Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra vs Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max

91 out of 100

73 out of 100

Here we compared two flagship smartphones: the 6.8-inch Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (with Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy) that was released on February 1, 2023, against the Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max, which is powered by Apple A14 Bionic and came out 28 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 S23 Ultra

The rear camera has a 10x optical zoom
Higher display refresh rate – 120 Hz
83% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (1517K versus 828K)
Comes with 1313 mAh larger battery capacity: 5000 vs 3687 mAh
Modern USB Type-C port
Shows 16% longer battery life (41:06 vs 35:25 hours)
Better camera quality (According to DxOMark rating)
Delivers 47% higher peak brightness (1282 against 872 nits)
Newer Bluetooth version (v5.3)
Supports higher wattage charging (45W versus 18W)
Fingerprint scanner
Slow-motion recording at 960FPS
The phone is 2-years and 4-months newer

Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max

Apple releases software updates and supports their phones a few years longer than Samsung

Review

Evaluation of Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra and Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max crucial features

Display

Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness

Type	Dynamic AMOLED	OLED
Size	6.8 inches	6.7 inches
Resolution	1440 x 3088 pixels	1284 x 2778 pixels
Aspect ratio	19.3:9	19.5:9
PPI	500 ppi	458 ppi
Refresh rate	120 Hz	60 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate	Yes	No
Max rated brightness	850 nits	800 nits
Max rated brightness in HDR	1750 nits	-
HDR support	Yes, HDR10+	Yes, Dolby Vision
Screen protection	Gorilla Glass Victus 2	Ceramic Shield
Screen-to-body ratio	89.5%	87.4%
Display features	- DCI-P3 - Always-On Display	- DCI-P3

RGB color space	96.9%	99.4%
PWM	240 Hz	238 Hz
Response time	2 ms	8 ms
Contrast	∞ Infinity	∞ Infinity

Height	163.4 mm (6.43 inches)	160.8 mm (6.33 inches)
Width	78.1 mm (3.07 inches)	78.1 mm (3.07 inches)
Thickness	8.9 mm (0.35 inches)	7.4 mm (0.29 inches)
Weight	233 g (8.22 oz)	226 g (7.97 oz)
Waterproof	IP68	IP68
Advanced cooling	Vapor chamber	-
Rear material	Glass	Glass
Frame material	Metal	Metal
Colors	White, Black, Gray, Blue, Green, Red, Purple	Silver, Gold, Gray, Blue
Fingerprint scanner	Yes, in-display	No

Chipset	Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy	Apple A14 Bionic
Max clock	3360 MHz	3100 MHz
CPU cores	8 (1 + 2 + 2 + 3)	6 (2 + 4)
Architecture	- 3 cores at 2 GHz: Cortex-A510 - 2 cores at 2.8 GHz: Cortex-A710 - 2 cores at 2.8 GHz: Cortex-A715 - 1 core at 3.2 GHz: Cortex-X3	- 4 cores at 1.8 GHz: Icestorm - 2 cores at 3.1 GHz: Firestorm
L3 cache	8 MB	-
Lithography process	4 nanometers	5 nanometers
Graphics	Adreno 740	Apple A14 GPU
GPU shading units	2560	256
GPU clock	719 MHz	1278 MHz
FLOPS	~3481.6 GFLOPS	~654.3 GFLOPS

CPU	377304	234779
GPU	596398	256839
Memory	271911	153144
UX	261336	181729
Total score	1517214	828500

Max surface temperature	34.8 °C	45 °C
Stability	64%	75%
Graphics test	72 FPS	47 FPS
Graphics score	12154	7880

Web score	15596	-
Video editing	7791	-
Photo editing	33958	-
Data manipulation	12948	-
Writing score	19802	-

Storage size	256, 512, 1024 GB	128, 256, 512 GB
Storage type	UFS 4.0	NVMe
Memory card	No	No

Operating system	Android 13	iOS 14.1 (Can be upgraded to iOS 17)
ROM	One UI 5.1	-
OS size	39.9 GB	16 GB

