First field report of iPhone X • Hacker News Board

Re: First field report of iPhone X

#171

Post by macintux » Mon, Oct 30, 2017, 5:44 PM UTC

improbable22 wrote: post #164

parzivalm wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apple probably owns the design because most other manufactures hopefully see that you shouldn't be looking at a notch every time you are viewing a video. I've been an iPhone user since day 1 but the screen shape on this phone just makes so little sense. It wouldn't be the worst if Apple made it that iOS scaled everything so media wasn't blocked by the notch but instead if I get the iPhone X I have to wait for app dev…

Marco Arment nailed this: https://marco.org/2017/09/18/courage The iphone had an instantly recognisable silhouette for 10 years: symmetrical forehead & chin, with a big round home button. Going to very thin bezels necessarily throws this trademark away. Making lemonade, as it were, they've chosen to embrace the notch to create a new trademark.

Thank you, that was the blog post I was looking for in vain when I found Cybart's tweet.

Re: First field report of iPhone X

#172

Post by jack6e » Mon, Oct 30, 2017, 5:45 PM UTC

dntrkv wrote: post #155

jack6e wrote: post #131

Even though the overall tone of this review was upbeat and positive, it seemed that the baseline conclusion was: "hopefully we find a use for the minor iterative improvements that will make this more than just the next release in a series of underwhelming releases." For one of the first, selectively-chosen reviews of what is supposed to be a ground-breaking product, the article essentially told us 1) the pictures loo…

What was so revolutionary about the original iPhone? I don't think anyone could point at any single feature throughout the whole smartphone revolution and claim it was "revolutionary." It was always a combination of features and design decisions that made the phones so easy and pleasant to use. There were many phones before the iPhone that were way more capable, yet nobody talked about them. Siri, TouchID, FaceID, ca…

I am not saying the phone is revolutionary, I am saying that Apple and some supporters/reviewers call it revolutionary. See Apple's own page for the X[1]. The use the slogan, "Say hello to the future", and for the FaceID section, literally call it "A revolution in recognition" (emphasis mine). The point that I was drawing out from the review was that all the hoped-for fulfillment of Apple's marketing seems to rely on 3rd-party developers making this new hardware useful, but Apple itself has not really delivered to the hype. It is as if the English colonists in America had written the Declaration and then the Constitution and said, "Hopefully in the future some nations out there will know what to do with democracy and can make it successful, but we'll stick with being slightly more-autonomous subjects of King George for now." Some "revolution" that would have been.

[1] https://www.apple.com/iphone-x/

Re: First field report of iPhone X

#173

Post by Aloha » Mon, Oct 30, 2017, 5:46 PM UTC

iamatworknow wrote: post #168

Aloha wrote: post #161

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I only use the headphone jack for a wired headset telephone style headset, I only very rarely listen to music on my phone. For my use case, getting a charging headphone adapter dongle and leaving it hooked up to the headset I use, will serve my needs perfectly.

And that may be how I go, but for now I have no need to upgrade. iOS 11 hasn't given me any of the issues on the 6S Plus other people talk about (perhaps because I use my iPhone in a more limited capacity than many other people).

It's clear to me that the RAM limitations of my 6S are present, I'm more often then not seeing apps starting fresh rather than resuming state.

Re: First field report of iPhone X

#174

Post by mgleason_3 » Mon, Oct 30, 2017, 5:46 PM UTC

Can't help wondering if FaceID's more of a PITA than a help. Do I always have to stop and stare at my phone? What if I'm walking?

Re: First field report of iPhone X

#175

Post by ianamartin » Mon, Oct 30, 2017, 5:48 PM UTC

dogma1138 wrote: post #40

gehsty wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why is TouchID superior to FaceID? I just want to understand why you think FaceID is a failure? If FaceID lives up to Apples claims it will have less friction and higher security, so win win, and I'm sure Apple are aware of how popular TouchID is, I don't see them replacing it with a dud.

Because it can be unlocked in your pocket for SOS use cases. Because it can be unlocked under the table or at a very low angle to be used in places such as a restaurant, meeting room, theater etc. Because one can use TouchID for Apple Pay much quicker and more reliably in a crowded/rushed situation such as paying for public transport. Becuase TouchID actually allows multiple users on the same device if if that is not…

SOS functionality is baked in by pressing combinations of the side buttons. Way more realizable than pocket texting.

You’re not fooling anyone in meetings or at restaurants by using your phone under the table. We know you’re doing stuff with your phone. Everyone knows. Still, if you want to pretend to be slick, use the passcode.

You have no idea if faceid will be slower than Touch ID. You have no idea if faceid will limit the phone to just one user.

