New yr, new Galaxy
The Galaxy S23 Extremely is more likely to stay as a contender for finest smartphone till the calendar flips into 2024. It has loads of cameras, a stunning show, and improved efficiency to go together with the built-in S Pen.
For
- Unbelievable 200MP important digicam
- Battery life is lastly on par with the iPhone
- Extra comfy to carry and use
- Constructed-in S Pen is implausible
- Samsung DeX is game-changing
Towards
- Dearer
- No upgrades to the charging speeds
Unbelievable {hardware}
iOS might not be everybody’s cup of tea, nevertheless it’s onerous to argue with the extent of efficiency supplied by the iPhone 14 Professional Max. Apple is beginning to lag behind in images, and the cellphone could be a bit cumbersome to deal with, nevertheless it’s nonetheless simply the most effective smartphones that cash should buy.
For
- Dynamic Island is exclusive and attention-grabbing
- One of the best battery life in a smartphone
- Arguably the most effective for cell videography
- Premium construct high quality
- Unbelievable processing energy and velocity
Towards
- No bodily SIM card slot
- Costly
- Similar heavy and awkward design
- Caught at even slower charging speeds
Until you end up taking a look at one of many fancy new foldable telephones, all of the choices are primarily nonetheless the identical. This implies slabs of glass with a metallic body, and loads of cameras to go round, at the very least for the flagship telephones. This development continues with the Samsung Galaxy S23 Extremely vs. iPhone 14 Professional Max, as these are seemingly going to be the 2 hottest flagship units for many of 2023, at the very least till the iPhone 15 Professional Max arrives.
Samsung Galaxy S23 Extremely vs. iPhone 14 Professional Max: Design and show
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The Galaxy S23 Extremely is utilizing a 6.8-inch AMOLED (3088 x 1440) show, whereas the iPhone 14 Professional Max comes with an everso-slightly smaller 6.7-inch OLED panel. It additionally ought to come as no shock that each of those units are outfitted with adaptive refresh charges between 1-120Hz, which additionally performs into the unimaginable battery life.
On the floor, each the Galaxy S23 Extremely vs. iPhone 14 Professional Max look an identical to their predecessors, however there have been a few main modifications. Samsung remains to be utilizing the identical trypophobia-inducing digicam array on the again, together with a pinhole cutout for the selfie digicam.
However the place Samsung made one in every of its greatest modifications was within the severity of the curves discovered throughout the machine. Beginning with the display, the Galaxy S23 Extremely is 30% flatter than its predecessor, as Samsung goals to reply considerations about its premium flagship being too cumbersome to carry. That is nice information, particularly for individuals who recurrently take notes utilizing the built-in S Pen, as you’ll have extra floor space to work with, and don’t have to fret about accounting for the sides of the display as a lot.
Samsung additionally flattened out the perimeters of the Galaxy S23 Extremely a bit, which can not appear to be a lot of a change till you really maintain one. Even with an almost-7-inch show, the cellphone is now extra comfy to carry and when you’ll nonetheless seemingly wish to seize one of many finest Galaxy S23 Extremely instances, those that want to go case-less can have a greater time.
Apple, alternatively, has been sticking with the identical design that was launched again with the iPhone 12, invoking a little bit of nostalgia harkening again to the ultra-popular iPhone 4. This implies flat edges and corners that dig themselves into your palms. And whereas rumors for the iPhone 15 lineup recommend Apple shall be taking an identical strategy to the Galaxy S23 Extremely, the actual fact stays that utilizing an iPhone 14 Professional Max isn’t all that comfy.
One space the place Apple did make a change is with the all-new Dynamic Island, taking a distinct strategy to the selfie digicam altogether. As a result of the iPhone nonetheless depends on Face ID for biometrics, Apple couldn’t simply swap over to a pinhole digicam as we’ve seen from just about all the finest Android telephones.
As an alternative, it opted to go away the notch for the non-pro iPhone 14 fashions, integrating an attention-grabbing design selection. Fortunately, Apple didn’t simply ditch the notch and slap an rectangular cutout on the high of the display. The Dynamic Island is definitely interactive, increasing to indicate issues just like the timer that you simply simply set or the album paintings after closing Spotify.
Samsung Galaxy S23 Extremely vs. iPhone 14 Professional Max: Efficiency and battery
The place the S23 Extremely is lastly in a position to match up is within the effectivity positive aspects offered by the all-new Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy. Clock speeds have been improved throughout all the cores, making it even quicker than the “common” Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 discovered within the OnePlus 11 and different recently-released flagship units. There’s additionally a brand new cooling system that Samsung has applied, which enormously reduces the quantity of warmth emitted, in flip, offering extra steady efficiency and battery life positive aspects.
Apple’s A16 Bionic chip remains to be on the high of its class, when it comes to each smoothness and efficiency. The iPhone 14 Professional Max handily outperforms the Galaxy S23 Extremely in single-core Geekbench efficiency metrics, however the hole has positively been narrowed and it’s not fairly as giant when it comes to multi-core efficiency.
