iPhone 8 and 8 Plus Have Smaller Batteries Than iPhone 7 Models, But Similar Battery Life

Thursday September 14, 2017 4:29 AM PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple's new iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus have smaller batteries than the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, respectively, according to details discovered today on China's official communications certification board.

The TENAA listings were highlighted by mobile leaker Steve Hemmerstoffer in a tweet, revealing that the iPhone 8 comes with a 1,821mAh battery, while the iPhone 8 Plus has a 2,675mAh battery.



If the TENAA listing is correct, the iPhone 8 line-up therefore features smaller batteries than last year's flagship Apple smartphones. In comparison, the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus feature 1,960mAh and 2,900mAh batteries, respectively.

Be that as it may, Apple claims its iPhone 8 devices offer "about the same" battery life as the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus when it comes to internet use, talk time, and audio and video playback over wireless.

It looks as if Apple has been able to eke out near identical battery life out of smaller batteries in the iPhone 8 devices thanks to the company's new high performance A11 Bionic processor, which Apple claims is more power efficient than previous chipsets.

The smaller batteries also boast support for wireless Qi charging and a new fast-charge capability, which means the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus can be charged to 50 percent battery life in 30 minutes using Apple's 29W, 61W, or 87W USB-C Power Adapters (sold separately and included with Apple's latest MacBook and MacBook Pro models).

In addition to the battery details, the TENAA listings also appear to confirm the iPhone 8 has 2GB of RAM and the iPhone 8 Plus packs 3GB of RAM, as previously reported.

We'll have to wait for the inevitable device teardowns for conclusive evidence about these specs. The new smartphones will be available to pre-order from September 15, with the devices launching on September 22. Prices start from $699 for the iPhone 8 and $799 for the iPhone 8 Plus.

Related Roundups: iPhone 7, iPhone 8
Buyer's Guide: iPhone 8 (Caution), iPhone 8 (Caution)
76 comments


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Loge
9 months ago
"about the same" is corporate speak for "not quite as good".
Rating: 17 Votes
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Mr Fusion
9 months ago

I hate it when I see people complain about the batteries being smaller. If Apple can throw R&D money at getting the same battery life with smaller batteries they should. Having a smaller battery means smaller charge times, but also means you’ll charge it less which has a massive affect on the environment and energy usage over millions of iPhone users.

Or I dunno, maybe Apple could keep the same size battery in their stale form factor and streamline the efficiency too, increasing battery life.

Me and my crazy talk..
Rating: 14 Votes
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Exile714
9 months ago

I hate it when I see people complain about the batteries being smaller. If Apple can throw R&D money at getting the same battery life with smaller batteries they should. Having a smaller battery means smaller charge times, but also means you’ll charge it less which has a massive affect on the environment and energy usage over millions of iPhone users.


Charging an iPhone takes about 2 kWh PER YEAR. That’s about $0.25 worth of electricity.

The 3-5 cents less it would take to charge this phone, even with millions of phones sold, is such a minuscule impact that it’s not even worth mentioning.
Rating: 7 Votes
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Derekeys
9 months ago
Well, as we all know. iPhone battery life is notoriously amazing. So getting "about" the same battery life is exactly what we've been asking for. Well done!

/s
Rating: 6 Votes
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iLoveDeveloping
9 months ago
"Sold separately", two words that are rediculous to include when paying $999 for ANYTHING. I'm sorry but screw you apple on this one.
Rating: 4 Votes
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MartinAppleGuy
9 months ago
I hate it when I see people complain about the batteries being smaller. If Apple can throw R&D money at getting the same battery life with smaller batteries they should. Having a smaller battery means smaller charge times, but also means you’ll charge it less which has a massive affect on the environment and energy usage over millions of iPhone users.
Rating: 4 Votes
Avatar
a104375
9 months ago

You need some friends. Hi, my name is Josh and I'm happy with my battery life in my 3 year old iPhone 6. I get 2-3 days and I use it for quite a bit for email, browsing, streaming audio, and occasional gaming. :)

What are all of you folks doing with your phones that kills the battery in less than 1 day? I have a few apps that don't turn the screen off when they should (for example, the MLB app will keep the screen on while streaming audio for a 3 hour game if I don't turn it off manually) and that will kill the battery, but otherwise I'm more than happy.


Hi Josh, Sorry to have to be the one to tell you but, the iPhone 6S has a smaller battery than the iPhone 6 and most definitely has worse battery life as a result.
Rating: 4 Votes
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Altis
9 months ago

LET'S GET UP IN ARMS BECAUSE BATTERY LIFE IS UNCHANGED AS IS USER EXPERIENCE!!


That's what they said about the new MBP with its smaller battery.
Rating: 3 Votes
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Avieshek
9 months ago
At the least, Apple could provide fast-charging capable bricks & cables. More than 95% profit, not enough?
Rating: 3 Votes
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stan1028
9 months ago

"Sold separately", two words that are rediculous to include when paying $999 for ANYTHING. I'm sorry but screw you apple on this one.


It would be just great if Apple included the AirPods, Apple Music or at least a few months of free iCloud subscriptions when people buy the iPhone X.
Rating: 3 Votes
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