Personal experience: Why I sold my iPhone 14 Pro Max and bought a Galaxy S23 Ultra

Sometimes I delay writing long texts, paying attention to other, more urgent and shorter ones. For example, in January, I received a brand new Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra for testing. And at that time, I was the owner of an iPhone 14 Pro Max. In general, the latest Samsung flagship and the current Apple flagship. It was begging for a comparison, and I even prepared a set of photos. But… writing a huge review of the Galaxy S23 Ultra took me a lot of time, and then there were other tasks

In March, I asked Samsung for their flagship once again, took more pictures and was going to write a text, but summer came, time for travelling and holidays, and I had no time or energy to take on the text epic. At the end of the summer, I was still hoping to make it to the Apple event in September, but a few days before it, I relaxed – I wouldn’t make it anyway.

But I won’t bore you with these explanations. Finally, I will share my experience – why I sold my iPhone 14 Pro Max one day and bought a Galaxy S23 Ultra. I warn you – there is a lot of text, so brew what you usually drink and make yourself comfortable!

Why I sold my iPhone

So, I really liked the Galaxy S23 Ultra at first sight. In the review, I described in detail why it is so good. I immediately said that if I were to change my iPhone, it would be for this smartphone. But in January, I didn’t dare to make the switch, I had to sell my iPhone and watch, and I was too lazy to deal with all that. And the iPhone was only 3 months old at the time.

But in general, I was mentally ready to switch to Android. Let me remind you that I bought an iPhone in early 2021. Partly for a journalistic experiment – I was curious how iOS was doing, because I had been using Android smartphones for almost 5 years. Before that, I also had iPhones, and in general, I change platforms from time to time, it’s useful to be aware of them, especially if you work in IT journalism.

So, my transition to iOS was full of thorns and problems. I even wrote a huge post about it once. Many, many things were annoying – working with files, with text and keyboard, ill-conceived little things in the organisation of the system… And after more than two years with iPhones, I can’t say that I consider the problems described above to be insignificant. They are still significant and still annoying! It’s just that, well… you can get used to it and sleep on the ceiling. This is actually my favourite phrase from my iPhone days.

I’m used to it, yes, but I still don’t think it’s the perfect phone. By the way, I also wrote about this not so long ago:

• iPhone 14 Pro Max experience: Is it as perfect as everyone thinks?

And then, around June, my “precious” iPhone suddenly began to freeze up after about 4-5 hours of active use and heat up more often. I uninstalled and reinstalled apps, checked the settings, did a reset, to no avail. I talked to Apple support by phone, where they chased me from consultant to consultant for two hours and conducted remote tests, and then said “everything is fine, try using the phone less”.

Then I signed up for a service, where they took the phone for testing, and said the same thing: “The phone is in perfect condition,” but did some kind of deep reset just in case. In short, it didn’t help. And I am an active user and rarely let the phone out of my hands. I don’t need a phone that costs a shitload of money and I can’t leave the house without a power bank! In general, this was the last straw. At first, I was too lazy to sell my phone and watch, buy new ones, set everything up, but in the end I decided to do it. And looking back, it was a great decision.

I chose Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, there were no other options. There are no other flagships on the market that work THAT long. Samsung has a gorgeous new processor and good optimisation, it lives longer than the iPhone 14 Pro Max at its best. And besides the long-lasting battery, it’s a very good flagship smartphone overall.

To conclude this long section, I’ll mention one more thing. When I was struggling to get myself to switch to an iPhone, people used to say to me – you’ll see, when you decide to switch back to Android, you’ll spit more! What can I say? After 2.5 years with iPhones, I switched easily and with pleasure. Nothing annoyed me, and I was happy with many things. I do not claim that this will be the case for everyone, but… I repeat, the iPhone is far from perfect, sometimes you need to look at alternatives.

I sold the iPhone 14 Pro Max in June 2023 and bought it in November 2022. That is, in fact, 6 months of use. During the sale, I lost almost 50% of the value! Because even phones in perfect condition and in films were much cheaper than new ones, and mine had small traces of use, and this unfortunate battery suddenly started giving out 98% “health” (a story, by the way, that is not uncommon). In general, another stone in the garden of iPhones – it is generally accepted that they do not lose in price, well, well. Of course, I was immediately told that the initial price was overstated, but this is another excuse. The iPhones are losing in price, and how. Even the Galaxy S23 Ultra has not fallen in price that much in the secondary market.

