Apple has made iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus specs, price and USA / UK release date official. Here’s everything you need to know about them.
It’s probably fair to suggest that most of the outside interest in this event has been firmly focused on what is perceived to be Apple’s new flagship smartphone; the iPhone X.
While the success of that device is inevitable, there is most definitely a large subset of the smartphone market crying out for an improved Apple smartphone experience which runs iOS 11, offers performance enhancements, and doesn’t shatter the bank balance in the process. As part of today’s announcements, Apple has unveiled those very devices with the iPhone 8 range.
Like other announcements during the event, the reveal was pretty much what we were expecting. We take a look at what has changed, and what’s new.
Specs / Features
Design
Consumers interested in this particular range will benefit from a handset which has mostly similar visuals to the existing iPhone 7 and 7 Plus which will now step aside for iPhone 8 and 8 Plus to shine. The same overall aesthetic has remained loyal to iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus, but with the addition of a glass panel on the back to allow for wireless charging capabilities.
Apple has also been forced to make the hardware slightly thicker with increased dimensions due to use of glass instead of aluminum, although to the human eye, it’s hardly noticeable.
Display
The display on the iPhone 8 also gets an upgrade with the True Tone technology which debuted with the 9.7-inch iPad Pro last year. Apple is also telling us that the Retina HD display on the iPhone 8 allows for wider viewing angles as well. As expected, 3D Touch is present and accounted for.
Stereo Speakers
Also new is – wait for it – stereo speakers! A huge boost over the iPhone 7’s audio, and a much awaited one for the audiophiles.
Processor
To go along with the gorgeous exterior, Apple has also increased the performance of the device by integrating its new TSMC-manufactured A11 Bionic SoC which offers instant processing gains and is 25% faster than the A10 CPU in the iPhone 7. That’s the same processor which is found in iPhone X, which when put together with the efficiencies and improvements made with iOS 11 should account for a seriously impressive and highly fluid experience. There’s also the M11 motion coprocessor, coupled with a Neural Engine.
There’s also the 2GB RAM packed into the 4.7-inch iPhone 8 (like on iPhone 7), while the larger 5.5-inch iPhone 8 Plus gets 3GB RAM (like iPhone 7 Plus). Oh and did we mention that they both support fast charging as well?
Wireless Charging
As mentioned earlier, the glass back is present to make way for wireless charging. Lucky for us, it adheres to the Qi-standard, which means you can pair it up with any of your certified charging pads, or if you must, pair it up with Apple’s own AirPower mat.
Camera
On the camera front, the 4.7-inch iPhone 8 packs a new 12MP sensor with faster low-light autofocus, and finally; Optical Image Stabilization! The 5.5-inch iPhone 8 Plus gets a dual-camera treatment with a new 12MP sensors with an f/1.8 primary and f/2.8 telephoto lens. According to Apple, this new 12MP sensor allows for 83% more light to be captured, with an obvious impact on the much-loved Portrait Mode. Speaking of Portrait Mode, Apple is also offering a new feature called “Portrait Lightning”, which automatically adjusts and tweaks the lightning.
The iPhone 8 dramatically improves on the video recording aspect as well with a new Apple-developed video encoder. Behold! 1080p video-recording at 240fps is finally here now with the iPhone 8. This is closely followed with 4K recording at a whopping 60fps; a first for any smartphone.
On the front, the FaceTime camera is a 7MP, can record 1080p videos, but nothing new here.
AR Ready
So what do you do when you pack in a state-of-the art mobile CPU and a pioneering-camera in your smartphone? You make the phone AR-capable. The A11 Bionic allows for “world tracking and scenes”, while the “GPU renders realistic graphics” along with “real-time lighting”.
Battery
Again, being built around the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, there’s not much gain in battery life here, with Apple suggesting that the new phones would last about the same on a single charge as their older brethren.
Storage Capacities
Apple is offering iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus in a 64GB and 256GB storage configuration.
Colors
The iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus is available in Space Gray, Silver, and Gold colors.
Price
- iPhone 8, 64GB / 256GB – $699 / $849
- iPhone 8 Plus, 64GB / 256GB – $799 / $949
Release Date
Both iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus will be available for pre-order on September 15, 2017 and will start shipping this coming September 22, 2017.
iPhone 8 and 8 Plus in 8 seconds
iPhone 8, an iPhone in a whole new light
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