Apple Reveals 'iPhone 8' and 'iPhone 8 Plus' With Glass Bodies and A11 Bionic Chip

Apple today officially announced the all-new "iPhone 8" and 'iPhone 8 Plus." The iPhones are made from glass, combined with an aluminum frame design, and both come in three colors: Silver, Space Gray, and a new Gold finish

The backs of the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus are made from "the most durable glass ever in a smartphone," according to Apple, and each one is color-matched to an aerospace-grade aluminum bezel. Both devices are splash, water, and dust resistant to IP67 standards.

iphone 8 image 1
The iPhone 8 measures in at 4.7 inches and the iPhone 8 Plus is 5.5 inches, like the past few models of iPhone, and they come with a new Retina HD display with True Tone technology. True Tone adjusts the white balance of the display to match the surrounding light so looking at the iPhone 8 provides a "more natural, paper-like" experience.

“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.”

Apple said that the speakers have been redesigned and are as much as 25 percent louder and deliver deeper bass than the iPhone 7. All of the iPhone 8's new technology is powered by the A11 Bionic chip, featuring a six-core CPU design with two performance cores and four efficiency cores. A11 Bionic integrates an Apple-designed GPU for "up to 30 percent faster" graphics performance than the A10.

iphone 8 image 2
All of these advancements will help boost app performance on the new iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus, particularly including the new ARKit-fueled augmented reality experiences. The A11 Bionic chip handles world tracking, scene recognition, and the GPU enables graphics running at 60fps.

The iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus are each getting a "more advanced" 12-megapixel rear camera, with a faster and larger sensor, new color filter, and deeper pixels. Each smartphone includes Portrait mode with Portrait Lighting, which introduces studio lighting effects to iPhone, letting users change the depth-of-field effect with five different lighting styles.


In terms of video, users can capture 4K video up to 60fps and 1080p, and slo-mo up to 240fps. Thanks to HEIF and HEVC in iOS 11, there will also be room for twice the photos and videos.

The glass backs of the iPhones enable wireless charging on inductive charging pads, and support the Qi ecosystem of accessories. Apple's own mat is called the "AirPower mat" and it'll launch sometime in 2018 with the ability and room to charge an iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods simultaneously. Before that, users will be able to purchase mats from Mophie and Belkin to use iPhone 8 inductive charging.

iphone 8 image 3
The iPhone 8 will be available in 64GB ($699) and 256GB ($849), while the iPhone 8 Plus will be available in 64GB ($799) and 256GB ($949). Each device will be available to order starting Friday, September 15 and then launch September 22.

Upon launch, the iPhones will be available in the following territories: 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.

Popular Stories

iOS 26

iOS 26.1 Coming Soon: New Features for Your iPhone and Release Date

Monday October 27, 2025 7:55 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a handful of new features and changes for iPhones, including a toggle for changing the appearance of the Liquid Glass design, "slide to stop" for alarms in the Clock app, and more. Below, we outline key details about iOS 26.1. Release Date Given that Apple has yet to seed an iOS 26.1 Release Candidate, which is typically the final beta version, the...
iOS 26 Maps Glass

Apple Reportedly Moving Ahead With Ads in Maps App

Sunday October 26, 2025 6:22 am PDT by
Apple Maps could feature integrated ads as soon as next year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. In his latest "Power On" newsletter, Gurman said that Apple's plan to bring more ads to iOS is moving "gaining traction," with the Maps app being next in line. The project will apparently give restaurants and other businesses the option to pay to have their details featured more prominently in...
maxresdefault

Apple TV 4K Could Still Launch Before 2025 Ends: All the Rumored Features

Monday October 27, 2025 4:51 pm PDT by
Apple is designing an updated version of the Apple TV 4K, and rumors suggest that it could come out sometime in the next couple of months. We're not expecting a major overhaul with design changes, but even a simple chip upgrade will bring major improvements to Apple's set-top box. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. We've rounded up all the latest Apple TV rumors. ...
iOS 26 Battery Glass Feature

iOS 26.1 Beta Liquid Glass Battery Drain Test: Tinted vs Clear Mode

Friday October 24, 2025 2:30 pm PDT by
In the fourth iOS 26.1 beta, Apple added a "Tinted" option that reduces the translucency of Liquid Glass for those who prefer a more opaque look. I saw some comments wondering whether the setting might preserve battery life, so I thought I'd do some testing. Test Settings I did four separate tests using the iPhone 17 Pro Max, and I kept the parameters as similar as possible. Here are the...
M6 MacBook Pro Feature 1

