Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra has launched a powerful flagship device from Samsung. The Galaxy S25 Ultra and iPhone 16 Pro Max are strong competitors in their segment. The 6.9-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2x display on the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra offers a great viewing and usage experience. iPhone 16 Pro Max also has a 6.9-inch LTPO Super Retina XDR OLED display.
S25 Ultra is known for its powerful processor and advanced AI-based features, and iPhone 16 Pro Max also holds its strong position. This article compares the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra and iPhone 16 Pro Max. The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra launched in India on February 7, 2025, and the iPhone 16 Pro Max on September 20, 2024.
The design, performance, and functionality of both smartphones are at the top level in their segment. Let's understand the difference between these two and which one is the right choice.
Design
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra Design
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra features a great design, with a matte glass finish and a Titanium Armor frame with curved edges. The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra ditches the plush and professional design specifications and brings a slightly new design. This new combination feels more coherent, and in short, like an integral part of the range. The S25 Ultra has a great, attractive display when using the integrated S Pen feature.
The Galaxy S25 Ultra gets volume buttons and a power button, and no custom buttons. But this time around, the bezels have been thinned out, which has resulted in a larger screen size. The screen has been increased from 6.8 inches to 6.9 inches, and it has been rated IP68 for water resistance.
The new design looks sleek, modern, and offers a premium feel in the hand. Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is available in different colors such as titanium silver, titanium blue, titanium white, titanium black, and Titanium Grey, etc.
Iphone 16 Pro Max Design
Apple has also made some good design upgrades in the 16 Pro Max. The bezels have been reduced in the iPhone 16 Pro, and the screen size has also been increased from 6.7 inches to 6.9 inches. But even this time, the iPhone 16 Pro Max also gets the old design. This time, a new multi-function button has been added to the right side of the iPhone 16 Pro Max. In this, users can take photos and videos with the iPhone's camera without touching the phone's display.
This new camera control button is a new feature in the iPhone formula. Features like customizable action buttons and dynamic island screen notch are still available in the 16 Pro Max. The iPhone 16 Pro Max comes with desert titanium, natural Titanium, Black Titanium, and white titanium colours.
Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is made smaller and thinner in size, and the iPhone is slightly larger than the Samsung. The weight of the S25 Ultra is slightly lighter than that of the iPhone. Samsung has offered a bigger and more futuristic design, but the iPhone still focuses on symmetry and robustness. The Samsung is more compact to hold, and the iPhone is only slightly thicker, which is a big win for Samsung.
Display
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra Display
Samsung has consistently taken the lead in display innovation. The S25 Ultra has a QHD+ dynamic AMOLED 2x panel, which has a screen size of 6.8 to 6.9 inches. The Galaxy S25 Ultra has support for 3000 nits of peak brightness to make the screen brighter. Its screen refresh rate is 120 Hz, which provides a smooth experience.
Users are happy to see a brighter smartphone display. The new Galaxy S25 Ultra comes with an anti-reflective coating display for easier readability. This time, the screen size is 6.9 inches, which is a small but significant increase in the size of the previous display.
The display of the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra features a fast and accurate ultrasonic fingerprint scanner embedded in it. Along with this, picture-based face unlock is also provided, in which the phone can be unlocked instantly.
IPhone 16 Pro Max Display
Apple's 16 Pro Max has a 6.7-inch LTPO Super Retina XDR OLED display, a refresh rate of 120 Hz, and a peak brightness of 2500 nits. The display size of the new iPhone 16 Pro Max has been increased to 6.9 inches, which is a good initiative for the iPhone. The display specification has a 120Hz ProMotion XDR OLED display, which provides a smooth experience.
This new device also gets the signature dynamic island punch-hole. The 16 Pro Max supports Dolby Vision and also has an excellent color calibration. On the other hand, the iPhone 16 Pro Max comes with a standard Face ID biometric solution, which is fast, accurate, and convenient.
Verdict
Samsung's S25 Ultra has a great display compared to the iPhone. It also has a sleek and large display, which Samsung wins.