To conclude this section, let me say a few words about watches. I really liked the Apple Watch, but the Galaxy Watch 5 (the sixth one hadn’t been released yet) replaced it perfectly. The software is not so perfect, but the rest of the functionality is on par and there are advantages (longer battery life, better watch faces and their settings, the flat screen does not scratch at all, native straps are cheaper, etc.)

But let’s move on to the comparison. I’ll say right away that I’m not going to throw mud at the iPhone on purpose. I may not have chosen it, but it’s a good and popular phone. So I will try to be objective. But from my own point of view.

Read also: Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra smartphone review: An unprecedented flagship

Positioning, prices of Galaxy S23 Ultra and iPhone 14 Pro Max

The Galaxy S23 Ultra is currently Samsung’s top-of-the-line model, and the S24 series is expected in January next year.

But the iPhone 14 Pro Max is now an ex-flagship. However, this is not to say that the new 15 is much better. It has a 5x optical zoom, a titanium body, an updated chipset, and the long-awaited USB-C. In addition, the screen bezels have shrunk and a programmable button has been added instead of the good old volume rocker. As is usually the case with last year’s model, there is little point in spending money on a new one. In general, it is quite possible to compare the S23U with the iPhone 14 Pro Max.

In terms of prices, Samsungs are expensive in chain hardware stores, but you can find them cheaper online. At the moment, the S23U in the basic 8/256 version costs from ∼$1000.

The iPhone 14 Pro Max with 128 GB of storage costs almost ∼$1400.

In general, we already have the winner of the first section – the S23 Ultra, which is significantly cheaper and has twice the memory, and we’ll talk about the rest of the differences later.

The winner: Galaxy S23 Ultra

Package contents

Everything is very similar here, since there is nothing else besides the phones themselves, documentation, cables and paper clips for removing the SIM slot.

Winner: a draw

Design, ergonomics

I won’t describe each phone from all sides, you’ve probably seen them. Let me tell you about my general impressions.

Both devices are very large. You can compare them in a 3D model here, and the dimensions are 160.7×77.6×7.9 mm in the iPhone 14 Pro Max and 163.4×78.1×8.9 mm in the Galaxy S23 Ultra. That is, Samsung is slightly larger both in appearance and in reality. And a millimetre thicker. The weight of the phones is almost the same.

And what about the experience of using it? Here I believe that the Max series iPhones have an unfortunate format. Yes, flat edges are cool and fashionable, but… in smaller models. And the huge 14 Pro Max is a shovel in itself, because of the flat edges it looks thicker. Holding such a huge device in your hand is already uncomfortable, and the sharp edges cut into your hand. Yes, you can always put on a case (and few people walk around with phones for that much money without protection), but even a thin case increases the size of the phone, which makes it even more uncomfortable to use.

Let’s move on to Samsung. It is slightly larger, as we found out, but you don’t feel it, thanks to the rounded sides and the “flowing” screen. It is much more comfortable to hold in your hand. Yes, I know that there is a whole cohort of people who hate rounded screen edges, but I honestly don’t understand the complaints. This approach allows you to make the screen bigger without making the phone bigger, the bezels are not noticeable at all, and it looks stylish. A popular complaint is false touches, but I haven’t encountered them, even when using the phone without a case. But for the most part, there are zero problems with the case.

It’s also important to note that the S23U series has a flatter screen and less strong curves compared to the S22 Ultra. All for the convenience of working with a stylus. And, once again, there are no problems.

In general, which device is better and more beautiful is a personal matter. Externally, I think both are beautiful, as are the available colour schemes. And both are fully protected from moisture (IP68).

The winner: Galaxy S23 Ultra

Screens

Again, I won’t list the dry specs (you can compare the phones here), but I’ll just say that each has gorgeous flagship screens. Colour reproduction, black depth, viewing angles, etc. are all on point.

The only difference in numbers is the peak brightness, which is 2000 nits for the iPhone and 1750 nits for the S23 Ultra. But, forgive me, Apple fans, I’m going to shame your favourite phone again – this peak brightness is useless. On the contrary, in the summer, when the sun is shining brightly outside, the iPhone decides that it has “overheated” and reduces the brightness so much that it is difficult to see anything on the screen! Moreover, it “overheats” not only in real heat of 27-30 degrees and above, but even when it’s +21-22 outside, just the sun warms it well! This feature was terribly annoying.

For comparison, the Galaxy S23 Ultra turns on maximum brightness in the sun, even in the heat, and doesn’t let up. And 1750 nits is more than enough for perfect readability.

