Originally there were two reports claiming that the iPhone 8 Plus, which was made available to the public on 22 September, had began to split at the sides when charging. According to Taiwanese media, a woman purchased a £799 64GB rose gold iPhone 8 Plus and had used it for five days before it had unexpectedly cracked open. Ms. Wu was charging her device with an Apple-issued charger; however, after approximately three minutes charging, the front panel swelled up and completely lifted from the device.
The phone was allegedly collected by the carrier and shipped to Apple, who according to the The Independent was investigating the two reports. Apple declined to comment further on the incident. Another Japanese consumer reported having received his iPhone 8 Plus in a similar state, as it arrived in delivery with a partially detached screen.
Now another seven cases have been reported in Taiwan, Japan, Canada, Greece and elsewhere, suggesting the problem is not limited to a faulty batch.
Should you buy the iPhone 8 anyway?
If you’ve already purchased an iPhone 8 Plus or are interested in purchasing one, don’t feel the need to rethink your decision. The reports of faulty devices are mixed across Taiwanese and Chinese media. It’s likely that the two malfunctions are unique to their owners particular devices and not indicative of a trend for the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus. The iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus also had reports of exploding devices, yet millions of units were sold, functioning without issue – well, an exploding battery issue. There are, however, wa ys to avoid and prevent failures, explosions or fires of any electronic device you may own, such as using the correct charger and avoiding direct sunlight, among others. In the meantime, we’ll be on the lookout for updates regarding iPhone 8 Plus battery malfunction.
