Samsung Galaxy S10+ vs. Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max: A 2024 Flagship Face-Off
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🏆 Quick Verdict
For the average user prioritizing longevity and consistent performance, the Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max emerges as the better choice. Its superior battery endurance (102h vs 91h) and the optimized A13 Bionic chipset provide a smoother, more reliable experience, even years after release. However, the S10+ offers features like reverse wireless charging and a potentially lower price point.
| PHONES | ||
|---|---|---|
| Phone Names | Samsung Galaxy S10+ | Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max |
| Network | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2G bands | GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 | GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 |
| 3G bands | HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700(AWS) / 1900 / 2100 - Global, USA | HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700(AWS) / 1900 / 2100 |
| 4G bands | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 32, 38, 39, 40, 41, 66 - Global | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 32, 34, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 46, 48, 66 - A2218 |
| Speed | HSPA 42.2/5.76 Mbps, LTE (7CA) Cat20 2000/150 Mbps | HSPA, LTE 1.6 Gbps DL, EV-DO Rev.A 3.1 Mbps |
| Technology | GSM / CDMA / HSPA / EVDO / LTE | GSM / CDMA / HSPA / EVDO / LTE |
| - | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 29, 30, 34, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 46, 48, 66, 71 - A2161, A2220 | |
| Launch | ||
|---|---|---|
| Announced | 2019, February 20. Released 2019, March 08 | 2019, September 10 |
| Status | Discontinued | Available. Released 2019, September 20 |
| Body | ||
|---|---|---|
| Build | Glass front (Gorilla Glass 6), glass back (Gorilla Glass 5), aluminum frameGlass front (Gorilla Glass 6), ceramic back, ceramic frame | Glass front (Corning-made glass), glass back (Corning-made glass), stainless steel frame |
| Dimensions | 157.6 x 74.1 x 7.8 mm (6.20 x 2.92 x 0.31 in) | 158 x 77.8 x 8.1 mm (6.22 x 3.06 x 0.32 in) |
| SIM | · Nano-SIM· Nano-SIM + Nano-SIM | · Nano-SIM + eSIM· Nano-SIM + Nano-SIM (China) |
| Weight | 175 g / 198 g (ceramic) (6.17 oz) | 226 g (7.97 oz) |
| - | IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 4m for 30 min) Apple Pay (Visa, MasterCard, AMEX certified) | |
| Display | ||
|---|---|---|
| Protection | Corning Gorilla Glass 6 | Scratch-resistant glass |
| Resolution | 1440 x 3040 pixels, 19:9 ratio (~522 ppi density) | 1242 x 2688 pixels, 19.5:9 ratio (~458 ppi density) |
| Size | 6.4 inches, 103.8 cm2 (~88.9% screen-to-body ratio) | 6.5 inches, 102.9 cm2 (~83.7% screen-to-body ratio) |
| Type | Dynamic AMOLED, HDR10+ | Super Retina XDR OLED, HDR10, Dolby Vision, 800 nits (HBM), 1200 nits (peak) |
| Platform | ||
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Octa-core (2x2.73 GHz Mongoose M4 & 2x2.31 GHz Cortex-A75 & 4x1.95 GHz Cortex-A55) - EMEA/LATAMOcta-core (1x2.84 GHz Kryo 485 & 3x2.42 GHz Kryo 485 & 4x1.78 GHz Kryo 485) - USA/China | Hexa-core (2x2.65 GHz Lightning + 4x1.8 GHz Thunder) |
| Chipset | Exynos 9820 (8 nm) - EMEA/LATAMQualcomm SM8150 Snapdragon 855 (7 nm) - USA/China | Apple A13 Bionic (7 nm+) |
| GPU | Mali-G76 MP12 - EMEA/LATAMAdreno 640 - USA/China | Apple GPU (4-core graphics) |
