iPhone 8 Plus vs. iPhone 7 Plus Buyer's Guide

[MacRumors]

Apple at its annual September event introduced the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X.

iPhone 8 Plus on left and iPhone 7 Plus on right​

iPhone X is Apple's new flagship smartphone, with a radically redesigned edge-to-edge OLED display and a TrueDepth front camera system with Face ID facial recognition, but it's also considerably more expensive at $999 and up.

iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus are the natural successors to the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus. The devices aren't dramatically different, but start at $699 and share many improvements like faster A11 Bionic chips and wireless charging.

If you have an iPhone 7 Plus, or are considering purchasing one, you may be wondering how the year-old smartphone stacks up to the iPhone 8 Plus. For that reason, we've created a list of new and unchanged features and tech specs.

iPhone 8 Plus vs. iPhone 7 Plus: What's the Same?
[*]Touch ID: Both the iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone 7 Plus have Home buttons with Touch ID fingerprint authentication.

Front Cameras: The front-facing camera is a 7-megapixel sensor with ƒ/2.2 aperture, Retina Flash, and 1080p HD video recording on both the iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone 7 Plus. Front-facing Portrait Mode and Animoji aren't supported.

Water Resistance: Both the iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone 7 Plus have IP67-rated splash, water, and dust resistance.

Memory: Both models are believed to have 3GB of RAM.

Battery Life: Both the iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone 7 Plus have the same battery life, according to Apple's testing:

• Talk: Up to 21 hours
• Internet: Up to 13 hours
• Video Playback: Up to 14 hours
• Audio Playback: Up to 60 hours

Both models have a Lightning connector but no 3.5mm headphone jack.

Both models also support LTE Advanced, VoLTE, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, and Wi-Fi calling.
iPhone 8 Plus vs. iPhone 7 Plus: What's Similar?

[*]Displays: Both the iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone 7 Plus have 5.5-inch LCD displays—called Retina HD Displays—with 1920×1080 resolution. Nearly all other display tech specs are identical, including a 1300:1 contrast ratio, 3D Touch, Wide Color (P3) support, and 625 cd/m2 max brightness.

The sole difference is the iPhone 8 Plus has a True Tone display, which automatically adapts the color and intensity of the display to match the color temperature of the light in its surrounding environment.

If you are standing in a dimly lit room with incandescent light bulbs, for example, the display would appear warmer and yellower. If you are standing outside on a cloudy day, meanwhile, the display would appear cooler and bluer.

Rear Cameras: Both the iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone 7 Plus have 12-megapixel rear-facing dual cameras consisting of a telephoto lens with ƒ/2.8 aperture and a wide-angle lens with ƒ/1.8 aperture. iPhone 8 Plus has Portrait Lighting beta support, but all other rear camera tech specs are identical on paper.

However, Apple says the iPhone 8 Plus rear camera has been advanced with a larger, faster sensor, new color filter, and deeper pixels.

Size and Weight: iPhone 8 Plus is just slightly heavier at 7.13 ounces, compared to 6.63 ounces for the iPhone 7 Plus. iPhone 8 Plus is also marginally thicker—0.2mm—than iPhone 7 Plus, so some very tight cases may not fit.
iPhone 8 Plus vs. iPhone 7 Plus: What's Different?

[*]Glass-Backed Design: iPhone 8 Plus has an all-new glass-backed design, along with the same color-matching, 7000 Series aluminum edges and glass front as iPhone 7 Plus. Apple says the rear glass is the strongest glass in any smartphone, with a "50 percent deeper strengthening layer."

Performance: iPhone 8 Plus has Apple's latest A11 Bionic chip. It has two performance cores that are 25 percent faster, and four high-efficiency cores that are 70 percent faster, than the A10 chip in iPhone 7 Plus. The A11 chip also has a neural engine and a more powerful M11 motion coprocessor vs. M10.

Wireless Charging: iPhone 8 Plus supports wireless charging based on the Qi standard. The device can charge by being placed on an inductive charging pad, such options from accessory makers such as Mophie, Belkin, and Incipio.

Fast Charging: iPhone 8 Plus is "fast-charge capable," which means the device can be charged to 50 percent battery life in 30 minutes using Apple's 29W, 61W, or 87W USB-C Power Adapters, sold separately and included with any 12-inch MacBook and 2016 or later MacBook Pro models.

