Apple iPhone 7 Plus review: The photographer's phone

Editors' note, October 19, 2017: Apple has unveiled a trio of new iPhones. The dramatically redesigned iPhone X, which will becomes available Nov. 3, starts at $999 and comes equipped with Apple's new Super Retina edge-to-edge OLED display; a gesture-based user interface that replaces the home button; and front-facing cameras and facial recognition technology that drive new features like Face ID and Animojis. The company says the iPhone X delivers about as much battery life as the iPhone 7 and adds support for wireless charging, though you'll need a third-party accessory that supports the Qi standard to use it.

In terms of design, the new iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, starting at $699 and $799, are extremely similar to the previous generation iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, reviewed below, which now start at $669 and $549, respectively. The biggest differences are the new models' superior cameras, support for wireless charging and the A11 Bionic processor, which delivers much faster and more efficient performance.

Note that Apple has also taken $100 off the price of the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus; they now start at $449 and $549, respectively. And the iPhone SE now starts at $349 -- $50 less than before.

The original iPhone 7 Plus review, published in September 2016 and updated since then, follows.

Phone cameras are getting really damn good.

Samsung's Galaxy S7, the Google Pixel, and the iPhone 7 all take photos that sometimes border on astonishing. In that sense, the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus aren't as distinctive as phones anymore. They're excellently made, superfast, and this time they're water-resistant, too. They're great phones, but we already knew that about the iPhone.

Apple iPhone 7 Plus makes a good thing even better

When Apple first made the larger Plus phones back in 2014, the appeal was always about screen size, battery life, and to a small extent, the camera. Really, all the larger 5.5-inch model had that the standard 4.7-incher didn't was optical image stabilization (OIS). This year, the iPhone 7 finally gets OIS -- great for smoothing out shaky-handed pics and videos.

That's just one of the many similarities between the 7 and 7 Plus. Really, they're two variants on the same phone:

Top phone cameras compared

The iPhone 7 Plus has a few distinct advantages:

All things iOS 10

After several months trying both phones, I prefer the 7 Plus. But I spend my life on my phone and run around shooting photos and videos for work-related posts. For me, it's an essential tool, and I justify the extra camera quality.

For a lot of others, the Plus will seem unnecessary. Pick the phone that you can afford, and go with battery packs for charge-ups. But I still feel like I miss that headphone jack, even though I honestly don't find many instances anymore where I need it.

Put another way: Everything we like -- and dislike -- about the smaller iPhone 7 applies to the 7 Plus model, too. (Read the iPhone 7 review here.) Just know that you're paying a premium of $120, £120 or AU$190 when you step up to the 7 Plus at each storage capacity. (Yes, the price has crept up a bit from last year.)

But if you like shooting photos with your phone, it's totally worth it.

Editors' note: This review was originally posted in September 2016. It has since been updated with performance charts, battery life, and tests done with iOS 10.1, as well as comparisons to the Google Pixel camera.

It's big, though

Samsung and other manufacturers are doing a far better job folding identical 5.5-inch or larger displays into bodies that feel smaller and better in your hand, like the S7 Edge's. But now with cameras that can truly differentiate it from its smaller sibling, the 7 Plus finally has an easy justification for that jumbo size. It's finally the step-up experience the larger phone needed.

But keep in mind that next year's iPhone may solve the size problem, and fold more screen into a smaller body. You might want to consider holding out and seeing what happens in 2017 with that new design.

How the dual cameras up the ante

I'm not a pro photographer, but I'm trying to get better. James Martin, a senior photographer at CNET, is. He shot with the 7 Plus in the Bay Area, while I took it around and used it for everyday life in New York and New Jersey.

Compare and contrast James' photos from the 7 Plus to 6S Plus to the Samsung Galaxy S7 here.

The dual cameras don't actually zoom, like a point-and-shoot camera with a protruding lens. Instead, the phone switches between the wide-angle camera and the telephoto, from 1 to 2x. From there, the camera app can digitally zoom up to 10x versus 5x on the iPhone 7. For video, it's 6x.

