Samsung and iPhone flagships will soon compete in AI: we compare Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra and iPhone 16 Pro Max.

On January 22, 2025, Samsung held a scheduled event where the company demonstrated its new line of flagship Galaxy S25 smartphones on large modular screens that formed an exciting stage. The strongest offer is the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra model.

As expected for 2025, most of the presentation focused on the capabilities of artificial intelligence and the functions that use it in one way or another. However, these are not the only updates that the smartphone has received. Therefore, according to the already established tradition of the Fringe editorial board, we will take a closer look at the following and compare the new Samsung flagship with its biggest competitor, the iPhone 16 Pro Max.

Let's start with the appearance. In both cases, we still have glass smartphones with titanium frames. Interestingly, this year's Galaxy S25 Ultra has caught up to the iPhone 16 Pro Max in terms of construction. The previous Korean flagship used grade 2 titanium, and its new version already has grade 5. Just like in the iPhone 16 Pro Max. Globally, of course, the user will not feel this difference, and we will classify the "upgrade" as a Nice-to-Have.

Galaxy S25 Ultra та Galaxy S24 Ultra

The glass panels of Galaxy S25 Ultra are now made of Corning Gorilla Armor 2. Let's not jump to conclusions about how much stronger it is than the previous one, because every year manufacturers promise much stronger protection against drops. Let's leave it to destructive tests. Only then will it be possible to better compare the developments with Apple's Ceramic Shield.

Compared to the Galaxy S24 Ultra, the new model has rounded corners, but this has not affected the dimensions. Therefore, with dimensions of 162.8×77.6×8.2 mm and a weight of 218 grams, the Galaxy S25 Ultra remains lighter and becomes even slightly smaller than the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which measures 163×77.6×8.25 mm and weighs 227 grams. If we add a protective case to each of them, it will be difficult to call both devices comfortable, but that's the price you pay for large displays and flagship features.

The overall design of both devices, as a completely subjective point, is not discussed here. Everyone can choose their own favorite here. Both smartphones have been minimally updated for several years, but in general they are quite close to each other. However, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is also offered in a slightly more compact body than the iPhone 16 Pro, which has the same features (except for a smaller screen and battery). However, Samsung customers who would like a smaller version of the Galaxy S25 Ultra still don't have this option.

Water and dust protection remains unchanged at IP68. However, Samsung's specifications still indicate a depth of immersion of up to 1.5 meters, while the iPhone's is 6 meters. However, it is doubtful that many users would tempt the fate of electronics in such a way (especially since the warranty still does not cover cases of moisture ingress inside the case).

If last fall, the iPhone 16 Pro Max overtook the Galaxy S24 Ultra in display diagonal (and, accordingly, in body height), this time the Galaxy S25 Ultra managed to shrink in some places, while catching up with the diagonal of the competitor's screen. So in both cases, we now have 6.9-inch screens (if for some it is fundamentally more than on paper).

There were no other significant changes in the image. These are still LTPO OLED matrices (Dynamic AMOLED 2X and Super Retina XDR), in which Samsung is slightly superior in resolution (3120×1440 vs. 2868×1320 pixels) and peak brightness (2,600 vs. 2,000 cd/m²). Samsung also has a nice detail with an anti-reflective coating, which proved to be a good idea last year. The Galaxy S25 Ultra also has the Proscaler function, which should improve the image quality of media by 40% compared to the previous generation. But again, this is a software solution.

Samsung's S Pen is also an additional advantage. The number of rumors about iPhone support for some version of the Apple Pencil is not growing, and even the hopes are fading. Meanwhile, Galaxy S25 Ultra continues to use the stylus and leaves room for it in the body.

Last year, the iPhone 16 Pro Max increased the number of microphones and improved sound recording capabilities. Galaxy S25 Ultra responds to this with the Audio Eraser feature. With its help, as demonstrated at the presentation, the smartphone will be able to analyze the sound and reduce background noise of various types, highlighting the voice of the hero in the frame. It will be interesting to hear the comparison.

As for the sound of the speakers, the company did not go into details, so we can assume that the stereo speakers have not been significantly updated. Actually, as was the case with the iPhone 16 Pro Max.

Galaxy S25 Ultra has not updated the biometric identification options either. So the strengths and weaknesses of both competitors remain at the same level. Samsung's flagship has an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor under the screen, which the iPhone 16 Pro Max does not have (the prospect of a button with a scanner last fall turned out to be a camera control). Apple's Face ID, on the other hand, is a more skillful version of face scanning in difficult conditions. 

