The recent event of Apple to mark its completion of 10 years in the smartphone market was filled with many new launches and announcements. iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and the special edition iPhone X although were the show stealers since people waiting eagerly for them to launch. Although the iPhone X hogged most of the spotlight, the launch of iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus were also major announcements in the event. The iPhone 8 packs powerful features at a more affordable price from the iPhone X. On the other hand the Samsung Galaxy S8 announced in March this year costs nearly same as the iPhone 8 and also has same features. This might get you confused on what to buy, so here’s a comparison of Apple iPhone 8 vs Samsung Galaxy S8.
Apple iPhone 8 vs Samsung Galaxy S8 – Comparison
Design and physical properties
The design of iPhone 8 is fundamentally same as its predecessors including iPhone 6, 6S, 7, and 7S. You find the same polished aluminum sides on the phone, a sizable bezel on the top and bottom, and the traditional fingerprint scanner at the bottom of the screen. Like the iPhone 7, the iPhone 8 also lacks the headphone jack and instead sports stereo speakers. The new iPhone 8 though has a big design change and that’s the inclusion of matching glass panes on the front and the back of the screen. Apple claims that the glass used in the iPhone 8 is the most durable glass ever used in a smartphone.
In comparison, the Samsung Galaxy S8 seems to have a better design than the iPhone 8. The display of the Galaxy S8 curves along the sides providing you almost an infinity display with a small bezel on the top and the bottom. Samsung has also included glass on the front and the back panels of the phone and the sides of the phone are made from metal. The more noticeable change between the designs of Apple iPhone 8 vs Samsung Galaxy S8 is that the Galaxy S8 features a headphone jack and a micro SD slot as well.
Just like the previous phones the Apple iPhone 8 has a 4.7-inch screen and on the other hand, the Samsung Galaxy S8 sports a 5.8-inch screen. Both the smartphones are water and dust resistant and while the iPhone 8 is IP67 certified the Galaxy S8 is IP68 certified. Other shared features of the phones include support for wireless charging since they both support Qi wireless induction charging.
Display
This is probably where you’ll notice greater differences in the Apple iPhone 8 vs Samsung Galaxy S8 comparison. The iPhone 8 has a 4.7-inch Retina HD display that’s been used by Apple since the iPhone 6S, which means that the resolution or pixel density hasn’t been increased in the phone. However, the new iPhone has a wider color gamut and has True Tone technology that provides better contrast and warmer colors. The other thing that makes the iPhone stand out is the 3D Touch feature that’s not available on any other smartphone.
On the other hand, the Samsung Galaxy S8 has a 5.8-inch OLED display with way more resolutions and pixel density. The high pixel density in the phone ensures that the display looks brighter, sharper, and clearer. Because of the OLED display, you can witness rich saturated colors that make the display very good. Apart from this, there are no more differences in both the phones. The iPhone 8 has a good IPS display in terms of viewing angles and color accuracy, which makes sure that you don’t face any problems while using it outdoors.
Processor and battery
This is probably the segment where the iPhone 8 really shines in the Apple iPhone 8 vs Samsung Galaxy S8 battle. The iPhone 8 is powered by an A11 Bionic chipset that’s also present in the iPhone 8 Plus and even the iPhone X. Apple’s A11 Bionic Chipset is obviously the most powerful processor to run on any smartphone. The benchmark ratings of the A11 chipset easily beats all the Android phones and all the previous iPhones as well, which makes it stand out.
While the iPhone 8 runs on a new A11 Bionic chip, the Samsung Galaxy S8 is powered by a Snapdragon 835 processor which is also available on many mid-range phones. This obviously doesn’t mean that the Galaxy S8 lags on performance, but the processor used in the S8 is slightly less powerful than the one used in the new iPhone 8.
When it comes to the battery life, it can be said that both the devices perform almost the same. According to Apple, the iPhone 8 has the same battery life as the iPhone 7, which means that there no or very little improvement on the battery. The Galaxy S8 also provides the same battery life as the iPhone 7, which makes both the iPhone 8 and Galaxy S8 same in terms of the battery.
Camera
The Apple iPhone 8 comes with a single 12-megapixel sensor on the rear with Optical Image Stabilization and a True Tone quad LED flash. Unlike its larger sibling, the iPhone 8 doesn’t have a dual camera setup, which means that you don’t get some features, like portrait mode, telephoto zoom, or the bokeh effect. However, the camera of the iPhone 8 is expected to be great and with Apple’s new ARkit feature included in the camera, which would enable you to run AR apps without any additional hardware, it would be great to find out how the camera pans out.
On the other hand, the Galaxy S8 is one of the best camera phone available in the market today. The phone sports a 12-megapixel shooter that captures great details even in low light conditions. Like the iPhone 8, the Galaxy S8 also has OIS and 4K recording capabilities. However, the main advantage of the Galaxy S8 in terms of the camera is the manual controls, which lets you tweak the shutter speed, focus, exposure, white balance, and many other things. This is where the Galaxy S8 inches a little better in the Apple iPhone 8 vs Samsung Galaxy S8 camera battle.
Software and new features
The iPhone 8 comes with iOS 11, which is the Apple’s latest operating system and is expected to roll out on September 19th for other Apple devices. iOS 11 is expected to bring in many new features in the iPhone 8, like ARKit support, improved multitasking capabilities, and even a file manager that has been missing in the Apple devices. Like the other Apple devices, the iPhone 8 is also expected to get consistent updates that are not available for any Android device.
The Galaxy S8, in contrast, runs on Android Nougat 7.1 with the customized TouchWiz skin. It’s expected that the S8 will get an update to the latest Android Oreo 8.0, but there’s no fixed date for it.
However, all is not lost for Galaxy S8 when it comes to software and new features as it has its own advantages. The Samsung Pay is one such advantage that you can find on the S8, which lets you pay through all your credit and debit cards by just a tap.
Price and availability
The Galaxy S8 is already available in various online stores, like Flipkart, and in official Samsung stores as well. The phone is available at Rs. 57,900 or even less in some online websites.
On the other hand, iPhone 8 will be up for pre-orders in India starting from 22nd September and the phone will be officially up for grabs in stores from September 29th. The iPhone 8 is priced at Rs. 64,000 for the 64GB variant and the 256Gb variant costs Rs. 77,000.
These are the major comparisons between the Apple iPhone 8 vs Samsung Galaxy S8. If you’re a compact person wanting to have a phone that has a powerful processor and that fits in your hand easily then the Apple iPhone 8 is a great choice. However, if you like big phones with futuristic looks, gorgeous display, and premium features then the Samsung Galaxy S8 might be a good choice.
