OnePlus 5T vs iPhone 8 and 8 Plus: Which is best for you?
If you’re looking for a new phone this festive season, then two of your options include the new OnePlus 5T and Apple iPhone 8/8 Plus.
These are both the latest flagships (not counting the super-flagship iPhone X) from their respective brands and they have plenty to offer.
But what’s the difference? Let’s have a look and see.
OnePlus 5T vs iPhone 8 Design: Which phone has the better looks?
iPhone 8 and 8 Plus are minor iterations on the designs Apple introduced years ago with the iPhone 6. There’s still that wide bezel around the screen, as well as the same aluminium sides and flat back. This time around that back is glass, to make it compatible with Qi wireless chargers, and it’s a bit easier to grip as a result.
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The OnePlus 5T looks a bit like the older iPhone 7 Plus, especially when you flip it over and see those dual cameras on the back. The 5T has a slightly curved metal back, but it doesn’t have that big bezel around the display anymore. Instead, the screen is enlarged to 6.01 inches and pushed nearly edge-to-edge. That’s bigger than the 5.5-inch screen on the iPhone 8 Plus and the 4.7-inch screen on the iPhone 8. It might have a bigger screen, but the 5T is actually about the same size as the iPhone 8 Plus.
OnePlus has moved the fingerprint scanner to the back, while Apple has kept the iPhone’s on the front. On the bottom of the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus you’ll find just a Lightning port for charging and no headphone jack, something that you’ll still find on the OnePlus 5T.
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It might not have a headphone jack, but the iPhone 8 is the only phone in this duo to possess an IP67 rating for water-resistance.
OnePlus 5T vs iPhone 8 Specs: How do they compare internally?
Both of these phones are super-powerful, even though they’re powered by completely different components.
The iPhone 8 and 8 Plus are both powered by Apple’s own A11 Bionic CPU, while the OnePlus 5T uses Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 835 CPU. OnePlus packs the 5T with a whopping 8GB RAM, a lot more than the 2GB or 3GB (Plus) in the iPhones.
Storage starts at the 64GB on both the 5T and iPhone 8, but Apple’s devices go up to 256GB as opposed to 128GB.
iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus
As we’ve already mentioned, the displays on these phones are quite different. The OnePlus 5T has a 2160 x 1080 18:9 AMOLED panel measuring 6 inches, while the iPhone 8 Plus has a 5.5-inch IPS LCD 16:9 1920 x 1080 screen. The smaller iPhone 8 drops the resolution further to just above 720p.
On the back of both the OnePlus 5T and iPhone 8 Plus there are two camera sensors, but the smaller iPhone 8 has just the one. Apple’s array includes two 12-megapixel cameras (one wide-angle with an f/1.8 aperture and OIS, and the other telephoto with an f/2.8 aperture) as opposed to the 16-megapixel and 20-megapixel sensors used by OnePlus.
Keeping the phone (hopefully) running all day is a 3300mAh battery on the OnePlus 5T along with the excellent Dash Charge system for quickly topping up. The cells inside the iPhones are much smaller, and there’s no fast charger in the box, but we were very impressed with the stamina of the two phones.
Arguably the biggest difference between the two phones is the operating system they run: Apple’s iPhones run iOS 11 and the OnePlus 5T is powered by Android. You’ll likely have your favourite, so we won’t get into that here. It is annoying, however, to see the OnePlus 5T stuck on Android 7.1.1 when 8.0 Oreo has been out for a while.
OnePlus 5T vs iPhone 8 price: Which offers better value for money?
OnePlus phones are renowned for being priced low, and the 5T is no exception. You’ll be able to bag the 64GB model for £449, and the 128GB model for £499.
Apple’s iPhones are a lot more expensive and certainly not considered budget options. The iPhone 8 starts at £699, with the 8 Plus kicking off at £799.
Has this helped you decide which to buy? Let us know on Facebook or Twitter @trustedreviews
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We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