Fewer Colorways: iPhone 8 Plus comes in glass-backed Silver, Space Gray, and a new shade of Gold, while the iPhone 7 Plus remains available in aluminum-backed Black, Gold, Jet Black, Rose Gold, and Silver.

iPhone 8 Plus on left and iPhone 7 Plus on right​

Bluetooth: iPhone 8 Plus has Bluetooth 5.0, while iPhone 7 Plus has Bluetooth 4.2.

iPhone 8 Plus has 4K video recording at up to 60 FPS, while iPhone 7 Plus has 4K video recording at 30 FPS.
Conclusion

The key new features of the iPhone 8 Plus include a new glass-backed design, True Tone display, faster A11 Bionic chip, wireless charging, fast charging, 4K video recording at up to 60 FPS, and Bluetooth 5.0.

All in all, those features make the iPhone 8 Plus a considerable upgrade over the iPhone 7 Plus, which is perhaps why Apple skipped over calling it the iPhone 7s Plus. Alongside the iPhone X, it's an option worth considering.

iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus will be available to pre-order starting Friday, September 15 at 12:01 a.m. Pacific Time, with in-store availability in limited quantities starting Friday, September 22, in the first wave of launch countries.

iPhone 8 Plus starts at $799, which is $30 more expensive than the iPhone 7 Plus cost at launch. iPhone 7 Plus is now priced from $669.

Article Link: iPhone 8 Plus vs. iPhone 7 Plus Buyer's Guide

 

[RightMACatU]

For me, Apple signaled that the 8/8+ are the last of their kinds. The new game in town is the X and this should be re-informed with next year's release.

 

[levitynyc]

Its definitely not worth the upgrade form the 7 plus in my opinion.

My main complaint about the 7 plus is the chin and bezel. The 8 plus makes it even worse by being slightly thicker.

No thanks.

 

[Appurushido]

IPhone X all the way for me!! Can't wait!!

 

[applesith]

Truetone and faster charging is the only thing I'd consider an upgrade from my 7+. I love Truetone on my IPP and would use the USB-C charging over inductive charging.

If it wasn't for the X, I would not even consider upgrading my 7+. I'm still on the fence about getting an X.

 

[44267547]

For me, Apple signaled that the 8/8+ are the last of their kinds. The new game in town is the X and this should be re-informed with next year's release.

Agree. My iPhone 7 Plus is primarily a lot of what the iPhone 8 is. After having the same design with iPhone 6/7/7S, I'm ready for a redesign. I think the OLED model will deliver more of what I have been expecting with the OLED display in a smaller form Factor.

 

[Mi1lion]

Thanks for doing a deep comparison between the two. Definitely useful.

 

[enthusiastic]

The key new features of the iPhone 8 Plus include a new glass-backed design, True Tone display, faster A11 Bionic chip, wireless charging, fast charging, 4K video recording at up to 60 FPS, and Bluetooth 5.0.

All in all, those features make the iPhone 8 Plus a considerable upgrade over the iPhone 7 Plus, which is perhaps why Apple skipped over calling it the iPhone 7s Plus.

Two of those features (wireless and fast charging) require additional hardware that are sold separately. Glass-back and Bluetooth 5.0 do not really change your common use cases. That leaves us with True Tone display and A11 Bionic. I personally think this is an "S" upgrade.

 

[kyjaotkb]

iPhone 6 user here. Seriously considering an SE...

 

[Mi1lion]

Two of those features (wireless and fast charging) require additional hardware that are sold separately. Glass-back and Bluetooth 5.0 do not really change your common use cases. That leaves us with True Tone display and A11 Bionic. I personally think this is an "S" upgrade.

I think Apple's decision of naming it iPhone 8 was to keep an organized naming convention.

Imagine: iPhone 7S and iPhone 10.

And because it's a 10 year anniversary for iPhone, I think Apple had to use X this year, or they would never be able to again. Also, since the iPhone 8 was the first model to introduce wireless charging in iPhones, they decided not to use an 'S.'

 

[nigameash]

I don't understand how the tech specs on Apple's website list the iPhone X's battery at par with the 7/8 Plus yet the announcement stated that it would last 2 hours longer than the iPhone 7. My 7 Plus definitely gives me a lot more than 2 additional hours over an iPhone 7.

 

[M.PaulCezanne]

$130 over several years for wireless charging? I think i'd pay it. Not going to upgrade from my 6 though, until iOS support causes a security concern. I just don't have an $800 need for cinema quality video or pro-quality photographs. I'm surprised so many people do.

