Galaxy S26 Ultra vs iPhone 17 Pro Max: Main differences to expect
Samsung is about to refresh its flagship smartphone lineup soon, with the Galaxy S26 Ultra coming our way in very early 2026. With the promise of an improved main camera, generally the same design language as the Galaxy S25 Ultra, a brighter screen, and the good ol' S Pen once again.
Meanwhile, Apple has already checked out for 2025 as it released its iPhone 17 range, helmed by the iPhone 17 Pro Max. With a bold new design, better performance, and a new interface appearance, it's the ultimate iOS-powered phone to get this year.
Which one would be the better deal come January 2026, when the Galaxy S26 Ultra arrives?
Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra vs Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max expected differences:
| Galaxy S26 Ultra | iPhone 17 Pro Max |
|---|---|
| Design | |
| Continuation of the Galaxy S25 Ultra | A new design with a large camera plateau at the rear |
| Possibly thinner at 7.9 mm | 8,75 mm thick |
| Display | |
| A jump to 3,000 nits of peak brightness | 3,000 nits of peak brightness |
| Anti-reflective coating and privacy screen feature | Anti-glare coating |
| Performance | |
| Snapdragon 8 Gen 5, 3nm | Apple A19 Pro, 3nm |
| 12GB RAM, 256GB - 1TB versions | 12GB RAM, 256GB - 2TB storage versions |
| Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 | Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4 |
| Camera | |
| Quad camera (200MP + 10MP 3X + 50MP 5X + 50MP ultra) | Triple 48MP cameras |
| Sensor size improvements to the main camera | Slightly shorter 4X telephoto |
| Battery | |
| Smaller 5,000 mAh battery (for the 6th year in a row) | A larger 5,088 mAh battery |
| An upgrade from 45W to 60W wired charging | Upgraded from 27W to 40W wired charging |
| Qi2 magnetic charging with accessory support | MagSafe 2.0 25W wireless charging |
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Design and Size
Thinner bodies, larger plateaus
The Galaxy S26 Ultra will not score any major design changes. The aesthetics that were unveiled with the Galaxy S26 Ultra are definitely staying: we will definitely get the rounded corners design language, which honestly looks great and is a far cry from the oddly angled design of the Galaxy S22 Ultra, Galaxy S23 Ultra, and Galaxy S24 Ultra.
The phone will probably be made of titanium, but a switch to aluminum is also possible because… Apple made such a switch, and we all know Samsung doesn't like staying behind. Samsung already uses its own Armor Aluminum for the lower-tier Galaxies.
Meanwhile, the iPhone 17 Pro Max is reiterating the flat design language but now switches the titanium unibody for an aluminum one for cost-reducing and temperature-decreasing reasons. The design is also two-tone, with the rear of the device dominated by a glass cutout that complements the Liquid Glass design language well.
The iPhone 17 Pro Max now features an incredibly wide and tall camera island at the rear, which has logically been granted the "camera plateau" portmanteau.
Size-wise, we expect the Galaxy S26 Ultra will be slightly thinner than the iPhone 17 Pro Max.
| Galaxy S26 Ultra | iPhone 17 Pro Max |
|---|---|
| Thickness ~7.9 mm | Thickness 8.75 mm (10 mm with camera plateau) |
| Dimensions 163.4 x 77.9 mm* | Dimensions 146.9 x 70.5 |
| Weight Around 220 grams | Weight 233 grams |
The Galaxy S26 Ultra will retain the S Pen stylus, despite the rumors Samsung might drop it. The phone will retain the IP68 water and dust resistance; it doesn't seem that the higher IP69K water-resistance rating that indicates protection against water jets will get employed.
The iPhone 17 Pro Max is available in Silver, Cosmic Orange, and Deep Blue. Galaxy S26 Ultra might arrive in black, silver, and burgundy colors.
Display Differences
The Galaxy S26 Ultra will come with largely the same display as its predecessor, with just a couple of notable upgrades.
