Upgrading from iPhone 6+

[jmtks]

Hi,

I've had the iPhone 6+ since launch date and planned to upgrade this cycle. My battery has been abysmal for the last 6 months and I smashed the front of the screen at the start of the year but I decided to hold out as long as possible to evaluate my options once the September release rolls. Unfortunately, my phone battery completely bit the dust yesterday and I had to pay £50 for a battery replacement service so I could retrieve all the data from my phone. However, my phone is very much on it's last leg, with a broken home button, a smashed screen and general wear & tear from daily use for 3 years. (I was hoping it would last just a month longer so I could check out the newest models).

So I'm definitely upgrading this cycle. My question to all of you, is whether you think the iPhone 7 plus or iPhone 8 plus is the more worthwhile upgrade - considering I plan to use this phone for another 3 year cycle and likely without a case because I hate the feel of a case on a phone. I do really like taking photos and the camera is probably the feature I care about most with this upgrade.

As far as I see, my best options are getting either

• iPhone 7 plus 128gb for £749
• iPhone 8 plus 64gb for £799
• iPhone 8 plus 256gb for £949

Currently, I have the iPhone 6+ 128gb and, especially given the better camera quality, I am pretty reluctant to opt for a lower capacity since I have about 75% used on my current phone - with a better quality camera and video quality, I'm certain 64GB will be an absolute pain. However, I'm not sure that the larger capacity model will retain it's value as well as the base model.

In terms of planning to buy the phone for a 3 year cycle, I'm not sure whether the 7 plus will hold as well as the 8 plus. I'm also trying to gauge whether or not the £200 price differential is worth this.

I've had difficulty finding many reviews for the camera quality of the iPhone 8 plus yet I've heard that many people had blur issues with the iPhone 7 plus.

I guess what I'm trying to ascertain from you guys who know much more than I do, is whether there is a marked difference in the camera quality and lifetime value from the 2 phones. I can see the performance is a big boost but I doubt I'd notice such a difference and the wireless and fast charging are definitely pros for me.

If anyone could point me to a good review of the iPhone 8+ camera quality, I would be greatly appreciative!

Sorry for the weird and specific post, but I feel like you guys are much more knowledgeable than I am to give me appropriate advice.

Thanks again.

 

[I7guy]

If you can swing the extra 200 the iphone 8+ is a substantial upgrade over the 7+. I think you will be blown away by the 8+. I am looking to go from a 6s to an 8+ 256 gb.

 

[DimeTech]

I have the 6+. Same situation re: battery. I got the 8+ (over the x) because I think the lack of reachability is just plain dumb. I use it a lot instinctively and am actually glad I'll be getting the last iPhone with a home button. Making the sleep/wake button multitask (Apple Pay, siri, etc) is a recipe for disaster.

In terms of the cameras, I think they will all be great at this point.

 

[jmtks]

If you can swing the extra 200 the iphone 8+ is a substantial upgrade over the 7+. I think you will be blown away by the 8+. I am looking to go from a 6s to an 8+ 256 gb.

What would you say are the substantial upgrades? Camera, performance, wireless charging? Glass seems like a double-edged sword, looks better but I worry it'll easily scratch or shatter. Is the camera markedly better than the 7+?

I have the 6+. Same situation re: battery. I got the 8+ (over the x) because I think the lack of reachability is just plain dumb. I use it a lot instinctively and am actually glad I'll be getting the last iPhone with a home button. Making the sleep/wake button multitask (Apple Pay, siri, etc) is a recipe for disaster.

In terms of the cameras, I think they will all be great at this point.

I was hoping I could last a bit longer with the battery, it's classic that it died a week before the new models arrive. However, I am so glad that it just died - I went on holiday the last 2 weeks and I would have been totally screwed if my phone battery had totally lost it a few days earlier....

What do you mean by lack of reachability? I also see Touch ID as a necessity and the design of the phone being unchanged is no problem for me, the home button is a feature I'm very happy to keep.

 

[I7guy]

What would you say are the substantial upgrades? Camera, performance, wireless charging? Glass seems like a double-edged sword, looks better but I worry it'll easily scratch or shatter. Is the camera markedly better than the 7+?



I was hoping I could last a bit longer with the battery, it's classic that it died a week before the new models arrive. However, I am so glad that it just died - I went on holiday the last 2 weeks and I would have been totally screwed if my phone battery had totally lost it a few days earlier....

