Apple iPhone XS Max vs Samsung Galaxy Note9 Specs Comparison

Compare mobile phone specifications of up to three devices at once. Our specs comparison tool helps you find and compare the perfect phone for your needs.

Comparison mode:
Differences only
9.3
Apple iPhone XS Max
9.0
Samsung Galaxy Note9
Apple iPhone XS Max Samsung Galaxy Note9
Released · Sep 21, 2018
Released · Aug 24, 2018
6.5-inch · 2688x1242px
6.4-inch · 2960x1440px
Dual camera
Dual camera
4GB · 64GB
6GB · 128GB
3179 mAh
4000 mAh

Availability

Officially announced
Sep 12, 2018 Aug 09, 2018
Prices (MSRP)
$1099 $1000

Design

Dimensions
6.20 x 3.05 x 0.30 inches
157.5 x 77.4 x 7.7 mm
6.37 x 3.01 x 0.35 inches
161.9 x 76.4 x 8.8 mm
Weight
7.34 oz / 208.0 g 7.09 oz / 201.0 g
Materials
Back: Glass
Frame: Stainless steel
Back: Glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 5)
Frame: Aluminum
Resistance
Water, Dust; IP68 Water, Dust; IP68
Biometrics
3D Face unlock Iris scanner, 2D Face unlock, Fingerprint (touch)
Features
Notification light, Stylus
Keys
Left: Volume control, Other; Right: Lock/Unlock key Left: Volume control, Lock/Unlock key; Right: Other
Colors
Gold, Silver, Space gray Midnight black, Ocean blue, Cloud silver, Lavender purple

Display

Size
6.5-inch, 84.29% screen-to-body 6.4-inch, 83.51% screen-to-body
Type
OLED, HDR, 625 nits Super AMOLED, HDR
Resolution
2688x1242px, 19.5:9 ratio, 458 PPI 2960x1440px, 18.5:9 ratio, 516 PPI
Protection
Corning Gorilla Glass 5
Features
HDR support, Pressure-sensitive, Oleophobic coating, Scratch-resistant glass, Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor
PhoneArena Display Test
Bright Max (20% APL)
Untested Untested
Bright Min
2 (Good) 2 (Good)

Hardware

System chip
Apple A12 Bionic APL1W81 (7 nm) Snapdragon 845 SDM845 (10 nm)
Processor
Hexa-core
2490 MHz
Vortex and Tempest
Octa-core
2800 MHz
Kryo 385
GPU
Apple 4-core GPU Adreno 630
Memory
4GB (LPDDR4)/64GB
4GB/256GB
4GB/512GB
6GB (LPDDR4)/128GB
8GB/512GB
Storage expansion
not expandable microSDXC up to 512 GB
OS
iOS (15.x, 14.x, 13.x, 12.x) Android (10, 9.0 Pie, 8.1 Oreo)

Battery

Type
3179 mAh, Li - Ion 4000 mAh, Li - Ion
Charging
USB Power Delivery
Qi wireless charging
Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0, Samsung Adaptive Fast Charging
Qi and Powermat wireless charging
Charge speed
Wired: 15.0W
Wireless: 7.5W
PhoneArena Battery Tests
Battery Life Estimate
Untested
Browsing
8h 33min
Video
5h 25min
Gaming
Untested
Battery Life Estimate
Untested
Browsing
Untested
Video
Untested
Gaming
Untested

Camera

Rear
Dual camera Dual camera
Main camera
12 MP (Sapphire crystal lens cover, OIS, PDAF, CMOS image sensor, BSI sensor)
Aperture size: F1.8
Focal length: 26 mm
Sensor size: 1/2.55"
Pixel size: 1.4 μm
12 MP (OIS, PDAF)
Aperture size: F1.5/F2.4
Focal length: 26 mm
Sensor size: 1/2.55"
Pixel size: 1.4 μm
Second camera
12 MP (Telephoto, Sapphire crystal lens cover, OIS, PDAF, CMOS image sensor, BSI sensor)
Optical zoom: 2.0x
Aperture size: F2.4
Focal Length: 52 mm
Sensor size: 1/3.4"
Pixel size: 1 μm
12 MP (Telephoto, OIS, Autofocus)
Optical zoom: 2.0x
Aperture size: F2.4
Focal Length: 52 mm
Sensor size: 1/3.4"
Pixel size: 1 μm
Flash
Quad LED LED
Video recording
4K UHD (60 fps), 1080p (240 fps), 720p
OIS, Time-lapse video, Continuous autofocus, Picture-taking during video recording, Video calling, Video sharing
4K UHD (60 fps), 1080p (240 fps), 720p (960 fps)
Time-lapse video, Hyperlapse, Continuous autofocus, Object tracking, EIS
Front
7 MP (Wide Angle, HDR)
Video capture: 1080p
8 MP (Wide Angle, Autofocus)
Video capture: QHD (30 fps)