The 6.9-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X display will score slightly higher peak brightness of 3,000 nits, bringing it up to par with the iPhone 17 Pro Max and the Pixel 10 Pro range. As a refresher, the Galaxy S25 Ultra had a display rated for up to 2,600 nits of peak brightness. That could become reality thanks to the use of a new CoE OLED filter, which will improve clarity and also conserve power.
Another improvement would be a new privacy film-like feature, which will reportedly utilize AI to control viewing angles in order to protect your privacy from prying eyes. That's a pretty intriguing feature that could eliminate the need for a dedicated privacy screen protector.
We also hope Samsung further improves the anti-reflective coating that it has been utilizing on its two previous flagships, which eliminates glare and undesirable reflections.
| Galaxy S26 Ultra | iPhone 17 Pro Max |
|---|---|
| Size 6.9-inch | Size 6.9-inch |
| Brightness 3000 nits (peak) | Brightness 3000 nits (peak) |
| Refresh rate 1-120Hz | Refresh rate 1-120Hz |
On the other hand, we have the iPhone 17 Pro Max, which features mostly the same display as the iPhone 16 Pro Max but got slightly brighter and also scored several layers of anti-reflective coating, which subtly reduce glare. The effect is slightly less intense than what the Galaxy S25 Ultra offers, which means that the Galaxy S26 Ultra has the chance to beat that.
The iPhone 17 Pro Max relies on Face ID, while the Galaxy S26 Ultra will undeniably arrive with an ultrasonic fingerprint scanner embedded in the screen.
Performance and Software
Exceptional power on both ends
The Galaxy S26 Ultra will come with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 chipset, which is a successor to the Snapdragon 8 Elite. The next-gen 3nm chipset will bump performance up and will possibly utilize a slightly overclocked "Made for Galaxy" version that will be slightly faster than Android competitors using the same chip.
Graphics performance is also siad to score a hefty 30% performance gains, and the use of faster RAM would elevate overall system performance further. The device will also come with Wi-Fi 7 and a new Qualcomm 5G modem that will boost efficiency.
Meanwhile, the iPhone 17 Pro Max comes with the super-fast Apple A19 Pro chip, a third-generation 3nm chipset, which delivers excellent performance. It's also the first iPhone to have a vapor chamber inside for improved thermal management.
We expect that the battle between the A19 Pro and the new Qualcomm chip will be pretty heated, no pun intended.
| Galaxy S26 Ultra | iPhone 17 Pro Max |
|---|---|
| Chip Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 | Chip Apple A19 Pro |
| Process 3nm | Process 3nm |
| RAM, Storage 12/256GB 12/512GB 12/1TB LPDDR5X RAM UFS 4.0 storage | RAM, Storage 12/256GB 12/512GB 12/1TB 12/2TB LPDDR5X RAM UFS 3.1 storage |
Both devices will share the same amount of 12 GB of RAM, as well as 256 GB starting, 512 GB mid-range, and 1 TB top versions. However, you can have the iPhone 17 Pro Max with 2 TB of storage, but it will cost you a pretty penny.
Camera
Slight improvements
We expect minor hardware upgrades for the Galaxy. Chatter has it that its main camera will get a larger 1/1.1-inch sensor, a sizeable upgrade from the 1/1.3-inch sensor on the previous model. A larger sensor is always great to see and is among the more sensible generational upgrades we could have hoped for. It will still have a resolution of 200 MP, but the larger sensor size will deliver better dynamics, better natural bokeh, and more detail.
Remains to be seen how Samsung will utilize the sensor, though, as software plays an equal, if not greater, part in camera performance these days.
The rest of the Galaxy S26 Ultra will reportedly remain the same.
| Galaxy S26 Ultra | iPhone 17 Pro Max |
|---|---|
| Main 200 MP, f/1.7 24 mm 1/1.1" sensor | Main 48 MP, f/1.8 24 mm |
| Ultrawide 50 MP, f/1.9 | Ultrawide 48 MP, f/2.2 13 mm |
| Telephoto 10 MP, f/2.4 3X zoom (67 mm) | Telephoto 48 MP, f/2.8 4X zoom (100 mm) |
| Periscope 50MP, f/3.4 5X zoom (111 mm) |
In Apple's camp, the triple-camera system remains the de facto standard, with the only major upgrade being the telephoto. It is now paired with a denser 48MP sensor, and it is coupled with a 4X zoom lens, a shorter one compared to the 5X zoom on the previous model, which did not work great for portrait snaps. However, thanks to the resolution of the sensor, Apple can utilize in-sensor cropping to deliver 8X near-optical quality zoooms.