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Digital zoom works better than it used to, but zooming in too far still results in blurry, digitized pics. It can't work miracles. But adding the 2x optical helps frame photos: I found many landscape shots transformed.

I went to the New York Jets' season opener and sat in the cheap seats. And being able to zoom in closer to the game action with less loss of detail was a great change -- all without a big, heavy camera around my neck.

Note, too, that the camera equals the low-light performance of its smaller sibling, which is an improvement over the 6S/6S Plus models. But also note that the Google Pixel's low light capabilities are even better. To compare Pixel vs iPhone 7 Plus, check out this in-depth comparison.

Reflections from a pro

But let's be clear: this phone could be a lot of people's everyday camera, but it's not the same as a pro dSLR, not by a longshot. Apple specifically avoided making claims that it will replace the Canons and Nikons of the world.

Google's Pixel cameras are also incredibly impressive, especially in low light. They also feature astonishingly smooth video stabilization. But the 7 Plus is still among the tops in camera quality. Not head-and-shoulders, perhaps, but up there.

James Martin, who spends his days shooting with just such an SLR, found a lot to like about the 7 Plus's photo chops:

And how did he feel about the 7 Plus compared to the Samsung Galaxy S7 -- arguably the best phone camera of the first half of the year?

Photos taken with the iPhone 7 Plus

The other reasons to go Plus: Portrait mode

The 7 Plus can pull off one unique trick via a special "portrait mode," which takes advantage of both rear lenses to create a blurred-background depth-of-field effect that makes photos of friends or pets look like they were shot on a digital SLR, sort of.

The effect is far better than similar tricks on other phones we've seen, but the effect, which mimics the "bokeh" look in SLR cameras, has limits. You have to have certain lighting, and be a certain distance from your subject. And it frames everything via the closer-up telephoto lens, which means wider-angle shots aren't possible.

The camera keeps the blurred and non-blurred photos so you have options, but I find that the mode's a special tool I don't always use. Portrait mode's in beta right now in .1, meaning it's still a work in progress. But so far, it's far better than a similar feature offered on the Pixel phone, which tries to achieve the same effect from a single lens.

Who knows what else Apple will do with those dual cameras? Other new tricks, perhaps, using depth of field? Augmented reality, maybe? It's always tough to bet on potential, but those dual cameras could be capable of more in future software updates.

The iPhone 7 Plus' 'portrait' mode does background blur better

Battery life: A minor upgrade

The iPhone 7 Plus lasted somewhat longer than the smaller 7 on our video-loop playback test with iOS 10.1, which puts the phone on airplane mode and doesn't necessarily reflect "normal" phone use. It ran for 12 hours and 6 minutes, versus 10 hours 55 minutes from the iPhone 7. But last year's iPhone 6S Plus lasted about the same duration on the same test running iOS 9.

Apple's new A10 processor goes into power-saving modes that are designed to extend battery life better, and on average I found the 7 Plus handled the average work day better than the 6S Plus. But I still need to top off that battery around 4 p.m. each day to be safe.

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Next year's model might unleash bigger things

Apple hasn't entered the VR or AR game yet, and I wouldn't get the iPhone 7 Plus hoping it's the door to that potential world -- get another phone if you want a taste of advanced AR or VR now. But there's a chance that those dual cameras that the 7 Plus boasts could be put to interesting use in the next year or so. I'd say, though, that if you're waiting for a new design and other new features, wait for another iPhone. The iPhone 8 could be that model, based on several rumors.

For now, just know that this camera is better and offers more potential than the iPhone 7. And know that, if you want a great, powerful camera phone, this is it. Samsung and Google (and others) make great camera phones, too. But if the 7 Plus offers the best package Apple's offering right now, and one of the best phones anywhere. I'd pick the Plus over the regular 7.

But could you also wait a year and see what happens next? Yes, you could, and it might not be such a bad idea.

CNET Senior Photographer James Martin contributed to this review.