Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus vs Apple iPhone XS

65 out of 100

57 out of 100

Here we compared two flagship smartphones: the 6.8-inch Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus (with Exynos 9 Octa 9825) that was released on August 7, 2019, against the Apple iPhone XS, which is powered by Apple A12 Bionic and came out 11 months before. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.

Differences
Review
Specs
Benchmarks
Battery life
Camera
Comments

Key differences

An overview of the main advantages of each smartphone

Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus

Has 3x more RAM: 12GB versus 4GB
Comes with 1642 mAh larger battery capacity: 4300 vs 2658 mAh
Has a 1 inch larger screen size
Modern USB Type-C port
Shows 21% longer battery life (27:35 vs 22:46 hours)
Expandable storage via MicroSD card up to 1000GB
Thinner bezels – 9.49% more screen real estate
Supports higher wattage charging (45W versus 15W)
Fingerprint scanner
Slow-motion recording at 960FPS
Compatible with Wi-Fi 6 wireless networks
Delivers 24% higher peak brightness (798 against 641 nits)
Has an ultra-wide angle camera lens

Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone XS

Apple releases software updates and supports their phones a few years longer than Samsung
35% faster in single-core GeekBench 6 test: 1310 and 967 points
Better grip in hands – the body is 6.3 mm narrower
Weighs 19 grams less
Ready for eSIM technology

Review

Evaluation of Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus and Apple iPhone XS crucial features

Display

Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness

Type	Super AMOLED	OLED
Size	6.8 inches	5.8 inches
Resolution	1440 x 3040 pixels	1125 x 2436 pixels
Aspect ratio	19:9	19.5:9
PPI	495 ppi	458 ppi
Refresh rate	60 Hz	60 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate	No	No
Max rated brightness	700 nits	625 nits
HDR support	Yes, HDR10+	Yes, Dolby Vision
Screen protection	Corning Gorilla Glass 6	Tempered glass
Screen-to-body ratio	92.39%	82.9%
Display features	- DCI-P3 - Always-On Display	- DCI-P3

RGB color space	95.4%	98.8%
PWM	250 Hz	240 Hz
Response time	3.6 ms	4.4 ms
Contrast	∞ Infinity	∞ Infinity

Height	162.3 mm (6.39 inches)	143.6 mm (5.65 inches)
Width	77.2 mm (3.04 inches)	70.9 mm (2.79 inches)
Thickness	7.9 mm (0.31 inches)	7.7 mm (0.3 inches)
Weight	196 g (6.91 oz)	177 g (6.24 oz)
Waterproof	IP68	IP68
Rear material	Glass	Glass
Frame material	Metal	Metal
Colors	White, Black, Red	Silver, Gold, Gray
Fingerprint scanner	Yes, in-display	No

Chipset	Samsung Exynos 9 Octa 9825	Apple A12 Bionic
Max clock	2730 MHz	2490 MHz
CPU cores	8 (2 + 2 + 4)	6 (2 + 4)
Architecture	- 4 cores at 1.95 GHz: Cortex-A55 - 2 cores at 2.4 GHz: Cortex-A75 - 2 cores at 2.73 GHz: M4	- 4 cores at 1.6 GHz: Tempest - 2 cores at 2.49 GHz: Vortex
Lithography process	7 nanometers	7 nanometers
Graphics	Mali-G76 MP12	Apple A12 GPU
GPU shading units	432	256
GPU clock	770 MHz	1100 MHz
FLOPS	~651.5 GFLOPS	~576 GFLOPS

CPU	182103	151927
GPU	170400	141208
Memory	120562	104587
UX	143370	200467
Total score	618715	600311

Max surface temperature	38.8 °C	44.8 °C
Stability	97%	63%
Graphics test	20 FPS	34 FPS
Graphics score	3377	5700

Web score	7253	-
Video editing	5833	-
Photo editing	19457	-
Data manipulation	6782	-
Writing score	10979	-

RAM size	12 GB	4 GB
Memory type	LPDDR4X	LPDDR4X
Memory clock	2133 MHz	2133 MHz
Channels	2	2

Storage size	256 GB	64, 256, 512 GB
Storage type	UFS 3.0	NVMe
Memory card	MicroSD	No
Memory card max size	Up to 1000 GB	-

Operating system	Android 9.0 (Can be upgraded to Android 12)	iOS 12 (Can be upgraded to iOS 17)
ROM	One UI 4.0	-
OS size	31.6 GB	11.8 GB