Battery Life and Charging
After years of stagnation, Samsung is overtaken by Apple
Few things are as consistent as Samsung's battery sizes for the Galaxy S Ultra lineup ever since its inception in 2020. Since then, every Galaxy S flagship from the Galaxy S20 Ultra to the Galaxy S26 Ultra has a 5,000 mAh battery in the trunk. Yes, it seems the S26 Ultra won't deliver the most coveted upgrade for Galaxy fans.
Back in 2020, a 5,000 mAh battery was pretty much the cream of the crop, but fast forward to today, and battery technology has improved immensely, making 5,000 mAh batteries something that even mid-rangers scoff at. Pretty much all of Samsung's rivals now use larger batteries, surpassing it in terms of capacity: Apple, Google, OnePlus, Oppo, Vivo, Xiaomi, all offer phones with larger batteries.
That's right, the iPhone 17 Pro Max comes with the largest battery ever fitted on an iPhone, a 5,088 mAh battery that helps the device achieve excellent battery life. Of course, it's the efficiency and tight integration of hardware with software that stretch the battery life here.
| Galaxy S26 Ultra | iPhone 17 Pro Max |
|---|---|
| Battery size 5,000 mAh | Battery size 5,088 mAh |
Charging speeds 45/60W wired 25W wireless charging Qi2 magnetic attachments | Charging speeds 40W wired 25W wireless charging MagSafe 2.0 |
One area in which the Galaxy S26 Ultra will reportedly score a charging speed upgrade, with a 60W wired charging support (up from the 45W on the previous models). Wireless charging will reportedly score Qi2 with magnetic attachments, just like Google's Pixelsnap and Apple's MagSafe. Speeds might get bumped to 25W but could also remain at 15W.
Meanwhile, the iPhone 17 Pro Max scored faster 40W wired charging, a neat improvement after years of dwelling in the ~30W range. Wireless charging is capped at 25W MagSafe 2.0 here.
Specs Comparison
| Galaxy S26 Ultra | iPhone 17 Pro Max |
|---|---|
| Size, weight 163.4 x 77.9 x 7.9 mm ~220 g | Size, weight 163.4 x 78.0 x 8.75 mm 233 g |
| Screen 6.9" AMOLED 120Hz 3,000 nits peak brightness | Screen 6.9" OLED 120Hz ProMotion 3,000 nits peak brightness |
| Processor Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 3nm | Processor A19 Pro 3nm |
| Versions: 12GB/256GB 12GB/512GB 12GB/1TB LPDDR5X | Versions: 12GB/256GB 12GB/512GB 12GB/1TB 12GB/1TB LPDDR5 |
| Cameras: 200MP main 50MP ultra 10MP 3X zoom 50MP 5X zoom 12MP front | Cameras: 48MP main 48MP ultra 48MP 4X 18MP front |
| Battery: 5,000 mAh | Battery: 5,088 mAh (eSIM) 4,832 mAh (international) |
| Charging: USB-C 60W wired 15W Qi2 | Charging: USB-C 40W wired 25W MagSafe 2.0 |
Summary
Just like the iPhone 17 Pro Max, the Galaxy S26 Ultra will be introducing few but key upgrades.
We are getting improvements to the display and performance, as well as the camera and the charging speeds. Sure, the battery might not score an upgrade for another year in a row, but we hope the efficiency of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 helps with the efficiency.
Meanwhile, the iPhone 17 Pro Max is definitely the best iPhone to get if you're deeply entrenched in the Apple ecosystem. Yet, if you you are looking for the pound-for-pound rival that could give it a run for the money, it's the Galaxy S26 Ultra that's shaping up to be your best bet.
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