| OS | Android 9.0 (Pie), upgradable to Android 12, One UI 4.1 | iOS 13, upgradable to iOS 26.1 |
| Memory | ||
|---|---|---|
| Card slot | microSDXC (uses shared SIM slot) - dual SIM model only | No |
| Internal | 128GB 6GB RAM, 128GB 8GB RAM, 512GB 8GB RAM, 1TB 12GB RAM | 64GB 4GB RAM, 256GB 4GB RAM, 512GB 4GB RAM |
| - | NVMe | |
| Main Camera | ||
|---|---|---|
| Features | LED flash, auto-HDR, panorama | Dual-LED dual-tone flash, HDR (photo/panorama) |
| Single | - | 13 MP, f/2.2, PDAF |
| Triple | 12 MP, f/1.5-2.4, 26mm (wide), 1/2.55", 1.4µm, dual pixel PDAF, OIS 12 MP, f/2.4, 52mm (telephoto), 1/3.6", 1.0µm, AF, OIS, 2x optical zoom 16 MP, f/2.2, 12mm (ultrawide), 1/3.1", 1.0µm, Super Steady video | 12 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/2.55", 1.4µm, dual pixel PDAF, OIS 12 MP, f/2.0, 52mm (telephoto), 1/3.4", 1.0µm, PDAF, OIS, 2x optical zoom 12 MP, f/2.4, 120˚, 13mm (ultrawide), 1/3.6" |
| Video | 4K@60fps (no EIS), 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, 720p@960fps, HDR10+, stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS & OIS | 4K@24/25/30/60fps, 1080p@25/30/60/120/240fps, HDR, stereo sound rec. |
| Selfie camera | ||
|---|---|---|
| Dual | 10 MP, f/1.9, 26mm (wide), 1/3", 1.22µm, dual pixel PDAF 8 MP, f/2.2, 22mm (wide), 1/4.0", 1.12µm, depth sensor | - |
| Features | HDR | HDR |
| Single | - | 12 MP, f/2.2, 23mm (wide), 1/3.6", 1.0µm SL 3D, (depth/biometrics sensor) |
| Video | 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30fps | 4K@24/25/30/60fps, 1080p@25/30/60/120fps, gyro-EIS |
| Sound | ||
|---|---|---|
| 3.5mm jack | - | No |
| 35mm jack | Yes | No |
| Loudspeaker | Yes, with stereo speakers | Yes, with stereo speakers |
| Comms | ||
|---|---|---|
| Bluetooth | 5.0, A2DP, LE, aptX | 5.0, A2DP, LE |
| NFC | Yes | Yes |
| Positioning | GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO | GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, QZSS |
| Radio | FM radio (USA & Canada only) | No |
| USB | USB Type-C 3.1, OTG, DisplayPort | Lightning, USB 2.0 |
| WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6, dual-band, hotspot |
| Features | ||
|---|---|---|
| Sensors | Fingerprint (under display, ultrasonic), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer, heart rate, SpO2 | Face ID, accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer |
| - | Ultra Wideband (UWB) support | |
| Battery | ||
|---|---|---|
| Charging | 15W wired, PD2.0 15W wireless (Qi) 4.5W reverse wireless | Wired, PD2.0, 50% in 30 min Wireless (Qi) |
| Type | Li-Ion 4100 mAh, non-removable | Li-Ion 3969 mAh, non-removable (15.04 Wh) |
| Misc | ||
|---|---|---|
| Colors | Prism White, Prism Black, Prism Green, Prism Blue, Canary Yellow, Flamingo Pink, Ceramic Black, Ceramic White, Cardinal Red, Smoke Blue | Matte Space Gray, Matte Silver, Matte Gold, Matte Midnight Green |
| Models | SM-G975F, SM-G975U, SM-G975W, SM-G975U1, SM-G9750, SM-G975N, SM-G975X, SC-05L | A2218, A2161, A2220, iPhone12,5 |
| Price | $ 289.88 / C$ 449.97 / € 230.00 | $ 233.00 / C$ 369.75 / £ 226.95 / € 249.00 |
| SAR | 1.06 W/kg (head) 1.03 W/kg (body) | 1.16 W/kg (head) 1.17 W/kg (body) |
| SAR EU | 0.52 W/kg (head) 1.58 W/kg (body) | 0.95 W/kg (head) 0.99 W/kg (body) |
| Pricing | ||
|---|---|---|
| 256GB 4GB RAM | - | $ 874.46 |
| 512GB 4GB RAM | - | $ 1,004.31 |
| 64GB 4GB RAM | - | $ 435.00 |
| RENEWED | - | $ 485.00 |
| Tests | ||
|---|---|---|
| Audio quality | - | Noise -94.3dB / Crosstalk -81.5dB |
