Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra vs iPhone 16 Pro Max: the world’s most interesting phones

intro

This is another year-long chapter in the never-ending Samsung vs. Apple saga, with both companies doing their best to brawl.

design and size

Changes on both sides

We generally expect the following galaxy s25 ultra The design language is largely the same, with a large titanium frame sandwiched between the front and back glass.

This brings consistency to Galaxy’s design language, but also galaxy s25 ultra As it tries to fit in with its younger brothers, it loses some of its unique style.

Luckily, you’ll still get some of the signature features like the big, beautiful display and integrated S Pen. of galaxy s25 ultra It doesn’t seem to have any custom buttons other than the standard volume rocker and power button, so there’s nothing too flashy about it.

on the other hand, iPhone 16 Pro Max It also has its own pretty decent design upgrades. Apple has not only minimized the bezels compared to the previous generation, but also increased the screen size from 6.7 inches to 6.9 inches. At the same time, the titanium body iPhone 16 Pro Max Since it has only grown a little, win win wina three-win situation.

Other than the slightly larger screen and thinner bezels, iPhone 16 Pro Max It uses an older design language that is widely known. If you’ve seen an iPhone Pro Max before, you’ve seen basically every iPhone Pro Max.

about new things iPhone 16 Pro Max An all-new multi-function button on the right side of your phone. This new button, called Camera Control, allows you to control your iPhone’s camera without touching the display on the phone itself. This is a fine addition to the iPhone formula, but it’s not what I’d call “essential.” On the contrary, you’ll either love or hate the camera control buttons.

Other classic features like customizable action buttons and a dynamic island screen notch are also available here again.

Difference in display

No major changes galaxy s25 ultra Looking forward to the screen style!

So this phone has a 6.8-inch screen with a smooth 1-120Hz refresh rate, great HDR support, high peak brightness, and most importantly, the same anti-reflective screen coating that debuted on smartphones. It is almost certain that it will have a dynamic AMOLED 2X screen. galaxy s24 ultra. The latter is probably one of our favorite new features of 2024, as it largely eliminates reflections.

As I mentioned earlier, iPhone 16 Pro Max The display size has increased to 6.9 inches, which is unusual for regular iPhones. However, that jump isn’t all that great, just 0.2 inches compared to most previous Pro Max devices.

As for the rest of the specs, it still has a 120Hz ProMotion display that not only offers a smooth experience but also now features the signature dynamic island punch-hole.

One area where the two differ is in peak brightness. of galaxy s25 ultra Definitely reaches higher maximum brightness nits. galaxy s24 ultra already won iPhone 16 Pro Max At this time, we do not expect Samsung to be downgraded.

Another thing in Galaxy’s favor might be an anti-reflective coating that increases visibility. of iPhone 16 Pro Max There are no new ways to handle reflections.

Performance and software

more power than we can handle

of galaxy s25 ultra It will definitely pack Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 inside. Certainly, there was talk that MediaTek might enter the market, but at this point, it’s highly unlikely that Samsung and Qualcomm will part ways.

of iPhone 16 Pro Max It is equipped with the latest Apple 3nm chip, A18 Pro. This is a very capable chip, as you’d expect from Apple. inside of iPhone 16 Pro Max Redesigned to improve thermal management and eliminate excess heat.

When it comes to memory, Apple had to resort to putting 8GB of RAM in the memory. iPhone 16 Pro Max Because of artificial intelligence. of galaxy s25 ultra You’ll probably start with 12GB of RAM. In terms of storage, both devices share the same version (256GB, 512GB, 1TB).

camera

Samsung is likely to come out on top

Don’t expect big changes galaxy s25 ultraSince the camera settings are galaxy s24 ultra Settings that will be inherited. Of course, Samsung may apply a number of software enhancements and algorithm improvements, so image quality may improve slightly without making major changes to the hardware.

What we expect is galaxy s25 ultra It comes with a 200MP main, a 50MP telephoto with 5X optical zoom, an auxiliary 10MP telephoto with 3X optical zoom, and finally a 12MP ultrawide camera. Judging by this, it’s a very versatile and capable setup. galaxy s24 ultracamera performance.

on the other hand, iPhone 16 Pro Max It comes with a 48MP main camera and a 12MP telephoto camera with 5X optical zoom. The 12MP ultrawide that normally comes with the iPhone replaces the 48MP ultrawide camera, but the jump in image quality is only marginal.

What’s new in iPhone 16 Pro Max is an enhanced photo style that lets you fine-tune the look of your photos by giving you more control over tone, undertone, contrast, and more.

The new camera control buttons are also an important addition to the iPhone mix, but they’re not groundbreaking. Although useful in certain scenarios, it takes some getting used to. Nor can its position be called ergonomic.

Still, overall, iPhone 16 Pro Max The performance is very good, but it is worth noting that we lost to it. galaxy s24 ultra PhoneArena Camera Score Test. We can only hope that Samsung brings things back to 11 and comes out on top again.

Battery life and charging

Will the iPhone win?

of galaxy s25 ultra Like most of its predecessors, it will be powered by a 5,000mAh battery. This is the high end of Samsung’s flagships these days, and probably the most you’ll get in these form factors for the foreseeable future. Still, it’s powered by a faster and more efficient Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 chip. galaxy s25 ultra.

at the same time, iPhone 16 Pro Max In fact, it comes with a massive 4,685mAh battery, the largest battery ever on an iPhone. iPhone performed well in custom battery tests; galaxy s24 ultra It passed in our web browsing and video streaming tests, but lost in our 3D gaming tests. we, galaxy s25 ultra We will do our best to fill that gap.

As for charging, it’s highly doubtful that Samsung will move away from the 45W wired charging it’s been offering for the past few years. It’s not terribly slow, but it’s not mind-bogglingly fast either. of galaxy s25 ultra It will likely come with Fast Wireless Charging 2.0, but it may still be limited to 15W.

Spec comparison

summary

Which will be better in the end? This is still to come. The Galayx S25 Ultra may outperform the iPhone in overall camera performance, but Apple’s flagship may still have an edge in overall performance and battery life.

Objectively, both phones are, or most certainly will be, the best in their respective ecosystems, so we’re in for a tough showdown.