 

[itsmilo]

I have TrueTone on my iPad Pro and i have yet to get the point of it? If anything it looks slighty more subtle than night shift to me. Dont get the hype

 

[RightMACatU]

Agree. My iPhone 7 Plus is primarily a lot of what the iPhone 8 is. After having the same design with iPhone 6/7/7S, I'm ready for a redesign. I think the OLED model will deliver more of what I have been expecting witj the OLED display in a smaller form Factor.

And what I forgot to mention in my original post is that the 8+, undisputably a great phone, is not enough to lure me away from my 6S+.

 

[2010mini]

For me, Apple signaled that the 8/8+ are the last of their kinds. The new game in town is the X and this should be re-informed with next year's release.

They did mention more than once that the iPhone X was “the future.”

 

[William Gates]

For me, Apple signaled that the 8/8+ are the last of their kinds. The new game in town is the X and this should be re-informed with next year's release.

First, I doubt that they'll be able to scale the X line to cover demand for all iPhones within the next year.

Second, I doubt that they'll only have a new phone that starts at $1k each year.

 

[goobot]

I have TrueTone on my iPad Pro and i have yet to get the point of it? If anything it looks slighty more subtle than night shift to me. Dont get the hype

It matches the ambient light around you so your screen doesn't mess with your eyes and brain.

 

[trellus]

I'm upgrading from my 6s Plus to the 8 Plus -- which means an even more significant upgrade than from the 7 Plus.

I think the X is awesome, but I'll take the $200 savings and put it towards upgrading my first generation Apple Watch to an Apple Watch 3 with LTE.

I don't need Face ID -- it's cool but Touch ID works just fine for me, thank you -- and I'll be only slightly jealous of people doing Animoji, and I can live with that.

I'll still get the same high-end performance since the 8 Plus has the exact same A11 Bionic chip.
Already have the 6s Plus size so while I will eventually be pleased to upgrade to an X-sized phone, I can wait another year.

 

[jdawgnoonan]

I have the 7 Plus and I see no major reason to upgrade to the 8 series. The feature upgrades are quite minor. I really like the TrueTone screen on the iPad, but if I upgrade on Att Next I will need to purchase AppleCare+ again and that seems like 150 dollars wasted for almost no reason. Now if I were to upgrade to the X that actually would be a real upgrade. But I debate giving them a year to debug FaceID before upgrading. I usually get a new phone every year. I am considering saving the money an upgrade would cost and putting it into an Apple Watch. Although since ATT charges 10 per month for connected watches I'll probably not get the LTE version (if they charged 5 per month I would get the LTE version).

 

[trellus]

And what I forgot to mention in my original post is that the 8+, undisputably a great phone, is not enough to lure me away from my 6S+.

Oddly enough, it's definitely enough to lure me away -- I'm not 100% happy with the performance of iOS 10 on my iPhone 6s Plus, and I'm looking forward to the enhanced performance, wireless charging, fast charging, and the superior front camera that the upgrade to the 8 Plus will give me coming from the 6s Plus.

I'll even live with the lack of a headphone jack, the only thing that I hate about this upgrade.

 

[macTW]

Not worth an upgrade from the 7, but it wasn't designed that way. The 8 is worth a name change but not worth an upgrade, like every 4s to 5, 5s to 6 type jump.

 

[Sadman88]

For me, Apple signaled that the 8/8+ are the last of their kinds. The new game in town is the X and this should be re-informed with next year's release.

I think they'll release an iPhone 9 next year with touch ID and an updated iPhone X/10. And then after that just have iPhone X and X Plus and possibly iPhone Classic

 

[trellus]

Two of those features (wireless and fast charging) require additional hardware that are sold separately. Glass-back and Bluetooth 5.0 do not really change your common use cases. That leaves us with True Tone display and A11 Bionic. I personally think this is an "S" upgrade.

Chi phone chargers are extraordinarily inexpensive -- on the order of $13 on Amazon and I happen to have one already. That alone is a significant feature to me.

 

[44267547]

First, I doubt that they'll be able to scale the X line to cover demand for all iPhones within the next year.

Being the iPhone X is launching later this year, I would expect in November they should have an ample amount of supply to ship by November 3. I'm assuming that's a lot of Why it's shipping later, is having production to meet the demand. None the less, you don't have a pre-order in within a few minutes after the launch, it could be a long wait.

 

[EdT]

What I would like to find is a site that honestly compares different phones and features. Most sites that do reviews are brand centric i.e. Sites for Apple favor Apple, LG favors LG, Samsung is pro Samsung etc.

I'd like to know what the plus and minuses of each are. I don't need to know that someone thinks every Apple product is garbage and only fanbois put up with their shortcomings, or that Android is crap, or that all Samsung does is copy not innovate.