Connectivity & Features

Bluetooth
5.0 5.0
WLAN
a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band
MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot
802.11 a, b, g, n, ac
a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band
MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot
802.11 a, b, g, n, ac
USB
Lightning Type-C, USB 3.1
Sensors
Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Barometer, Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Hall (for flip covers), Barometer, Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor
Hearing aid compatible
M3/T4 M4/T3
Location
GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Galileo, Cell ID, Wi-Fi positioning GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Cell ID, Wi-Fi positioning
Other
NFC, UMA (Wi-Fi Calling) NFC, ANT+

Multimedia

Headphones
No 3.5mm jack 3.5mm jack
Speakers
Earpiece, Multiple speakers Earpiece, Multiple speakers
Features
32-Bit DAC, Dolby Atmos
Screen mirroring
Wireless screen share Wireless screen share
Additional microphone(s)
Noise cancellation, Video recording Noise cancellation

Cellular

4G (FDD) Bands
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 29, 30, 32, 66, 71 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 66, 71
4G (TDD) Bands
34, 38, 39, 40, 41, 46 38, 39, 40, 41, 46
3G Bands
1, 2, 4, 5, 8 5, 8, 4, 2, 1
Data Speed
LTE-A Pro Cat 16 (1000/150 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s, HSUPA, UMTS LTE-A Pro Cat 18 (1200/150 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA
Dual SIM
Yes
SIM type
Nano SIM, eSIM Nano SIM
HD Voice
Yes Yes
VoLTE
Yes Yes

Regulatory Approval

FCC approval
Date approved: Sep 12, 2018
FCC ID value: BCG-E3219A
Date approved: Jul 03, 2018
FCC ID value: A3LSMN960U
Measured SAR
Head: 1.00 W/kg
Body: 1.00 W/kg
Simultaneous Transmission: 1.52 W/kg
Wireless Router: 1.00 W/kg
Head: 0.27 W/kg
Body: 0.76 W/kg
Simultaneous Transmission: 1.59 W/kg
Wireless Router: 1.35 W/kg
Phablet: 3.90 W/kg

Alternative variants

with 512 GB storage
Memory 512GB
Prices (MSRP) $1449
With 512 GB storage
Memory 8GB/512GB
Prices (MSRP) $1250
with 256 GB storage
Memory 256GB
Prices (MSRP) $1249
International version
System chip Samsung Exynos 9 9810 (10 nm)
Processor Octa-core
2900 MHz
Exynos M3 and ARM Cortex-A55
GPU Mali-G72 MP18
4G (FDD) Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 32, 66
4G (TDD) Bands 38, 39, 40, 41
Dual SIM Yes
Location GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Galileo, BeiDou
FCC approval Date approved: Jul 02, 2018
FCC ID value: A3LSMN960F
Measured SAR Head: 0.23 W/kg
Body: 0.85 W/kg
Simultaneous Transmission: 1.59 W/kg
Wireless Router: 1.40 W/kg
Phablet: 3.98 W/kg
for Verizon
4G (FDD) Bands 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 13, 18, 19, 20, 26, 28, 66
3G Bands 5, 8, 2, 1
for AT&T
4G (FDD) Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 14, 18, 19, 20, 28, 29, 30, 66
for T-Mobile
4G (FDD) Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 18, 19, 20, 25, 27, 66, 71
3G Bands 5, 4, 2, 1
for Sprint
4G (FDD) Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 20, 25, 26, 28, 66, 71
for U.S. Cellular
4G (FDD) Bands 2, 4, 5, 8, 12, 13, 18, 19, 25, 66, 71
4G (TDD) Bands 38, 39, 40, 46
3G Bands 5, 8, 2, 1
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless