Apple today announced the new iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus featuring a new glass and aluminum design, A11 Bionic chip, wireless charging and more.
“iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus are a new generation of iPhone that improve on everything we love about iPhone,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus have new glass and aluminum designs, new Retina HD displays and A11 Bionic — the smartest chip ever in a smartphone. Packed with more advanced cameras with Portrait mode and Portrait Lighting, and the highest quality video capture in a smartphone, iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus enable the freedom of wireless charging, all with AR optimization like no phone ever before.”
Stunning New Glass and Aluminum Design
iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus introduce a beautiful glass back design made with the most durable glass ever in a smartphone in three new finishes: space gray, silver and gold. The glass finish is made using a seven-layer color process for precise hue and opacity, delivering a rich depth of color with a color-matched aerospace-grade aluminum bezel, and is water and dust resistant.
New Retina HD Displays
The new 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch Retina HD displays with the addition of True Tone adjust the white balance of the display to match the surrounding light for a more natural, paper-like viewing experience. The vibrant wide color gamut Retina HD display offers the best color accuracy in the industry. Redesigned stereo speakers are up to 25 percent louder and deliver deeper bass, enabling richer-sounding music, videos and speakerphone calls.
Introducing A11 Bionic
A11 Bionic, the most powerful and smartest chip ever in a smartphone, features a six-core CPU design with two performance cores that are 25 percent faster and four efficiency cores that are 70 percent faster than the A10 Fusion, offering industry-leading performance and energy efficiency. A new, second-generation performance controller can harness all six cores simultaneously, delivering up to 70 percent greater performance for multi-threaded workloads, giving customers more power while providing the same great battery life. A11 Bionic also integrates an Apple-designed GPU with a three-core design that delivers up to 30 percent faster graphics performance than the previous generation. All this power enables incredible new machine learning, AR apps and immersive 3D games.
Designed for AR
The cameras on iPhone 8 Plus are custom tuned for the ultimate AR experience. Each camera is individually calibrated, with new gyroscopes and accelerometers for accurate motion tracking. The A11 Bionic CPU handles world tracking, scene recognition and the GPU enables incredible graphics at 60fps, while the image signal processor does real-time lighting estimation. With ARKit, iOS developers can take advantage of the TrueDepth camera and the rear cameras to create games and apps offering fantastically immersive and fluid experiences that go far beyond the screen.
All-New Camera for Better Photos and Video
The world’s most popular camera gets even better, featuring an improved 12-megapixel camera with a larger and faster sensor, a new color filter and deeper pixels. A new Apple-designed image signal processor delivers advanced pixel processing, wide color capture, faster autofocus in low light and better HDR photos, while a new quad LED True Tone Flash with Slow Sync results in more uniformly lit backgrounds and foregrounds. All this adds up to outstanding photos with vibrant, realistic colors and more detail.
The new camera also delivers the highest quality video capture ever in a smartphone with better video stabilization, 4K video up to 60fps and 1080p slo-mo up to 240fps. The Apple-designed video encoder provides real-time image and motion analysis for optimal quality video. With iOS 11, both iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus support HEIF and HEVC for up to two times compression and storage for twice the photos and videos.
iPhone 8 Plus features dual 12-megapixel cameras and introduces Portrait mode with Portrait Lighting, bringing dramatic studio lighting effects to iPhone, allowing customers to capture stunning portraits with a shallow depth-of-field effect in five different lighting styles.
Portrait Lighting is based on extensive research into the art and science of portraiture and core photographic lighting principles. It uses the dual cameras and the Apple-designed image signal processor to recognize the scene, create a depth map and separate the subject from the background. Machine learning is then used to create facial landmarks and add lighting over contours of the face, all happening in real time, giving customers even more power to express themselves through photography.
Designed for a Wireless Future
The glass back design enables a world-class wireless charging solution. Wireless charging works with the established Qi ecosystem, including two new wireless charging mats from Belkin and mophie, available from apple.com and Apple Stores.