Together with the improved efficiency positive aspects, the Galaxy S23 Extremely appears to deal with cell gaming fairly a bit higher than its predecessor, additionally matching up with what the iPhone 14 Professional Max can provide. In our comparability of the Galaxy S23 Extremely vs Pixel 7 Professional, Nick Sutrich discovered that the S23 Extremely “pushes a full 50 FPS with nary a dip in efficiency” whereas taking part in Fortnite.
| Spec | Samsung Galaxy S23 Extremely | Apple iPhone 14 Professional Max |
|---|---|---|
| Chipset | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy Units | Apple A16 Bionic |
| Show | 6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 3088×1440, 120Hz adaptive refresh fee (1-120Hz) with 240Hz contact sampling, 1,750 nits peak brightness | 6.7-inch Tremendous Retina XDR OLED (2796 x 1290), 120Hz adaptive refresh fee (1-120Hz), HDR10, 2000 nits peak brightness |
| Reminiscence | 8 or 12GB | 6GB |
| Storage | 256GB/512GB/1TB | 128GB/256GB/512GB/1tb |
| Principal rear digicam | 200MP, ƒ/1.7 | 48MP ƒ/1.8 |
| Telephoto digicam | 10MP, ƒ/2.4, 3x optical zoom | 12MP, ƒ/2.8, 3x optical zoom |
| Telephoto digicam 2 | 10MP, ƒ/4.9, 10x optical zoom | ❌ |
| Extremely-wide angle digicam | 12MP, ƒ/2.2 | 12MP, ƒ/2.2 |
| Entrance Digicam | 12MP, ƒ/2.2 | 12MP, ƒ/1.9 |
| Battery | 5,000mAh, 45W Quick Charging, 15W Wi-fi Charging, 5W reverse wi-fi charging | 4,323mAh, 20W wired charging, 15W wi-fi charging (MagSafe), 7.5W Qi wi-fi charging |
| Safety | Ultrasonic in-screen fingerprint sensor | Face ID w/ SL 3D depth/biometrics sensor |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 6E, sub-6 and mmWave 5G, UWB, NFC | Wi-Fi 6, sub-6 and mmWave 5G, UWB, NFC |
| S Pen | ✔️ | ❌ |
| microSD card slot | 🚫 | 🚫 |
| 3.5mm headphone jack | 🚫 | 🚫 |
| Dimensions | 163.4 x 78.1 x 8.9 mm | 160.7 x 77.6 x 7.9mm |
| Weight | 234 g | 240 g |
| Colours | Phantom Black, Cream, Inexperienced, Lavender | House Black, Silver, Gold, Deep Purple |
| Safety | IP68, Gorilla Glass Victus 2 | IP68, Ceramic Protect glass |
For the primary time in arguably eternally, Samsung’s newest Galaxy S23 Extremely might really go toe-to-toe with the iPhone in one of many greatest metrics – battery life. We’re not going to get into the entire Android vs. iOS debate, as that’s been always performed out, however Apple’s greatest iPhone recurrently takes house the crown for the longest-lasting smartphone.
Samsung determined to stay with a 5,000mAh battery within the Galaxy S23 Extremely whereas Apple makes use of a decent 4,323mAh cell. However in battery assessments, the 14 Professional Max has been able to reaching two days of use on a single cost, and you can push it even additional in the event you allow Low Energy Mode.
On the time of this writing, we’re nonetheless engaged on our full Galaxy S23 Extremely assessment, however Nick has already identified that the battery is “tremendous spectacular.” He’s in a position to simply get two days of battery life “a number of occasions,” one thing that merely was not doable on the Galaxy S22 Extremely with out mainly leaving the cellphone untouched.
Battery life on the Galaxy S23 Extremely is legit. Tremendous spectacular stuff. Solely factor I wanted it did was cost quicker, nevertheless it’s not “gradual,” per se. pic.twitter.com/6d5YB8Ivh8February 10, 2023
One other space the place each the Galaxy S23 Extremely vs. iPhone 14 Professional Max proceed to disappoint is within the charging speeds. Whereas there are actually telephones that may attain 240W charging speeds, the S23 Extremely remains to be “caught” at peak speeds of 45W, whereas Apple appears to have forgotten that telephones can safely cost previous 20W. Irrespective of which cellphone you resolve on, be prepared to attend awhile if you want to go from 0-100%.
Samsung Galaxy S23 Extremely vs. iPhone 14 Professional Max: Cameras for days
It was fairly apparent in the event you watched Samsung’s most up-to-date Galaxy Unpacked occasion that there was loads of deal with the upgraded digicam system, pun meant. That’s because of the introduction of a 200MP important lens on the Galaxy S23 Extremely.
