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The iPhone X is the most radical reimagining of an iPhone yet. Apple has jumped on the bezel-less bandwagon and created a big, beautiful display that can finally rival Samsung in the screen stakes.

Reviewers liked

• Stunning, edge-to-edge display
• Intuitive user interface
• Innovative new design

Reviewers disliked

• Astronomical price
• Glass back raises durability concerns

The Apple iPhone X: in more detail

The iPhone X (pronounced ‘ten’, according to Apple) is a beautiful device. Apple has embraced the current trend for edge-to-edge screens with a sensational new design that’s likely to appeal to Apple fans who were disappointed by the iPhone 8’s lack of innovation. Other notable new features include the face-scanning technology used to unlock the phone, and wireless charging capability. It’s still yet to be released, but TechRadar called it ‘one of the most exciting phones released this decade’, whilst CNET thinks it has ‘truly game-changing potential’. However, all that innovation comes at a cost: it’s one of the most expensive smartphones ever made.

Design

The iPhone X is a fantastic-looking phone. It’s striking, slim and elegant, and like the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, has a glass back. Its curved edges make it comfortable to hold, and even though the screen is bigger, the phone is still smaller than the iPhone 7 Plus overall.

The absence of the home button marks a notable departure from iPhone tradition - Apple has sacrificed it in favour of the all-screen front. This may take some getting used to for iPhone devotees, but the amount of screen you get is likely to make it worth the minor inconvenience.

Display

The iPhone X’s gorgeous 5.8-inch screen is its standout feature. The bezels are incredibly thin, making it look completely different to any iPhone that’s come before. The resolution has been upgraded to 2,436 x 1,125 pixels, and Apple has finally moved from an LCD to OLED display. The result is stunning: a rich, vibrant display with vivid colours and deep, inky blacks. TechRadar said ‘it’s hard to overstate how beautiful this screen is’.

One thing to note is that there’s a small ‘notch’ at the top of the screen, where a section of the display was cut out to house the camera and face-scanning technology. Although it detracts slightly from the ‘all-screen’ effect, it shouldn’t get in the way of apps, videos or internet browsing - in fact, some app designers have started working the notch into their designs.

However, not everyone is feeling too pleased about the iPhone X’s notch addition, with particular problems arising when the phone is used in landscape mode - for example, the scroll bar will disappear behind the black bar created by the notch, and some games will have a section missing.

Performance

Like the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, the X uses the new, super-fast A11 Bionic chip. It’s amazingly powerful - and it needs to be to power all those extra pixels in the display, as well as the phone’s advanced AR capabilities. If the iPhone 8 is anything to go by, the X’s performance will be exceptionally speedy and efficient.

Camera

The iPhone 8 Plus has a fantastic camera - and the iPhone X’s is even more advanced. It features the same 12MP wide-angle and telephoto sensors, optical zoom and f/1.8 wide-angle aperture, but its telephoto aperture has been upped to f/2.4, which should mean it performs better in low light. Unlike the 8 Plus, it also has optical image stabilisation on both lenses, which should reduce blur and result in smoother videos.

The new Portrait Lighting mode is able to identify the subject of the photo and make alterations accordingly, resulting in some really impressive effects.

The ‘TrueDepth’ camera on the front of the phone enables Face ID, which will replace Touch ID. It’s a bold move by Apple, and could be very convenient if it works - but we’ll have to wait until the phone is released to see how effective it is.

Interface

Apple has developed a new version of iOS 11 that takes advantage of the larger screen and lack of home button.

The home screen still looks the same, with the classic icon grid, but a flick up from the bottom of the screen now acts as a replacement for the home button. TechRadar said ‘it’s intuitive and works well’, although it’s likely to take some getting used to.

Release date

The iPhone X will be available in the UK on 3 November 2017.