Performance
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra Performance
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra gets the latest and fastest Snapdragon 3nm chipset, Snapdragon 8 Elite. The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra gets Android 15 with One UI 7, has up to 16GB of RAM, and UFS 4.0 storage. It plays an ideal role for gaming, multitasking, and AI-powered tasks. According to information from Samsung, the Snapdragon 8 Elite offers 37% faster CPU performance, 30% better graphics performance, and 40% faster NPU.
Due to the speed of this processor, AI calculations on the device are much better. Having a powerful processor will increase the performance so much that it will definitely affect the thermal management of the phone. Seeing this problem, Samsung has also thought about it.
The S25 ultra's 40% larger vapor chamber assists in reducing heat. All storage variants of the Galaxy S25 Ultra come with 12GB of RAM and come in 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB memory options.
Iphone 16 Pro Max Performance
Apple has given the A18 Pro Bionic processor with 8GB unified memory in the iPhone 16 Pro Max. This ensures stable performance in tight integration between processor hardware and software. Especially, a creative workflow provides stable performance.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max features the latest 3nm chip powered by the A18 Pro, which is a very capable chip. It delivers the best performance we have come to expect from Apple. Apple has redesigned the insides to improve thermal management and dissipate excess heat.
Apple has given 8GB of RAM in the iPhone 16 Pro Max due to the increased hardware requirements of artificial intelligence. Apple is going to bring iOS 26 in its upcoming new iOS version update. The iPhone 16 Pro Max will be updated to iOS 26, and it will have a new liquid glass visual style. This is a really big change from Apple.
Verdict
The iPhone 16 Pro Max delivers excellent results in single-core tasks and efficiency. Samsung leads in the High test. The S25 Ultra leads in multitasking and graphics-intensive use. Samsung shows a faster initial performance and delivers noticeably better results.
Camera
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra Camera
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra has a 200MP+ 50MP+ 50MP+ 10MP camera setup. The device has provided four cameras: a 200-MP main camera, a 50-MP ultrawide-angle lens, a 50-MP telephoto lens that supports 5x optical zoom, and a 10-MP telephoto lens that supports 3x optical zoom. Samsung has integrated a new ProVisual Engine with this chipset, which offers improved image-processing algorithms.
It now supports HDR video-recording from 8 bits to 10 bits, delivering better color and wider dynamic range. Galaxy Log Capture enables extensive post-processing capabilities for a flexible video-recording experience on the S25 Ultra. The new AI feature Audio Eraser uses on-device AI to isolate or improve six different types of audio sounds in videos, music, wind, nature, crowd, and noise.
The Galaxy S25 Ultra's main camera offers better exposure and improved dynamic range. Unlike previous Galaxies, there is no excessive sharpening in the new phone, which is a good thing. Samsung S25 Ultra delivers sharper and better details at 3X telephoto. Samsung also delivers accurate exposure with clean details and better dynamic range at its 5X zoom lens level.
But Galaxy S25 Ultra delivers slightly more saturated and eye-pleasing results than iPhone 16 Pro Max. Galaxy S25 Ultra works its magic in low light, delivering better exposure and dynamics. The excellent selfie camera detail on Galaxy S25 Ultra results in more natural and eye-pleasing photos.
IPhone 16 Pro Max Camera
Apple has offered three cameras in the iPhone 16 Pro Max. These include a 48-megapixel main camera, a 48-megapixel ultrawide camera, and a 12-megapixel telephoto camera. Its telephoto lens sports a 5x optical zoom. This time, the iPhones have a 48MP instead of a 12MP ultrawide, which has brought a slight change in image quality.
Apple has added a new feature called Better Photographic Styles to the iPhone 16 Pro Max. With the help of this feature, better control is available over tone, undertone, contrast, etc. All these allow for improving the look of the pictures. A new camera control button has also been added to the iPhone, which is an important change.
The new control button of the iPhone is useful in certain situations. But considering some circumstances, it cannot be called very comfortable either. The main camera of the iPhone offers better dynamics, which highlights the shadows more. The performance of the iPhone 16 Pro Max is very good; it gives a great photo experience.
iPhone offers more sharpness in the corners of the scene with its Periscope camera, and performs well in both exposure and colour. The iPhone's camera struggles in low light, which only gives a little better results. iPhone's selfie camera also does a better job with dynamics. For its part, iPhone performs well in selfies.
