Samsung's Galaxy Note 8 Compared to iPhone 8 Dummy

Samsung yesterday unveiled its new Galaxy Note 8 in New York, introducing a device with a 6.3-inch AMOLED Infinity Display, 12-megapixel dual rear cameras, a new S Pen, a 10nm processor, 6GB RAM, IP68 water resistance, and a few features cribbed from Apple, including a "Live Focus" photo mode for adjusting depth and dual rear cameras with telephoto and wide-angle lenses.

MacRumors videographer Matt Gonzalez attended Samsung's launch event and was able to get some hands-on time with the device this afternoon. Because Samsung's Galaxy Note 8 will directly compete with Apple's upcoming "iPhone 8," we decided to compare Samsung's device with an iPhone 8 dummy to compare and contrast the design elements.


Size wise, Samsung's Galaxy Note 8 is larger than the iPhone 8, with a 6.3-inch AMOLED display with a 18.5:9 aspect ratio. Comparatively, the iPhone 8 is expected to have a 5.8-inch OLED display. The Galaxy Note 8 has an Infinity display with no side bezels, but it does continue to have bezels at the top and the bottom.

We're expecting the iPhone 8 to have a greater screen to body ratio, with slim bezels all around (so no infinity design) and no prominent top and bottom bezels aside from a notch that will house the front-facing camera and the sensors necessary to enable facial recognition.

note8iphone8
When it comes to colors, the Galaxy Note 8 is available in midnight black, orchid gray, deep sea blue, and maple gold. Apple, meanwhile, is rumored to be planning to release its 2017 iPhones in a black, silver, and a new shade of gold that's similar to a copper color.

Like the iPhone 8, the Note 8 features a glass front and back with a metal band around the edges, with the glass enabling an inductive wireless charging feature. Inductive charging has long been available in Android devices, and is expected to make its first appearance in Apple's 2017 iPhone lineup.

Neither the Note 8 nor the iPhone 8 have a physical home button, with the Note 8 instead sporting an on-screen home button that can detect pressure and offer haptic feedback to simulate a press. We're also expecting Apple to implement a similar virtual home button on the iPhone 8.

Samsung's Note 8 features a fingerprint scanner on the back of the device, while the iPhone 8 may have no fingerprint scanning functionality at all. Samsung also augments its fingerprint technology with a facial and iris scanner, which we're also expecting in the iPhone 8, but rumors suggest Apple will have a better implementation that's far more secure.

note8iphone8camera
The Galaxy Note 8 is equipped with a top-of-the-line 10nm processor and 6GB RAM, while Apple's iPhone 8 is expected to feature an A11 chip (also built on a 10nm process) and somewhere in the range of 3GB RAM. The Galaxy line often outspecs the iPhone line on paper, but Apple's deep integration between hardware and software always causes the iPhone to outperform the Galaxy in the real world, and we expect that to be the case with the iPhone 8.

Samsung's Galaxy Note 8 is already available for pre-order and will start shipping out on September 15, which is likely close to when Apple will unveil its own 2017 iPhone lineup. Samsung plans to sell the device for $930 to $960 depending on the carrier, a price point on par with the rumored price point of the high-end OLED iPhone, which could cost somewhere around $1,000.

For a closer look at Apple's 2017 iPhone plans, make sure to check out our dedicated iPhone 8 roundup.

Related Forum: iPhone

Popular Stories

iPadOS 26 App Windowing

Apple Explains Why iPads Don't Just Run macOS

Friday June 13, 2025 7:46 am PDT by
iPadOS 26 allows iPads to function much more like Macs, with a new app windowing system, a swipe-down menu bar at the top of the screen, and more. However, Apple has stopped short of allowing iPads to run macOS, and it has now explained why. In an interview this week with Swiss tech journalist Rafael Zeier, Apple's software engineering chief Craig Federighi said that iPadOS 26's new Mac-like ...
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday June 12, 2025 8:58 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
Logitech Logo Feature

