Richard Goodwin 04/04/2017 - 1:42pm

I was going to wait for the iPhone 8. But then I saw the Galaxy S8 and was like, why bother?

By now you're probably familiar with how the flagship cycle goes year-in, year-out. We get a massive build up of hype for Apple and Samsung's latest, which, due to the respective release schedules, tend to leapfrog over each other.

These days though, the hype train lasts longer than ever, indeed we're often hearing tip-offs about the subsequent generation after the one that is yet to be released. This is also true of the iPhone 8, which was rumoured long before the iPhone 7 was launched.

The rumour mill now reaches far and wide, so we get much more information than ever before, as well as tons and tons of leaked details, images, and tip-offs. By the time a new model arrives, barely anything is a surprise.

The other thing which always happens though, is that interest in a device peaks at launch, then drops off afterwards; people who were interested in a long-rumoured handset will go out and buy it, while everyone else just moves along to "the next big thing", which after a Galaxy S launch is usually Apple's iPhone.

The iPhone 8, for the past 18 months, has been a hot topic of discussion for a lot of people.

This is the phone that will put Apple back on the map, they say. This is the phone that will drive Apple’s next record breaking sales frenzy. The likes of which we haven’t really seen since 2014’s iPhone 6.

Rumours suggest this could be the case too. Big design changes are tipped, as are physical changes to how the iPhone will function – there will be no Home key, apparently.

But mostly I think people are obsessed with this phone for two main reasons: A) it represents the iPhone’s 10th birthday and B) it is the first time Apple has changed the design in three years.

These are two big things. If you’re an Apple fan, a die hard fan, chances are even you will have become at least a little tired of the iPhone 6 design. It’s not a bad design, not by a long shot, but three years of looking at the same phone makes for a pretty dull customer journey.

Both An Apple And An Android User

I don’t feel any real fealty to Android or iOS. I used both platforms and products from each ecosystem. For instance, I have an iMac and a ChromeBook, an iPhone and a Google Pixel XL. I don’t care which I use; I just go where the cool new stuff is.

This is why I am pre-ordering the Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus. It is easily the best-looking, coolest phone I have seen in a good long while. Nothing else on the market comes close. Not the LG G6 and not even the epic Sony Xperia XZ Premium, though I admit the latter isn’t far off it in terms of scope and vision.

Prior to the launch of the Galaxy S8, I’d planned on waiting until Q4 to see what Apple comes up with. But then I saw and experienced the Galaxy S8 and I figured why wait until Q4 when all the good stuff is already here?

The main reason I would get the iPhone 8 is for the new design and its OLED display. I am sure there will be suitably impressive updates to its camera and overall performance which is also very tempting from a user perspective for me personally.

HOWEVER – I don’t see it being THAT much better than the Galaxy S8. A phone which already has fantastic design and the best AMOLED display on the market.

The iPhone 8 might have slight advantages over the S8; things like battery, perhaps, or imaging. But then the S8 will have plenty over the iPhone 8 too, which makes it all very swings and roundabouts. Neither handset will be THAT much better than the other, is what I’m trying to say.

Apple would have to release an iPhone 9-grade phone in order to truly surpass the Galaxy S8 in any real, meaningful way. And that isn’t Apple’s style. It does things in small steps that ensure key updates are left out to keep people wanting.

This has always been the case with iPhones and this approach will not change in 2017/18.

The Samsung Galaxy S8 will also cost less than the iPhone 8. Consumers will be able to pick one up on contract or SIM-free for a lot less than a new iPhone 8.

But the main reason I am getting the Galaxy S8 over the iPhone 8 is that Samsung has essentially beaten Apple to the chase with two of the iPhone 8’s key USPs: a brand new, refreshed design and an ALL-DISPLAY front.

Beyond this things like Bixby and DEX are genuinely interesting additions to the Galaxy S8 lineup and show that Samsung is thinking carefully about ways it can improve the user experience inside its phones and wider ecosystem.

As far as I can tell, the iPhone 8 is just going to look different, feature a display that is already available on the Galaxy S7, and the usual updates to overall spec and performance. And this is all well and good. But I don’t like waiting three years for updates like this. I also don’t like then being charged and excessive premium for it either (the iPhone 8 will cost well over $1000).

What I like is good design, great display technology, plenty of power under the hood and meaningful changes and additions to a phone’s arsenal of services and abilities. Samsung has done all of these things with the Galaxy S8. It has listened to what customers want and delivered the goods in a big way.

And if that wasn’t good enough, if you preorder the Samsung Galaxy S8 via Samsung, it’ll throw in a free GEAR VR headset complete with motion controller worth over $130.