iPhone X – Everything You Need to Know

Here’s everything you need to know about the iPhone X. Apple recently debuted not one, but 3 iPhones. Much has been under speculation about the 10th anniversary iPhone that Apple’s been keeping under wraps. Ironically, as soon as Tim Cook announced how Apple would “double-down” on securing leaks, the internet started leaking more and more information about the new iPhone. So by the time Apple came around yesterday to announce the iPhone X, few were surprised by the revolutionary edge to edge OLED screen. This doesn’t mean we aren’t amazed or blown away by it, we were just not surprised.

So what exactly is the iPhone X? What are it’s features? What’s it useful for? How do you pronounce it? To answer those questions, we’re going to save you countless hours of reading as well as avoid watching people’s rehash of the Apple event on Youtube. This article will show you everything there is to know (and more) about the iPhone X.

1. The Specs

Color options: It will be available in Black and Silver.

Storage options: 64GB and 256GB

Price: Starting at $999

Front Camera: 7MP with TruDepth and FaceID

Rear Camera: Dual 12MP with OIS (Optical Image Stabilization)

Processor: A11 Bionic Chip

Dust/Water Resistance: IP67

2. How is it pronounced?

Let’s start here. It’s pronounced iPhone TEN, not EX. Don’t walk around like an uneducated fool calling it iPhone X.

3. Availability

Order on Apple’s website.

4. What’s it made of?

The back is made entirely of durable glass that Apple claims should be shatter proof. Stainless steel band wraps around phone.

5. Why is it call the iPhone X (Ten)?

Because of the iPhone’s 10th year anniversary. The first iPhone was released in 2007, and 10 years later is today’s 10th year anniversary. Technically, the iPhone 8 and 8 plus should be called iPhone 7S and 7S Plus given that it’s not a complete re-design. Apple’s usual trend in naming is that an iPhone deserves a full numerical bump if and only if it’s a complete transformation. Think back to the iPhone 3 to iPhone 4 overhaul. Remember how drastic the iPhone 4 was to the iPhone 5? And who could forget the dramatic change from the iPhone 5 to iPhone 6. The iPhone 8 and 8 plus are basically iPhone 7 in terms of design with internal CPU and camera upgrades.

So why isn’t it called the iPhone 7S then? Because this year Apple decided  to break away from traditions. They went from 8 to 10 in the same year without batting an eye, so…I don’t think they care about 7S at this point.

6. New Screen

The iPhone X sports a 5.8 inch edge-to-edge Super Retina (2436 x 1125 OLED display), with a pixel density of 458 pixels-per-inch, and a 1 million to one contrast ratio. Having an OLED display of this caliber means the phone can support Dolby Vision and HDR10, HDR-ready display, 3D Touch, and True Tone support.

Being an OLED screen also gives you a richer and more “realistic” black color. In a traditional LCD screen when you’re viewing a black image, the screen still has to display some level of light underneath the darkened pixel. It can’t actually turn OFF the pixel and give you true-black. In the case of an OLED screen, it has the ability to completely turn off the Pixel, giving you an accurate true-black.

The OLED display is expensive, much more than the previous Retina LCD screens Apple used. This is one of the reason why the iPhone X starts at $999.

7. Home button

No. You swipe up to go home.

8. Rear Cameras

Get ready, this is going to be a long one.

The iPhone X has DUAL 12 MP camera one, one with wide-angle f/1.8 aperture lens and the other has telephoto f/2.4 aperture lens. But they’re not ordinary cameras. They come with dual Optical Image Stabilization to reduce motion blur and better images in low lighting. The cameras can now record videos in 4K at 60FPS and slow-motion videos at 240FPS.  The lens can also zoom up to 10x for photos and 6x for videos.

In short, the front cameras are good…really good. Probably the best we’ve ever seen on an iPhone.

9. Front Camera (Selfie camera)

The front (selfie side) cameras are revolutionary. It’s a 7MP camera that takes better selfies than any other previous iPhones. The new Portrait Lighting mode allows users to take stunning selfies, adjust lighting in real-time, and cycle through different modes such as natural light, studio light, contour light, stage light and stage light mono. Portrait Lighting is supported by both the front and rear cameras.