Verdict
Both phones have great cameras, but the Galaxy S25 Ultra gives slightly better results. The iPhone also offers great results and better AR support. But Samsung offers slightly more detailed footage, better dynamics, and the opportunity to use the zoom camera. Both mobiles give excellent results in video quality.
AI Features
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra AI features
Samsung has added a large stock of Galaxy AI features to the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra. The first feature is Gemini-powered cross-app actions. In which you can give the AI a single command to let it perform tasks in multiple apps. For example, you can ask it to get a schedule of a favorite task and automatically add it to your calendar. This feature applies to all apps installed on the phone, whether the app is native or third-party.
The second is the latest Now Brief, which contains a summary of daily activities that change depending on the time of day and other factors. It features a Now bar at the bottom of the lock screen, where you can quickly access live activities, charging statistics, media controls, and mini widgets.
Google's "circle to search" feature has improved with the Samsung Galaxy AI to give you relevant options based on what you interact with. In this, by doing a circle search on anything, you can get information about it through Google.
Iphone 16 Pro Max AI features
Apple Intelligence arrived in 2024, and the iPhone 16 Pro Max also has AI-powered features. All the AI features in the iPhone are mainly powered by the new A18 Pro chip and Apple Intelligence. Its AI includes advanced camera capabilities, improved Siri functionality, and intelligent writing tools, etc.
Apple Intelligence gets advanced photo editing capabilities, which help to find and edit photos with precision with the help of natural language searches. New action capabilities have also been added to Siri, in which users can easily perform complex tasks, for example, finding specific photos or applying edits to images.
Siri has new action capabilities and a deeper understanding of the user context, making interaction much easier.
Verdict
The AI features in the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra benefit customization and productivity. Samsung remains at the forefront in all these. If we talk about Apple Intelligence, then Apple remains at the forefront in app integration and privacy.
Battery and charging
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra Battery
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra runs on a large 5,000 mAh battery. The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra charges in 1 hour 9 minutes, and the iPhone 16 Pro Max charges in 1 hour 42 minutes. The Galaxy S25 Ultra charges 30 minutes faster, which is a great thing for it. But both take two hours to charge the phone with wireless charging. The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra offers 45-watt wired charging, along with 15-watt wireless charging support.
iPhone 16 Pro Max Battery
Apple also performs well in custom battery tests with the largest battery of 4,685 mAh in its iPhone 16 Pro Max. It gives great results in web browsing and video streaming tests. In the iPhone 16 Pro Max, 20W wired charging takes up to 1 hour and 42 minutes to fully charge the device's battery.
Verdict
Samsung uses a larger battery than the iPhone, with charging support also getting better. So with a bigger battery and faster charging, Samsung is ahead of the iPhone.
Final Verdict
Apple's iPhone 16 Pro Max and Samsung's Galaxy S25 Ultra are among the best phones in their segments. Samsung offers a great processor, advanced hardware, a bigger battery, faster charging, and productivity features like the S Pen in its Galaxy S25 Ultra. On the other hand, Apple has offered better performance, seamless iOS integration, and advanced AR tools in the 16 Pro Max.
In camera performance, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra has a slightly better camera than the iPhone 16 Pro Max. The speed and battery power of the Galaxy S25 Ultra are similar to those of the iPhone 16 Pro Max. The design of both phones makes it difficult to choose between the two. The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is one of the best Android phones, and if you like Apple, then the iPhone 16 Pro Max is the best option for you.
Both phones are great, and choosing one will depend on personal preference and Ecosystem attachment. When it comes to choosing a mobile, it will depend on particular usage. If you like the convenience of Android and pro-level tools. Also, if great camera and AI features are your priority, then you can go for the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra. Besides, if Apple's consistent ecosystem and great interface is your first choice, then iPhone 16 Pro Max is better for you.
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