Apple and Google have both opted to use glass panels on the back of their latest flagship smartphones, iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, and Pixel 2 and 2 XL, respectively.
PhoneBuff has decided to pit the Google Pixel 2 XL to the iPhone 8 Plus against one another in a brutal new drop test.
Both flagship smartphones retail for the same £799 price tag.
Accidental real-life drops might show a different result, but PhoneBuff does it’s best to replicate real-world results.
The team uses a professional drop test machine, which drops the two flagship handsets on their backs onto concrete.
The Google Pixel 2 XL and iPhone 8 Plus’ screens survive the initial drop, however the latter’s back immediately shatters.
Pixel 2 XL owners will no doubt be pleased to see the small glass shade and rear-facing camera survive the drop.
“The only real damage to the Pixel are a few small scratches on the aluminium at the bottom, and compared to the iPhone 8’s result – the Pixel easily gets the win,” PhoneBuff concludes at the end of the test.
Apple touts that its new iPhone 8 range sports the “most durable glass ever in an iPhone”. Unfortunately, it doesn’t hold up all that well in the drop test.
The iPhone 8 fares a little better in the face drop test.
Although the screen cracks, it doesn’t sustain anywhere near the amount of damage as the Pixel 2 XL, which spews glass from the top of the display – ruining the front-facing camera.
PhoneBuff tests the Pixel 2 XL to destruction, dropping it a further five times, at which point the touch response is so abysmal it can’t even be used to call the emergency services on 911. iPhone 8 Plus survived eight drops in the same round.
The drop test video follows the news that US reviews magazine, Consumer Reports, recommends the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S7 over the latest Apple iPhone.
The renown non-profit organisation believes Samsung’s flagship smartphones are a better offering to consumers – even those produced 18 months before the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus.
Consumer Reports awarded the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ scores of 81 out of a possible 100, topping the iPhone 8, which scored 80 under the same criteria.
Despite receiving the same score, Consumer Reports actively recommends customers purchase the Samsung Galaxy S7 over the latest Apple handsets.
It believes the Galaxy S8 – and its predecessor – are a better offering to consumers than iPhone 8.
Apple unveiled the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus at an exclusive media event last month.
The next smartphones boast improved cameras, including the new Portrait Lighting mode exclusive to the 8 Plus, as well as True Tone display, and faster A11 Bionic processor.
Apple hasn’t released sales numbers for the iPhone 8, something the Cupertino company has previously done following the first weekend of pre-orders.
However, customers were still able to buy an iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus ready for pick-up on launch day the week of the release – a phenomenon that hadn’t been seen in previous years.
The fact that Consumer Reports prefers not only the iPhone 8’s biggest competitor this year – but a smartphone launched in March 2016, is extremely bad news for Apple.