Apple gave a sneak peek of AirPower, an Apple-designed wireless charging accessory coming in 2018, which offers a generous active charging area that will allow iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus or iPhone X customers to simultaneously charge up to three devices, including Apple Watch Series 3 and a new optional wireless charging case for AirPods.
Featuring iOS 11, the World’s Most Advanced Mobile Operating System
iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus come with iOS 11, featuring incredible advancements to Portrait mode, while new effects make Live Photos more fun and expressive.
iOS 11 also brings augmented reality to hundreds of millions of iOS devices with a new platform for developers to build apps that let users place virtual content on top of real-world scenes. Siri debuts new male and female voices and can translate US English phrases into Chinese, French, German, Italian or Spanish.
Pricing and Availability
● iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus will be available in space gray, silver and an all-new gold finish in increased 64GB and 256GB capacity models starting at $699 (US) from apple.com and Apple Stores and is also available through Apple Authorized Resellers and select carriers (prices may vary).
● Through Apple’s iPhone Upgrade Program, customers in the US can get iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus, with the protection of AppleCare+, choose their carrier (no multiyear service contract required) and have the opportunity to upgrade to a new iPhone every year. The iPhone Upgrade Program is available for iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus at apple.com and Apple Stores in the US with monthly payments starting at $34.50 for iPhone 8 and $39.50 for iPhone 8 Plus.3
● Customers will be able to order iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus beginning Friday, September 15, with availability beginning Friday, September 22, in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, UAE, the UK, the US and US Virgin Islands.
● iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus will be available in Andorra, Bahrain, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Greenland, Guernsey, Hungary, Iceland, India, Isle of Man, Israel, Jersey, Kuwait, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Malta, Monaco, Poland, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia and Slovenia beginning Friday, September 29.
● Apple-designed accessories including leather and silicone cases in a range of colors will be available starting at $35 (US). Lightning Docks in color-matching metallic finishes will also be available for $49 (US).
Please follow iClarified on Twitter, Facebook, or RSS for a closer look at Apple's new devices.
“iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus are a new generation of iPhone that improve on everything we love about iPhone,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus have new glass and aluminum designs, new Retina HD displays and A11 Bionic — the smartest chip ever in a smartphone. Packed with more advanced cameras with Portrait mode and Portrait Lighting, and the highest quality video capture in a smartphone, iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus enable the freedom of wireless charging, all with AR optimization like no phone ever before.”
Stunning New Glass and Aluminum Design
iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus introduce a beautiful glass back design made with the most durable glass ever in a smartphone in three new finishes: space gray, silver and gold. The glass finish is made using a seven-layer color process for precise hue and opacity, delivering a rich depth of color with a color-matched aerospace-grade aluminum bezel, and is water and dust resistant.
New Retina HD Displays
The new 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch Retina HD displays with the addition of True Tone adjust the white balance of the display to match the surrounding light for a more natural, paper-like viewing experience. The vibrant wide color gamut Retina HD display offers the best color accuracy in the industry. Redesigned stereo speakers are up to 25 percent louder and deliver deeper bass, enabling richer-sounding music, videos and speakerphone calls.
Introducing A11 Bionic
A11 Bionic, the most powerful and smartest chip ever in a smartphone, features a six-core CPU design with two performance cores that are 25 percent faster and four efficiency cores that are 70 percent faster than the A10 Fusion, offering industry-leading performance and energy efficiency. A new, second-generation performance controller can harness all six cores simultaneously, delivering up to 70 percent greater performance for multi-threaded workloads, giving customers more power while providing the same great battery life. A11 Bionic also integrates an Apple-designed GPU with a three-core design that delivers up to 30 percent faster graphics performance than the previous generation. All this power enables incredible new machine learning, AR apps and immersive 3D games.
