OnePlus 8 battery life testing complete: excellent all around, 90Hz vs 60Hz results
UPDATE: Our full OnePlus 8 review has been published.
We have been using the new OnePlus 8 in the past week and our battery test is now complete. And good news is that the phone performs very well across all of our battery tests and most importantly, using it in the higher refresh rate 90Hz mode is not a huge drain on the battery.
The OnePlus 8 battery capacity is 4300 mAh, a big improvement over the 3800 mAh battery cell on the OnePlus 7T from last year.
Let's take a look at the detailed battery life results for the OnePlus 8 below.
Disclaimer: All of the phones are tested at the same brightness level to ensure an equal playing field.
Browsing Test: 60Hz vs 90Hz
All values in hours and minutes
First and most interesting, we start with our browsing test. We have run it a few times to ensure the results are right and it reveals something interesting: unlike the Galaxy S20 series (we have tested the Exynos models), using the OnePlus 8 in the higher refresh rate mode is not a huge drain on the battery. There is a difference, though.
When simulating browsing in the 60Hz mode, the OnePlus 8 battery life stood at 12 hours and 15 minutes. When we performed the same test with the 90Hz option enabled, the battery score dropped to 11 hours and 9 minutes. Battery testing is not quite an exact science, so there is a margin of error of a few minutes, but still, we can quite confidently say that when using the phone in 90Hz, battery life decreases by less than 10%.
Contrast this with the Galaxy S20 series that use an even higher refresh rate, 120Hz, yet still battery life drops by 20% to 25% on the Galaxy S20 Ultra in that mode, and by more than 30% on the S20 and S20+.
You can also see the battery life on the popular iPhone 11 series in the chart. Those phones only run at 60 Hertz, and don't have a higher refresh rate option.
YouTube Video Streaming
All values in hours and minutes
Next up, we test the OnePlus 8 battery life when streaming YouTube videos, something that so many people do.
This is a different kind of a load than just browsing the web.
How does it perform in this test? It's an improvement over the OnePlus 7T. The OnePlus 8 scored 9 hours and 37 minutes of continuous YouTube video playback, compared to 8 hours and 32 minutes under the same conditions on the OnePlus 7T.
In fact, the OnePlus 7T beats the iPhone 11 Pro Max in this test, but falls about an hour short of the Galaxy S20 Ultra.
3D Gaming
All values in hours and minutes
Finally, we test battery life when using the phone for 3D Gaming. We use some of the most demanding games out there, the type of Asphalt, Call of Duty, Minecraft and so on, but we don't play them at maximum intensity.
How does the OnePlus 8 battery perform for gaming?
Well, quite amazing actually! The phone scored the highest of all 2020 flagships that we have tested so far with a score of 10 hours and 16 minutes. In this test, it beats the iPhone 11 Pro Max and it also beats the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra. Good showing!
Final Words
While you have the OnePlus 8 Pro with its 120Hz screen and better camera, the OnePlus 8 is the phone that strikes the best balance between value and features. It's a wickedly fast phone, and now we know that its battery life is also rock solid.
Meanwhile, don't hesitate to let us know your experience with the OnePlus 8 and its battery life in the comments below.
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