iservice
iPhone

iPhone 8 Vs iPhone X – Which one’s Right for You?

The September special keynote event held at Steve Jobs Park on September 12th bore a lot of thrilling revelations. Among them was the announcement of the 3 new iPhones in store to be released this month and the next month- iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus and the new trendsetter iPhone X marking the 10th year since the first ever iPhone was introduced. All the social media platforms are now teeming with news about the new iPhones, praises for the features and lots more. Amidst all the temptation, one overwhelming decision here is to make a decision of which iPhone upgrade would suit you the most. You still have the time to take your pick before you preorder your next iPhone.

A quick comparison

  iPhone 8 iPhone 8 Plus iPhone X
Dimensions 5.45”x2.65”x0.29” – weighs 148g 6.24”x3.07”x0.30” – weighs 202g 5.65”x2.79”x0.30” – weighs 174g
Display 4.7” Retina HD 5.5” Retina HD 5.8” Super Retina HD
Camera 12MP primary

7MP secondary

12MP dual camera at the back

7MP secondary

12MP dual camera at the back

7MP secondary

Release date 22 September 22 September 3 November

 

All three iPhones might look strikingly different but under the hood, they do carry a lot of similarities. So should you go for the cheapest in the lot, the iPhone 8 or spend a grand to purchase the iPhone X or settle for something in between and buy the iPhone 8 Plus?

What is common?

A11 Bionic

All the 3 iPhones are coming with the new A11 Bionic processor with M11 motion coprocessor. As cool as it sounds it is also said to be the best one ever included in an iPhone. It is faster, more responsive and can handle AR like a pro! This comes as a 64-bit hexacore processor with twin performance cores and 4 high-efficiency cores. And according to Apple, these 4 high-efficiency cores make the CPU nearly 70 times as fast as the A10. So if you have been impressed by the speed of the iPhone 7 you can surely expect to be impressed by the performance of the new iPhones. Quoted to be the “smartest chip” this one comes with a future ready neural engine that can support AI in the best possible way.

Supporting the simulated intelligence

As AI is extrapolating smartphones are now coming with hardware that supports AI and all associated technologies. As promised at the WWDC 17, iOS 11 would be coming with ARKit for more immersive AR apps. To support this the A11 processor with the 4.3 billion transistors has been designed with efficient machine learning capabilities. This helps put a generous sprinkle of intelligence into every single operation. A11’s GPU is also optimized for Core ML and Metal 2.

Other similarities:

All 3 of the iPhones come preloaded with iOS 11. They all come with glass front and back glass which is said to be the toughest one yet. They all come with IP67 rated splash and dust resistant form factors. The camera resolutions remain the same while the other features of the camera vary. The iPhones can record 4K videos. Wireless charging is supported in the new iPhones and you can charge them with any Qi compatible wireless chargers.

Why should you buy the iPhone 8/ iPhone 8 Plus?

The first compelling reason is definitely the pricing. The lightest among the lot, the iPhone 8 is priced as low as $699 while the iPhone 8 Plus would be available from $799 for the 64GB variant. If you are looking for something compact then the iPhone 8 would be your best bet as the 5.8” iPhone X display might be slightly large to handle with a single hand. For those who love the Touch ID, these would perhaps be the last iPhones to be released with the physical button packing the fingerprint sensor beneath.

Why should you buy the iPhone X?

Besides the fact that it is the first ever iPhone to come without the iconic home button, there are other cool aspects to make this a legendary phone in the history of iPhones. Here are the features that you would find on the iPhone X and not on any other iPhone ever:

For the first time, Apple is ditching the IPS LCD display and is incorporating an OLED display that Apple calls the “Super Retina Display” which comes with HDR support and the largest pixels per inch rating.

Another first time is the absence of the home screen button which has been one common attribute of all iPhones since 2007. So the fingerprint scanner is not present anymore. A swipe up can take you to the home screen from any app. Press the bottom of the screen and swipe up to open the multitasking option. Switching between apps is also easy and it can be done by simply swiping left or right at the bottom of the screen.

To replace the fingerprint authentication comes the new Face ID where the user’s face would be mapped for authentication. The advanced TrueDepth camera can accurately capture the authorized face so as to eliminate erroneous unlocks and authentications. The same Face ID would be used for payments and other places where fingerprint was earlier used. The smart facial recognition algorithm can also recognize the face under poor lighting conditions and with minor physical changes on the features as well.

Apple has announced that in spite of the wide screen and the super-fast processor the iPhone X would give a better battery life than the iPhone 7.

Blur free images can now be captured thanks to the presence of OIS (Optical Image Stabilization) in both the wide angle and the telephoto lenses at the back. So camera shakes would not result in blurred images anymore. The f/2.4 aperture on the iPhone X gives a better depth of field and captures more details in the pictures besides offering some stunning low light images.

Better selfies are now guaranteed thanks to the Portrait mode included in the secondary camera. This is as efficient as the portrait mode on the rear camera on the iPhone 7 Plus. Portrait Lighting is another intuitive addition to the front camera that can manipulate the lighting conditions to suitably adjust the lighting effects in selfies.

One cool feature that you can show off to your friends is the Animoji that can imitate your facial expression and create an emoji for messaging.

Is the iPhone X the best ever iPhone?

The exorbitant pricing is one thing that has led to the numerous trolls on the iPhone X. The efficiency of the Face ID is something we cannot comment about without actually using one. Another aspect we did not like from the first look is the notch at the top that has been given to place all the sensors on the front. This cuts through the display and might sometimes be a bit of a distraction while using the landscape mode. If you are looking for all the features of the iPhone X sans the OLED display and Face ID, the iPhone 8 Plus would be a more economical choice.

Find out about how much the new iPhones will cost in India – here.

The features all sound too cool to be true. But how the phone performs and lives up to the expectations is something that we would have to wait to find out!

About the author

Payel

Leave a Comment