You haven’t used faceid yet are not convinced... Maybe wait until you’ve used it? I am using it right now, and so far there are very few times I’ve missed touchid, and I’ve been reminded of all the times that Touch ID would fail, like getting out of the shower etc...
I don’t understand the longing for an underscreen finger print scanner, does the computer in Star Trek require thumb print? Does the UI in minority report? If you imagine futuristic computer interfaces the computers just know who is using them, this is one of the first steps along that road...
As to the price, Apple price there phones where they want to price them to make sure they have high profit margins. I’m not sure why people complain about this. If they don’t do this they don’t make as much money. I do believe this phone costs significantly more to make than others, and the price fairly reflects that, though it is only £200 premium over the 8+...
How do you think Apple should price there products? A lower overall cost?
As for FaceID, I am not convinced yet. I would be more impressed with an under the screen fingerprint sensor.
But I guess I will try it in a couple of weeks, when I get mine, and form a better opinion.
IMHO component costs are not the reason Apple increased the price; they increased it because they could.