Capacity	4300 mAh	2658 mAh
Max charge power	45 W	15 W
Battery type	Li-Po	Li-Ion
Replaceable	No	No
Wireless charging	Yes, Qi/PMA (15 W)	Yes, Qi (10 W)
Reverse charging	Yes, (wireless)	No
Fast charging	Yes, Samsung Adaptive Fast Charge (65% in 30 min)	Yes (50% in 60 min)
Full charging time	1:05 hr	2:40 hr

Battery life tests
Web browsing	07:37 hr	07:30 hr
Watching video	14:19 hr	09:19 hr
Gaming	04:43 hr	04:43 hr
Standby	97 hr	80 hr

Main camera
Matrix	12 megapixels	12 megapixels
Image resolution	4000 x 3000	4032 x 3024
Zoom	Optical, 2x	Optical, 2x
Flash	LED	Quad LED
Stabilization	Optical	Optical
8K video recording	No	No
4K video recording	Up to 60FPS	Up to 60FPS
1080p video recording	Up to 240FPS	Up to 60FPS
Slow motion	960 FPS (720p)	240 FPS (1080p)
Angle of widest lens	123°	-
Lenses	4 (12 MP + 12 MP + 16 MP)	2 (12 MP + 12 MP)
Wide (main) lens	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/1.5 - 2.4 - Focal length: 27 mm - Pixel size: 1.4 micron - Sensor: 1/2.55", Samsung SAK2L4 (ISOCELL CMOS) - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) - Optical stabilization	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/1.8 - Focal length: 26 mm - Pixel size: 1.4 micron - Sensor: 1/2.55", Apple iSight X (CMOS) - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) - Optical stabilization
Telephoto lens	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/2.1 - Focal length: 52 mm - Pixel size: 1 micron - Sensor: 1/3.6", Samsung S5K3M3 (ISOCELL CMOS) - Phase autofocus - Optical stabilization	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/2.4 - Focal length: 52 mm - Pixel size: 1 micron - Sensor: 1/3.4" (CMOS) - Phase autofocus - Optical stabilization
Ultra-wide lens	- 16 MP - Aperture: f/2.2 - Focal length: 12 mm - Pixel size: 1 micron - Sensor: 1/3.1", Samsung S5K3P9 (ISOCELL CMOS)	-
Depth lens	Yes	-
Camera features	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode - RAW support	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode - RAW support
Samples	Photo samples of Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus from DxOMark	-

Selfie camera
Megapixels	10 megapixels	7 megapixels
Image resolution	3648 x 2736	3088 x 2316
Aperture	f/1.6	f/2.2
Focal length	26 mm	32 mm
Pixel size	1.22 microns	1.12 microns
Sensor type	CMOS	CMOS
Sensor size	1/2.65"	-
Video resolution	2160p (4K) at 30 FPS	1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS

Wi-Fi standard	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 b/g/n/ac/ax)	Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac)
Wi-Fi features	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version	5	5
Bluetooth features	PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, LE, HSP, HID, HFP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP	SPP, PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, LE, HSP, HID, HFP, HDP, GAP, GAVDP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP
USB type	USB Type-C	No
USB version	3.1	2
USB features	- Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG	- Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG
GPS	GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo	GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo
NFC *	Yes	Yes
Infrared port	No	No

Number of SIM *	2	1
Type of SIM card	Nano	Nano
Multi SIM mode	Standby	-
eSIM support *	No	Yes
Hybrid slot	No	No
LTE Cat *	20	16
5G support	Yes	No

Speakers	Stereo	Stereo
Headphone audio jack	No	No
FM radio	Yes	No
Dolby Atmos	Yes	Yes

Category	Flagship	Flagship
Announced	August 2019	September 2018
Release date	August 2019	September 2018
SAR (head)	0.19 W/kg	0.99 W/kg
SAR (body)	1.4 W/kg	0.99 W/kg
Sensors	- Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Compass - Fingerprint	- Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Face recognition sensor
Bundled charger	Yes, 0 W	-

Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus vs Apple iPhone XS

Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus vs Apple iPhone XS

Key differences

Review

Value for money

Tests and specifications

Display

Design and build

Performance

Benchmarks

Memory

Software

Battery

Camera

DxOMark camera tests

Connectivity

Sound

Other

Conclusion