With that significant change to the iPhone's display, Apple had to rethink how iOS handled content. The iPhone X introduced several new features to the iPhone, with the most notable being Face ID housed in a new notch that protruded into the top edge of the display. When Tim Cook announced the iPhone X at the Steve Jobs Theater in 2017, he used Apple's iconic "One more thing" phrase to mark the unveiling of the most significant redesign in the iPhone's history. It wasn't until 2017 that things started to radically change. Throughout those initial years, Apple hardly touched the bezel design around the iPhone's display, keeping the thick "forehead and chin" bezels as displays gradually grew from 3.5 inches in the first few generations to as large as 5.5 inches with the "Plus" variants of the iPhone 6, 6s, and 7. The bezels were particularly thick at the top and bottom, given the need to house the front-facing camera, earpiece, and the Home Button, which gained Touch ID in 2013. The bezels were either black or white, depending on the color of your device. In memory of the notch turning five years old this week, we thought we'd look back at the history of the iPhone's display bezels and how they have evolved into the pill-shaped cutout it is becoming today.įor the first decade following the iPhone's 2007 debut, all iPhones featured relatively thick bezels at the top, bottom, and sides of the display. Among other innovations, the iPhone X introduced the notch to the iPhone with Face ID and a design language that has persisted through the last several years. This week marks the fifth anniversary of Apple revealing the iPhone X, one of the biggest redesigns in the iPhone's history.