iPhone 8 and 8 Plus Review Roundup: Powerful Devices With Great Cameras Set Stage for iPhone X

[macTW]

"Give us wireless charging!"

"Ugh the glass feel is horrible."

 

[Razeus]

I'll be hanging on to my 6S Plus.

I don't see any real benefits of going with the 8 Plus. Sure, I'll get better performance, but why spend another $850 when I will do the exact same functions and use the exact same apps that perform great on my 6S Plus? I mean, does Facebook and Spotify and Reddit apps need an A11 CPU to function? Nope.

This is the first time I'll hang on to a phone this long. I'm hoping the iPhone X becomes the de facto form factor next year. At regular iPhone prices.

TLDR, iPhone 8 Plus looks the same and apps will perform the same on my iPhone 6S Plus.

 

[i.mac]

Thanks, I'll definitely enjoy my old 7 Plus and those ten new Benjamin Franklins I'm saving.

Most people who make the above claim will later use the said saved franklins to buy junk food, eat hotdogs and drink beer. But they'll boast that they have no iPhone X. Go figure.

 

[macTW]

Holy A11.

 

[Rogifan]

Why are they so focused on iPhone 7 owners? The majority of iPhone owners do not even have a 7 or 7+ so are most likely to be the target audience for the iPhone 8 & 8+.

Exactly. And how many people actually update their phones every year? I’m assuming a small minority of the install base.

 

[Solomani]

Wow, even the lowly iPhone 8 blows about the Samsung G8+ in CPU performance.

 

[Rogifan]

Not sure there is really much to justify upgrading from the 6s either. Sure the processor and camera are improved, but still the same form factor and 1920x1080 non-native LCD display. Other than the benchmarks scores of the A11 (which of course don't mean that big of an improvement in day-to-day use), I'm not all that impressed.

Plus I'd be forced to run iOS 11 and lose 3D Touch to enter app switcher as well as 32-bit apps and iTunes 12.6 support.

Why are people so obsessed with form factor? What other form factor is there besides a rounded rec?

 

[macTW]

Why should a phone have a screen wrapped around? There's no reason to besides "look what we did nobody else does."

 

[OllyW]

Exactly. And how many people actually update their phones every year? I’m assuming a small minority of the install base.

Definitely a small minority. If you spend a lot of time on a tech site like MR you would imagine the vast majority upgrade every year but it's not the case in the real world.

 

[Rogifan]

Why should a phone have a screen wrapped around? There's no reason to besides "look what we did nobody else does."

It’s like Microsoft putting fabric on their laptop. What’s the reason for it other than just to be different?

 

[0947347]

In what photography world does this look good?

This is heavily compressed, isn't it.
The original will be much better
Or did you find the original too?

 

[aliensporebomb]

I've had an iPhone since day 1. Yes the day they came out and when they introduced the camera I thought, hey this is great. Well, I have NEVER been able to take a photo like the ones they show. I don't know how on this planet they are getting that kind of look etc and night time photography is worse. Unless there is some sort of app they use in conjunction with the camera, I just cannot believe these cameras produce what they show. It's gotta be me but man, how in the hell do they get perfect pictures? For me they are grainy as hell at night no matter what I do with focus/lighting adjustments etc...

Pro photographers with a lot of skill? Possibly using the apps that let you change f-stop/iso/white balance etc?

I've gotten some great results with the stock built in camera on every iPhone but low light has never been the strong suit of these devices - particularly aurora borealis or night sky photography. I use a DSLR for that purpose.

 

[Jimmy James]

HDR is always on? Just this last weekend I had to discard multiple good photos because hdr didn't blend properly.

 

[nuzzy]

Heard a funny one today:

"How do you milk a sheep?"

"Have them buy a $1000 iPhone"

 

[redheeler]

Why are people so obsessed with form factor? What other form factor is there besides a rounded rec?

Thinner bezels to reduce bulk would be nice (and iPhone X shows that Apple values the importance of thin bezels as well).

That being said, if Apple had put an OLED display in the 8+, that probably would've convinced me to get one. I don't want to spend money on outdated tech like a 1920x1080 LCD that is barely an upgrade from my 6s.

 

[az431]

I'll be sticking with my 7 plus.

Thanks for sharing. I've been on pins and needles all morning waiting for your decision.

 

[michael31986]

Are you all forgetting this really should be a 7S release. Apple should have called it 7S too based on prior releases

 

[macduke]

I think for a lot of people, it will come down to this on whether or not they buy the iPhone X:

Want something cheaper, familiar, but very powerful? Buy the iPhone 8.
Want the Plus' dual cameras in a smaller form factor? Buy the iPhone X.
Want the best display possible? Buy the iPhone X.

For me it's those last two items. OIS and brighter aperture on the telephoto lens along with front portrait mode is icing on the cake. Face ID? I don't really care as long as it works well.

 

[PaulRustad007]

iPhone X 256 GB is on my list. Can not wait!

 

[SoN1NjA]

Daring Fireball's John Gruber said the devices are "excellent year-over-year upgrades" compared to their iPhone 7 counterparts.

So is that how John gets Craig and Phil to come on his show every year?

 

[recoil80]

Definitely a small minority. If you spend a lot of time on a tech site like MR you would imagine the vast majority upgrade every year but it's not the case in the real world.

If so, how can they possibly sell tens of millions of iPhones every quarter?
I'd call them a minority, but not a small one.
Apple launched iPhone upgrade program a couple of years ago, I don't know how many people enrolled but they sure change their iPhone every year, as some other people with a similar plan offered by a carrier

Pro photographers with a lot of skill? Possibly using the apps that let you change f-stop/iso/white balance etc?

I've gotten some great results with the stock built in camera on every iPhone but low light has never been the strong suit of these devices - particularly aurora borealis or night sky photography. I use a DSLR for that purpose.

Low light pictures need improvement. OIS can help, too bad they put it on the telephoto lenses on X only.
I enjoy my DSLR too when I want to take a really good picture, but I'd say 90% of my pictures are taken on my iPhone so I really care about camera improvements.
That would be the main reason for me to switch to iPhone 8+ (have a 6s now) but as I said I'm upset by the lack of OIS, I'd use the telephoto lenses most of the time. X has OIS, but is way too expensive

 

[M.PaulCezanne]

Maybe because it's indistinguishable from the iPhone6...

I've been using a 6 and am seriously considering not upgrading to anything. These incremental changes haven't seemed worth it to me.

MAYBE the X, just because the difference should be profound for the money, but the value proposition of moving from one model to the next seems quite poor.

 

[SoN1NjA]

Lol what's up with the iPhone 7 Geekbench scores? They should be identical to the iPhone 7 Plus.

It's Low Power Mode at play, tested with and without Low Power Mode and got the scores seen in the chart

 

[unobtainium]

The main difference between the previous iPhones [7 and 7 Plus] and iPhone 8 is it just support wireless Charing. Otherwise nothing major upgrade over iPhone 7 Plus. All minor spec bumps come at a higher price tag since Apple rised the price by $50.

Counterpoint: I don’t care at all about wireless charging, but I’m always tempted to jump to an improved camera.

 

[az431]

This is the most boring iPhone update ever. It's 7s at best.

You've been singing the same old song since the iPhone 5, yet you keep upgrading...

As an iphone 5 owner in desperate need for an upgrade. I've been really dissappointed with all these iPhone 7 leaks and rumours. I wanted a new design and not the same as the iphone 6. So this iPhone 7 seems very lacklustre.