What do you mean by lack of reachability? I also see Touch ID as a necessity and the design of the phone being unchanged is no problem for me, the home button is a feature I'm very happy to keep.

You can add quick charging to that list as well. But yeah, that would be my list of why I want to upgrade.

 

[Faelan]

In terms of pure performance, I don't think the 8 is going to last significantly longer than the 7. I find RAM to be more of a limiting factor than CPU power and the amount of RAM is the same between the two generations. The 7 is already a beast when it comes to CPU power. My 6+ struggles because of RAM. Things have to constantly reload or refresh which bogs down the whole experience. Once something is loaded, it feels snappy enough.

If money is tight, I'd suggest trying out the 7 first. Make sure to get it from a place where you can easily return it with no restocking fee in case you do find unacceptable issues. If you can afford it, go for the 8. You'll be wearing out that battery before the hardware becomes irrelevant in either model. But only if you can afford it. I don't feel that the 8 offers enough to justify turning your finances upside down just to pinch enough pennies for what extra you get.

 

[fosking]

I'm in the same situation as you. iPhone 6+ with big battery issues. I'm surprised i've limped the phone to September tbh. I've ordered the iPhone 8+ Space Grey 256gb. The iPhone X 256gb is 1319 Euros here in Germany, far more than I'm willing to spend. I think the jump from 6+ to 8+ will be a big enough jump I'll be happy with the 8+.

 

[dominiongamma]

The 8 is more future proof I would go with the 8

 

[AppleZombie]

8, has the newer chip and your guaranteed up to iOS 14 at least

 

[Marshall73]

Go with a 2nd hand 7 Plus (loads around just now) and stick it in a case so you don’t smash it.

 

[jmtks]

In terms of pure performance, I don't think the 8 is going to last significantly longer than the 7. I find RAM to be more of a limiting factor than CPU power and the amount of RAM is the same between the two generations. The 7 is already a beast when it comes to CPU power. My 6+ struggles because of RAM. Things have to constantly reload or refresh which bogs down the whole experience. Once something is loaded, it feels snappy enough.

If money is tight, I'd suggest trying out the 7 first. Make sure to get it from a place where you can easily return it with no restocking fee in case you do find unacceptable issues. If you can afford it, go for the 8. You'll be wearing out that battery before the hardware becomes irrelevant in either model. But only if you can afford it. I don't feel that the 8 offers enough to justify turning your finances upside down just to pinch enough pennies for what extra you get.

I definitely agree with what you're saying with regards to RAM and probably explains why my current phone often feels sluggish (and from a quick Google, 1GB -> 3GB of RAM should be an immense difference - I'm assuming both 7+ and 8+ sport 3GB of RAM).

Yeah, I'm definitely going to go in store and try out a little before I get it. I hadn't considered such a restocking fee though - is this an issue when buying direct from Apple?

I was going to buy the phone upfront, it's more a case of mitigating frugality when spending such a large amount of money on a device with a few years of lifetime. However, I've noticed something called iPhone payments direct from Apple through Barclays that spreads it over 20 months interest free - I was going to buy the phone outright anyway but doing it this way allows me to incur greater interest on my balance so I'll definitely opt for this and buy direct from Apple (although they don't seem to advertise this iPhone payments scheme much...).

Given that battery replacements aren't too expensive these days, I'm not too worried about the lifetime of the battery - I'm more worried about how easily the glass on both sides will scratch or shatter over 3 years...
[doublepost=1505662015][/doublepost]

Go with a 2nd hand 7 Plus (loads around just now) and stick it in a case so you don’t smash it.

I'd considered a second-hand one but I'd much rather have a brand new or refurbished one, I'd much rather have it opened from fresh at this point in time. A case is really a no-go for me - I love the feel of it without a case and it took 2.5 years of use with my iPhone 6+ to damage the screen or back of the phone and I'd hardly say I'm the most careful person, I dropped it many many times over those first 2.5 years. I'm kinda worried that with a glass back though that it's going to be a lot less durable to drop

 

[mctrials23]

I've just gone from a 6+ to a 7+ and saved myself at least £300. Thats a 128gb 7+ vs a 64gb 8+. The 8+ will last longer and the processor looks like a monster but ultimately I won't keep it until the 8+ is obsolete, I just don't want to spend £1000 right now on the X considering its a first gen of a new design and there are obvious issues already with the UI.