You’re out on some pretty weak limbs with this list of nothingburgers that goes on.

Re: First field report of iPhone X

#176

Post by dilap » Mon, Oct 30, 2017, 5:51 PM UTC

dean wrote: post #149

I keep reading about how the "notch" is ugly and annoying, but "you get used to it". Like sitting behind someone with a big hat in the movie theatre, after awhile, you don't even notice. Personally, I change seats in that scenario. I just find it hard square claims of "the future of the smartphone" with reviews like "you get used to it".

I don't have the iPhone X yet, but I'm actually kind of excited about the notch and the round corners for a (perhaps) silly reason: it brings us deeper into the sci-fi age where screens are organic objects with shape, rather than just hard, rectangular squares. It feels more exciting, more human, somehow.

(Also, all the various status bars will now finally have the same height; basically no software properly responds to the double-height status bar when something special is going on.)

Re: First field report of iPhone X

#177

Post by pwython » Mon, Oct 30, 2017, 5:51 PM UTC

dean wrote: post #149

I keep reading about how the "notch" is ugly and annoying, but "you get used to it". Like sitting behind someone with a big hat in the movie theatre, after awhile, you don't even notice. Personally, I change seats in that scenario. I just find it hard square claims of "the future of the smartphone" with reviews like "you get used to it".

Then again... maybe you do get used to it?

Like how our parents got "used to" prior technology's "annoyances"?

I'm not saying this is a "get off my lawn" annoyance, but... I'm curious to see how phones evolve after this notch.

Re: First field report of iPhone X

#178

Post by aetherson » Mon, Oct 30, 2017, 5:52 PM UTC

matwood wrote: post #146

PacketPaul wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't understand why they did not put the touch sensor on the back.

Because that's a bad place for the sensor. If I have to pick up my phone and touch the sensor on the back, I might as well use FaceId.

Well, unless you're taking your phone out of your pocket.

Seriously, the "back of phone" placement for the fingerprint sensor has downsides when it comes to "phone on the table," but it's awesome for the pocket. I just got a Pixel 2 XL, which has a more reliable fingerprint reader than any other one I've used (comparison points: Nexus 5x, iPhone 6+, 2017 Macbook Pro touchbar), and it's amazing. My phone is utterly reliably unlocked by the time I clear it from my pocket.

And a back fingerprint reader + the FaceID system would be great in combination. The FaceID system could compensate for the back-of-phone fingerprint reader's weakness when it's on your desk (or when wearing gloves/hands wet).

Re: First field report of iPhone X

#179

Post by Strom » Mon, Oct 30, 2017, 5:56 PM UTC

jnsaff2 wrote: post #66

PacketPaul wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

IOS on the 7 has been rock solid. What is wrong on the 6s?

Random freezes, phone calls not having sound, and for me as a podcast/audiobook listener that side is awful, widget not working, having to restart the app or the whole phone, bluetooht connectivity being very unreliable. Usability gone much worse regarding audio. In situations where with ios9 I could rely that I put my headphone on and push the button on the headphones the correct thing would start playing immediatel…

The situation is perhaps even worse on iPhone 6, which I have. It feels like Apple doesn't test iOS on older hardware. For example the camera app has rotation freezing problems [1] half the time I open it. It's not a rare occurance, it's a constant issue. It's not a case of slow hardware either, because there are still plenty of times when everything works smoothly.

--

[1] When I rotate the phone, half the UI elements react to the rotation and update, but the other half of the UI remains at the previous mode. So I have a UI which is half landscape, half portrait. Depending on the mood of the iPhone, the UI will fix itself in either a second, 5 seconds, or not until I restart the app.

Re: First field report of iPhone X

#180

Post by passivepinetree » Mon, Oct 30, 2017, 6:03 PM UTC

Strom wrote: post #179

jnsaff2 wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Random freezes, phone calls not having sound, and for me as a podcast/audiobook listener that side is awful, widget not working, having to restart the app or the whole phone, bluetooht connectivity being very unreliable. Usability gone much worse regarding audio. In situations where with ios9 I could rely that I put my headphone on and push the button on the headphones the correct thing would start playing immediatel…

The situation is perhaps even worse on iPhone 6, which I have. It feels like Apple doesn't test iOS on older hardware. For example the camera app has rotation freezing problems [1] half the time I open it. It's not a rare occurance, it's a constant issue. It's not a case of slow hardware either, because there are still plenty of times when everything works smoothly. -- [1] When I rotate the phone, half the UI element…

I'm still clinging to iOS 10 on my plain 6. It sounds like you'd recommend I don't update; is that true?