Review
Key differences
Key distinctions and advantages between Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max and Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos)
Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max
- + Apple A17 Pro chipset
- + 6.7 inches display
- + 120 Hz refresh rate
- + 8 GB RAM
- + 48 megapixels main camera
Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos)
- + Samsung Exynos 2600 chipset
- + 6.7 inches display
- + 120 Hz refresh rate
- + 12 GB RAM
- + 50 megapixels main camera
Pros & Cons
- Excellent display
- Strong camera system
- Flagship-level performance
- Excellent battery life
- 5G connectivity
- No 3.5mm headphone jack
"A high-end flagship Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max smartphone with strong camera (90/100), excellent display. Suited for flagship-tier daily use and demanding tasks."
- Excellent display
- Flagship-level performance
- Great gaming capability
- Excellent battery life
- 5G connectivity
- No 3.5mm headphone jack
"A high-end flagship Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos) smartphone with strong display (97/100), excellent performance. Suited for flagship-tier daily use and demanding tasks."
Value for Money Beta
Please input up-to-date prices for the selected configurations to get an accurate value-for-money index.
Benchmarks
| Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max | Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos) | |
|---|---|---|
| Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core) | 7533 | 11020 |
| Compute Score (GPU) | 28374 | 27019 |
| AnTuTu Benchmark 11 | 1421780 | 2917441 |
| GPU | 463771 | 1130396 |
| Memory | 166223 | 355500 |
| UX | 431280 | 481874 |
| Total Score | 1421780 | 2917441 |
| 3DMark Steel Nomad Light | 1388 | — |
| Stability | 71% | — |
| Graphics test | — | — |
| Graphics score | — | — |
| 3DMark Solar Bay | 6090 | — |
| Section 1 | — | — |
| Section 2 | — | — |
| Section 3 | — | — |
Specifications
| Specification | Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max ↗ | Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos) ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| Type | OLED | Dynamic AMOLED |
| Size | 6.7 inches | 6.7 inches |
| Resolution | 1290 x 2796 pixels | 1440 x 3120 pixels |
| Aspect ratio | 19.5:9 | 19.5:9 |
| PPI | 460 ppi | 516 ppi |
| Refresh rate | 120 Hz | 120 Hz |
| Adaptive refresh rate | Yes (1-120 Hz) | Yes (1-120 Hz) |
| Max rated brightness | 2000 nits | 1500 nits |
| Max rated brightness in HDR | 1600 nits | 2600 nits |
| HDR support | Yes, Dolby Vision | Yes, HDR10+ |
| Screen protection | Corning Gorilla Armor 2 | |
| Screen-to-body ratio | 89.8% | 91.7% |
| Display features | - DCI-P3 - Always-On Display | - DCI-P3 - Always-On Display |
| Display tests | ||
| RGB color space | 99.8% | 99.8% |
| PWM | 240 Hz | 240 Hz |
| Response time | 1 ms | 2 ms |
| Contrast | ∞ Infinity | ∞ Infinity |
| Peak brightness test (auto) | 1788 nits | 2598 nits |
| Specification | Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max ↗ | Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos) ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| Height | 159.9 mm (6.3 inches) | 158.4 mm (6.24 inches) |
| Width | 76.7 mm (3.02 inches) | 75.8 mm (2.98 inches) |
| Thickness | 8.25 mm (0.32 inches) | 7.3 mm (0.29 inches) |
| Weight | 221 g (7.8 oz) | 190 g (6.7 oz) |
| Waterproof | IP68 | IP68 |
| Rear material | Glass | Glass |
| Frame material | Metal | Metal |
| Colors | White, Black, Silver, Blue | White, Black, Silver, Blue, Pink, Purple |
| Fingerprint scanner | No | Yes, in-display |
| Repairability | Good (3.01/5) | |
| Drop resistance | Excellent (A) · 270 drops | |
| Screen-to-body ratio | 89.8% | 91.7% |
| Specification | Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max ↗ | Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos) ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| SoC | ||
| Chipset | Apple A17 Pro | Samsung Exynos 2600 |
| Max clock | 3780 MHz | 3800 MHz |
| CPU cores | 6 (2 + 4) | 10 (1 + 3 + 6) |
| Architecture | - 4 cores at 2.11 GHz: Sawtooth - 2 cores at 3.78 GHz: Everest | - 6 cores at 2.75 GHz: C1-Pro - 3 cores at 3.25 GHz: C1-Pro - 1 core at 3.8 GHz: C1-Ultra |
| Manufacturing | TSMC | Samsung |
| Lithography process | 3 nanometers | 2 nanometers |
| Neural processor (NPU) | Apple Neural Engine | AI engine with 32K MAC NPU |
| GPU | ||
| Graphics | ||
| GPU shading units | ||
| GPU clock | ||
| FLOPS |
| Specification | Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max ↗ | Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos) ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| RAM | ||
| Ram Size | 8 GB | 12 GB |
| Memory type | LPDDR5 | LPDDR5X |
| Channels | 4 | 4 |
| Storage | ||
| Storage size | ||
| Storage type | ||
| Memory Card |
| Specification | Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max ↗ | Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos) ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| Operating system | iOS 17 (Can be upgraded to iOS 26.4) | Android 16 |
| OS updates | 7 years | 7 years |
