Apple iPhone SE (2022) vs iPhone 8 Plus

Here we compared two smartphones: the 4.7-inch Apple iPhone SE (2022) (with Apple A15 Bionic) that was released on March 8, 2022, against the Apple iPhone 8 Plus, which is powered by Apple A11 Bionic and came out 4 years and 6 months before. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.

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Memory

Key differences

An overview of the main advantages of each smartphone
Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone SE (2022)
  • 2.2x better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (1346K versus 620K)
  • More energy-efficient CPU – Apple A15 Bionic
  • Uses a faster type of memory: LPDDR4X
  • Compatible with Wi-Fi 6 wireless networks
  • Has 33% more RAM: 4GB versus 3GB
  • The phone is 4 years and 6 months newer
  • Better grip in hands – the body is 10.8 mm narrower
  • 2.2x faster in single-core GeekBench 6 test: 2404 and 1092 points
  • Weighs 58 grams less
  • Ready for eSIM technology
Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone 8 Plus
  • Has a 0.8 inch larger screen size
  • The rear camera has a 2x optical zoom
  • 23% higher pixel density (401 vs 326 PPI)

Review

Evaluation of Apple iPhone SE (2022) and iPhone 8 Plus crucial features
Display
Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness
Camera
Photo and video recording quality
Performance
CPU and memory performance (apps, system)
Gaming
Capabilities for playing modern games
Battery
Battery life, charging type and speed
Connectivity
Networks, ports, data transmission
NanoReview Score
Final comparison evaluation
Select your primary usage scenario to get a more accurate NanoReview Score
📱 Primary usage:

Value for money (Beta)

Should I update?
No 50% Yes
Maybe, but mainly if you specifically want better performance.
This is a situational upgrade. It makes the most sense if better performance matters to you.
Main improvements: performance, gaming, and connectivity.
Be aware: the newer phone is weaker in display.

Tests and specifications

Comparison table of technical specifications and tests

Display

Type IPS LCD IPS LCD
Size 4.7 inches 5.5 inches
Resolution 750 x 1334 pixels 1080 x 1920 pixels
Aspect ratio 16:9 16:9
PPI 326 ppi 401 ppi
Refresh rate 60 Hz 60 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No No
Max rated brightness 625 nits 625 nits
HDR support Yes, Dolby Vision No
Screen protection Tempered glass Tempered glass
Screen-to-body ratio 65.3% 67.4%
Display features - DCI-P3 -
Display tests
RGB color space 99.9% 99.9%
PWM - Not detected
Response time 38 ms 32 ms
Contrast 1655:1 1471:1
Screen space comparison
iPhone 8 Plus
5.5″ (16:9 ratio) = 12.9 in2
iPhone SE (2022)
4.7″ (16:9 ratio) = 9.4 in2
~36% more screen space
Peak brightness test (auto)
653 nits
622 nits
Sources: NotebookCheck [3], [4]

Design and build

Height 138.4 mm (5.45 inches) 158.4 mm (6.24 inches)
Width 67.3 mm (2.65 inches) 78.1 mm (3.07 inches)
Thickness 7.3 mm (0.29 inches) 7.5 mm (0.3 inches)
Weight 144 g (5.08 oz) 202 g (7.13 oz)
Waterproof IP67 IP67
Rear material Glass Glass
Frame material Metal Metal
Colors White, Black, Red Silver, Gold, Gray
Fingerprint scanner Yes, in-button Yes, in-button
Screen-to-body ratio

Performance

Chipset specifications of Apple iPhone SE (2022) and Apple iPhone 8 Plus
SoC
Chipset Apple A15 Bionic Apple A11 Bionic
Max clock 3223 MHz 2390 MHz
CPU cores 6 (2 + 4) 6 (2 + 4)
Architecture - 4 cores at 2.02 GHz: Blizzard
- 2 cores at 3.23 GHz: Avalanche
- 4 cores at 1.42 GHz: Mistral
- 2 cores at 2.39 GHz: Monsoon
Manufacturing TSMC TSMC
Lithography process 5 nanometers 10 nanometers
Neural processor (NPU) Apple Neural Engine Apple Neural Engine
GPU
Graphics Apple GPU Apple GPU
GPU shading units 640 192
GPU clock 1338 MHz 1066 MHz
FLOPS ~1712.6 GFLOPS ~409.3 GFLOPS

Benchmarks

Benchmark comparison of Apple iPhone SE (2022) and Apple iPhone 8 Plus
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Compute Score (GPU)
Compute Score (GPU) 17777 -
Single-core score 2404 1092
Multi-core score 6040 2921
Sources: Geekbench [3]
AnTuTu Benchmark 11
1346035
620370
CPU 396583 231598
GPU 363070 106761
Memory 162337 121754
UX 424045 160257
Total score 1346035 620370
Samples [8 tests] Less than 3
3DMark Solar Bay
Stability 75% -
Graphics test 11 FPS -
Section 1 16 FPS -
Section 2 11 FPS -
Section 3 7 FPS -
Graphics score 2969 -
3DMark Wild Life Extreme
Stability 70% 70%
Graphics test 14 FPS 5 FPS
Graphics score 2387 890
Sources: 3DMark [5], [6]

