One month with the iPhone 8

I’ve had the iPhone 8 for little over a month now and finally feel ready to answer your questions. You’ll remember a few weeks ago I dropped my first impressions post. When I shared that on social I asked if you had any questions about the phone. You did. I’ve tried to answer them below in my review.

I say review but…

This isn’t like a usual review. I’m going to share my thoughts and views on the phone as well as answer your questions. So don’t expect a full break down of every single thing. For the more basic stuff head over to my first impressions – it has all of that there. Like I mentioned, I’ve been using the iPhone 8 for little over a month. The battery life is head and shoulders above my iPhone 6s. Granted, I’ve turned off almost all push notifications except What’s App, which I think makes a big difference. I get a full day out of the battery with it hitting 20% at around 9pm. Unless I’m on the road a lot and checking social and email, then it can drain quickly. I’ve also been testing out MTN’s network so I’m doing the checks off WiFi more regularly. Which means I’ve had to add a power bank to my handbag. But for the most part – I’ve been impressed with the battery.

One of the rad features of the iPhone 8 is its fast charging capabilities. Turns out it also offers wireless charging. The wireless charger doesn’t come with the phone though. But, funnily enough, my Samsung Galaxy S8’s wireless dock also charges the iPhone 8. I had a good giggle at this because I doubt Apple would ever allow any of their products to have cross device capabilities. I’m presuming this was an oversight on Samsung’s side but, it does mean I can wireless charge my iPhone 8 relatively quickly. Bonus.

Let’s get in to the questions you asked me about the iPhone 8

Should I buy the iPhone 8 or the iPhone X?

I’ve not got hands on with an iPhone X yet so all I’m able to do is compare the phones on paper. Obviously the glaring difference here is price. The iPhone 8 costs around R15 000 cash while the X’s entry model is at R20 000 (and the more storage you had the higher that price climbs – so you could easily be dropping R24 000 on the X). If you grab the iPhone 8 on an MTN contract you’re looking at about R699 per month with 1GB of Data, talk minutes and like included. MTN hasn’t released contract details on the X yet. But I’m going to take a guess and say you’ll probably be dropping a good load more on it per month.

To answer the question: buy the iPhone 8. The differences between the 8 and the X are so slight that it doesn’t make sense to spend that extra cash. Here’s some direct comparisons between the 8 and X (iPhone 8 NOT the iPhone 8 Plus, please be aware):

• The iPhone X has a better display. It is a 5.8″ True Tone OLED and the screen takes up far more of the front of the phone whereas the iPhone 8 offers less screen and is also smaller with a 4.7″ True Tone LCD display. But I don’t think it matters. The iPhone 8 is still glorious to look at and watch videos on. The images are crisp and clean. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.
• The iPhone 8 is a smaller and lighter phone. I prefer that.
• According to those who have tested the phones, the iPhone X has a better battery (some are saying it offers 2 hours more than the iPhone 8, but how they test that I don’t know). Keep in mind the X’s display is going to draw more battery, as will the camera. So I’m not sure you’re going to feel the difference here.
• The iPhone X’s camera is better. Both have a wide angle rear 12 megapixel camera. The iPhone X does have a good few improvements added to that.
• They’re actually basically the same inside. The phones are running off the same chipsets and have the same internal performance stats. The only difference is that the X has 3GB of RAM vs the 2GB in the 8.

Again, I’ve not actually tested out the X so I’m going off what I read. But I love the iPhone 8 and am just not sure the additions to the X justify the spend. I think your purse and you will be very happy with the 8.

What is the photo quality like with the iPhone 8?

GOOD. I don’t really know how to answer this other than to tell you that it really is good and you’ll be happy. I’ve used the iPhone 8 for blog photos and Instagram snaps. I’ve been more than happy with the quality of my snaps. However, I have used a Samsung Galaxy S8 and, the truth is, the phones are better. They have almost identical cameras but the S8 has HDR mode (which is function turned on by default). That function automatically adjusts your exposure and contrast so all your photos are super colourful. The saturated display of the S8 probably also contributes to this. If I’m completely truthful, the S8 takes better photos.

Overall thoughts

I do love the iPhone 8. I’ve always been pro Apple for work which means it fits seamlessly into my life already and it is definitely an improvement on the iPhone 6s. I’m really happy with the phone and I think you’ll be too.

Disclosure: I’ve been given an iPhone 8 to test out on the MTN network.