Capacity	5000 mAh	3687 mAh
Max charge power	45 W	18 W
Battery type	Li-Po	Li-Ion
Replaceable	No	No
Wireless charging	Yes (15 W)	Yes (7.5 W)
Reverse charging	Yes, (wireless)	No
Fast charging	Yes (68% in 30 min)	Yes (55% in 30 min)
Full charging time	0:59 hr	1:32 hr

RAM
RAM size	8, 12 GB	6 GB
Memory type	LPDDR5X	LPDDR4X
Channels	4	2

Battery life tests
Web browsing	14:50 hr	12:04 hr
Watching video	19:27 hr	14:25 hr
Gaming	06:21 hr	07:09 hr
Standby	123 hr	122 hr

Main camera
Matrix	200 megapixels	12 megapixels
Image resolution	16320 x 12240	4032 x 3024
Zoom	Optical, 10x	Optical, 2.5x
Flash	LED	Dual LED
Stabilization	Optical	Optical
8K video recording	Up to 30FPS	No
4K video recording	Up to 60FPS	Up to 60FPS
1080p video recording	Up to 60FPS	Up to 60FPS
Slow motion	960 FPS (1080p)	240 FPS (1080p)
Angle of widest lens	120°	120°
Lenses	4 (200 MP + 10 MP + 10 MP + 12 MP)	4 (12 MP + 12 MP + 12 MP)
Wide (main) lens	- 200 MP - Aperture: f/1.7 - Focal length: 23 mm - Pixel size: 0.64 micron - Sensor: 1/1.3", Samsung ISOCELL HP2 (ISOCELL Plus CMOS) - Laser autofocus - Optical stabilization	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/1.6 - Focal length: 26 mm - Pixel size: 1.7 micron - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) - Optical stabilization
Telephoto lens	- 10 MP - Aperture: f/4.9 - Focal length: 230 mm - Pixel size: 1.12 micron - Sensor: 1/3.52", Sony IMX754 (Exmor-RS CMOS) - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) - Optical stabilization	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/2.2 - Focal length: 65 mm - Pixel size: 1 micron - Sensor: 1/3.4", Sony IMX613 (Exmor-RS CMOS) - Phase autofocus - Optical stabilization
Ultra-wide lens	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/2.2 - Focal length: 13 mm - Pixel size: 1.4 micron - Sensor: 1/2.55", Sony IMX564 (Exmor-RS CMOS) - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel)	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/2.4 - Focal length: 13 mm - Pixel size: 1 micron - Sensor: 1/3.4", Sony IMX372 (Exmor-RS CMOS)
Depth lens	-	Yes
Camera features	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode - RAW support	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode - RAW support
Samples	Photo samples of Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra from DxOMark	Photo samples of Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max from DxOMark

Selfie camera
Megapixels	12 megapixels	12 megapixels
Image resolution	4000 x 3000	4290 x 2800
Aperture	f/2.2	f/2.2
Focal length	26 mm	23 mm
Pixel size	1.12 microns	1 microns
Sensor type	ISOCELL CMOS	Exmor-RS CMOS
Sensor size	1/3.24"	-
Video resolution	2160p (4K) at 60 FPS	2160p (4K) at 60 FPS

Wi-Fi standard	Wi-Fi 6E (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
Wi-Fi features	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version	5.3	5
Bluetooth features	LE	LE, A2DP
USB type	USB Type-C	No
USB version	3.2	-
USB features	- Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG	- Charging - USB-Storage mode
GPS	GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS	GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS
NFC *	Yes	Yes
Infrared port	No	No

Number of SIM *	2	1
Type of SIM card	Nano	Nano
Multi SIM mode	Standby	-
eSIM support *	Yes	Yes
Hybrid slot	No	No
LTE Cat *	20	18
5G support	Yes	Yes

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

Category	Flagship	Flagship
Announced	February 2023	October 2020
Release date	February 2023	November 2020
SAR (head)	0.96 W/kg	0.99 W/kg
SAR (body)	1.4 W/kg	0.99 W/kg
Sensors	- Hall-effect sensor - Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint	- Hall-effect sensor - Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Face recognition sensor
Bundled charger	Not included	-

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra vs Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra vs Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max

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