| Security updates | 7 years | 7 years |
| Specification | Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max ↗ | Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos) ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| Capacity | 4441 mAh | 4900 mAh |
| Max charge power | 23 W | 45 W |
| Battery type | Li-Ion | Li-Ion |
| Replaceable | No | No |
| Wireless charging | Yes (7.5 W) | Yes (25 W) |
| Reverse charging | Yes | Yes, (wireless) |
| Bypass charging | No | Yes |
| Fast charging | Yes (46% in 30 min) | Yes (69% in 30 min) |
| Full charging time | 1:49 hr | 1:01 hr |
| Battery cycles | 1200 cycles | |
| Battery life tests | ||
| Web browsing | 12:36 hr | 10:28 hr |
| Watching video | 22:07 hr | 22:00 hr |
| Gaming | 06:58 hr | 06:55 hr |
| Standby | 139 hr | 107 hr |
| General battery life | 31:37 hr | 27:15 hr |
| Specification | Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max ↗ | Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos) ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| Matrix | 48 megapixels | 50 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 12 MP | 10 MP |
| Zoom | Optical, 5x | Optical, 3x |
| Flash | Dual LED | LED |
| Stabilization | Optical | Optical |
| 8K video recording | No | Up to 30FPS |
| 4K video recording | Up to 60FPS | Up to 60FPS |
| 1080p video recording | Up to 60FPS | Up to 60FPS |
| Slow motion | 240 FPS (1080p) | 240 FPS (1080p) |
| Angle of widest lens | 120° | 120° |
| Lenses | 1) Standard: 48 MP 2) Telephoto: 12 MP 3) Ultrawide: 12 MP 4) Depth | 1) Standard: 50 MP 2) Telephoto: 10 MP 3) Ultrawide: 12 MP |
| Camera features | - Bokeh mode - Pro mode - RAW support | - Bokeh mode - Pro mode - RAW support |
| Standard lens | ||
| Aperture | f/1.78 - 2.8 | f/2.4 |
| Focal length | 120 mm | 67 mm |
| Sensor | Sony IMX913 | Samsung ISOCELL 3LD |
| Sensor size | 1/3.06" (≈ 0.33 inch) | 1/3.94" (≈ 0.25 inch) |
| Autofocus | Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) | Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) |
| Ultra-wide lens | ||
| Pixel size | 1.12 micron | 1 micron |
| Specification | Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max ↗ | Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos) ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| Megapixels | 12 megapixels | 12 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 4032 x 3024 | 4000 x 3000 |
| Aperture | f/1.9 | f/2.2 |
| Focal length | 23 mm | 26 mm |
| Sensor | Sony IMX714 | Samsung S5K3LU |
| Pixel size | 1.12 micron | 1.12 micron |
| Autofocus | Phase autofocus | Phase autofocus |
| Stabilization | Optical | Digital |
| Video resolution | 2160p (4K) at 60 FPS | 2160p (4K) at 60 FPS |
| Depth sensor (TOF 3D) | Yes | No |
| Specification | Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max ↗ | Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos) ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| Wi-Fi standard | Wi-Fi 6E (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) | Wi-Fi 7 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be) |
| 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 | 6.0 |
| Bluetooth features | LE | LE |
| USB type | USB Type-C | USB Type-C |
| USB version | 3.2 | 3.2 |
| USB features | - Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG | - Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG |
| DisplayPort | Yes | Yes, DP 1.2 |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS, NAVIC | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS |
| NFC* | Yes | Yes |
| Infrared port | No | No |
| Network | ||
| Type of SIM card | eSIM | Nano |
| Multi SIM mode | Standby | |
| eSIM support* | Yes | Yes |
| Hybrid slot | No | No |
| 3G network | UMTS/HSPA+/DC-HSDPA (850, 900, 1700/2100, 1900, 2100 MHz) | UMTS B1(2100), B2(1900), B4(AWS), B5(850), B8(900) |
| 4G network | LTE (Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 32, 66, 71) | LTE B1(2100), B2(1900), B3(1800), B4(AWS), B5(850), B7(2600), B8(900), B12(700), B13(700), B17(700), B18(800), B19(800), B20(800), B25(1900), B26(850), B28(700), B38(2600), B39(1900), B40(2300), B41(2500), B66(AWS-3) |
| 5G support | Yes | Yes |
| Specification | Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max ↗ | Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos) ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| Speakers | Stereo | Stereo |
| Headphone audio jack | No | No |
| FM radio | No | No |
| Dolby Atmos | Yes | Yes |
| Speakers test | ||
| Max loudness | 92.3 dB | 90.1 dB |
| Specification | Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max ↗ | Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Exynos) ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Flagship | Flagship |
| Announced | September 2023 | February 2026 |
| Release date | September 2023 | March 2026 |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $1199 | $1249 |
| Sensors | - Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Face recognition sensor | - Hall-effect sensor - Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint |
| Bundled charger | Not included | Not included |
