WASHINGTON (Washington Post) - Apple confirmed it is looking into two reports that two people's iPhone 8 Plus phones split open shortly after buying them.

The reports - one in Taiwan, one in Japan - made the rounds on social media earlier this week, showing images of smartphones in which the screen had separated from the rest of the phone.

As Next Web reported, the user in Taiwan said that her phone had started to split while the phone was charging.

The user in Japan, according to Mashable, said the phone was already split when he opened the box.

Neither iPhone owner reported any sign that an explosion or fire caused the phones to break apart. That indicates this is likely not a problem similar to what Samsung faced with the Galaxy Note 7, which had to be recalled due to battery issues.

Samsung confirmed at least 35 cases of violent explosions before it launched its worldwide recall.

There have been no reports of similar incidents in the United States.

Apple confirmed in a statement that it was aware of the problem and looking into it, but declined to give any more information.

These are the only two reports that have surfaced since the phone went on sale on Sept 22.

The company has not said how many phones have been shipped, but analysts have put combined shipment numbers for the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus at between 16 million and 18 million units overall for the first weekend on sale.