iPhone 15 vs Galaxy S23: which base model is better?

The Samsung Galaxy S23 is among the best phones in 2023, but since its debut plenty of competition has surfaced and challenged it. One such fierce competitor is none other than Apple's iPhone 15. For years, Samsung and Apple have been fighting to see who will grab a bigger bite of the phone market, and these two phones are their latest attempts to win you over.

As long as you haven't sworn allegiance to neither of the two companies, the choice can be tough depending on what you are looking for in a phone. The Galaxy S23 packs three cameras at the back, rocking a telephoto snapper — something the iPhone 15 is lacking. But then again, the iPhone 15 received a huge jump in its main camera's image quality, which makes its video shooting prowess even stronger.

But, needless to say, there is much more that makes a phone great than just its camera system (although this notion is being challenged every year), so let us delve in deeper into these two phones and see what differentiates them from each other, and which one might be the right one for you. 

iPhone 15: save up to $630 via trade-in credit at Apple

Get the fantastic iPhone 15 straight from the source and save up to $630 with a trade-in. Your minimum trade-in credit amounts to $30. Don't miss out.

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iPhone 15 Plus: up to $630 off with a trade-in at Apple

Looking for the bigger-sized iPhone 15 model? In that case, we suggest you consider the iPhone 15 Plus. The Apple store offers $620 off as a trade-in credit on a new iPhone 15 Plus.

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iPhone 15 Pro: save $30-$630 with a trade-in at Apple.com

Apple offers its impressive iPhone 15 Pro at deeply discounted prices with the right trade-in. Right now, you can get this top-class smartphone at up to $630 off with a trade-in.

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iPhone 15 Pro Max: up to $630 off with a trade-in at Apple

With its groundbreaking chipset and high-class titanium frame, the iPhone 15 Pro Max is a real mobile gem. It's now available on Apple at an impressive trade-in discount of up to $630.

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Samsung Galaxy S23 128GB: Save $50!

Get the Samsung Galaxy S23 128GB from Samsung and save $50. Trade in your old phone for additional savings of up to $615 as instant trade-in credit.

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The iPhone 15 and the Galaxy S23 are the two most mainstream flagship handsets on the market and their design has a big role to play in that. Both phones have a look to them that is understated, clean, and easily likable. Yes, you can call them boring, but boring also means that there is less likelihood for a buyer to be turned off by the design.

Size-wise, the iPhone 15 is in the same weight class as Samsung's Galaxy S23, albeit slightly larger and heavier, coming in at 5.81 x 2.82 x 0.31 inches and 6.03 oz vs the Galaxy's 5.76 x 2.79 x 0.30 inches and 5.93 oz.

The displays on both phones are flat, with the iPhone 15 continuing the boxy look Apple has been implementing since the iPhone 12. The Galaxy S23, on the other hand, has edges that are slightly more rounded making it more comfortable to hold. To be fair, Apple did mention new contoured edges where the aluminum frame meets the new back panel with a matte, soft finish, but we can't know for sure whether it feels different until we get to try it, so stay tuned!

One major visual difference is the iPhone 15's adoption of the Dynamic Island, which comes with a variety of software functionality. The Galaxy S23, however, boasts a less intrusive punch-hole cutout for the selfie camera.

Lastly, there is the USB-C port that finally replaced iPhone's outdated Lightning alternative. Now, it is only the Pro models that get some actual benefits thanks to this transition (faster transfer speeds), but at least the new USB-C braided cables come with all iPhone 15 models.

Moving away from notches and islands, let's talk about the more important aspects of a phone's display. The Galaxy S23 comes with a 6.1-inch AMOLED screen that is capable of up to 120Hz screen refresh rate. Unfortunately, the iPhone 15 is still stuck only at a 60Hz refresh rate, the same as on all previous generations. The higher refresh rate remains exclusive for the Pro models.

One edge that the iPhone has over the Galaxy is its new 2000 nits of peak brightness and 1600 nits of peak HDR brightness. This should mean that the phone's display is easier to read in extremely bright conditions, and HDR media should show with even more nuances in the highlights and shadows. In comparison, the Galaxy S23 comes with a 1750 nits of peak brightness.