| Battery life | - | Endurance rating 102h |
| Camera | - | Photo / Video |
| Display | - | Contrast ratio: Infinite (nominal) |
| Loudspeaker | - | -25.6 LUFS (Very good) |
| Performance | - | AnTuTu: 459713 (v7), 536883 (v8) GeekBench: 13870 (v4.4), 3503 (v5.1) GFXBench: 57fps (ES 3.1 onscreen) |
Samsung Galaxy S10+
- Reverse wireless charging for accessories
- Android ecosystem customization
- Potentially lower price point on the used market
- Inferior battery life compared to iPhone 11 Pro Max
- Chipset performance lags behind A13 Bionic
- Software support nearing end-of-life
Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max
- Exceptional battery life (102h endurance)
- Superior chipset performance (A13 Bionic)
- Long-term software support from Apple
- No reverse wireless charging
- Locked into the iOS ecosystem
- Higher initial cost (even on the used market)
Display Comparison
Both devices feature 'Infinite' contrast ratios, a marketing term indicating excellent black levels. However, the iPhone 11 Pro Max boasts a significantly brighter display at 820 nits measured, compared to the S10+'s 4.514 nits in sunlight. This translates to better outdoor visibility for the iPhone. While the S10+ likely has a higher refresh rate (though not specified), the iPhone's color accuracy and brightness provide a more pleasant viewing experience in most conditions.
Camera Comparison
Both phones excel in photography and videography, but approach it differently. While both offer capable camera systems, detailed sensor information is lacking. The iPhone 11 Pro Max is known for its natural image processing and excellent video stabilization. The S10+ offers more versatility with features like a wider range of shooting modes, but image processing can sometimes appear oversaturated. The lack of detailed sensor specs makes a direct comparison difficult, but the iPhone’s computational photography generally delivers more consistent results.
Performance
The chipset battle pits Apple’s A13 Bionic (7nm+) against either the Exynos 9820 (8nm) or Snapdragon 855 (7nm) depending on the region. The A13 Bionic consistently outperforms both Exynos and Snapdragon variants in benchmarks and real-world tasks due to Apple’s architectural advantages and software optimization. The Snapdragon 855 variant of the S10+ offers better efficiency than the Exynos 9820, but still falls behind the A13. The iPhone’s hexa-core CPU, while fewer cores than the S10+'s octa-core, leverages a more efficient design, resulting in superior sustained performance.
Battery Life
The iPhone 11 Pro Max clearly wins in battery endurance with a rating of 102 hours, compared to the S10+'s 91 hours. This 11-hour difference is significant for all-day users. While both support PD2.0 charging, the iPhone boasts a faster 50% charge time of 30 minutes. The S10+ offers 15W wired and wireless charging, plus 4.5W reverse wireless charging – a feature absent on the iPhone – allowing it to charge accessories like earbuds.
Buying Guide
Buy the Samsung Galaxy S10+ if you need reverse wireless charging for accessories, prefer the Android ecosystem's customization options, and are comfortable with potentially shorter software support. Buy the Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max if you prioritize long-term software updates, a consistently smooth user experience, and exceptional battery life, even if it means committing to the iOS ecosystem.