And whereas that’s positively the star of the present, the Galaxy S23 Extremely can be outfitted with three different rear-facing cameras. These embody a 10MP 3x telephoto digicam, 10MP 10x telephoto digicam, and a 12MP ultra-wide lens. The secondary, tertiary, and quaternary cameras are largely unchanged from the Galaxy S22 Extremely, whereas the brand new 200MP lens has greater than 4 occasions the variety of megapixels discovered within the iPhone 14 Professional Max.
Nonetheless, in the event you have been to return simply to the iPhone 13 Professional Max, the hole can be even larger, as Apple upgraded the principle sensor in its newest machine to a 48MP wide-angle lens. Beforehand, Apple had a Google-like strategy to the cameras, implementing slightly-upgraded 12MP sensors yearly.
Along with providing a significantly better important sensor, Samsung positive aspects a bonus because of having an additional rear digicam. The iPhone 14 Professional Max sticks with the “tried and true” triple digicam array, with the aforementioned 48MP important lens, together with a 12MP ultrawide and a 12MP 3x telephoto sensor.
Our Galaxy S23 Extremely vs. iPhone 14 Professional Max digicam comparability is coming quickly, however in the interim, it positively appears that Samsung’s cellphone gives significantly better digicam high quality. Nonetheless, that’s to not say that the iPhone is totally out of the race, as there are some nuances in relation to utilizing Samsung’s smartphone cameras that may trigger greater than a little bit of frustration.
The most important one in every of these is the shutter lag which has been an issue for years on the finest Samsung telephones. If you faucet the shutter button on the S23 Extremely whereas specializing in a stationary object, it’s probably not noticeable. However that tune instantly modifications in the event you’re making an attempt to take an image of an object that’s shifting.
Samsung is aware of that this is a matter, because it launched an all-new Digicam Assistant module for Good Lock. When put in, customers have the power to allow “Fast faucet shutter” which is able to “take footage as quickly as your finger touches the Shutter button as a substitute of once you carry it off.” There are additionally “Seize Velocity” settings that may be tweaked to enhance the shutter lag, however the finish outcomes don’t actually provide a considerable distinction and also you’ll should sacrifice picture high quality much more.
In the meantime, except you’re utilizing Apple ProRAW for taking footage on the iPhone 14 Professional Max, the photograph is captured as quickly because the Shutter button is tapped. ProRAW is a bit totally different because it’s doing the identical factor that Samsung’s cameras are doing all the time, because it instantly begins processing the image. The issue is that in the event you don’t care concerning the processing and simply need, or want, to rapidly seize one thing, there’s likelihood that you simply would possibly miss it when utilizing the Galaxy S23 Extremely.
Samsung Galaxy S23 Extremely vs. iPhone 14 Professional Max: Which do you have to purchase?
In terms of deciding a “winner” between the Galaxy S23 Extremely and iPhone 14 Professional Max, there actually isn’t one that’s higher than the opposite. Sacrifices should be made on both aspect of the fence, resembling lacking out on Samsung’s glorious DeX mode in the event you go for an iPhone. And in the event you go for the Galaxy S23 Extremely, then you definitely’ll miss out on Apple’s unimaginable Siri Shortcuts, together with figuring out that your $1,100 smartphone will final get the newest iOS updates for the foreseeable future.
Samsung has positively improved on the software program entrance, because the Galaxy S23 Extremely will proceed to be supported by safety patches till 2028. Nonetheless, except one thing modifications within the close to future, main software program releases are “restricted” to a few years (2026).
Commerce-in offers however, each of those telephones are additionally fairly costly, with the bottom mannequin Galaxy S23 Extremely priced at $1,199, and the iPhone 14 Professional Max beginning at $1,099. Nonetheless, there’s even a catch in that regard, as Samsung is just not providing the Galaxy S23 Extremely with 128GB of base storage. Which means that in direct comparability, each of those telephones with 256GB of storage are equally matched.
It seems as if Samsung working intently with Qualcomm on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy is already paying main dividends, closing the hole in efficiency. You’ll additionally get a built-in S Pen, a complete of 5 cameras, and all the luxuries we take pleasure in from the world of Android.
Moreover a couple of hiccups, the iPhone 14 Professional Max continues to supply one of the vital steady experiences on a smartphone, full with arguably the most effective video recording and nonetheless the most effective battery life. However then you definitely’ll should resolve whether or not it’s price coming into Apple’s “walled backyard” and all the things that entails. Which now consists of the elimination of a bodily SIM card tray in favor of going eSIM-only.
The reality is, irrespective of the place you set your cash, you’ll find yourself with an unimaginable cellphone that may final for years and is well-equipped for nearly all the things you’ll be able to throw at it.
The kitchen sink
In order for you a non-folding smartphone that takes the “kitchen sink” strategy, the Galaxy S23 Extremely is the way in which to go. It gives unimaginable battery life, glorious cameras, and nonetheless consists of an S Pen.
It is time for a design refresh
Apple’s iPhone 14 Professional Max does all the things you’d count on from a flagship cellphone. However even with the addition of Dynamic Island, it is time for Apple to make a cellphone that is extra comfy to make use of.