 

[jmtks]

I've just gone from a 6+ to a 7+ and saved myself at least £300. Thats a 128gb 7+ vs a 64gb 8+. The 8+ will last longer and the processor looks like a monster but ultimately I won't keep it until the 8+ is obsolete, I just don't want to spend £1000 right now on the X considering its a first gen of a new design and there are obvious issues already with the UI.

I'm confused, how have you got a £300 price difference from the 128gb 7+ to the 64gb 8+?

 

[DimeTech]

What would you say are the substantial upgrades? Camera, performance, wireless charging? Glass seems like a double-edged sword, looks better but I worry it'll easily scratch or shatter. Is the camera markedly better than the 7+?



I was hoping I could last a bit longer with the battery, it's classic that it died a week before the new models arrive. However, I am so glad that it just died - I went on holiday the last 2 weeks and I would have been totally screwed if my phone battery had totally lost it a few days earlier....

What do you mean by lack of reachability? I also see Touch ID as a necessity and the design of the phone being unchanged is no problem for me, the home button is a feature I'm very happy to keep.

No Touch ID means no reachability, where you double tap to bring down the screen to reach the top easier with your thumb.

 

[mctrials23]

I'm confused, how have you got a £300 price difference from the 128gb 7+ to the 64gb 8+?

Sorry, I should have mentioned that it was a used 128gb 7+ in mint condition. If its a decision between a brand new 7+ vs brand new 8+ I would be tempted to go 8+. The price difference isn't that much and I think the 8+ is better enough to justify that. Thats more of a reflection of the poor value of buying a new 7+ from apple than the good value of the 8+ which I also think is very overpriced.

 

[jmtks]

Sorry, I should have mentioned that it was a used 128gb 7+ in mint condition. If its a decision between a brand new 7+ vs brand new 8+ I would be tempted to go 8+. The price difference isn't that much and I think the 8+ is better enough to justify that. Thats more of a reflection of the poor value of buying a new 7+ from apple than the good value of the 8+ which I also think is very overpriced.

Where did you get such a deal?

 

[44267547]

If you can swing the extra 200 the iphone 8+ is a substantial upgrade over the 7+. I think you will be blown away by the 8+. I am looking to go from a 6s to an 8+ 256 gb.

I know this is a to each their own situation. But I don't consider the 7+ Substantially different between iPhone 8 Plus. I understand the differences with the glass, wireless charging capabilities, camera upgrades, Processor, etc. I would say it's more of an incremental upgrade. But for those who have an iPhone 6s or under that are considering iPhone 8, that would be considered a substantial upgrade to me. But for a $200 price point difference between the 7+ an 8+, I would agree I would go with the 8+ If someone didn't own the 7 Plus, Just for the sake of having the latest device and hardware.

Now, as an iPhone 7 Plus owner and I plan on upgrading to the iPhone X, that I would consider a substantial upgrade with a new OLED display and Face ID alone are fairly major.

 

[jmtks]

I know this is a to each their own situation. But I don't consider the 7+ Substantially different between iPhone 8 Plus. I understand the differences with the glass, wireless charging capabilities, camera upgrades, Processor, etc. I would say it's more of an incremental upgrade. But for those who have an iPhone 6s or under that are considering iPhone 8, that would be considered a substantial upgrade to me. But for a $200 price point difference between the 7+ an 8+, I would agree I would go with the 8+ If someone didn't own the 7 Plus, Just for the sake of having the latest device and hardware.

Now, as an iPhone 7 Plus owner and I plan on upgrading to the iPhone X, that I would consider a substantial upgrade with a new OLED display and Face ID alone are fairly major.

I completely agree with this, whichever I go for will be a substantial upgrade from the phone I've owned for 3 years that's now pretty sluggish and battered. If I already had a 7+, I almost certainly wouldn't be upgrading to 8+. How have you found the 7+ camera to be? I imagine that speed is never really an issue on the 7+

 

[44267547]

I completely agree with this, whichever I go for will be a substantial upgrade from the phone I've owned for 3 years that's now pretty sluggish and battered. If I already had a 7+, I almost certainly wouldn't be upgrading to 8+. How have you found the 7+ camera to be? I imagine that speed is never really an issue on the 7+

The dual camera is fantastic. I really do like the digital zoom up to ten times. It takes great photos and videos. And the A10 Fusion processor with the iPhone 7 makes browsing and using applications seamless. The 7 Plus has 3 GB of Ram as well over 2 GB of Ram on the 4.7 model, which is significant as well.