Recent User Tests

The latest benchmark tests that have been submitted by users
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
DateBenchmarkResult
📘 2026-09-18 (Bionic)AnTuTu 111336740
📘 2026-06-19 (Bionic)AnTuTu 111375075
📘 2026-06-14 (Bionic)Geekbench 6 CPU2404 / 6040
📘 2026-06-14 (Bionic)AnTuTu 111362289
📘 2026-03-13 (Mistral)AnTuTu 111342610
Apple iPhone 8 Plus
No benchmark results yet

Memory

RAM
RAM size 4 GB 3 GB
Memory type LPDDR4X LPDDR4
Channels 2 2
Storage
Storage size 64 GB 64 GB
Storage type NVMe NVMe
Memory card No No

Software

Operating system iOS 15.3 (Can be upgraded to iOS 27) iOS 11 (Can be upgraded to iOS 16.5)
OS size 12 GB 6 GB

Battery

Capacity 2018 mAh 2691 mAh
Max charge power 20 W 15 W
Battery type Li-Ion Li-Ion
Replaceable No No
Wireless charging Yes Yes, Qi (7.5 W)
Reverse charging No No
Fast charging Yes (61% in 30 min) Yes (50% in 30 min)
Full charging time 1:18 hr 1:25 hr
Battery life tests
Web browsing 07:07 hr 06:52 hr
Watching video 10:31 hr 10:47 hr
Gaming 03:43 hr 04:11 hr
Standby 87 hr 99 hr
General battery life
17:41 hr
18:45 hr

Main camera

Matrix 12 megapixels 12 megapixels
Image resolution 4032 x 3024 4032 x 3024
Zoom Digital Optical, 2x
Flash Quad LED Quad LED
Stabilization Optical Optical
8K video recording No No
4K video recording Up to 60FPS Up to 60FPS
1080p video recording Up to 60FPS Up to 60FPS
Slow motion 240 FPS (1080p) 240 FPS (1080p)
Lenses 1) Standard: 12 MP
1) Standard: 12 MP
2) Telephoto: 12 MP
Camera features - Bokeh mode
- Pro mode
- Bokeh mode
- Pro mode
- RAW support
Standard lens
Image resolution 12 MP 12 MP
Aperture f/1.8 f/1.8
Focal length - 28 mm
Sensor - Apple iSight Duo Camera
Sensor size - 1/3" (≈ 0.33 inch)
Pixel size 1.22 micron 1.22 micron
Autofocus Phase autofocus Phase autofocus
Stabilization Optical Optical
Telephoto lens
Image resolution - 12 MP
Aperture - f/2.8
Focal length - 57 mm
Stabilization - Digital

DxOMark main camera tests

Photo quality
Video quality
Generic main camera score
Bokeh 50 -
Preview 71 -
Zoom 29 -
Samples Photo samples of Apple iPhone SE (2022) from DxOMark Photo samples of Apple iPhone 8 Plus from DxOMark

Selfie camera

Megapixels 7 megapixels 7 megapixels
Image resolution 3088 x 2320 3088 x 2320
Aperture f/2.2 f/2.2
Focal length - 32 mm
Sensor - BSI CMOS
Pixel size - 1 micron
Autofocus - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel)
Stabilization Digital Digital
Video resolution 1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS 1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS
Depth sensor (TOF 3D) No No

Connectivity

Wi-Fi standard Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 b/g/n/ac)
Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
- Dual Band
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
Bluetooth version 5 5
Bluetooth features LE LE, A2DP
USB type - No
USB version 2 2
USB features - Charging
- USB-Storage mode
- OTG
- Charging
- USB-Storage mode
GPS GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo
NFC* Yes Yes
Infrared port No No
Network
Number of SIM* 1 1
Type of SIM card Nano Nano
Multi SIM mode - Standby
eSIM support* Yes No
Hybrid slot No No
LTE Cat* - 16
5G support Yes No

Sound

Speakers Stereo Stereo
Headphone audio jack No No
FM radio No No
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Speakers test
Max loudness
85.9 dB
80.1 dB

Other

Category Mid-range Flagship
Announced March 2022 September 2017
Release date March 2022 September 2017
Launch price (MSRP) $429 $799
Successor - Apple iPhone 16e -
SAR (head) - 0.94 W/kg
SAR (body) - 0.99 W/kg
Sensors - Barometer
- Proximity sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient light sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint
- Barometer
- Proximity sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient light sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint
Bundled charger Not included -
*Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.

Conclusion

After analyzing all the data, we think that the Apple iPhone SE (2022) is definitely a better buy.

Cast your vote

So, which phone would you choose?
150 (67.6%)
72 (32.4%)
Total votes: 222

User opinions

You can share your opinion or ask a question in the comments below
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Avatar
Capoo February 24, 2025 at 06:05 PM
It's actually crazy that even though the SE 2022 has much less battery capacity, has battery life that nearly as good. I'm not a heavy user, even the 8G model fits my needs, so the SE2022 is definitely an upgrade to me. Plus I like the small sized phones, easy to reach and put into any pocket!
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