IPhone 8 Plus Review - Apple's Most Underrated New Smartphone

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

What is interesting about the largest of the new "Apple" smartphones, which even Apple themselves did not pay due attention to.

Design and equipment

In a pleasant-to-the-touch matte box, as always, a stingy gentleman's set: iPhone 8 Plus, single-amp charger with Lightning-cable, EarPods with adapter, documentation, paper clip and stickers.

Smartphones are presented in three shades: silver, gold and close to black "gray space". This is exactly the color of our 8 Plus. It is distinguished by the dark color of the frontal frames, which are white in the silver and gold models.

Like all iPhones introduced in 2017, the 8 Plus has a glass body. On the sides, the smartphone is framed by an aluminum frame. Glass is very easily soiled and over time can collect barely noticeable scratches and traces of use. This does not affect the impression, but it may affect the price of the smartphone when it is sold.

Replacing aluminum with glass is a key difference in the appearance of the G8 from its predecessor. Everything else - design, arrangement of buttons, sensors and other elements - migrated to the new model with the 7 Plus.

Dimensions and ergonomics

The dimensions of the iPhone 8 Plus are 158, 4 × 78, 1 × 7.5 mm, and the weight is 202 grams. This means that from the previous version, the smartphone has slightly increased along each side and has become heavier by 14 grams. But the extra weight is not annoying.

The glass case is more confident in the hand and slips noticeably less than the aluminum one. On a tissue surface, the situation is reversed.

Despite the slight changes in dimensions, the 7 Plus covers will fit the G8 as well. However, it feels so nice in the palm of your hand that you don't want to use the cover at all.

Screen

The screen is almost unchanged: it is a 5.5-inch IPS display with a resolution of 1,920 × 1,080 and a density of 401 pixels per inch. This is the same, albeit not the best, but traditionally well-calibrated LCD screen.

There are still innovations here: the "eights" are equipped with the True Tone function, which adjusts the picture on the smartphone to the ambient light. They also became the first iPhones to support Hi-End video in HDR10 and Dolby Vision formats.

Camera

First, the key specifications: the resolution of the dual camera is 12 megapixels, the aperture of the lenses is ƒ / 1, 8 and ƒ / 2, 8. The resolution of the front camera is 7 megapixels, the aperture is ƒ / 2, 2.

All the improvements, as the developers say, are associated with a larger and faster matrix, as well as improved performance of the ISP processor. The operation of the automation in the iPhone camera can be problematic. In certain scenarios with artificial lighting, there may be flaws in determining the white balance, and in general, the color correction for Apple gadgets is still peculiar, albeit cute.

In natural light

Under artificial lighting without flash

Under artificial lighting with flash

The next innovation is the studio lighting mode, which appeared with the new A11 Bionic processor on all new iPhones. It is currently in beta mode and suffers from flaws in most use cases. The contours in portraits are rough, and the small details of the subject in the front easily fall into the surrounding darkness (when choosing stage lighting).

Also, the G8 camera received the Slow Sync function, which allows you to take pictures with adequate exposure even in low light. Previously, the flash only "pierced" the nearby object, leaving the background in the dark. The background is now captured using a slower shutter speed. As a result, good images are obtained, where the dark environment is clearly visible, and the main subject is not overexposed.

There are new video formats available, such as 4K at 60 FPS and slo-mo at 240 FPS.

Performance

The G8 has no equal here. Even the iPhone X falls short in Geekbench and AnTuTu benchmarks. Heavy games fly, there are no friezes, all new features like ARKit applications and portrait lighting mode work with a bang.

Autonomy

The battery capacity has dropped from 2,900mAh to 2,675mAh, but the 8 Plus' battery life remains the same as the 7 Plus, if not more.iPhone can be actively used throughout the day, and before going to bed, find that it has retained 10–20% of its charge.

In addition, new food standards have emerged: Qi and Fast Charging. Wireless Qi-charging allows you to reduce the amount of wires on your desktop, and fast charging will help you charge your iPhone several times faster than using the original plug out of the box. The use of both standards requires the purchase of special adapters.

How the 8 Plus differs from the 7 Plus

Based on the above, it is easy to compile a list of notable differences:

• Glass body.
• Faster performance with the new A11 Bionic processor.
• Wireless and fast charging.
• True Tone mode.
• Improved camera.
• Portrait lighting mode.
• Slow Sync function.
• Supports HDR10 and Dolby Vision video.

Price

The price of the iPhone 8 Plus depends on the amount of memory: the version with 64 GB on board will cost 64,990 rubles, with 256 GB - 76,990 rubles.

conclusions

In 2018, it's weird to say that one iPhone is better than another. 8, 8 Plus and X - each of them will appeal to its user. "Eight" is suitable for those who are looking for a flagship more compact, and X - for those who want everything at once.

8 Plus is not a suitable option for those who want to save money, as evidenced by the price close to the iPhone X. This smartphone is designed, rather, for fans of "pluses" from Apple, who are accustomed to taking the most advanced iPhone model, but are not ready to part with the Home button and unlock the lock using your face, not your finger.

Go to iPhone 8 Plus Page →