5 Reasons to Buy the iPhone 8 Instead of the iPhone X

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5 Reasons to Buy the iPhone 8 Instead of the iPhone X

There’s no question about it: Apple wants you to buy the iPhone X when it comes out in November. All the new features and technology have pushed over to that phone, whether it’s the fancy new design, FaceID scanning, the “super” retina display and (most importantly) Animojis.

Meanwhile, the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus are more iterative updates in the line, with even less new cool stuff than normal. That may leave you wondering why on earth you might want to buy one of these not-so-revolutionary smartphones—and that’s a fair question. In fact, for most people, the iPhone X is the phone they will want.

But that doesn’t mean no one will want an iPhone 8. Here are five reasons why you might choose the iPhone 8 (or 8 Plus) rather than the iPhone X:

1. Price and availability

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Photo by Justin Sullivan / Getty Images.

One of the biggest stories surrounding the iPhone X was the price. The price of new iPhones has remained the same for many years, only changed by the introduction of the “Plus” models, which are $100 more expensive. However, now the iPhone X will start at a breezy $999, with even higher costs for larger storage options. Spending a thousand bucks on a smartphone that you’ll want to replace in a couple of years might not sit right with many people. The starter rate of $649 for the iPhone 8 is much more palatable and will be the easy choice for a large swath of the population.

In addition to the price, you may need to replace your smartphone right now, which means your options exclude the iPhone X, which is still about a month out from release.

2. Smaller Size Option

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Photo by Justin Sullivan / Getty Images.

While the iPhone X cuts down bezels to squeeze a larger display into a smaller footprint, it’s still a bit larger than the iPhone 8. Displays keep getting bigger, but not everyone is interested in owning a huge smartphone. Apple has had some success with the much smaller iPhone SE, which is proof that some people would rather have something that fits better in the pocket and in the hand.

With that in mind, the smaller iPhone 8 could be the perfect size for a lot of people—especially those with smaller hands.

3. Familiarity

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Photo by Jack Taylor / Stringer / Getty Images

The iPhone has always been sold as a device that anyone can use. It’s got that magical Home button, which has always been helpful for those who are less tech-literate. However, with the iPhone X, all of that will be going away.

The lack of a Home button will force users to get used to things like FaceID, tap to wake, and new gestures to access app switching. In the end, the familiarity alone may make the iPhone 8 the better choice, especially if you’re choosing for your parents or grandparents.

4. TouchID

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Speaking of the removal of the Home button, the iPhone X also removes TouchID from the device. TouchID has been one of Apple’s biggest successes, integrating it into services like Apple Pay and even bringing it over to the MacBook Pro. Apple has chosen to replace the fingerprint-scanning technology with face-scanning, rather than putting a fingerprint scanner on the back of the phone like other manufacturers have done.

While hands-on reports about FaceID have been good so far, there have also been reports that it isn’t quite as fast or intuitive as TouchID was. While we’ll have to use the technology ourselves to make a final verdict, we still wish Apple could have figured out how to integrate TouchID beneath the display. If losing TouchID is significant to you, the iPhone 8 is the phone you’ll want to pick up.

5. The iPhone X’s Design and Materials

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Photo by Justin Sullivan / Getty Images.

The new flashy design of the iPhone X is definitely the biggest draw of the phone. It’s got very small bezels on the side, top and bottom, making it feel like a nearly all-display phone. I won’t get into the ugliness of the notch at the top of the phone, but for the most part, it’s a very impressive-looking device.

In addition, the iPhone X uses new materials to change up the look and feel of the phone. The sides are now made of a shiny stainless steel and the back is made of glass. In fact, in some ways it feels like a bit of a throwback to the original iPhone. While the iPhone X is probably durable enough for daily use, glass backs always have the possibility of being shattered, and stainless steels gets scratched pretty easily.

Even aside from familiarity (which we already talked), the look and feel of the iPhone X just may not be for everyone. For that reason, Apple has kept the standard iPhone line around in the iPhone 8. While I doubt Apple will be keeping it around for very many years, right now it may be the safer purchase for some until Apple works the kinks out of its new flagship device.

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