The tenth year anniversary of the iPhone saw the iPhone X radically changing Apple’s approach to the iPhone. The iconic home button is gone and for the first time, Apple does away with the huge top and bottom bezels that has characterized the iPhone for years. I got the iPhone X from Amazon last week and unboxed it. I started with the second generation iPhone, the iPhone 3G. Between then and now, we’ve seen how far the iPhone has come in terms of design and the whole technology on the device.
But, let’s tear this open first to see what we have here. It’s the regular iPhone packaging we’ve been seeing for a while now. A white box with an image of your phone right on top of it.
In the box
Apart from the iPhone X, here are other items in the box:
- Earpods
- 3.5mm jack adapter
- Adapter
- Lightning cable
- Apple stickers
- Safety information
- Quick start guide.
First impressions
I’ve always preferred the bigger iPhone models, and the iPhone X feels really small in my hand. I currently use the iPhone 7 Plus and it’s quite bigger than this.
The iPhone X feels oddly familiar, it reminds me of the very first iPhone I owned. It actually takes us back to the earlier years of the iPhone as the form factor has some design elements from the early years of the iPhone.
This aluminum frame is present on the early generation iPhones and it really looks good on the iPhone X. The last time we saw a glass back cover on the iPhone was on the iPhone 4. I don’t really like it though, but it’s the only way to make wireless charging work on the iPhone. This is not a phone you want to use without a back cover unless you’re willing to take the risk and spend over $500 for repair.
The vertical dual camera arrangement is something we haven’t seen before on the iPhone. It’s always been horizontal since the iPhone 7 Plus. The button placement hasn’t changed. Volume buttons are on the left and the bigger power button is on the right.
The speaker grills are at the bottom as usual, but only one actually houses the speaker. The other one is for the microphone. It comes with stereo speaker setup, but the second camera is actually integrated with the earpiece.
It looks fragile due to the glass build but it feels solid in hand because of the weight. This thing weighs 174 grams compared with the iPhone 8 at only 148 grams.
The lack of a home button is something I have to get used to over the next few days. I’ve been navigating the iPhone the same way over the last 7 years, but now it’s time to adapt to Apple’s new rule.
How do I feel about this design? It sure looks nice. I like the design except for the glass back cover that’s breakable, the rather ugly notch at the top one has to get used to and the fact that it’s a bit smaller than what I’m used to. I’m putting my SIM right in and I’m gonna use it fully over the next few days when the full review will be published.
