Click to Skip Ad
Closing in...

Two iPhone 8 battery incidents have already been reported, but don’t call them explosions

Published Sep 29th, 2017 12:20PM EDT
iPhone 8 Battery Explosion
Image: Zach Epstein for BGR

If you buy through a BGR link, we may earn an affiliate commission, helping support our expert product labs.

A couple of reports from Taiwan and Japan bring bad news about the iPhone 8. Apparently, at least two iPhone 8 Plus shipped with damaged batteries that ended up causing the devices to crack open.

Before you ask, no, the batteries did not explode. But they did swell up, which is a safety mechanism meant to prevent actual battery explosions and fires.

It’s unclear what caused the battery to swell up, and accidents do happen with any device powered by a battery, iPhones included. The fact it just happened to brand new iPhone 8 units is obviously a red flag for Apple, which will investigate the incidents.

Image source: iFeng

According to cnBeta, a Taiwanese woman who just purchased a 64GB iPhone 8 Plus charged the device using the original cable and adaptor. After three minutes, she saw the front panel bulge up. Apple is reportedly now in possession of the device for analysis.

Image source: iFeng

A similar case was reported in Japan, where a buyer says the iPhone 8 Plus was shipped with the screen detached:

The only thing inside a smartphone that can push out the display in such a manner is the battery. And the display is the most likely component to be affected by a battery that swells up.

It appears the battery inside the iPhone 8 Plus is made by Amperex Technology Limited (ATL), The Next Web says, citing unconfirmed reports. ATL was one of the two suppliers of faulty Galaxy Note 7 batteries that Samsung threw under the bus in early 2017. However, that shouldn’t be a cause for concern, as long as these are isolated incidents. After all, the Galaxy Note 7 explosions were caused by Samsung’s faulty design, not the companies building the batteries.

Chris Smith Senior Writer

Chris Smith has been covering consumer electronics ever since the iPhone revolutionized the industry in 2008. When he’s not writing about the most recent tech news for BGR, he brings his entertainment expertise to Marvel’s Cinematic Universe and other blockbuster franchises.

Outside of work, you’ll catch him streaming almost every new movie and TV show release as soon as it's available.