Just as last year's iPhone 16 Pro Max improved the ultra-wide-angle camera, this year's Galaxy S25 Ultra has made up for lost time. But it did not make a significant difference, so the situation with the cameras is as follows.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra:

• Wide sensor: 200 MP, ƒ/1.7;
• Ultra-wide-angle: 50 MP, ƒ/1.9, 120°;
• Telephoto: 50 MP, ƒ/3.4, 111 mm, 5×;
• Telephoto: 10 MP, ƒ/2.4, 67 mm, 3×.

iPhone 16 Pro Max:

• Wide sensor: 48 MP, ƒ/1,78;
• Ultra-wide-angle: 48 MP, ƒ/2,2, 120°;
• Telephoto: 12 MP, ƒ/2,8, 5×.

At the same time, both smartphones can already record high-bitrate video with professional color correction. The iPhone 16 Pro Max is additionally capable of recording spatial video for playback in Apple Vision Pro, and the Galaxy S25 Ultra allows you to record in 8K.

The resolution of the front cameras is the same - 12 MP, although there is a slight difference in aperture (ƒ/1.9 in iPhone vs. ƒ/2.2 in Galaxy S25 Ultra), which is leveled by software algorithms for image post-processing.

A separate difference is the dedicated capacitive button for camera control in the iPhone 16 Pro Max. Subjectively, it's hard to call this a fundamental advantage. However, this is one of the rather original things that Apple introduced only with the latest iPhone line, and there are no competitive solutions available at the moment.

The platform remains one of the biggest differences between the two. The Galaxy S25 Ultra has updated the chip to a newly customized version of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite and switched to a 3-nm process, just like the Apple A18 Pro a few months ago. RAM and storage options have not changed, with Samsung offering 12GB of RAM versus 8GB in Apple's smartphones, and the storage differing in type (UFS 4.0 versus NVMe, respectively).

OneUI 7 continues to outpace iOS 18 in the number and sometimes quality of AI features. At the moment, Apple continues to gradually add the features announced in the summer, while Samsung, in close cooperation with Google, is still ahead with AI agents, a hybrid of Gemini and Bixby, etc. At the same time, this time the system adds design updates that reduce the difference in certain capabilities of the systems in certain places.

Also, both smartphones have very similar options for wireless modules and additional features like UWB. However, emergency satellite communication remains the prerogative of the iPhone. And while it's far from certain that even in countries that support these capabilities, there are many users who will actually use it, it does provide a certain advantage.

In conclusion, the Galaxy S25 Ultra has not updated its battery, so the old 5,000 mAh remains here, compared to 4,685 mAh in the iPhone 16 Pro Max. At the presentation, Samsung representatives assured that new chips and optimization processes have significantly increased battery life, and it will be interesting to see this in real use. However, this is still one of the subjective issues, which also often depends on the habits and tasks that the owner performs the most. But in fact, these are some of the most durable smartphones with this level of performance, and it's still worth waiting for the first comparative tests before determining the winner.

This year's Galaxy S25 Ultra has also improved its induction charging capabilities with Qi2, increasing the process power to 25 watts. The wired method also leaves the power at 45 watts, and reverse charging at 4.5 watts. With wires, the iPhone 16 Pro Max will be a little easier, but through MagSafe it maintains the same 25 watts as it delivers 4.5 watts in reverse.

And let's not forget about prices... Pre-orders for the Galaxy S25 Ultra have already started in Ukraine, with prices ranging from 63,999 to 75,999 UAH (depending on memory options and excluding current discounts). The iPhone 16 Pro Max costs from UAH 73,999 to UAH 97,999 (and this is also excluding current discounts at the time of this writing). 

Specifications

Summarizing the current trends, Samsung and Apple's flagship smartphones are no longer competing with cooler design solutions or significant changes in hardware, but are moving into the realm of the widest implementation of certain AI functions. And here, Samsung is really ahead, while Apple was almost the last to jump on the bandwagon and has not yet "taken a seat." 

But on the other hand, for users who have long been accustomed to using ChatGPT (or other similar options) directly and don't spend a lot of time generating children's animations, the recent presentations of both the iPhone 16 Pro and Galaxy S25 line have hardly caused much excitement or a desire to "urgently" upgrade their smartphone (especially for owners of previous or at least older models).

Perhaps there will be much more excitement about truly new models in both lines, because Samsung has already announced the S25 Edge, and there are many rumors about the iPhone 17 Air around Apple. Moreover, the time for more dramatic external changes is already approaching, which will at least for a while give the feeling of something new with the next flagships. In the meantime, we can only watch the classic iterative updates and sometimes funny bugs of AI built into operating systems.