 

[Faelan]

I definitely agree with what you're saying with regards to RAM and probably explains why my current phone often feels sluggish (and from a quick Google, 1GB -> 3GB of RAM should be an immense difference - I'm assuming both 7+ and 8+ sport 3GB of RAM).

Yeah, I'm definitely going to go in store and try out a little before I get it. I hadn't considered such a restocking fee though - is this an issue when buying direct from Apple?

I was going to buy the phone upfront, it's more a case of mitigating frugality when spending such a large amount of money on a device with a few years of lifetime. However, I've noticed something called iPhone payments direct from Apple through Barclays that spreads it over 20 months interest free - I was going to buy the phone outright anyway but doing it this way allows me to incur greater interest on my balance so I'll definitely opt for this and buy direct from Apple (although they don't seem to advertise this iPhone payments scheme much...).

Given that battery replacements aren't too expensive these days, I'm not too worried about the lifetime of the battery - I'm more worried about how easily the glass on both sides will scratch or shatter over 3 years...
[doublepost=1505662015][/doublepost]

I'd considered a second-hand one but I'd much rather have a brand new or refurbished one, I'd much rather have it opened from fresh at this point in time. A case is really a no-go for me - I love the feel of it without a case and it took 2.5 years of use with my iPhone 6+ to damage the screen or back of the phone and I'd hardly say I'm the most careful person, I dropped it many many times over those first 2.5 years. I'm kinda worried that with a glass back though that it's going to be a lot less durable to drop

From what has been leaked, the 7+ carries the exact same amount of RAM as the 8+. Same with the 7 vs the 8 (2gb). The X has 3gb from what we know, so still no leap over last gen. My 1st gen 12.9 iPad Pro has 4gb of memory and the difference is night and day. I believe the 7+ might even be faster than my iPad Pro, which is scary.

I've never had a problem with Apple and I have returned two devices in the past. An iPad Mini 2 with a partially yellow tinted display (bottom half) and an iPad Air 2 with the book spine shadow down the side. In my country (Denmark), there's a 14 day return policy by law on most things purchased over the net. Basically, if it's something you can try at home while still leaving the object in mint condition, then you can return it. If you don't break the seal, then you can always return it unless we're talking something like food and what not. If the thing you return is showing signs of use or you don't return it in the original packaging, then they're allowed to charge an appropriate restocking fee. You don't have the same rights if you buy at a store. Because of that, I buy most of my things online these days. I did get my 6+ through my carrier with a 24 month interest free payment plan. That could be an option, but make sure there are no nasty hidden surprises. It worked quite well for me, but this time I'm just going for a full purchase. I have the money for it and there's something liberating about not being bound by a contract.

As for scratching and durability - good question. I wouldn't be too concerned about scratches but dropping it is definitely something to be concerned about if you're prone to doing that. Over the last 3 years, I've dropped my 6+ 2 or 3 times and they were more of a sliding nature from waist height down on a wooden floor and carpet. Even without a case, I don't think a glass backed phone would have shattered or even scratched. Shoulder height on concrete or gravel though? Yikes. Might want to wait for some drop tests. I'm pretty sure we will see some pop up on YouTube in less than a week.

 

[jmtks]

From what has been leaked, the 7+ carries the exact same amount of RAM as the 8+. Same with the 7 vs the 8 (2gb). The X has 3gb from what we know, so still no leap over last gen. My 1st gen 12.9 iPad Pro has 4gb of memory and the difference is night and day. I believe the 7+ might even be faster than my iPad Pro, which is scary.

I've never had a problem with Apple and I have returned two devices in the past. An iPad Mini 2 with a partially yellow tinted display (bottom half) and an iPad Air 2 with the book spine shadow down the side. In my country (Denmark), there's a 14 day return policy by law on most things purchased over the net. Basically, if it's something you can try at home while still leaving the object in mint condition, then you can return it. If you don't break the seal, then you can always return it unless we're talking something like food and what not. If the thing you return is showing signs of use or you don't return it in the original packaging, then they're allowed to charge an appropriate restocking fee. You don't have the same rights if you buy at a store. Because of that, I buy most of my things online these days. I did get my 6+ through my carrier with a 24 month interest free payment plan. That could be an option, but make sure there are no nasty hidden surprises. It worked quite well for me, but this time I'm just going for a full purchase. I have the money for it and there's something liberating about not being bound by a contract.

