Camera Showdown between iPhone 15 Pro Max and Galaxy S24 Ultra – which flagship can win?
People agree that cameras are what separates good phones from the best phones. This is what makes the iPhone 15 Pro Max vs. Galaxy S24 Ultra camera showdown so interesting on so many levels, thanks in part to how they can be in line with the best camera phones when they’re officially released.
Apple’s Wonderlust event is going in full force now that the September 12th date is official, and it’s where we’ll likely get to know the iPhone 15 lineup — including the latest model of the line in the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Whether Apple decides to name it by this name, or perhaps it changes the name to the iPhone 15 Ultra moniker, there is no denying that this advanced phone will be accompanied by new cameras that can help it overthrow the Galaxy S23 Ultra, the current camera. King of the phone.
We know that we are still far away from the launch of the Galaxy S24 Ultra, which usually takes place in February every year. However, Samsung does not intend to allow competition to come close to what its flagship phones offer with its cameras. The Galaxy S24 Ultra is no exception, and with plenty of leaks ahead of its launch next year, there are enough details to make a proper comparison.
In this iPhone 15 Pro Max vs Galaxy S24 Ultra camera showdown, we’ll go into more of these details to give you a better idea of how the cameras are set up.
iPhone 15 Pro Max and Galaxy S24 Ultra: Rumored Camera Specifications
| iPhone 15 Pro Max | Galaxy S24 Ultra | |
| main camera | The main is 48 megapixel | Main 200 MB |
| Ultra Wide Camera | 12MP Ultra Wide | 12MP Ultra Wide |
| telephoto camera | 12 MP telephoto | Telephoto 50 megapixel |
| selfie camera | 12 megapixels | 12 megapixels |
| Slices | A17 Bionic | Snapdragon 8 3rd generation |
Without going into all the nitty-gritty, it’s worth noting that the Galaxy S24 Ultra can change its arrangement so that it’s a triple camera system versus the quadruple setup on the current S23 Ultra. This is because the new one tends to feature an entirely new variable telephoto lens, which would do away with the separate telephoto cameras.
iPhone 15 Pro Max vs Galaxy S24 Ultra: Main Camera
The most used camera in a smartphone is the main camera, because of how it usually delivers the best results and can make darker settings appear bright and full of detail. Although the iPhone 15 Pro Max is expected to retain its 48MP main camera, the most interesting rumor centers around an upgraded sensor in the Apple phone.
Notably, the iPhone 15 Pro Max could have a new “high-end” camera sensor that’s almost an inch wide – a Sony IMX903. The sensor is believed to be 1/1.4-inch (about 0.87-inch), which is about 11% larger than the current 1/1.28-inch (0.78-inch) IMX803 sensor in iPhone 14 Pro Max.
So what does this mean? Well, the new “triple stack” sensor will result in sharper images, brighter colors, and inherently improved low-light performance. We’ve seen how the iPhone 14 Pro Max lags behind other cameras we tested in our astrophotography comparison, so having a larger sensor with increased light sensitivity could help boost the iPhone 15 Pro Max’s performance even further.
On the contrary, there are fewer details about what Samsung could store for the Galaxy S24 Ultra’s main camera. The current Galaxy S23 Ultra already has an impressive 200MP camera, which is what we should expect at least with the S24 Ultra.
However, one of the rumors indicates that the Galaxy S24 Ultra will be accompanied by a physical sensor measuring 1 inch. We’re not talking about an inch, but an actual 1-inch sensor that’s pretty similar to the one on the Xiaomi 13 Ultra. This would undoubtedly be a huge upgrade to boost Samsung’s low-light sensitivity, as the larger sensors pull in more light – thus producing sharper detail without dampening noise.
iPhone 15 Pro Max and Galaxy S24 Ultra: Wide-angle camera
A lot of attention on camera phones usually focuses on the main cameras, but we think the secondary wide-angle cameras should take advantage of the new camera sensors. Aside from how they will naturally get the same improvements as their flagship cameras, such as increased sharpness and higher dynamic range, the only unknown is whether Apple or Samsung will change their field of view.
