Hi guys, it's MTG here, and today I'm going to be reviewing the iPhone X.
This is an after the hype review, so I'll be reviewing it in the context of all the
other phones that are already out right now.
I've had this phone for about 2 months now, so I'll share what I like about it, don't
like about it, and my general thoughts.
This is my iPhone X review: After the Hype.
The design is what stands out first when you pick up an iPhone X.
With the iPhone X, Apple has gone back to the glass back.
This will allow for wireless charging, but also means the phone will be more fragile
than recent models.
The frame of the phone is a very shiny stainless steal.
And honestly, the iPhone X, and especially this Space Grey model, looks and feels really
great.
The glass on the front and back go seamlessly into the frame, and the entire device just
feels very premium and top-of-the-line.
On the front, you'll find what makes the X stand out from all previous iPhones, and that
is the 5.8 inch OLED screen that fills up pretty much the entire front of the phone.
The Samsung-produced screen has an odd resolution somewhere in between 1080p and QHD at 2436x1125.
Specs-wise, the iPhone X does have a lot going for it.
It has 3 GB of RAM, up to 256 GB of internal storage, Apple's new A11 Bionic chipset, FaceID
sensors, IP67 water and dust resistance, and wireless charging.
But this phone has already been out for about two months, so you probably already knew all
of that.
Specifications aside, I wanted a majority of this video to focus on how this phone performs
in the real world as a daily device.
One way Apple tried to make the iPhone X unique is with that notch on the top of its screen.
Many people hate it, but really when I'm using the phone, I don't mind it at all.
I think the biggest thing I mind is not being able to see my battery percentage in the top
right corner at all times, and even that can be checked when in the control center.
The screen is one of the best on any phone right now, and you won't find any of the major
issues like the off-angle blue tint, on the iPhone X.
Colors aren't as saturated as on the Note 8, but colors definitely still pop and look
great.
Text will be crisp, and any sort of media content will show very nicely.
The screen also gets plenty bright enough to see it even in direct sunlight.
But keep in mind that although on paper the iPhone X has the largest screen out of iPhones,
the effective screen size isn't as big as that 5.8 inch measurent suggest.
When watching videos, unless you don't mind a chunk of video being cut off the side, you
don't get to use all of that screen.
The area where the video is playing is now about the size of the iPhone 8's screen.
This also applies to apps that are not updated yet.
Your effective screen size reduces to about 5 inches in these instances.
But the OLED and higher resolution is a noticeabl upgrade over the iPhone 8, so the experience
is not identical.
A pleasant surprise for me were the stereo speakers.
I had come from using the Note 8, so had almost given up on decent audio quality from phone
speakers, but the iPhone X rivals the Pixel 2 XL with how loud and clear it gets.
Yes, the right speaker is down-firing so it is still easy to cover, but even when it's
completely covered, you will still get okay sound.
The same thing can't be said for a lot of devices out right now.
So you get no headphone jack, but at least you get some pretty good speakers.
The new iPhones finally support both fast cable charging and fast wireless charging.
Yes, both require you to buy more accessories, but I think with Apple adopting wireless charging,
we are about to see a lot more in public spaces.
Also, wirelessly charging your phone every night instead of plugging in your phone will
help with the normal wear and tear that the charging port and cables go through.
Whether you are one to use wireless charging often, it is still a welcome feature that
I'm happy was included in the iPhone X.
Another additional feature that you may not use often, but is welcome, is the phone's
IP67 water and dust resistance.
I don’t recommend you go take underwater pictures with the phone or do anything to
test its capabilities.
But with such a serious investment in your pocket, the rating should give you peace of
mind that you can answer a call in the rain or you can drop your phone in the bath tub,
and it will still be okay.
FaceID has actually worked a lot better than I had expected.
There were rarely any instances where FaceID couldn't detect my face.
A lot of the times, by the time I pick up the phone and swipe up from the bottom, the
phone has already detected my face and I'm in.
I like how notification content hides until it detects my face, but in general, no matter
how quickly and accurately FaceID works, there are still scenarios where I'd rather use TouchID.
Sometimes I'd rather discretely use a fingerprint sensor than awkwardly try to find a line of
sight between the sensors and my face.
Hopefully, by next year, Apple would find a way to implement TouchID maybe in the Apple
logo or in the screen itself.
I am an Android guy.
My sim has always been in an Android device ever since I switched from the iPhone 5 to
the Galaxy S4.
But my laptop of choice is the MacBook Pro, so I have always been at least partly in the
Apple ecosystem.
