iPhone Xs Max or Samsung Galaxy S10+: Which is the Better Phablet?

The battle of the brands continues as one giant tech takes on another in a head-on competition. With Samsung’s latest launch of their flagship S10 series, their S10+ is Apple’s biggest competitor yet. And the odds aren’t looking all too great for the Cupertino-based company. So, let’s compare and see what the iPhone Xs MAX versus Samsung Galaxy S10+ clash is about.

Price Range: At What Cost?

iPhone Xs MAX is available in three different price ranges based on their storage space. The lowest one with 64GB is priced at 1,09,900 INR, and 1,24,900 INR for the 256GB model. The highest rated model with 512GB costs 1,44,900 INR.

Now, S10+ also has three variants. The difference, however, is that the lowest storage space in this one begins with 128GB and it only costs 73,900 INR and one with 512GB at 91,900 INR. The most expensive model in this series boasts of an impressive 1TB storage and at just 1,17,900 INR.

Design and Display: Looks Do Matter

S10+ has quite the good looks. The new ‘Infinity-O’ display sports a new Curved Dynamic AMOLED display type. The 6.4-inch screen with Quad HD+ resolution has an HDR10+ with an ultrasonic in-display fingerprint sensor which unlocks the device by reading a 3D image of the thumbprint. The triple rear cameras are aligned horizontally at the back, and the phone still offers a 3.5mm jack.

iPhone Xs MAX offers a bigger screen with its 6.5 inch OLED True Tone HDR. The dual cameras are aligned vertically and use Face ID for unlocking, boasting the TrueDepth camera for facial recognition. There’s no home button, although it has retained the notch display.

Both phones have a glass and metal design with and an IP68 rating for water and dust resistance.

Camera: Picture Perfect?

This is probably the biggest factor in the fight for the title of the best smartphone. While both smartphones support OIS on all their rear camera sensors, that’s probably all that they share in common.

iPhones have always been known for their superior picture quality, and Xs MAX didn’t disappoint with its camera. It has dual 12 MP cameras – a wide-angle lens and a telephoto lens. The Smart HDR mode allows more accurate photos, colour representation, and also offers five effects in the Portrait Lighting mode. With Apple’s exceptional ‘computational photography,’ the user can tweak the ‘bokeh’ effect or background blur after having taken a picture. The powerful camera can shoot up to 4k videos, and it also supports stereo sound recording during a video recording. The front-facing camera is 7MP and can record 1080p Full HD videos.

But, the Galaxy S10+ has one-upped its competitor in their own game. This phone has triple rear cameras – a 12MP telephoto sensor, 12MP wide-angle Dual Pixel AF and a 16MP 123-degree ultra-wide lens. You can also shoot videos in HDR10+ mode, and the OIS ensures stable videos. On the front, this phone offers a 10MP Dual Pixel primary camera and a depth-sensing secondary RGB camera with 8MP resolution. Both the front and rear cameras can shoot in UHD, and can also shoot super slow-motion videos.

Performance, RAM, and Storage: The real deal

With S10+, Samsung has released their first phone with 1TB storage. The other options are 128GB and 512GB available in both 8GB and 12GB RAM. This model also supports expandable storage via microSD. Powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor, this phone has an octa-core processor and a dedicated Neural Processing Unit (NPU) for improved camera and AI related tasks.

iPhone Xs MAX is available in 4GB RAM with three options as well – 64GB, 256GB, and 512GB. It is powered by A12 Bionic chip with eight-core architecture which is faster and more power efficient. Machine learning and heavy-duty Artificial Intelligence (AI) tasks are also made easy with the new Neural Engine.

It does not, however, support expandable storage space but offers the dual-SIM feature. But again, the secondary SIM support isn’t for a physical SIM, but an e-SIM.

Battery: How long does it last?

There’s no official data on the battery capacity on iPhones, so there’s no definite answer to this. However, it does support wireless charging and is compatible with Qi chargers. Fast charging is also available via an 18W adapter.

In comparison, S10+ has a 4,100 mAh battery and also supports fast charging on both wired and wireless options. It is also compatible with Qi chargers and can also simultaneously charge along with a compatible device when plugged to a regular charger.

So, there you have it. We’ve laid bare all the important specifications of both the phones and it’s not difficult to see why S10+ is doing so well against Xs MAX. Now, the question is, will Apple launch something new soon to beat their competition and reclaim their title as the best maker of premium smartphones?