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Original iPhone Reviewer Steven Levy Shares iPhone X Impressions as First Video Review Appears Online
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My question is WHY, historically there are no product reviews before public launch , why is special this time, some people are given permission to review iphonex and others are not?
I have a 6 plus -- couple years old. A non X iPhone (8 plus) is still what -- like $800. So its not a question of spending $0 vs. $1000. It's a question of $800 vs. $1000. For $200, I'd rather have the latest and greatest. What's another $200 at this point?
Looks like there was the media event in NY then - I was going to say, I’d never heard of the first guy, thought it was a bit odd for him to have the first “video review”. But I know Soldier Knows Best, and they looked like they were in the same room.
Exactly. This was another “hands on” for media (including youtubers) in New York and not a review following the lending of a device for a fullaome review.
OLED screen. The idea of having pure black pixels because there’s no backlight gives me a techgasm.
I didn't really care much for this review. Maybe first glance overview, but review? NO. I am always a lil suspect of these pre-launch reviewers in that I wonder how truly critical they might be due to being scared they might not get a pre-launch review phone next time around if they are too critical. The best reviews are the actual users that are right here in this forum IMHO.
Just wished Levy changed that hideous default wallpaper to something else. Eww! I can't see the benefits of OLED. Once you go black... 
Didn't rely using a physical home button since 2011, so the transition to gesture control will be instantaneous for me.
I should expect overwhelming positive reviews. Think the 8 reviews but bring it up another "notch." But room for improvement.
Face ID
OLED
Gesture control
Animojis
^ Not much of a list yet and two of those we have seen before in many past phones. Wireless and fast charging are also old features. We're still in Gen 1 of a new gen. Patience. It gets better by junior year.
Didn't rely using a physical home button since 2011, so the transition to gesture control will be instantaneous for me.
I should expect overwhelming positive reviews. Think the 8 reviews but bring it up another "notch." But room for improvement.
Face ID
OLED
Gesture control
Animojis
^ Not much of a list yet and two of those we have seen before in many past phones. Wireless and fast charging are also old features. We're still in Gen 1 of a new gen. Patience. It gets better by junior year.
IF that happens to mine (meaning consistently happening), that's when I will return it.
LOL! If you think manufacturing cost is the only cost LOL. The software cost is likely more as well as the R&D involved. In Apple's case they are creating hardware, software and related processes that have never been created before...so one has to assume some sort of capital costs here.
Good review. Him saying going back/forth between apps with a finger drag being awkward seems odd to me. Makes perfect sense to do that in my book
Unlock yes. Open, no. You need to swipe to open it past the notifications screen.
I’m just hoping you can use FaceID to unlock without the swipe up gesture.
My iPhone 8 is unlocked the second it arrives at my face.
I guess I’ll find out this week when mine arrives on the 3rd
I'm in the same boat as you are thinking that it would be better and faster to just unlock with the face like when you take it out of your pocket now using Touch ID to have it ready to go by the time your eyes see the screen. However, I had read somewhere that Apple purposely made the need to have the swipe gesture up so that you can actually see/read your notifications. If it went straight to your home screen then you would miss that. So after reading that it makes sense. But it would be nice if Apple provided a choice in the settings to do it either way.
He should have been. I don't see how Apple could trust him to handle proprietary information, after this.
Apple has given a review unit of the iPhone X to Steven Levy, who was one of the first pre-release reviewers of the original iPhone ten years ago. Levy has had the iPhone X since last Tuesday and today shared his thoughts on the tenth-anniversary device (via Wired), which marks the publishing of the first official review and impression of Apple's latest smartphone ahead of the review embargo lifting later this week.
Levy mentioned that "the biggest change" for the iPhone X is its screen, which is about the same size as the display of an iPhone 8 Plus in the body of an iPhone 8. Compared to "bulky" sizes of Apple's Plus line and Android smartphones, Levy was a fan of this slimming down in size, and said that it was "greatly pleasurable" when used to watch a movie, stream a football game, or just swipe through Instagram.
When discussing Face ID, Levy said that it appears to be a reliable method of unlocking and wouldn't detect anyone other than his face, although there were moments when it wouldn't unlock for him personally. Levy also mentioned that hiding text previews will now be the default on iPhone X, and he called the device's Apple Pay implementation a "clearer way to do transactions."
In his short time with the iPhone X, Levy said he has already "mastered the gestures" of the device and found himself trying to use them on an iPad. "My finger no longer drifts to the home button, but pathetically swipes upwards, to no avail." He further mentioned that, "now there's that awkward moment when I expect the iPad to unlock itself when the camera looks at my face."
Ultimately, Levy described the iPhone X as potentially a "halfway point" to a future beyond smartphones, and that its true potential will be unlocked when developers really begin to take advantage of the new hardware upgrades. You can read Levy's full review of the iPhone X on Wired right here.
In addition to Levy's iPhone X first impressions, the YouTube channel Booredatwork today posted a full eight minute review of the new smartphone, as well as a shorter Face ID-focused video. The review goes through many of the newest features coming to iPhone X, including working demonstrations of Portrait Mode selfies, various new gestures, Animoji, and more. The channel said the swipe-up gesture to go home "worked well," but all-in-all the new navigation gestures are "counterintuitive" at first after using a physical Home Button for so many years......."
I would urge all reviewers and users to not give Apple a pass on this phone. Especially regarding the new Face ID system. If it turns out to be the best thing since sliced bread, then so be it. But if it is not as great as they tried to make it seem during the keynote, if it is slow, if it doesn't work that well, then let Apple know in no uncertain terms. Don't just accept it as better because it is new and Apple says it's great. I'm an Apple person for sure. I've had a new model every year from the 4s to the 8. And I have thought every one was a little better than the one before and never regretted upgrading. We also have an iMac and MacBook Pro (both older) and 3 iPads of various ages (none new), and two other iPhones for wife and daughter so I'm not some troll or hater. But, after seeing multiple users show off the face ID, I can honestly say I think it is a step backward. It is slower than touch ID and requiring the look plus the swipe up just makes it seem even slower in actual use. I'm just not sure it was the best way to go. Maybe the best they could come up with in time this year though. After many real world users get their hands on it, we'll know for sure. Not impressed right now though.
People watch movies and tv shows on much larger devices such as tablets or HDTVs. Most people watch youtube on their phones though. So sort of a compromise imo.......
Yes he got fired his daughter confirmed it in a video on her YouTube
It's not petty. It's not even "making an example of". As an Apple engineer, he handles tons of proprietary information. The company has to trust him, and other employees. I'm 100% sure Apple trains employees on handling confidential information. My tech company, 1/4 the size of Apple, has mandatory online training at least twice per year. They drum it into you. This guy handled confidential information capriciously. He broke the company trust. Apple literally cannot trust him to handle proprietary information. Therefore, he cannot meet the requirements of his job. Sorry, if you can't do the job, you have to be let go. It's not a close call.
Because Apple is a media critical company. Any single bad thing about Apple will become the #1 story on every media outlet. In order to protect its profits, stocks, and inventory it must control ALL knowledge until the public can get to it. They can't control it once the floodgates open, but they can control it up until that point. Just look at their stocks since Friday, up, up, up. Now imagine if a scathing review came out, or even how the FaceID failed on stage at the announcement, their stock went down, down, down.
You don't know the different between someone who posted before it was approved (her) and (him) Levy who was given the permission to post early. Really!!