What the critics say (scores are out of 100)

100	New York Times | Brian X. Chen The iPhone X is the best iPhone ever made. Many of you probably aren't ready for it. Read full review
100	The Mirror | Sophie Curtis This is the iPhone you've been waiting for - but you may have to wait a bit longer before it comes into its own. A groundbreaking gadget that's way ahead of its time. The iPhone X is not only a great-looking device, but a truly impressive technological achievement. Read full review
100	The Independent | David Phelan The iPhone X is fast, responsive and highly effective. Mostly, new phones are iterative upgrades to last year's model. But this? This feels like the future. Read full review
100	T3 | Dan Grabham, Spencer Hart iPhone X has it all. Obviously it's not for everybody, but as the most premium of premium phones there's none better. Read full review
100	What Hi-Fi? The Apple iPhone X makes major changes that not everyone will like, but the stunning screen more than makes up the difference. Read full review
100	Stuff | Tom Morgan An iPhone that finally goes toe to toe with Android on raw specs - but the X gives up some of that signature Apple ease of use to do it. Apple says bye to bezels and buttons, and is all the better for it. Read full review
100	The Guardian | Samuel Gibbs The company's most important smartphone in years does not disappoint, Apple finally knocks it out of the park. But it's not perfect, particularly when the best of the competition can be had for almost half that. Read full review
100	The Telegraph | James Titcomb Face ID, Animoji and Portrait selfies are all nice touches, but it is the truly excellent screen that clinches it. Apple has made us wait for the modern smartphone it needed, but the end result is its best effort in years. For a lot of people considering the iPhone X, the question is whether it is worth the price increase on the iPhone 8. Read full review
100	Pocket-lint | Stuart Miles If you're an Apple power user looking to get something different from the rest of your iPhone-using friends, and different to he phone you've been using for the past few years, then this is the big change you've been waiting for. At the same time you get all that without rocking the boat too much, because the iPhone X is still very much the iPhone you know and love. The only complaint is that premium costs. Read full review
95	ZDNet | Jason Cipriani As I said earlier, it's not my place to tell you whether or not the iPhone X is worth its price. For me, it surely is. I couldn't see myself using the iPhone 8 or iPhone 8 Plus for the next year, especially with the iPhone X available. Without a doubt, yes. Read full review
95	Neowin | Rich Woods And the iPhone X actually is the best overall phone, as far as hardware goes. The display is on par with anything else out there, as is the camera, which can record 4K 60fps video. Performance is far and away better than anything else on the market too. Read full review
94	Pickr | Leigh Stark The iPhone X is simply marvellous, and while we still struggle to work out how to pronounce its name (Apple calls it "ten", but it reads like "ex"), you won't need to vent anything in realising how excellent this handset is. Hell, this writer is normally an Android guy, and even he loves it. Highly recommended. Read full review
94	TechAeris | Alex Hernandez There's so much to like about this phone but so much to dislike too. If your an Apple fan or if you live in the Apple ecosystem, this is a great phone to have. Or if money isn't a factor at all, then just get the iPhone X and call it a day. Read full review
90	Gadgets Now | Sulabh Puri ... might seem on the higher side, but with the features it offers, it is well worth the high cost. If you can spend, Apple iPhone X is the best iPhone to own. Read full review
90	Toronto Sun | Anick Jesdanun The phone feels more comfortable than the 8 Plus, but also more delicate. Read full review
90	The Economic Times | Hitesh Raj Bhagat The X points the way forward for all iPhones. It may not be the only phone around with slim bezels but it's certainly the most aspirational. Read full review
90	Macworld | Roman Loyola Apple delivers more than just a great phone: it's the rush of holding the future in the palm of your hand. Read full review
90	Android Central | Hayato Huseman iPhone X is a hell of a phone that I've certainly enjoyed using. This is some of my favorite hardware ever, but the software experience isn't always to my liking. Read full review
90	The New York Times | Brian X. Chen In terms of features, the iPhone X is the most impressive smartphone ever made. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the iPhone X to my tech-crazed friends in Silicon Valley, but the iPhone 8 is just as fast while being simpler and more familiar to use. Read full review
90	Wired UK | Jeremy White This is indeed the best iPhone created yet. Was it worth the hype? No. But then nothing was ever going to be worth the hype the X garnered. Sadly, my world remains unchanged. Is it worth the price? At full price it's hard to say yes. Read full review
90	NotebookCheck | Patrick Afschar, Klaus Hinum, Andreas Osthoff, Daniel Schmidt Powerful technology, new design, and Face ID – this is the iPhone X. But that is not enough for the smartphone crown. Read full review
90	Trusted Reviews | Max Parker The best iPhone I've ever used and one of the most exciting phones of 2017. People will baulk at the price and make silly jokes about the notch, but if you're happy to spend then you won't be disappointed. Read full review
90	TechnoBuffalo | Brandon Russell If you're an iPhone loyalist, you'll absolutely love the iPhone X. If you're someone who simply wants a device for communication and the occasional picture, the iPhone 8 is a safer bet. You already know how to use it, and it's much more affordable. Read full review
90	Eurogamer | Damien McFerran This is a brilliant product, but when many Android-based challengers are offering many of the the same features for significantly less it can only be wholeheartedly recommended to die-hard Apple fans. And with that in mind, it's also worth pointing out that the cheaper iPhone 8 and 8 Plus are still great phones, Read full review
90	Tom's Guide | Max Parker The best iPhone I've ever used and one of the most exciting phones of 2017. People will baulk at the price and make silly jokes about the notch, but if you're happy to spend then you won't be disappointed. Read full review