The front camera is also capable of 360 Selfies and Augmented Reality, unlocking a world of possibilities for new app features to roll out in October.

The new “Selfie Scene” feature will utilize depth data (from TruDepth) to overlay your face over a variety of landscapes and scenes.

10. FaceID

FaceID stands for Face Identification. The 7MP front selfie camera can be used for unlocking your device and Apple claims it’s even secure enough to authorize Apple Pay. We’ve seen Facial Recognition in Sci-fi flicks but never imagined the day would come. Apparently Apple isn’t the first company to attempt Facial Identification. Samsung and a few other manufacturers have attempted this technology before however couldn’t make it secure enough for commercial use. Apple on the other hand, is able to make Face Identification secure and easy to use.

11. How does Face ID Technology work?

The front facing camera utilizes TrueDepth technology to map more than 50 muscle movements and points of articulation on your face. It will also adapt to your face over a period of time and Apple claims it can recognize you regardless of hairstyle, hats, glasses, facial hair, etc. It’s also smart enough to distinguish you from masks and photos of you. Is it reliable? Apple claims it’s a yes, however Face ID is currently an unproven biometric security measure. Only time will tell if it holds up.

12. A11 Chip

The iPhone X is being deployed with the all new A11 Chip. It’s a 64 bit 6-core processor, 4 High Efficiency cores and 2 Performance cores.

It’s faster + more efficient: In theory, with 4.3 billion transistors the 4 Efficiency cores are 70% faster than Apple’s A10 Fusion and the 2 Performance cores are 25% faster. In a nutshell, the new A11 Bionic chip is 30% faster and consumes 50% less power than the A10 chip. Apple claims it is the most powerful chip ever installed in a smartphone. The Neural Engine is said to be capable of 600 billion operations per second.

Good for gaming: The chip is also optimized for 3D gaming.

It can learn: The iPhone X is also capable of machine learning thanks to Apple’s Metal 2 platform.

Better Pictures: The A11 Bionic gives the front and rear cameras a significant boost by implementing Apple-designed Image Signal Processor (ISP). The new chip also allows the cameras to process pixels faster, better auto-focus under low lighting, and overall better image noise reduction.

Better Videos: The chip also has Apple-designed video encoder. This mean it can process frames faster and analyze images and motion in real time for improved video quality.

13. Better Life

Apple claims the iPhone X’s battery can handle 21 hours for just talk, 12 hours for internet usage, 13 hours for videos, and up to 60 hours if you’re just listening to music (not sure if this is through speaker or plugged in earbud).

14. Fast Charging Feature

The iPhone X is capable of “fast-charge capable,” meaning it can be be charged to 50 percent of battery life in 30 minutes. This is useful for fast moving business professionals and entrepreneurs.

15. Wireless Charging

The new iPhone X also comes with QI charging capability, meaning you can charge wirelessly. Upon release, you can purchase the Apple Airpower to charge up to 3 of your QI enabled devices at once without plugging anything in (except the Airpower mat). Pricing is currently unavailable, however you can get a Belkin mat for about $60 on Amazon. Also, more devices (including computer cases) are starting to have QI charging platforms built in.  We recently reviewed a custom computer case call the Dark Base Pro 900 that features a QI charging platform.

16. Water and Dust Resistance

The new iPhone X is both water and dust resistance. Don’t be fooled into thinking you can go swimming with this. Apple claims the iPhone X has a rating of IP67 under IEC standard. Let’s break that down so you know exactly what IP67 means.

The 6: It’s 100% completely dust resistance, so you never have to worry about dust leaking inside and short circuiting components.

The 7: The phone can be submerged up to 1 meter underwater for at most 30 minutes.

So there you have it, it’s pretty good. But don’t go swimming with it, or try to take underwater shots.

There you have it…

That’s literally everything you need to know about the new iPhone X and more. The phone currently is sold out in most retail locations. Chances are you’ll have a tough time getting your hands on one of these. Fortunately, it’s being sold in 55 countries so someone on Ebay will be selling it for a ridiculous price. But hey…you were going to spend 1K on it anyway, what’s an extra few hundred?