Two flagships, both north of a thousand dollars, but very different philosophies. I spent time bouncing between Apple’s iPhone 17 Pro Max and Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Ultra, pushing cameras, displays, and AI features in the kinds of moments these phones are built for. The result isn’t a tie. There’s a clear winner for most people, even if the other remains the obvious pick for a certain crowd.
Cameras and video: the creator’s fork in the road
If your world revolves around video, the iPhone 17 Pro Max is the safer bet. Apple doubles down on pro capture, supporting ProRes RAW workflows and 4K Dolby Vision at up to 120fps on the main camera, with up to 60fps on the others. The front camera jumps to 18MP and adds steadier “ultra-stabilized” recording plus Center Stage for more dynamic framing. For mobile filmmakers and serious creators, those tools shorten the gap between a phone and a compact cinema rig.
Samsung counters with versatility. The Galaxy S25 Ultra leans on its multi-lens system and excellent computational photography for crisp zooms and confident low-light shots. For stills and social-first video, it delivers punchy, ready-to-share results without fuss. But if you care about color pipelines, bit depth, and grading latitude, Apple’s pro codecs and accessory ecosystem tilt the table.
Display and durability: seeing is believing
Samsung’s panel is the one I kept noticing outdoors. The S25 Ultra’s anti-reflective, anti-smudge treatment meaningfully cuts glare, so maps, messages, and viewfinders stay readable in bright sun without constant sleeve-wiping. Apple debuts a new anti-reflective coating on the iPhone 17 Pro Max, and it’s a welcome step, but Samsung still has the edge in real-world legibility and smudge resistance at this tier.
Color accuracy, peak brightness, and adaptive refresh are excellent on both. If you spend a lot of time on a construction site, a commuter train, or a soccer sideline at noon, the S25 Ultra’s finish simply keeps the friction down.
Performance, storage, and battery life
Day to day, neither phone breaks a sweat. Apple’s latest Pro silicon remains absurdly quick for editing multi-layer timelines and exporting high-res clips, while the S25 Ultra’s flagship processor keeps gaming fluid and multitasking snappy. Where Apple pulls ahead for creators is storage: the iPhone 17 Pro Max scales to a 2TB configuration, a lifesaver when you’re shooting ProRes on location. Samsung tops out at 1TB, which is still generous, but high-bitrate footage fills up fast. Expect to pay for that luxury—Apple’s 2TB option lands at the stratospheric end of the price spectrum.
Battery endurance is flagship-grade on both. The iPhone’s efficiency shines during extended recording sessions, while the S25 Ultra sips sensibly through a day of mixed use, even with its big, bright display. Charging speeds vary by region and adapter, but neither felt slow enough to shape the buying decision.
AI and software experience
Here’s where Samsung takes a lead that you feel hourly, not just occasionally. Galaxy AI’s integration is practical and approachable. The sidebar makes quick work of common chores: pull text from an email and drop an event into your calendar with a tap; press and hold to generate instant slow-motion from standard footage; clean up a shot with object removal that, in my testing, was more convincing than Apple’s new Clean Up. It’s not flashy for the sake of it—it’s speed for everyday stuff.
Apple Intelligence brings helpful writing tools and notification summaries that reduce noise, and it fits elegantly into iOS without extra settings spelunking. But if you want AI that saves minutes across messaging, media, and multitasking, Samsung’s feature density and Android’s customization make a stronger case right now.
Ecosystem, accessories, and long-term fit
Accessories tip the scales depending on where you live today. If you own MagSafe gear—a snap-on battery pack, car mount, wallet, or magnetic tripod—the iPhone 17 Pro Max lets you keep using it all seamlessly. That matters once you realize how often a magnetic tripod or charger removes friction on the go.
On the Samsung side, the S Pen remains a unique advantage among mainstream flagships. Jotting ideas in a meeting, annotating PDFs, or tracing a product sketch on the fly is still best-in-class here. If your work involves handwriting, markups, or precision selection, the pen earns its keep.
Price and value context
Both phones sit in the ultra-premium segment. Market trackers such as Counterpoint Research note that buyers at this level prioritize cameras and displays above all else, with ecosystem lock-in close behind. Apple’s 2TB option pushes the ceiling to around $1,999, which only creators with specific storage needs should consider. For most shoppers, the sweet spot is well below that—so weigh features you’ll use weekly, not spec sheet bragging rights.
The winner
For most people, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is the more complete daily driver. Its superior outdoor display, more helpful AI suite, and S Pen utility add up to meaningful convenience every single day, not just on special shoots. If you’re a filmmaker or a creator building a mobile-first video workflow, the iPhone 17 Pro Max is the better instrument—its pro codecs, stabilized capture, and 2TB headroom are unmatched in a phone. But for the wider audience, Samsung wins this round by making the ordinary moments simpler and the extraordinary moments easier to capture.