90	Phone Scoop | Eric M. Zeman Apple is clearly looking ahead, and the iPhone X represents its vision for the future of mobile computing. It's a pricey vision, but a mostly pleasing one all the same. Read full review
90	phoneArena | Ray S. The iPhone X is probably not the best iPhone you can buy right now, but it sure is the most exciting one. Aside from its price, there's nothing else stopping you from getting a taste of that future, today, but you'll have to put up with the compromises that come with this privilege. Read full review
90	Wired | David Pierce The iPhone X is the first iPhone since that one that feels genuinely new and different. Do you need it? No. At least not yet. But it's seriously cool. Read full review
90	Mashable | Lance Ulanoff The iPhone X changes everything. But the future is in good hands. Yes, the iPhone X is expensive and it removes a beloved feature, but it innovates in key ways. It's still the iPhone you want. Read full review
90	AVForums | David Phelan The iPhone X is a thrilling, beautiful phone. It outdoes every previous iPhone easily, with a bigger display than the iPhone 8 Plus in a handset barely bigger than the iPhone 8. It puts Apple ahead of its rivals again. Read full review
90	Digital Trends | Julian Chokkattu The iPhone X is the iPhone to buy this year. If you're an Apple fan, this is the phone to buy. We can't peel our eyes away from the gorgeous OLED screen, and using gestures to move around iOS is pure bliss. Read full review
90	SlashGear | Vincent Nguyen The iPhone X isn't perfect but, just as the original iPhone rebooted the smartphone world. More specifically, it's the blueprint for another ten years and a welcome line in the sand that leaves some of the more over-familiar aspects of iPhone behind. That alone earns the iPhone X a place in my pocket. Read full review
90	Mobile Syrup | Patrick O'Rourke After my initial trepidation and roughly half hour of experimenting with the iPhone X's new navigation system, I quickly forgot about my longing for Touch ID and the familiar Home Button. As it stands right now though, the iPhone X is a worthy, albeit pricey next step for Apple and the smartphone industry in general. Read full review
90	TechRadar | Gareth Beavis The iPhone X was a huge gamble from Apple, but one that really paid off - by far - the best iPhone Apple's ever made. It's impossible to give a perfect score to something that costs this much - but this is the closest to smartphone perfection Apple has ever got. Read full review
90	CNET UK | Scott Stein iPhone X is an overdue and winning evolution of the iPhone, but you'll need to leave your comfort zone to make a jump into the face-recognizing future. Read full review
90	The Verge | Nilay Patel If you're a huge iPhone fan and you have the money, you'll love it. It's a really nice phone. But if you have any doubts at all, stick with an iPhone 8 or 8 Plus. You'll get most of the same features, and you'll wait out app developers figuring out how to use this new screen. Read full review
90	Engadget | Chris Velazco At the end of the day, here's what you've got to remember: this isn't just an expensive, ambitious offshoot of the classic iPhone lineage. It's the future of the iPhone itself. And to be clear, Apple didn't get absolutely everything right. After my first taste of the iPhone's future, I'm ready to buy in. Read full review
86	Firstpost | Nimish Sawant and Ankit Vengurlekar The iPhone X is certainly the phone to beat, and it has set a benchmark on many fronts. If you have the money to spend and are looking at a reliable device which is future proof, the iPhone X is the phone to go for. Read full review
80	TechPP (Technology Personalized) | Nimish Dubey It has a new UI which takes some getting used to, has a frame that is definitely on the fragile side, and comes with a price tag that is frightening... Given all of this, should you consider investing in an iPhone X? As in almost every case out there, the answer is not a straightforward one. Read full review
80	91mobiles | Deepak Dhingra To sum it all up, you can still opt for the 8 Plus if you want to play it safe (and don't want to spend the iPhone X's asking price). On the Android side, there are quite a few flagships that you could consider, such as the Samsung Galaxy Note8 or even the Google Pixel 2 XL, despite the latter's reported issues. Read full review
80	Recombu | Alex Todd If you have your heart set on a new iPhone, the 8 Plus may not offer the slick new design, the best iPhone camera ever or a face-tracked animated poop emoji but it'll get you 90 percent of the way there for much less. Read full review
80	IT PRO | Adam Shepherd The iPhone X is far and away the best iPhone that Apple has ever made. But with such an exorbitant price and such such stiff competition from the likes of Samsung and others, the iPhone X doesn't distinguish itself enough to earn a full recommendation. It's the best iPhone ever - but it's not the best smartphone. Read full review
80	PC Mag | Sascha Segan The iPhone X sets the stage for Apple's next decade, with a sharp new design and a future focus on augmented reality. Read full review
80	Alphr | Victoria Woollaston The best iPhone ever made, but you should still save your money for the iPhone 8 Plus. If you're desperate to buy a new iPhone, do yourself a favour and buy an iPhone 8 Plus instead. You might not be getting the latest and greatest Apple has to offer, but you'll be saving plenty of cash, getting a phone that's nearly as good. Read full review
80	Expert Reviews | Jonathan Bray The new iPhone X unlocks with Face ID, has the largest display ever seen on an iPhone and dumps the home button - but it's just too pricey. Great phone, but it's far too expensive. Read full review
70	Know Your Mobile | Damien McFerran The iPhone X is remarkable and revolutionary – but it's also overpriced and in some regards, represents a step backwards in terms of usability. Read full review
70	Quartz | Mike Murphy The iPhone X is a beautiful mess. It's not there yet. Much like many new Apple products since Steve Jobs retook the helms of the company two decades ago, my advice is to wait for the second generation of the iPhone X, whatever that may be. Read full review

