Why the iPhone X is a healthy break from the recent Apple Tradition

I have always been critical of Apple, but never overly so. I like to give the Cupertino giant credit where it's due. 

But with the recent launches in the domain of the iPhones, my opportunities to do so has been dwindling. Ever since the iPhone 5S, all I have seen along with change in nomenclature are different screen sizes and minor upgrades, which are just enough to keep the specs in line with the Android Flagships of last year. 

The thing that annoys me the most is that how haughty the company has been on this. For example, when the market was moving to phones with bigger screens, this is how Apple responded.

And then when they finally followed tune, they did the most Apple thing they could, claiming it was their idea. 

                                     

Apple has a habit of sticking to traditions until there is no way out left. This approach is what let Android outpace Apple development for the past few years.

But at the Tenth Anniversary of the revolutionary first iPhone, they have created a product with a (cultural) shock value, the iPhone X.

The iPhone X

The iPhone X (read ten, by the way) is symbolic of the kind of change Apple really needs, and the sacrifices they would have to make.

First and foremost, the X has ditched the conventional iPhone body, a set template which the company still doesn't want to give up on(the iPhone 8 series still sticks to it). The phone is almost without bezels, save a small Trapezium at the top of the screen which houses the Speaker, Microphone, Front camera and a few other things to help the Face ID(more on that later). The display is a sharp OLED 'Super Retina display' (literally a page of Samsung's book. Samsung even manufactured it for them). This is a welcome change. OLED displays trump conventional displays as no backlight is needed, and only the pixels which are in use are activated. This directly results in better battery life.

What an all display front body means is that Apple got rid of its iconic front button, and also Touch ID along with it. The button functionality has been reassigned to the power button on the side, and with time, should be simple enough to use. Face ID is the substitute for Touch ID. Apple claims that it is twice as secure as Touch ID and more convenient too. It is supposed to work in the dark, thanks to the infrared camera. Also, it is seemingly resistant to haircuts, glasses and people posing with your mask or photo. The neural network architecture is supposed to even identify if you are looking at the phone directly, or someone is just trying to use your face. While the research that went into this AI system and the A11 Bionic chip which powers it are promising, I remain skeptic whether your face should be the prime way to unlock your phone. What adds to my skepticism is that a technology that's supposed to fail 1 in a 100000 times failed on its launch event.

                                   

The phone sports an all glass body, reminiscent of the iPhone 4 and 4S, rather than the recently adopted aluminium body. While people weren't very happy with all the cracks that came up last time, Screen technology has advanced enough in these years so that this is hopefully not a concern anymore. 

Camera is one segment where Apple never disappointed me. I seems that the 12 MP dual camera on the X will follow suit.

Summing it up, Apple has taken a great stride with the iPhone X. While, I would still say that they have brought nothing new to the table(unless the Face ID works as well as it's supposed to), they have at least adopted and adapted better than I know Apple to. Hopefully, the iPhone X is not a one time thing.