M6 MacBook Pro: Release Date, Pricing, and What to Expect

Monday October 27, 2025 9:15 am PDT by
Apple this month refreshed the 14-inch MacBook Pro base model with its new M5 chip, and higher-end 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips are expected to follow in early 2026. However, these machines will represent the final update to the current design, with Apple reportedly developing a completely new version of the MacBook Pro packed with next-generation hardware...
iOS 26

iOS 26.1 Coming Soon With These 8 New Features for Your iPhone

Wednesday October 22, 2025 6:15 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a handful of new features and changes for iPhones, including a toggle for changing the appearance of the Liquid Glass design, "slide to stop" for alarms in the Clock app, and more. iOS 26.1 is currently in beta testing. The update will likely be released in the first half of November, and it is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and newer, but some...
swift for android

Developers Can Now Make Android Apps With Apple's Swift

Sunday October 26, 2025 4:23 am PDT by
The first preview release of the Swift SDK for Android was published this week, allowing developers to build Android apps in Swift with official tooling and making it easier to share code across iOS and Android. The SDK enables Android apps to be built in Swift using officially supported tooling rather than community workarounds. In June, it was announced that Apple's Swift programming...
ios 26 digital id passport wallet

Apple Says U.S. Passport Feature on iPhone is Coming Soon

Monday October 27, 2025 7:41 am PDT by
You will "soon" be able to add a digital version of your U.S. passport to your iPhone, according to Jennifer Bailey, vice president of Apple Pay and Apple Wallet. Bailey reiterated that the feature is coming soon during her keynote at the Money20/20 USA conference in Las Vegas on Sunday. On its iOS 26 page, Apple says the delayed feature will be "coming later this year." Apple's...
All Screen iPhone 2027 Feature 1

iPhone XX? 6 Features Rumored for Apple's 20th Anniversary iPhone

Monday October 27, 2025 4:01 pm PDT by
For the 10th anniversary iPhone that came out in 2017, Apple introduced the iPhone X with Face ID, notch, and minimized bezels, providing more display space than ever before. The 20th iPhone anniversary is approaching and Apple wants to take the iPhone X design even further. We're two years away from the 2027 iPhone, but it's tough for Apple to keep major changes under wraps. We've rounded...

Top Rated Comments

MrGimper Avatar
106 months ago
So the phone looks the same as it did 4 years ago...
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
tlbwriter Avatar
106 months ago
Who would buy this thing? Looks old fashioned as hell and screams I'm too poor for the iPhone X. If you carry Apple you want to look like you have money. This screams I'm cheap.
Um, maybe that's why YOU carry an Apple. I couldn't care less what any random stranger thinks about my phone.
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
alvesik Avatar
106 months ago
That looks straight pink to me
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BCWorld Avatar
106 months ago
Man that was weak, same iphone as 3 years ago. The a11 is a beast though.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
garirry Avatar
106 months ago
Why is it called the 8 and not the 7s??? It's not a phone redesign.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Kabeyun Avatar
106 months ago
Color me grumpy! The smaller phone legion got nothing. Zilch. Nada. "Bionic" A11 chip in the 8 and the SE still rocking the A9. Somebody please explain what could be the dumbest product line photo I've ever seen:



other than he obvious answer: to prop up the high-end price points. For the love of Steve, do we really need both the 6s and the 7?? Didn't anyone in the boardroom balk at that lineup? Drop the aging 6s and update the SE! No reason it couldn't have the A10 processor. Lord!

P.S. If I replace my dying 6 with an SE this weekend and they announce improvements in March, I'll be Bionic Grumpy!
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)