Pros
✅ Dual camera is powerful
✅ Glass black feels premium
✅ Fast and wireless charging is useful
Cons
? Battery life average
? Dated design
? No mobile HDR
iPhone 8 Plus Full Review
The iPhone 8 Plus remains a solid option in the iPhone ecosystem despite seeing some competition since it launched. Since this review was originally published, we’ve added comparisons to some of the alternative phones you might be considering. The newest contenders into this competition congregation are 2019’s iPhone line. That’s the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max, and they’re far more powerful than 2017’s iPhone 8 Plus – but with iOS 13, Usually when Apple announces new iPhones, older ones get the axe, but Apple keeps the iPhone 8 Plus securely in its lineup alongside the iPhone 8 as its affordable iOS devices. So if this review gets you interested in the smartphone, it should be easy to find and easier on the wallet to buy. The iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus represent the last hurrah for the old iPhone design with a Home button and thick chin bezels. While we now have the new iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and iPhone XR to drool over, Apple has kept the iPhone 8 handsets on sale for pragmatic buyers. In terms of what came before this phone though, The iPhone 8 Plus looks like the iPhone 7 Plus, which looks like the 6S Plus, which looks like the 6 Plus…you get the idea. The only thing that tips us off that the 8 Plus is the newest model is the addition of the glass back and the two-tone effect it creates… if it wasn’t for that, it would be impossible to tell this and the 7 Plus apart. Apple has never changed things for the sake of it, but the 8 Plus is the company’s final nod to the design it relied on for years before the iPhone X arrived in 2017 to move the dial dramatically, plug in reams of new technology, and change the way we think about the iPhone. We can only interpret that this is now the ‘default’ iPhone – the one for folks who aren’t looking to spend exorbitant sums of money on a handset, or not keen on big changes, when shopping for a new iPhone. One benefit of the newer iPhones appearing is that the iPhone 8 Plus is steadily getting cheaper. There are some strong upgrades from the iPhone 7 Plus too: the camera has been enhanced and the internal workings are still among the most powerful in the industry. Add to that a better battery and screen, and the iPhone 8 Plus is the better iPhone compared to the smaller 8.
Glistening gold back offers new powers
- Glass back allows for wireless charging
- Looks luxurious in gold
New Portrait Lighting mode
- Portrait mode is faster and better than before
- Portrait Lighting is a small but impressive new feature
A11 Bionic engine
- Brilliant benchmark results
- Doesn’t seem speedier in practice than 7 Plus or Note 8
True Tone screen and better speakers
- Improved color reproduction and temperature
- Speakers are noticeable louder
New AR effects
- AR implementation is cool but flawed
- AR works just as well on the iPhone 7 Plus
Camera
- Improved texture reproduction and sharpness
- Useful Live Photo options and powerful editing effects
- Mixed low light performance
Battery life
- Middling battery life
- No fast charger in the box