iPhone 16 Pro Max Specs vs. Galaxy S24 Ultra: Big Phones Compared

Apple has just taken the wraps off a host of new tech at its September launch event on Monday, including a new watch, AirPods and iPhone 16 range. The biggest phone in the bunch remains the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which will be going toe-to-massive-toe with Samsung’s biggest flagship, the Galaxy S24 Ultra. Both phones have a lot to offer to those of you who love sizable devices, but how do the two compare on paper? Let’s take a look at the specs. 

Starting with the obvious part; the screen. Apple crept ahead here (assuming you think bigger is better, that is) upping its iPhone 16 Pro Max to 6.9 inches, over last year’s 6.7 inches. At 6.8 inches, the S24 Ultra is ever so slightly smaller than Apple’s phone, but I can’t imagine you’d ever notice that 0.01-inch difference. The S24 Ultra does have a higher pixel density (501ppi vs. 460ppi) but we’ll have to wait to see how they actually compare in use when we can put the two side by side. 

Looking to preorder the latest Apple devices? We’re rounding up the best iPhone 16, Apple Watch Series 10 and AirPods 4 deals at launch.  

Samsung’s phone is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, while Apple’s phone runs on its own in-house silicon. In this case, a brand-new A18 Pro chip, which Apple promises will deliver better power efficiency and performance for gaming and AI. Given that the iPhone’s consistently dominate benchmarks — especially graphics ones — it’s fair to assume that the new chip will be a powerhouse. But it’ll certainly be interesting to see how the scores stack up. 

Watch this: Hands-On with iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max

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Turning to the rear cameras, the iPhone packs the usual trinity of main, ultrawide and 5x telephoto zoom lens, while the S24 Ultra hits back with its main, ultrawide, and 3x and 5x telephoto zooms. On paper, Samsung’s phone should be the ultimate photography powerhouse — especially with its whopping 200 megapixel main sensor — but Apple’s phones have always taken some of the best images around. The inclusion of ProRaw images and ProRes video — including the new 4K slow motion shooting — means that the iPhones will still be a top contender with enthusiastic photographers. 

Beyond that, there’s less to pick apart at this point. Both phones offer up to 1TB of storage, neither allows you to expand the storage and both use titanium in their designs, offering IP68 water resistance. How well the phones really compare remains to be seen in our full review.