The iPhone 15 has the A16 Bionic chipset that first appeared in the iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max last year. On the other side of the ring we have the best chipset Qualcomm has right now, which is the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 (and it is even a specially tuned version for the S23 series).

Performance Benchmarks:

During our tests we found out that the when it comes to pure processing speed, the iPhone 15's A16 did noticeably better, while anything that had to do with 3D graphics was easier for the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 inside the Galaxy S23.

As for RAM (memory), the iPhone comes with 6GB and the Galaxy with 8GB. Both phones utilize RAM in their unique way though, so the numbers here should not concern you too much. The good news is that the type of memory is the same fast LPDDR 5 memory.

The other difference between the two is the amount of maximum storage they come with, which is 256GB for the S23 and 512GB for the iPhone 15. Here Samsung is a bit more pushy when it comes to wanting to nudge you towards upgrading to a more expensive Galaxy S23 Plus or Galaxy S23 Ultra.

When it comes to software support, the iPhone takes the win with 5 years of major OS updates, while the Galaxy comes close with 4 years. One benefit of Android 13 and Samsung's One UI 5.1, though, is that it is generally more customizable compared to iOS.

That being said, the iPhone 15 is launching with the iOS 17 update, which comes with new cool features like NameDrop that helps you share your contact information with others seamlessly. Apple is also doubling down on some of iOS' strongest points, like iMessage and FaceTime. There is even a new journaling app that uses AI to give you suggestions based on your experiences throughout your day.

The most obvious difference between the iPhone 15's and Galaxy S23's camera systems would be the additional 10MP telephoto shooter featured on Samsung's contender. Having that 3x optical zoom often comes in handy, and Apple has sorely been missing this hardware on its base iPhones so far.

This year, however, the iPhone 15 comes with a brand new 48MP main camera that enables a 2X sensor crop, delivering similar results to a dedicated telephoto camera. The new 48MP camera also comes with much improved levels of detail and overall camera performance, but we need to test it out first before reaching any conclusions, so stay tuned for our real-life comparison with the Galaxy S23.

Both phones come with 12MP selfie cameras that support autofocus.

The Galaxy S23 came with noticeable improvements when it comes to its dual speakers and the audio quality they produce. Both phones sound great when compared back to back. The same goes for the haptics. You won't be disappointed by either when it comes to their speakers of vibration motors.

The Galaxy S23 comes with a 3,900 mAh battery while the iPhone 15's has a capacity of 3,349 mAh. The size of the batteries is not the only important factor though, as the battery life can be affected by numerous other ways, including but not limited to the chipsets' power efficiency, display tech, and much more.

PhoneArena Battery Test Results:

So it seems like the iPhone 15 and the Galaxy S23 are somewhat similar when it comes to their battery life while the phones are in use. Web browsing was the segment where the S23 won by a considerable amount during our tests, whereas the iPhone 15's battery did much better while playing mobile games, which probably because its chip is generally less powerful in that regard.

As for juicing these babies up, the iPhone 15 comes with the same 20W maximum wired charging, despite its new USB-C port. The Galaxy S23 is slightly faster in comparison, as it maxes out at 25W. Wireless charging speeds are the same for both, though, going up to 15W.

Here's a summary of the specs for both the iPhone 15 and Galaxy S23:

Don't forget that we also have an in-depth iPhone 15 vs Galaxy S23 specs comparison table here where you can learn more about all the smaller details.

If we take a birds-eye view of this battle between the iPhone 15 and Galaxy S23, we can quickly see that — at least on paper — the S23 offers more for your money. A dedicated telephoto camera, slightly faster wired charging, and arguably the most important being that fast 120Hz screen refresh rate.

If you don't care whether you are team Apple or team Samsung, the Galaxy S23 sounds like the better bang for your buck device, at least based purely on the spec sheets. That said, if you find yourself relating more to the iPhone 15 because of its main camera's performance and the iOS software that powers it, then it you won't go wrong there either.