As for scratching and durability - good question. I wouldn't be too concerned about scratches but dropping it is definitely something to be concerned about if you're prone to doing that. Over the last 3 years, I've dropped my 6+ 2 or 3 times and they were more of a sliding nature from waist height down on a wooden floor and carpet. Even without a case, I don't think a glass backed phone would have shattered or even scratched. Shoulder height on concrete or gravel though? Yikes. Might want to wait for some drop tests. I'm pretty sure we will see some pop up on YouTube in less than a week.

See that speed is immensely enticing for me coming from my 6+! I'll have to look into my options as a British consumer but being able to effectively trial it for 2 weeks in such a manner would definitely be preferable!
I'm already planning to buy unlocked with Apple's 20 month interest free monthly plan - allows me to pocket the interest as I was originally planning to buy it outright.

See to me that's surprising, I've definitely had days where I dropped my 6+ multiple times, from waist height at awkward angles onto solid ground, and probably got at most a few minor scratches, no smash or shatter though until I had a bad drop 6 months ago but it took hundreds of drops for me to actually damage the glass on the front. So with a front and black glass, I'm just hoping that it will survive my lack of care that comes with owning such an item for a few months+. I just don't like these phones with cases but I accept the wear & tear that comes with it

 

[Cloudsurfer]

That's funny, I also have an 6 Plus, also since launch and my battery has gone to **** too. It started after about a year, the battery would drain abnormally fast during the cold months of the year. Now it just drains abnormally fast throughout the year. It never even reaches 1%, it just switches off when it reaches like 15%. And when I plug it in it instantly jumps to 40%.

But for a battery that has cycled almost every day for the past 3 years that is to be expected I guess.

Anyway, as for your choice, the 7 seems like the sweet spot for you. It will perform much better 3 years from now than the 6 Plus does right now. The A10 is more than capable of handling the Plus resolution scaling and it has three times the amount of Ram. Yes, the 8 will probably outlive it but you'll have moved on long before that would even matter.

Personally I'm going with the 8 because of wireless charging but if that's not a big deal to you the 7 is still a solid choice.

 

[Smokebomb]

Also a 6 plus owner considering an upgrade to 8 plus. Key upgrades I think will be:

• 3D touch
• Overall performance with faster CPU and 3GB RAM
• The dual camera
• Wireless charging
• Waterproof
• Haptic home button

Any other big features I’ve missed from the 6S through to 8?

 

[jmtks]

That's funny, I also have an 6 Plus, also since launch and my battery has gone to **** too. It started after about a year, the battery would drain abnormally fast during the cold months of the year. Now it just drains abnormally fast throughout the year. It never even reaches 1%, it just switches off when it reaches like 15%. And when I plug it in it instantly jumps to 40%.

But for a battery that has cycled almost every day for the past 3 years that is to be expected I guess.

Anyway, as for your choice, the 7 seems like the sweet spot for you. It will perform much better 3 years from now than the 6 Plus does right now. The A10 is more than capable of handling the Plus resolution scaling and it has three times the amount of Ram. Yes, the 8 will probably outlive it but you'll have moved on long before that would even matter.

Personally I'm going with the 8 because of wireless charging but if that's not a big deal to you the 7 is still a solid choice.

So I went on a week's holiday and came back on Wednesday. After how my phone barely keeps charge and was incredibly annoying, I was pretty apprehensive about going away for a week (particularly as I flew solo and kinda wanted some way of communicating with people back home). I already had 3 power banks at work that I'd continually charge at work so that I wouldn't get stuck with a sudden complete loss of charge.

Weirdly, the night I got back home - it died and I plugged it in, fell asleep for 3 hours, woke up and it was STILL charging so I was like huh British luck... but it charged and turned on after about 15 minutes of charging from a power bank. So I was like okay, not the end of the world. Unfortunately I had a busy Thursday and Friday this week and despite telling myself I'd go home (I have a long commute) and copy across all my data, I just didn't get round to it and was going to do it yesterday - when I woke up and it had bit the dust!

My point I guess here is to warn you that if this happens to you, get your data off ASAP. Don't make the same mistake I did

Wireless charging is a biggie to me too, the port gets riddled with dust after years (not sure if IP67 makes a difference to the charging port retaining dust?) and cables never last. I'm going to go with the 8+, just need to decide on storage, I wish 128GB was an option.

 

[catzilla]

Same boat, had a 6+ since 11/14. Battery still lasts most of a day, but I work from my car so I can almost always charge. I'm 90% leaning towards an 8+, however I would like to try an X.