Compare Apple iPhone X specs side-by-side with other phones COMPARE SPECS

Dimensions & Form	Form factor: Touchscreen bar Dimensions 143.6 x 70.9 x 7.7 mm (5.65 x 2.79 x 0.3 in) Weight: 174 g (6.14 oz)
Screen	Size: 5.8 inches diagonal Resolution: 2436 x 1125 pixels Screen Density: 463 ppi Screen-to-Body Ratio: 81.1 % Display Type: Super AMOLED
Runs
Performance	Chipset: Apple A11 Bionic CPU: Hexa-core (2x Monsoon + 4x Mistral) GPU: Apple GPU (three-core graphics) RAM: 3GB
Camera	Main Camera: Dual 12 megapixels with Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS),2x Optical Zoom, Shallow Depth of Field 'Portrait' Mode, and Quad LED True Tone flash Secondary Camera: 7 megapixels with Portrait mode, Animoji, and Retina Flash
Storage	Built-in Storage: 64GB, 256GB Expandable Storage: Not Available
Battery & Charging	Capacity: 2717 mAh Removable Battery: No Wireless Charging: Yes Quick Charge: Yes (v2)
SIM standard	Micro SIM Compare SIM Only deals
Water & Dust Resistance	IP67 Rating: Protection from contact with harmful dust, and protection from immersion in water up to a depth of 1m for up to 30 minutes
Fingerprint Reader	None
References & More info	Official website GSMArena specs page

Photos taken with the Apple iPhone X

We've used Flickr to find a selection of pictures taken by the Apple iPhone X camera. Here is a selection of photos taken by users from around the world so you can see what kind of picture quality you can expect from real-world use of the Apple iPhone X.

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All images shown are used under the rights and terms specified by the Creative Commons.