iPhone 14 Pro Max and Galaxy S23 Ultra offer 12MP Ultra Wide cameras with a 120-degree field of view. There hasn’t been any kind of indication as to whether Samsung and Apple will change it in future phones, but it would do them no good except to at least increase their field of view for wider coverage.
iPhone 15 Pro Max vs Galaxy S24 Ultra: Telephoto Camera
Flagship phones are defined by their telephoto lenses, which is the area where we are sure to have our toughest battle. Apple has long lagged behind its competitors in this area, but a new 12MP periscope telephoto camera is said to be in store for the iPhone 15 Pro Max / iPhone 15 Ultra, and that improvement could really turn things around.
This is because it is rumored that the zoom capabilities will move to 6x optical zoom, which is double the current 3x zoom range of the iPhone 14 Pro Max. Although there are smartphones with better telephoto cameras, another rumor suggests that the iPhone 15 Pro Max could offer up to 10x zoom.
Then again, this is an area that Samsung has specialized in for a long time — but the phone maker might actually count on a different app for the Galaxy S24 Ultra’s telephoto camera. Specifically, the Galaxy S24 Ultra could adopt a folded variable telephoto lens that would effectively combine the 3x and 10x zoom lenses found on the S23 Ultra. This will eliminate separation and can give users more flexibility while zooming.
iPhone 15 Pro Max and Galaxy S24 Ultra: Video capture
While both phones should be expected to take great photos, we expect the video won’t disappoint either – especially when you consider the usefulness of how you cover the entire range.
Video enthusiasts will likely be drawn to the Galaxy S24 Ultra for a number of reasons. First of all, we believe that the video recording resolution will be 8K at 30fps. Whether or not the Galaxy S24 Ultra is using the upcoming Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, this could increase the slow motion speed of the phone at the very least.
Unfortunately, Apple has never been in pursuit of the highest video capture resolution or the fastest frame rates in its iPhones. The iPhone 14 Pro Max tops out at 4K at 60fps, which is the standard among flagship phones — but it’s still a far cry from the Galaxy S23 Ultra’s 8K resolution. The A17 Bionic chip is likely to achieve 8K capture with Apple ProRes, seeing how the leaked benchmark tests claim it’s processing power.
iPhone 15 Pro Max and Galaxy S24 Ultra: Camera software
Apple has slowly made the iPhone attractive to enthusiasts who want greater control over their compositions. We saw this with Apple adding some parameters that can be tweaked in the iPhone Camera app, such as exposure compensation, RAW files, and aperture adjustment in portrait mode.
Despite these smaller versions, the iPhone still lacks proper manual controls — something we can only hope will change with the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Considering how it’s been exploited to include some of the biggest camera upgrades in years, it would be great if the iPhone 15 Pro Max came with a revamped camera interface complete with manual controls for photo and video.
And that’s exactly why the Galaxy S23 Ultra is so popular with videographers and enthusiasts. We expect the Galaxy S24 Ultra to follow suit with its solid set of shooting modes and controls, so the company doesn’t need to do a lot of new things as it has already established itself as having one of the best camera software out there.
iPhone 15 Pro Max and Galaxy S24 Ultra cameras: Outlook
There’s already a lot of interest in the iPhone 15 Pro Max and Galaxy S24 Ultra camera front. It may seem as if Apple is trying to bridge the gap in telephoto range to match its competitors, but it will be interesting to see if the new camera hardware accompanying the iPhone 15 Pro Max / iPhone 15 Ultra is enough to knock Samsung out of the market. First place in our list of the best camera phones.
Even if it turns out that Apple pulls it off, its reign will likely be short because the Galaxy S24 Ultra is expected to be announced near the beginning of 2024. As we get closer to that time frame, you can almost guarantee that we’ll have a more realistic idea. About its new cameras.
More Tom’s guide
Source link
