This week’s big Apple announcement came with a few surprises – not only will an iPhone 8 be available this month, but also an iPhone X.

While the iPhone 8 is your standard update, the iPhone X has a whole bunch of sparkly new features, including facial recognition.

Of course, as we’ve come to expect, with more features, comes a bigger price tag.

The iPhone 8 and 8 Plus will retail for $1079 and $1229 respectively in Australia, while the iPhone X will cost $1579 for the 64GB model. And if you really want to maximise your storage space, a 256GB version is available for a staggering $1829.

So what do you get in a phone for between $1000 and $1900 dollars these days?

Well, let's take a look at the features. Starting with the iPhone 8.

iPhone 8.

Water and dust resistant. Like the 7 models, the phone will resist splashes, water and dust - but don't get too excited, it's still not waterproof.

A 12MP camera. It's the same amount of megapixels as the iPhone 7, but slightly better due to other details I don't understand and won't go into.

More durable design. The glass encasing this phone is the most durable Apple has created. (We still would be investing in a good cover though.)

Wireless charging. A fancy new charger you don't have to plug in, but that the phone lays on instead.

A smarter, faster chip. So you can get to Instagram faster than ever before.

iPhone 8 Plus.

This phone has all of the features of the iPhone 8, plus...

A slightly better camera.

A bigger display. (14cm diagonal compared to 12cm)

Listen: What your children really think of your tech addiction. (Post continues after audio.)

iPhone X.

No home button. The first thing you'll notice when looking at the X is there is no centre home button. "So how will I unlock my phone?", you ask. Well...

Facial recognition. The X will use an infrared camera and special hardware to recognise your face and unlock your phone when you stare at it. Apple say they're confident with the technology, so no one will be able to unlock your phone but you. A bonus to this feature is that you can use it to create "Animojis" - emojis that perfectly match your expression.

New-look display. For the first time, Apple has introduced a phone with an edge-to-edge screen that takes up the entire front of the phone. It's also an OLED display, which means everything you view on it will be clearer than ever before.

Longer battery life. While the 8 and 8 Plus should last for about as long as their 7 counterparts - the X is promised to last about two hours longer than the iPhone 7.

When are they available?

You can order the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus from September 15, but it won't ship until September 22.

Meanwhile, those holding out for an iPhone X will have to wait until October 27 to order and November 3 to see that their package has left the warehouse.

Will you be splurging on an iPhone X?

READ MORE:

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