Image Source: Apple. The iPhone X is dust- and water-resistant.

Apple has unveiled the iPhone X, its tenth-anniversary smartphone, sporting an all-glass design. Although Samsung phones already offered some of the phone’s debut features, the iPhone X introduces facial recognition for unlocking, authentication, and payments, alongside the ability to animate emojis with facial expressions.

The iPhone X boasts a 5.8" Super Retina display, A11 Bionic chip, wireless charging, and an upgraded rear camera with dual optical image stabilization. Face ID, made possible by the new TrueDepth camera, provides 3D facial recognition.

Jony Ive, Apple’s Chief Design Officer, stated, “Creating an iPhone that is all display has been our goal for over a decade. The iPhone X embodies that vision… iPhone X marks a new chapter for iPhone — one where the device fades away into the experience."

Philip Schiller, Apple’s Senior VP of Worldwide Marketing, added, “iPhone X represents the future of smartphones. It’s packed with amazing new technologies, including the groundbreaking TrueDepth camera system, a stunning Super Retina display, and the incredibly fast A11 Bionic chip with a neural engine… It’s the dawn of the next decade for iPhone.”

The all-glass front and back are constructed with what Apple claims is “the most durable glass ever” used in a smartphone. A highly polished, surgical-grade stainless steel band encases and strengthens the device. A seven-layer color process allows for precise hues and opacity on the glass finish. Additionally, a reflective optical layer enhances colors, resulting in a design that is elegant, durable, and resistant to water and dust.

Wireless charging is supported by the glass back design and is compatible with the existing Qi ecosystem. Two new wireless charging mats from Belkin and mophie, designed to work with the phone, are available from apple.com/sg and Apple Stores.

The iPhone X premieres a bezel-less, all-screen display that curves with the contours of the phone. The iOS 11 operating system has been redesigned to fully utilize the 5.8" Super Retina display and replaces the Home button with a swipe-up gesture. The Super Retina display is an OLED panel with a million-to-one contrast ratio and wide color support. The HDR display supports Dolby Vision and HDR10, in addition to True Tone, which dynamically adjusts the display’s white balance to match the ambient lighting.

Face ID uses a TrueDepth camera system composed of a dot projector, infrared (IR) camera, flood illuminator, and the A11 Bionic chip to accurately map and recognize a face, fundamentally changing how authentication works on the iPhone. These sophisticated depth-sensing technologies work together to securely unlock the iPhone, enable Apple Pay, and provide access to secure apps and features.

Face ID functions by projecting over 30,000 invisible IR dots onto the user’s face. The IR image and dot pattern are processed by neural networks to generate a mathematical model of the owner’s face. This data is then sent to a secure area within the phone, known as the “secure enclave,” to confirm a match. Face ID adapts to changes in appearance over time. All stored facial information is secured by the secure enclave, with all processing happening on-device, not in the cloud, ensuring user privacy. Apple assures that Face ID only unlocks iPhone X when the user intentionally looks at it and is designed to resist spoofing attempts using photos or masks.

iPhone X also boasts a redesigned 12-megapixel dual rear camera system with dual optical image stabilization. The wide-angle camera’s ƒ/1.8 aperture is paired with an enhanced ƒ/2.4 aperture on the telephoto camera for superior photos and videos. Features like a new color filter, deeper pixels, and an improved Apple-designed image signal processor deliver advanced pixel processing, wide color capture, faster autofocus in low light, and higher-quality HDR photos. A new quad LED True Tone Flash provides double the light uniformity and includes a Slow Sync feature, resulting in more evenly lit backgrounds and foregrounds.

The cameras on iPhone X are optimized for AR. Each camera is individually calibrated, equipped with new gyroscopes and accelerometers for precise motion tracking. The A11 Bionic CPU manages world tracking and scene recognition, while the GPU allows for 60fps graphics, and the image signal processor conducts real-time lighting estimation. With ARKit, iOS developers can utilize the TrueDepth camera and rear cameras to build games and apps that offer more immersive experiences.

