iPhone X, which launched in September 2017 with an all new look, featuring the now-ubiquitous notch and Face ID, and paved the way for today's iPhones, will not be getting this year's major operating system update. The iPhone X, along with iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, which launched the same year, have been dropped from the list of phones that will get this year's iOS 17 update, which was announced on Monday (June 5) at the annual Worldwide Developers' Conference.
This marks the end of an era for a device that transformed the iPhone with many firsts — it was the first iPhone with a near-all screen display — barring the notch; the first to ditch the home button and bring gesture-based navigation; the first to sport an OLED display, and among the first iPhones to support wireless charging; and the first smartphone ever to breach the $1,000 price barrier.
By today's iPhone standards, the iPhone X feels antiquated — it's 5.8-inch screen is smaller than the 6.1 inch on the base model from the current generation, and the A11 Bionic chip, the most powerful smartphone chip in its heyday, can just about keep up with iOS 16. But the impact it had on the iPhone was massive — the design of which had begun to feel very dated and reused by 2017. Apple had used the same design for four years running at that point.
By then, Samsung, with its fresh designs for its Galaxy S and the erstwhile Note lineups, had claimed the mantle of the manufacturer making some of the most attractive-looking phones. Just like the redesigned MacBook Air re-energised Apple's notebook portfolio in 2018, the launch of the X electrified the iPhone, making it once again a coveted fashion statement, apart from being an exceptional device.
It sported a stainless steel frame and came in two colours — Silver, which included a white glass back, and Space Grey. Gone too were the horizontal dual rear camera setups seen from the days of the iPhone 6 Plus. The iPhone X sported a vertical camera array.
Coming on the heels of the 10th anniversary of the iPhone and positioned in the vanguard for iPhone development for the next decade, the iPhone X was an instant hit, easily outselling the 8 and 8 Plus, which still carried the remnants of the previous years' design.
Apple has always had the reputation of being a trendsetter and sure enough, the market was flooded with countless Android imitators that had a notch on the screen and a vertical camera setup on the back. The notch would soon be replaced by tear-drop front-facing cameras and eventually, the hole-punch cutouts of today, but the iPhone's notch would go on to become an iconic design – there would be no mistaking an iPhone because of the notch, even if you had a case slapped on.
The iPhone X, even today, remains one of my favourite iPhones ever. It felt refreshing, the performance was excellent even two or three years after launch, and the battery life was spectacular, at least for my use-case. The screen was a delight, and the cameras took some stunners. More importantly, however, it made the iPhone fun again — fun to look at, and fun to use.
There is no doubt that subsequent iPhones got better and better — as smartphones are generally wont to — but it was the iPhone X, just like the OG (original) iPhone, that showed them the way.
While I have mixed feelings that the iPhone X will no longer run the latest version of iOS, it will continue to be supported by way of security updates for several years to come. So if you're among the few to still rock an iPhone X, rest assured that your device will continue to be supported.
Just like the original MacBook Air with its slim wedge-shaped design and chunky aluminium bezels around the screen, the iPhone X feels outdated today. But like the former, it was in the vanguard of a new era in its product category.
