of 2436 x 1125 pixels and support for HDR and Dolby Vision, that display really is the star of the show – that's where your money's going, and it's the main selling point of the iPhone X.

The notch at the top houses an array of sensors key to one of the exclusive features on the iPhone X, namely the Face ID system that unlocks your phone with a glance. Apple says it's even more secure than Touch ID, which is handy since the Home button has been banished in favor of that huge display (you get to your usual grid of apps with a swipe up instead).

Around the back there's a dual-lens 12MP camera, vertically aligned, to produce photos and videos that Apple says are sharper and better than ever. The iPhone 8 Plus also gets a dual-lens 12MP camera, but in the standard horizontal alignment.

All three new phones are fitted with Apple's powerful new A11 Bionic chip, and some extra camera trickery to better support the ARKit augmented reality apps coming down the line with iOS 11. Also new this year is support for wireless charging, again a new feature on all three iPhones unveiled today.

The iPhone 8 Plus gets better cameras and faster internal components
The iPhone 8 Plus gets better cameras and faster internal components

All of these phones will come with iOS 11 on board, which brings with it a slightly smarter Siri, a new Files app, a cleaner App Store, and a revamped Control Center. As we've mentioned, it also introduces Apple's new ARKit for developers, enabling a host of neat augmented reality tricks inside apps, like measuring your living room for new furniture and fighting dinosaurs on your coffee table.

Aside from the rather dramatic change in looks and substantial screen upgrade for the iPhone X, there's not a huge amount to choose between these three phones. All three get the upgraded internals, the wireless charging, the augmented reality capabilities, and different levels of camera upgrades.

The storage options are 64 GB and 256 GB across the board, with the iPhone 8 starting at $699, the iPhone 8 Plus at $799, and the iPhone X at $999, as we mentioned above. It looks like stock of the iPhone X could be quite scarce – preorders start from October 27 (compared with September 15 for the regular iPhones), with a release date of November 3 (compared with September 22).

Source: Apple

View gallery - 6 images
9 comments
9 comments
Augure
Huge disappointment. Ridiculous I'd even say, coming from 5 iPhones and more iPods, who the heck still use these underpowered, underspec'd, functionally limited, privacy violator, crazily overpriced smartphones?
RXStephen
OK, Samsung Galaxy clone. Got it.
Fairly Reasoner
Facial recognition unlock is as bad an idea as self driving cars.
IanWhiteley
Ha Ha, lets see how great that movie looks with a crooked screen. I really hope Samsung keeps its dedicated keys - soft keys are just an awful compromise. Form over function.
Pablo
After two years with an iPhone 6, the LAST thing I want is another Apple anything. It recently underwent an "upgrade" to the current IOS, after locking me out for the third time because it demanded a passcode reset and refused to accept my old one. Since then, it's presented a different issue literally every day. This company has lost it's way since Mr. Jobs passed away, mired in greed and arrogance. I'm done.
Marco Corona
Sigh...nothing really mind blowing or much different here...My Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus is far ahead of this new iPhone. Who's copying who? Oh, and I was able to purchase my new phone online (in May) for $300.
FabianLamaestra
Great, they copied the Essential phone. Ohh wait, that phone is better than this Apple flag-ship at 1/2 the price.
With all this NON-innovation, I give Apple 5 years tops as they stare down the barrel of their ever shrinking market.
toyhouse
Had an iphone now for several years. Actually, I usually get my kids hand-me-downs when they upgrade. No more. Time to jump the apple ship as my phone will be dropped from apple support, (too old now),. And, a couple months ago my son's iphone 6 got wet. It's trashed. Apple sure took their time catching up in that area. No doubt, a money maker, (for them),. Anyway, the prices on the new phone are insulting and the company is full of itself. Let the apple fanboys camp out in line for their thousand dollar phone. Make sure you folks flash it around so everyone can see you have the new one and obviously, lots of money, lol.
BleedingEdge
Sort of strange that on the latest Gee-wiz Uber iPhone most photos show the aged 4 columns-wide screen of skeuomorphic icons that haven't noticeably changed since day one. Must be so their demographic doesn't mistake it for a Pixel 2 or Essential Phone. The best thing about facial ID is that ISIS and jihadists will have to take off their ski masks and scarfs to use their iPhone x's