And now while reviewing the iPhone X, I realized the plusses that iOS, and being in the Apple
ecosystem in general, add to the experience.
The App Store is still bigger and has a better selection of apps than the Google Play Store.
These apps are optimized and also usually get updated first.
Airdrop has allowed for very easy file transfers from my phone to my laptop and vise versa.
iMessage and Facetime are still unrivaled in Android with their ease of use and the
fact that no additional apps or accounts are needed.
The bottom line is, if you are in the Apple ecosystem, having an iPhone is very convenient.
And right now the iPhone X is the latest and greatest iPhone.
Navigating through the phone is snappy, and everything responds instantly.
Like on Macs, I love just being able to gesture between apps that I have open, instantly.
(even from the home screen) I don't have go to recent apps then select one.
The iPhone X also brought over Animojis.
I have not used Animojis outside of simply showing people how it worked, and it appears
as if it mainly uses the front camera.
But it is a fun little feature nonetheless that I'm sure people are taking full advantage
of.
Now I'll shift to talking about the phone's cameras.
I've compared the iPhone X's cameras head-to-head with the Note 8, Pixel 2 XL, and OnePlus 5T,
so make sure to check out those videos if you want to see how they compare in more detail,
and if you want to see more scenarios and shots in general.
The iPhone X is still one of the best camera phones on the market right now.
The dual 12 megapixel cameras on the iPhone X produce very high detailed, warm photos
that do well in just about every lighting condition.
The HDR abilities do a great job of making sure colors pop in both the foreground and
background of its images.
The front camera portrait mode still never really seems to get my hair in focus.
But the back portrait mode images that utilize both rear cameras to take, come out pretty
good with solid edge detection and detail.
In low-light, the X struggles with light sources, but as I said, in general, the iPhone X takes
really solid pictures no matter the lighting conditions.
The iPhone X is also capable of shooting at the insane frame rate of 240 fps at 1080p.
The iPhone X's dual optical image stabilization also allows for smooth video without the overcompensating
jitter caused by electronic image stabilization.
As you can see, there are a ton of things to like about this phone.
But all this time, I have purposefully not mentioned the most blaring red flag with purchasing
the iPhone X: its price.
It starts at a thousand dollars, and in other countries it is even more.
If this phone was the iPhone 8, I don't think anybody would have a problem with it.
If they released this phone alongside a bigger version of it at the $700 and $800 price-point
that the 8 and 8 plus are at right now, it would be extremely easy to recommend this
phone to anybody, whether they are an Apple lover or not.
I didn't mention the price to remind you of the fact that despite the phone's flaws, its
still a really great phone.
I'm not going to say that this phone isn't worth it, because it is worth it to many people
who are already engulfed in the Apple ecosystem.
But at a thousand dollars, you expect a phone that is flawless.
The iPhone X is not.
It doesn't have expandable storage, and doesn't even include fast charging cables or adapters
in the box.
I still give a lot of credit to Apple for stepping outside of their comfort zone and
taking some risk in terms of a new design and new features.
But $1000 and $1200 for models of a phone sound insane when we have brand new Android
phones like the OnePlus 5T and Essential Phone being sold at around half that price right
now.
Even when we look at the more expensive Android flagships, the Note 8 includes $100 wired
earphones, the Pixel 2's include unlimited photo and video storage on Google Photos,
and both include fast charging adapters in the box.
The iPhone X is a great phone.
For a lot of its target audience, the price isn't really a deal breaker.
Apple still expected it to sell out on launch, as it did.
With the iPhone X, you get a new, very premium design and OLED screen powered by the most
powerful smartphone chipset in the A11 Bionic.
You get the massive selection of optimized apps in the App Store and the added continuity
with always being able to access your stuff on all of your Apple products.
If price isn't a factor, and if you are completely engulfed in the Apple ecosystem, this is the
phone you've been waiting for.
It is an iPhone that looks different than any other iPhone before it, has new features,
and is very fast.
But for anyone else interested in a new phone, there have been so many other, more affordable
options released this year that can do as much or even more than the iPhone X can.
Android is also becoming a cleaner operating system in general, and Android phones are
becoming as smooth as new iPhones.
If you insist on staying Apple, they released two other solid phones this year in the 8
and 8 Plus that are $300 and $200 cheaper respectively.
All I'm saying is this is an expensive device.
There are lots of options out there, and you should evaluate those options before pulling
the trigger on such an expensive phone.
That's all I had to talk about today.
Thanks for watching, and I'll see you in the next video.