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iPhone X: Just how much of a Samsung is it?

With both Apple and Samsung releasing their latest smartphone ahead of the Christmas shopping season, Al Jazeera looks at the similarities between the two devices.

Apple's latest smartphone, the iPhone X, was released in November for an entry-level price of $1000.

Samsung released its Note 8 smartphone in September, for a little over $900. But just how similar is the iPhone X to its Android rival?

Apple's Samsung-produced screen

  • OLED screen: Samsung supplies perhaps the most visible feature onthe iPhone X: Its screen.

  • The iPhone X features an OLED display, known for its greater contrast and saturation than other screen technologies.

  • Problems with the screen: Some Apple users have experienced issues with the new screen in response to which, Apple has issued the following clarification: "With extended long-term use, OLED displays can also show slight visual changes. This is also expected behaviour and can include 'image persistence' or 'burn-in', where the display shows a faint remnant of an image even after a new image appears on the screen."

  • Samsung is the market leader in OLED screens, as it is the only company manufacturing them in high volume.

  • According to analyst firm Counterpoint, Apple is expected to sell 130m iPhone X devices over the next two years, which would give Samsung close to $14bn in additional revenue.

  • Home button. The iPhone X is Apple's first phone not to have a "home button". Samsung also got rid of the home button from the front of the Samsung Galaxy S8, which was released in April.

  • Each company replaced the home button in its own way. Apple developed a new swipe-based navigation system whereas the Galaxy S8 decided to implement an invisible, pressure-sensitive home button.

The new iPhone X  [Justin Sullivan/Getty Images]
Samsung's Galaxy S8 [Matthew Eisman/Getty Images for Samsung 837]

Glass back, wireless charging

  • Size and bezels. Design-wise, both Apple and Samsung's latest smartphones feature elongated displays and cut bezels around them. Samsung was first to release those features in its Samsung Galaxy S8.
  • Wireless charging. Wireless charging is not a new thing. It was first introduced in the Palm phone in 2009, and Nokia's Lumia phones in 2012.

  •  Samsung released wireless charging before Apple, with its Galaxy S line in 2013. The iPhone 8, iPhone 8 plus and iPhone X were Apple's first devices to support wireless charging.

  • Dust and water. The new iPhones are protected against dust and water splashes and come with IP67 certification. They can tolerate rain. 

  • The Galaxy Note 8, released earlier, comes with the IP68 rating, which is one level higher and can resist depths of upto 1.5 metres.

Patent litigations

  •  Apple and Samsung have been involved in a complex dispute around patents since 2011.

  • In 2011 Samsung filed a lawsuit against Apple in Seoul regarding infringement of patents related to telecommunications standards.

  • Apple responded in June that year, by filing a counter suit claiming Samsung copied the design and user interface of its iPhone and iPad.

  • Jurors awarded the iPhone maker about $930m after a 2012 trial in San Jose, California, but Apple failed to persuade US District Judge to issue a permanent injunction against the sale of Samsung phones.

  • In 2012 Apple and Samsung have been banned from selling some of their products in South Korea, after a court ruled that they both infringed on each other's patents.

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