Logitech Announces Two New Accessories for WWDC

Friday June 13, 2025 7:22 am PDT by
Alongside WWDC this week, Logitech announced notable new accessories for the iPad and Apple Vision Pro. The Logitech Muse is a spatially-tracked stylus developed for use with the Apple Vision Pro. Introduced during the WWDC 2025 keynote address, Muse is intended to support the next generation of spatial computing workflows enabled by visionOS 26. The device incorporates six degrees of...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching in Three Months With These 12 New Features

Saturday June 14, 2025 5:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of June 2025:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone X through iPhone 14 Pro have a...
iOS 26 Screens

Here Are All the iOS 26 Features That Require iPhone 15 Pro or Newer

Thursday June 12, 2025 4:53 am PDT by
With iOS 26, Apple has introduced some major changes to the iPhone experience, headlined by the new Liquid Glass redesign that's available across all compatible devices. However, several of the update's features are exclusive to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models, since they rely on Apple Intelligence. The following features are powered by on-device large language models and machine...
CarPlay Liquid Glass Dark

Apple to Let iPhone Users Watch Videos on CarPlay Screen While Parked

Thursday June 12, 2025 6:16 am PDT by
Apple this week announced that iPhone users will soon be able to watch videos right on the CarPlay screen in supported vehicles. iPhone users will be able to wirelessly stream videos to the CarPlay screen using AirPlay, according to Apple. For safety reasons, video playback will only be available when the vehicle is parked, to prevent distracted driving. The connected iPhone will be able to...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

Hate iOS 26's Liquid Glass Design? Here's How to Tone It Down

Wednesday June 11, 2025 4:22 pm PDT by
iOS 26 features a whole new design material that Apple calls Liquid Glass, with a focus on transparency that lets the content on your display shine through the controls. If you're not a fan of the look, or are having trouble with readability, there is a step that you can take to make things more opaque without entirely losing out on the new look. Apple has multiple Accessibility options that ...
Mac Studio Feature

Apple Begins Selling Refurbished Mac Studio With M4 Max and M3 Ultra Chips at a Discount

Thursday June 12, 2025 10:14 am PDT by
Apple today added Mac Studio models with M4 Max and M3 Ultra chips to its online certified refurbished store in the United States, Canada, Japan, Singapore, and many European countries, for the first time since they were released in March. As usual for refurbished Macs, prices are discounted by approximately 15% compared to the equivalent new models on Apple's online store. Note that Apple's ...
iOS 26 Feature

Apple Seeds Revised iOS 26 Developer Beta to Fix Battery Issue

Friday June 13, 2025 10:15 am PDT by
Apple today provided developers with a revised version of the first iOS 26 beta for testing purposes. The update is only available for the iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 models, so if you're running iOS 26 on an iPhone 14 or earlier, you won't see the revised beta. Registered developers can download the new beta software through the Settings app on each device. The revised beta addresses an...

Top Rated Comments

RestUnknown Avatar
102 months ago
Protruding camera is getting out of hand Apple, it's ugly as hell.
Score: 61 Votes (Like | Disagree)
44267547 Avatar
102 months ago
The Note 8 is a great piece of hardware, but the iOS experience sells me over Android any day. The Hardware euphoria eventually wears off, it eventually comes down the software experience.
Score: 46 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Dwalls90 Avatar
102 months ago
... Comparing a non-functional mock-up, that we don't even know if for sure is the finalized chassis design?
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
FasterQuieter Avatar
102 months ago
It took Samsung 8 years to make the front of their phones attractive. Perhaps they'll need another 8 years to figure out the back.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
itsmilo Avatar
102 months ago
I would like to see a black iPhone 8 Dummy for a change. The white front is ugly as heeeeell. Looks like its in a huge white survival case. Id like to see how the black would blend in with that huge frame
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jamesrick80 Avatar
102 months ago
It took Samsung 8 years to make the front of their phones attractive. Perhaps they'll need another 8 years to figure out the back.
How can you talk about anyones back when the iphone will have that ugly vertical camera hump on the back and its ugly on every color. At least the note 8 has a black version that completely blends the back and its more gorgeous than any iphone 8 back.....furthermore the note 8 has a flushed camera...no one wants a buffalo hump.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)