It seems hard to believe that the smartphone has been around for over a decade. When Apple rolled out the first iPhone in 2007, it triggered a momentous shift in the way people access information. Over the past 10 years these devices have gone from somewhat of a novelty to a staple of modern computing. More data is transmitted and accessed by smartphone than by any other means, and Apple has been at the forefront of this computing shift from its inception.
The world’s most profitable consumer technology company is said to have something special in mind for their 10th anniversary flagship smartphone, while still rolling out two additional phones. Deciding to scrap the iPhone 7s, Apple has recently introduced the new iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and the iPhone X. For all those Apple aficionados out there, which device will you have to get your hands on?
All three phones feature Apple’s new A11 Bionic chip, which brings a more efficient device performance--a qualification that every user willing to shell out a pretty penny for a new iPhone, must consider. The A11 comes equipped with two performance cores, which are up to 25 percent faster than the ones found in the iPhone 7, Apple’s most recent device offering. Additionally, the new chip offers four high-efficiency cores, which allow less resource-intensive applications to run efficiently to preserve the device’s battery life.
The two versions of the iPhone 8 and the iPhone X have many similarities (as you’d expect), but one major difference the iPhone X offers is the display. The iPhone X not only features the use of an OLED display, it also takes a page from other smartphone manufacturers and removes the famous bezel and home button every other iPhone has featured. Traditionally, OLED displays offer perfect blacks and much more vivid colors than LCD displays (which have come standard on every iPhone for some time). The OLED display on the iPhone X is Dolby Vision and HDR 10 capable and has a resolution of 2,436 x 1,125--far superior to the 1080p display of the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus. The iPhone X also has a small cut-out at the top that actually dips into the screen a bit. This bar houses sensors and the front-facing camera of the device.
As far as software goes, all three of the new devices run iOS 11. iOS 11 features a litany of new features that include a much-improved Siri, a new Control Center, and a redesigned App Store. Since the iPhone X does not come equipped with Apple’s standard Touch ID system, some tweaks in iOS will allow the edge-to-edge display to have a virtual home button. As a result, the iPhone X features Face ID, which scans a user’s face for authorization opening the phone, and more amazingly as a way to authenticate App Store purchases.
The cameras on the devices are much improved. While the iPhone 8 has a single 12MP sensor, the cameras on both the iPhone X and iPhone 8 Plus have dual 12 MP cameras with an extra sensor that acts as an optical telephoto zoom lens. The iPhone X’s sensors both have optical image stabilization, while the iPhone 8 and the 8 Plus, only has it on one. As with the previous iPhones, all three options are IP67 water and dust resistant, and feature 7 MP front-facing cameras.
The iPhone X absolutely wins in a design contest, but for functionality, the choice between these options will largely come down to price. With 64 GBs of onboard memory, the flagship iPhone X starts at a whopping $999, the iPhone 8 Plus at $799, and the iPhone 8 at $699. Can you justify paying the more than $1000 price tag on a device you will likely upgrade in one or two years? One thing is for certain, plenty of people will.
No matter how cool a smartphone’s features are, would you pay over $1,000 for one? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below.
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