The iPhone's tenth anniversary has been celebrated with a phone that finally marks a big change for the iconic device. But is Apple still playing catch-up with Android rivals? And is the iPhone X too expensive?
Bezel-free displays are all the rage and a decent flagship smartphone needs to have dual-cameras, waterproofing and wireless charging. The iPhone X has them all, but has Apple repeated the success of the original iPhone and be the benchmark once again?
We'll answer all these questions, and more, with our in-depth iPhone X review.
PRICE
As you may already be aware, the iPhone X has quite the price tag. Starting at a whopping £999 should you be buying it outright. You can now buy one on Apple's website.
You'll need to be happy with 64GB of storage, otherwise a jump to an eye-watering £1,149 will bag you the 256GB model. At the time of writing you'll have to wait for 2-3 weeks for one to arrive if ordering online from Apple.
The question is whether you should or can spend the extra compared to the other iPhones and rivals.
The iPhone X is £200 more than the 8 Plus and £300 more than the iPhone 8. Only you will know if you can afford the jump but with the 8 models being so similar to predecessors, the iPhone X is the much more exciting upgrade.
As usual, Apple has some stiff competition from some Android flagships like the Samsung Galaxy Note 8, LG G6, Google Pixel 2 XL and more. It's unsurprising that they're all cheaper with the most expensive, the Note 8, still saving you £130 in comparison. Whether you're happy with Android is another matter.
The iPhone X isn't good value for money, not even close, but it's certainly our favourite iPhone you can get at the moment.
The new phones are already popping up on eBay, but at significantly more than retail value. Also try mobile operators - we've rounded up some of the best deals.
iPhone X price
DESIGN AND BUILD QUALITY
Undoubtedly the biggest attraction of the iPhone X is the screen. It's nothing new in the wider market but this is the first time that Apple has offered a larger display on a phone that isn't simply huge.
The new display means you get a bigger screen than the iPhone 8 Plus in a much smaller handset. It's actually not that much bigger than the regular iPhone 8. With iPhone design effectively unchanged for a number of years and devices, the iPhone X suddenly looks dramatically new, refreshing and even futuristic.
With such as drastic change in the design, there are a numbers of elements about the iPhone X that are different to the normal formula.
Despite various rumours, Apple did not managed to embed the fingerprint scanner into the screen. Nor did it move the sensor to the back of the phone like a number of rivals. So you'll need to use Face ID instead which we'll explain in detail below.
iPhone X vs iPhone 8 vs iPhone 8 Plus
With no Touch ID home button, the iPhone is very different to use compared to other iPhones. You'll end up using the side button a lot more, for things like summoning Siri, and also learning all the new gestures which we'll also explain below.
In general, the iPhone X is the usual iPhone shape and is only available in two colours - Space Grey and Silver. With no bezels at the front this dictates the colour of the back and frame and we much prefer the former as the Silver option has a somewhat dull grey back and garishly chromed edge which looks cheap.
The iPhone X is fairly heavy at 174g but that's still a decent chunk less than the 8 Plus. The X is also pretty thick in comparison at 7.7mm. We're not too fussed about either apart from the lack of a headphone jack despite the space for it.
It's reassuringly weighted and that's largely due to the new glass rear panel and stainless steel frame. The former is a sort of homage to earlier iPhones but serves a purpose beyond looks. You can use wireless charging on the iPhone X but be aware that this is also available on the 8 models. (Read more about Apple's AirPower wireless charger, which is coming soon.)
iPhone X silver
Wireless charging is a very welcome addition but a glass rear cover also introduces other issues. For starters it's very slippery, both in the hand and when you put it down, and can also shatter despite Apple saying it's the toughest glass on an iPhone.
Apple Care+ costs £199 for the iPhone X so all of these things mean you'll probably want a decent case, especially considering how much you've spent on the device.
Another change in design which might seem subtle is the camera module moving to a vertical orientation. That's fine, but it sticks out more than others and means that the iPhone X wobbles on a flat surface like a table with uneven legs.
The iPhone X is IP67 waterproof so it can be fully dunked in fresh water – up to 1m for 30 minutes. Again, this is something available on the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus if it affects your decision between this year's offering.
SPECS AND FEATURES
Unlike the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, there's a lot of change and new things in the iPhone X. It's Apple's most radical device for quite some time and it's not just that new screen, either. Many things will take some getting used to, especially for long-time iPhone users.
Screen
In case you haven't noticed, the iPhone X has a somewhat insane new screen. Apple calls it the Super Retina Display.
It's 5.8in matching rivals like the Galaxy S8 and although it doesn't have curved edges like Samsung, it's still gorgeous. The 1125x2436 resolution makes it the crispest iPhone yet at 401ppi and it looks like a glossy magazine a lot of time.
iPhone X screen
Although the phone is smaller than the 8 Plus the big screen makes it harder to use in various ways regardless. Apps at the top of the screen, for example, are harder to reach so on the whole, the iPhone X is a two-handed device.
Not only is it bezel-free, but it's Apple's first using OLED technology. This means things like contrast are vastly improved and colours are far more vibrant, mainly compared to the LCDs in other iPhones.
The display is also very bright when you need it to be and has Apple's True Tone technology to automatically adjust colour temperature.
It's worth pointing out that the screen's unusual aspect ratio of 2.17:1 means that not all apps display full-screen, although this will become less of an issue over time. Apple like National Rail are shown with black bars at the top and bottom.
The so called 'notch' is a key part of the screen and is there to house things like the earpiece and front facing camera. Instead of having a bezel across the width of the phone, Apple has wrapped it around.
We haven't found the notch the annoying eye-sore we feared it might be, but it is frankly horrible when watching videos or playing games in full-screen. Luckily you can choose not to let a video take up the entire display.
The other issue is that two small areas don't have space for all the notifications and information you're used to. Gone are icons for Bluetooth, battery percentage, do not disturb and more – with the latter being quite the bugbear.
iPhone X notch film
Gestures
As mentioned earlier, the lack of a home button means you'll need to learn and adjust to a new way of interacting with iOS on the iPhone X.
You're probably used to using the home button to wake the screen and while you can use the side button on the X, it's far easier to just tap the screen. Once unlocked – see Face ID below – things get more complicated.
To quit an app, you need to swipe up from the bottom of the screen and pause half way to bring up the App Switcher. A clever gesture means simply swiping left or right at the bottom of the screen will switch between apps, but the order changes after a few seconds which is confusing.
Since the swipe gesture returns to the homescreen, you can't fling apps upwards to close them full. Instead, you'll need to long press in the App Switcher and use the minus button.
That also means that Control Centre has been moved so this is now accessible from the right shoulder of the screen where the battery indicator is. The left shoulder is for the notification pane and it makes sense, but the shoulders are very hard to reach one-handed.
When in landscape, only the very far right works for Control Centre which is odd – a 50/50 split would make more sense.
It's all pretty alien, even for a non-iPhone user, but on the whole it only takes a few days to get used to. 
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