The iPhone X “don’t” impress me much!
The much anticipated 10th anniversary launch event of iPhone came around last week Tuesday, and is gone; leaving in its wake salivation, discussions, and jabs about the world’s most expensive smartphone. Yes, iPhone X, with the X pronounced as “ten” not “ex,” will effectively retail for over a thousand dollars in many markets. In the US, the baseline price is $999 for the 64 GB hard drive phone. You’ll pay more for bigger memory.
A few other gadgets were also unveiled at the event, including iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, Apple TV, and the new Apple Watch, which Apple has consistently tried to improve on and is turning out to be the best-selling smart watch, according to Apple. For one thing, the new Apple Watch can now work without an iPhone, a feature that the device lacked until now, and one that has previously made me turn my back against the gadget: Why must I buy a phone that costs $900 before I could use a watch that cost an additional $250? The new watch will also come with a cellular chip, which means that it can access the Internet even if it is not connected to your iPhone. Being cellular, on the go, you can make calls, receive and send texts, or stream music. The new cellular watch will retail for $399. The Wi-Fi-only version will sell for $329, while the older version will continue to be sold for $249. The new watch and iPhone 8 and 8 Plus will start shipping this Friday.
Of the three launched phones, by far the device that has grabbed the headline is iPhone X; precisely for its new infrared scanning technology called Face ID. This feature has never existed before on any other iPhone device, and it is only iPhone X that has it.
Face ID uses an infrared camera system on the front of the phone to scan the contours and shape of your head; the data to be used as identification to unlock your phone or authorize mobile payments. The technology works by spraying your face (God Save Us!) with over 30,000 infrared dots to gather information about the depth of your face. The collected information can then be compared to some database of people’s faces. So, the phone can tell if the face being scanned belongs to the owner of the phone.
Note that this technology has been in the works at Apple for over 5 years, courtesy of Apple’s acquisition of the small company PrimeSense that used to develop sensors for Microsoft’s Kinect, which is a camera system that scanned your body so you could play Microsoft’s Xbox games using body movements. It seems Face ID is Apple’s answer to the face-recognition features in Samsung’s smartphones. One tacky feature of Face ID: If someone points your phone on your face and you open your eyes, the phone will be unlocked. So, to avoid this happening, you have to keep your eyes closed! This glitch is reminiscent of another in Samsung’s face-recognition technology: your phone can be unlocked if your photograph is held in front of the camera of your phone. These capabilities are certainly works in progress.
The three iPhone devices do have some common features. They have the same processor: A11 Bionic; same maximum screen brightness, same 3D Touch capabilities, are all fastcharging, have primary 12-megapixel camera, 7-megapixel selfie camera, and video recording capabilities. All have wireless charging, have the hardest glass ever in a smartphone (front and back), are water and dust resistant; and have 64GB (standard) or 256GB (optional) storage.
Choosing between the three devices requires some conscious decision-making process. The iPhone X is attractive for its Face ID feature - which is kind of jazzy; and the OLED screen spells beauty. Being able to unlock the phone with your face may be attractive to some people, in spite of the glitch. On the negative side, iPhone X is way too costly, costing hundreds of dollars more than iPhone 8. Also, it does not have iPhone’s 10-year old home button, relegating you to “play games” with fingerswiping before you can access functionalities and apps. Also, the Touch ID is gone, and the phone will not be available till November.
The iPhone 8 Plus offers virtually the same major features in iPhone X except Face ID. It is a much larger phone, compared to iPhone X; it has the familiar home button and the rather useful Touch ID. Moreover, it has the best battery life of the three devices. Note however that the 8 Plus is not much cheaper than X.
What will I get? Save Face ID, you can have all the other essential features of 8 Plus and X in Galaxy Note 8, for example. With the portability advantage of Android OS, I’ll still probably go with the Note. However, if I have to choose between the new iPhones, the real options for me are iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X. Incidentally, I still love the bigger phones; Touch ID feels natural, and I prefer the home button. Thus, iPhone 8 Plus will be my pick.