Its main features include an aluminum design with a durable glass back, a new 12MP dual camera for better photos, a big and colourful 5.5” Retina HD display, a faster and smarter A11 Bionic chip, improved battery life and supports wireless charging and is water and dust resistant.
We like chips - The iPhone 8 Plus A11 Chip, that is.
This phone is fast. Like, really fast, and it’s all due to the A11 Bionic chip present in the iPhone 8, 8 Plus and X. The chip takes performance and speed to new heights, with apps launching 40% faster than before. The keyboard display is also faster - up to 50% faster.
The chip has six cores - four for high efficiency and two for high performance. This means that the A11 promises 25% faster cores for performance and 70% faster efficiency cores than the A10. Because there’s such an improvement in efficiency, less battery life is used per action or activity.
The chip also has the Neural Engine, a small piece of silicon attached to the chip that process 600 billion operations at one time and also holds the memory for facial ID and a person’s predictive text.
The iPhone 8 Plus was tested for its durability in real-life situations such as being dropped from a pocket onto a tar road, being sat on or having excess pressure applied to the screen. The screen on the iPhone 8 Plus is strong and able to survive falls from your bag or pocket onto concrete. In 50% of the cases, the phone’s screen cracked and the other 50% saw the phone’s screen holding strong. Depending on which angle the phone hit the surface, the back glass cracked in 70% of the drops which could have been saved with a good phone cover. The frame held up very well and does not bend easily when being sat on. Overall, we give the iPhone 8 Plus a 7/10 durability score.
This feature allows users to type a message on their screen and have the iPhone read the text out aloud.
Zoom allows users to magnify their screen making text and the overall appearance larger and easier to read. One can magnify the screen up to 15 times its original size.
Real-time text (RTT) allows users with hearing impairments to type and send a conversational text while on the phone
The dictation feature allows a user to verbally relay a message while the iPhone types it out. This may be helpful for users who have impairments with their hands or fingers.
Type to Siri is useful for people unable to speak. One can type a query to Siri instead of saying it.
Closed captions were created for users who are deaf or hard of hearing. Closed captions are also known as subtitles for video or audio material.
Switch Control is for users who have very little mobility and allows them to control their iPhone or iPad using moves as small as a blowing, blinking or clicking a button. Other devices such as a joystick can work with Switch Control.
Assistive Touch helps users who have difficulty pressing buttons, applying 3D Touch and pinch-to-zoom on an iPhone or iPad. The feature provides an onscreen button which can be tapped instead of having to physically press it on the side.
Speak Screen reads anything that’s being displayed on your phone.