After his first weekend using iPhone X, 9to5Mac‘s Ben Lovejoy writes, “There has been much discussion by early reviewers about the side bezels. Apple has been hyping it as essentially bezel-free, while some early reviewers have commented on the fact that bezels are still very much in evidence. My initial view is that it’s just right. The bezels are thicker in the steel and glass than they appear in photos, but I can hold it comfortably without obscuring any of the display. I’m sure even this much bezel will look old-fashioned in a few years, but right now I’d say Apple has struck the right balance.”
“I’m sure I’ll have more to say about this as I use the phone over the next few days, but my immediate impressions of the notch are that it’s cute! I think it adds visual interest to what would otherwise be a rather featureless design on the front,” Lovejoy writes. “My first impressions of the OLED screen are that the improvements are a little overblown. Yes, it’s a very, very nice display. It looks great. But, in all honesty, so does the IPS LCD screen on older iPhones. On the Homescreen, and in most apps, I’d say the difference is no big deal. But it does definitely make itself felt when viewing photos. I was relieved to see that Apple hasn’t gone down the Samsung route of cranking up saturation and contrast to cartoon-like levels: the iPhone X display pops, but still looks natural.”
“I can say immediately that anyone worrying about the switch from Touch ID to Face ID can stop now. It’s fantastic. Quick, reliable, more secure and more convenient. When notifications arrive on the lockscreen, for example, the content is hidden until you look at the phone, then the content appears. Fantastic,” Lovejoy writes. “With my banking app, it asked me for permission to use Face ID, and that was it. I could then immediately use it for logon, and it’s a beautiful experience. In use, it’s as if there’s no security step at all – just open the app and view your accounts – while in reality you’re protected by something far more secure than Touch ID. I love it.”
Tons more in the full article – recommended – here.
MacDailyNews Take: It’s the True Tone that really makes the display sing. We’re being extra careful to not leave the iPhone display active for things like turn-by-turn navigation on long drives to avoid any possibility of burn-in. The turns are on our wrists anyway via Apple Watch and, in our other vehicles, it’s displayed on the vehicles’ screens via CarPlay.
As should be perfectly obvious by now, we hate the notch. It’s a design compromise. An inelegant kludge. One of the very first things we did with our new iPhone X units was change the Home Screen Wallpaper to black. Besides the not insignificant bezels all around, the notch is glaring proof of Apple’s “it’s all screen” marketing lie. It’s simply a bad design decision to place a flap over any part of the display and to require developers to design around it. That said, we’ll learn to live with it. So will everybody who’s lucky enough to be afflicted with it. We’re not sure Notch Blindness™ will ever fully set in, but it’s not a deal-breaker. It’s just concerning that Apple would think this is their best solution (especially after recent design disasters like the Apple TV’s Siri Remote). We’re left wondering if Jony is off elsewhere (dealing with Campus architecture, the odd Christmas tree, overwrought naval-gazing coffee table books, etc.) while lesser mortals are trying to run the product design shop.
Beyond the notch, after our first weekend with our iPhone X units, with everybody who sees them wanting to hold them and ask questions, it’s already crystal clear that this is the best iPhone Apple has ever made. You can have ours after you pry them out of our cold dead hands.