The updated camera also delivers high-quality video capture, featuring improved video stabilization, 4K video recording at up to 60fps, and 1080p slow motion at up to 240fps. An Apple-designed video encoder provides real-time image and motion analysis for optimal video quality.

Portrait mode with Portrait Lighting on both the front and rear cameras brings impressive studio lighting effects to the iPhone, allowing users to capture striking portraits with a shallow depth-of-field effect in five different lighting styles. iPhone X, with iOS 11, also supports HEIF and HEVC for up to 50% compression and storage, effectively doubling photo and video capacity.

The TrueDepth camera breathes life into emoji with Animoji. Working in conjunction with the A11 Bionic chip, the TrueDepth camera captures and analyzes over 50 different facial muscle movements, then animates those expressions in a dozen distinct Animoji, including options like a panda, unicorn, and robot. Pre-installed as an iMessage app on iPhone X, users can record and send Animoji messages that can smile, frown, and more using their voice.

The A11 Bionic is Apple’s most powerful and intelligent smartphone chip yet. The chip boasts a six-core CPU design with two performance cores that are 25% faster and four efficiency cores that are 70% faster than the A10 Fusion. A new, second-generation performance controller can utilize all six cores at the same time, delivering up to 70% greater performance for multithreaded tasks, providing users more power and a two-hour longer battery life compared to iPhone 7. The A11 Bionic also incorporates an Apple-designed GPU with a three-core design that delivers up to 30% faster graphics performance than the previous generation. The neural engine, a new addition to the A11 Bionic, is designed for machine learning algorithms. This engine enables Face ID, Animoji, and other features. This dual-core design is capable of performing up to 600 billion operations per second for real-time processing.

During the iPhone X launch, Apple also previewed AirPower, an Apple-designed wireless charging accessory slated for release in 2018. AirPower will offer a sizable active charging area that will enable iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, or iPhone X users to charge up to three devices simultaneously, including the Apple Watch Series 3.

Intrigued?

The iPhone X will be available in silver and space gray in 64GB and 256GB models starting at S$1,648 from apple.com/sg and Apple Stores. It will also be available through Apple Authorized Resellers and carriers, though prices may vary.

Pre-orders for iPhone X begin October 27 in more than 55 countries and territories, with in-store availability starting November 3. The Asia Pacific and Middle East rollout includes: Australia, Bahrain, mainland China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, KSA, Kuwait, New Zealand, Qatar, Singapore, Taiwan, and the UAE.

Apple-designed accessories, including leather and silicone cases in various colors, will be available starting at S$58. A new iPhone X Leather Folio will be offered for S$148. Color-matched Lightning Docks in metallic finishes will also be available for S$68. Prices may vary. Every customer who purchases an iPhone X from Apple will be eligible for free Personal Setup in-store or online. This service helps personalize the iPhone by setting up email, showcasing new apps from the App Store, and more.

Portrait lighting samples:

• Natural light: The subject’s face is in sharp focus against a blurred background.
• Studio light: A clean look with the subject’s face brightly lit.
• Contour light: Dramatic shadows with highlights and lowlights.
• Stage light: The subject’s face is spotlit against a deep black background.
• Stage light mono: Like stage light, but in classic black and white.

View the Animoji demo video: iPhone X users can record and send Animoji messages that mirror their facial expressions.

Those in Singapore who want to get started or go further with iPhone X or iOS 11 can register for free Today at Apple sessions.

StarHub customers can register their interest for the iPhone X.

Read the WorkSmart Asia blog posts on the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, and the Apple Watch Series 3.

1 The iPhone X is splash, water, and dust resistant and was tested under controlled laboratory conditions with a rating of IP67 under IEC standard 60529. Splash, water, and dust resistance are not permanent conditions and resistance might decrease as a result of normal wear. Do not attempt to charge a wet iPhone; refer to the user guide for cleaning and drying instructions. Liquid damage not covered under warranty.

2 The iPhone X display has rounded corners that follow a curved design, and these corners are within a standard rectangle. When measured as a standard rectangular shape, the screen is 5.85" diagonally (actual viewable area is less than this).

3 Portrait Lighting launches in beta.

4 In most countries.