Designed for AR
The cameras on iPhone 8 Plus are custom tuned for the ultimate AR experience. Each camera is individually calibrated, with new gyroscopes and accelerometers for accurate motion tracking. The A11 Bionic CPU handles world tracking, scene recognition and the GPU enables incredible graphics at 60fps, while the image signal processor does real-time lighting estimation. With ARKit, iOS developers can take advantage of the TrueDepth camera and the rear cameras to create games and apps offering fantastically immersive and fluid experiences that go far beyond the screen.
All-New Camera for Better Photos and Video
The world’s most popular camera gets even better, featuring an improved 12-megapixel camera with a larger and faster sensor, a new color filter and deeper pixels. A new Apple-designed image signal processor delivers advanced pixel processing, wide color capture, faster autofocus in low light and better HDR photos, while a new quad LED True Tone Flash with Slow Sync results in more uniformly lit backgrounds and foregrounds. All this adds up to outstanding photos with vibrant, realistic colors and more detail.
The new camera also delivers the highest quality video capture ever in a smartphone with better video stabilization, 4K video up to 60fps and 1080p slo-mo up to 240fps. The Apple-designed video encoder provides real-time image and motion analysis for optimal quality video. With iOS 11, both iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus support HEIF and HEVC for up to two times compression and storage for twice the photos and videos.
iPhone 8 Plus features dual 12-megapixel cameras and introduces Portrait mode with Portrait Lighting, bringing dramatic studio lighting effects to iPhone, allowing customers to capture stunning portraits with a shallow depth-of-field effect in five different lighting styles.
Portrait Lighting is based on extensive research into the art and science of portraiture and core photographic lighting principles. It uses the dual cameras and the Apple-designed image signal processor to recognize the scene, create a depth map and separate the subject from the background. Machine learning is then used to create facial landmarks and add lighting over contours of the face, all happening in real time, giving customers even more power to express themselves through photography.
Designed for a Wireless Future
The glass back design enables a world-class wireless charging solution. Wireless charging works with the established Qi ecosystem, including two new wireless charging mats from Belkin and mophie, available from apple.com and Apple Stores.
Apple gave a sneak peek of AirPower, an Apple-designed wireless charging accessory coming in 2018, which offers a generous active charging area that will allow iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus or iPhone X customers to simultaneously charge up to three devices, including Apple Watch Series 3 and a new optional wireless charging case for AirPods.
Featuring iOS 11, the World’s Most Advanced Mobile Operating System
iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus come with iOS 11, featuring incredible advancements to Portrait mode, while new effects make Live Photos more fun and expressive.
iOS 11 also brings augmented reality to hundreds of millions of iOS devices with a new platform for developers to build apps that let users place virtual content on top of real-world scenes. Siri debuts new male and female voices and can translate US English phrases into Chinese, French, German, Italian or Spanish.
Pricing and Availability
● iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus will be available in space gray, silver and an all-new gold finish in increased 64GB and 256GB capacity models starting at $699 (US) from apple.com and Apple Stores and is also available through Apple Authorized Resellers and select carriers (prices may vary).
● Through Apple’s iPhone Upgrade Program, customers in the US can get iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus, with the protection of AppleCare+, choose their carrier (no multiyear service contract required) and have the opportunity to upgrade to a new iPhone every year. The iPhone Upgrade Program is available for iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus at apple.com and Apple Stores in the US with monthly payments starting at $34.50 for iPhone 8 and $39.50 for iPhone 8 Plus.3
● Customers will be able to order iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus beginning Friday, September 15, with availability beginning Friday, September 22, in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, UAE, the UK, the US and US Virgin Islands.
● iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus will be available in Andorra, Bahrain, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Greenland, Guernsey, Hungary, Iceland, India, Isle of Man, Israel, Jersey, Kuwait, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Malta, Monaco, Poland, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia and Slovenia beginning Friday, September 29.
● Apple-designed accessories including leather and silicone cases in a range of colors will be available starting at $35 (US). Lightning Docks in color-matching metallic finishes will also be available for $49 (US).
Please follow iClarified on Twitter, Facebook, or RSS for a closer look at Apple's new devices.