Another difference that catches the eye is the notches for the front cameras. The 14 Pro Max, as you know, has a wide notch a la dynamic island, which is also interestingly played out at the software level (read more here). The S23 Ultra has only a neat notch for the front-facing camera in the screen. I’m not going to scold the iPhone this time, I’ve been annoyed by a lot of things while living with it, but the hole in the screen didn’t annoy me, somehow didn’t attract attention. Although, of course, a compact hole is better than a long hole.

The winner: and yet the Galaxy S23 Ultra

Hardware, performance

Both phones have top processors. Well, yes, the A16 Bionic in the iPhone 14 Pro Max is no longer the top of the line, since the iPhone 15 has been released. But, as usual, no one will notice the difference if you don’t look at the benchmarks.

Apple has a chip of its own design, and Samsung this year, to the happiness of users, abandoned the not very successful Exynos and switched to Snapdragon. And not the standard, but the optimised and improved Snapdragon 8 Gen “for Galaxy”. And it’s extremely high quality – no overheating, excellent energy efficiency.

I don’t like to set benchmarks – for me, they are spherical numbers in a vacuum. I always try to describe my personal experience with the phone first. So, both phones are super fast, everything flies and blah, blah, blah. Well, it would be different at a price of $1000+.

I should also note here that iPhone fans have often criticised Android flagships for not running as smoothly as they should. Well, as you know, it makes no sense to compare one iPhone and ALL Android flagships. They are made by different companies. There are successful models, and there are less successful ones. So if you compare, then with specific ones. And my particular Galaxy S23 Ultra works as nimbly and smoothly as the iPhone 14 Pro Max. Yes, iPhone owners may say, “Let’s see in six months, a year…”. We’ll see, of course, but I’ve had Samsung’s flagships before (from S7 to S10) and haven’t seen any changes in a year.

Winner: a draw

Memory

Apple traditionally does not talk about RAM in iPhones, so there is no point in comparing. The S23 Ultra works fine with both the 8GB and 12GB versions, and I didn’t notice a huge difference during the tests. But I chose the 12/512 version myself – with a reserve for the future.

The storage capacity of the basic iPhone 14 Pro Max is 128 GB, which is small by today’s standards. The S23 Ultra has 256 GB, and it’s also cheaper!

It’s also worth noting that in 2023, the 15 Pro Max will also have a minimum of 256 GB, but… it’s $100 more expensive than last year, although it’s much more expensive, right?

The winner: Galaxy S23 Ultra

Galaxy S23 Ultra and iPhone 14 Pro Max cameras

For a long time, iPhones received 12 megapixel camera sensors, while competitors did not bother. But quantity does not always mean quality. Starting with the 14 Pro series, the main module became 48-megapixel. While the Galaxy S23 Ultra has all 200 megapixels. But, again, numbers are not the main thing here, optics and post-processing are more important. Although in theory, 200 megapixels still means higher frame detail. And, of course, no phone shoots in full resolution by default, the pictures are reduced using special technologies. On the Galaxy, you can simply turn on the 200 megapixel mode, while on the iPhone, the full resolution is “extracted” only through RAW, which is not for everyone.

Read also: 18 ways to make use of your old smartphone

And the Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max and Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra have telephoto lenses that are responsible for 3x zoom without loss of quality, as well as wide-angle modules with autofocus and the ability to take macro photos. What the iPhone does not have, but Samsung has, is an additional periscope lens that allows you to make 10x optical zoom WITHOUT loss of quality. And with the help of software, we can get a pretty decent 100x zoom on the Galaxy S23 Ultra, while the iPhone 14 Pro Max has a maximum of 10x and it’s of rather poor quality. I wrote about Samsung’s zoom in great detail in the S23U review. This is an important advantage of the model, and even the new 15 Pro with its 5x optical zoom is resting on its laurels. Below are a few examples, Galaxy S23 on the left, iPhone 14 Pro Max on the right. With the S23, car number plates, texts, and even faces are perfectly distinguishable from afar.

For example, if we were at a football match, the S23 Ultra allows you to zoom in and see all the players’ names clearly, whereas on the iPhone they are almost unreadable. The stabilisation on the Galaxy works great.

And here’s my favourite example. It’s night, an office building… When you approach the Samsung (top two photos), you see a stand with a flag, while on the iPhone (bottom pair of photos) you can’t see anything. In general, the Galaxy S23 Ultra literally tears the iPhone 14 Pro Max to shreds on the British flag!

And Samsung can also do this in 30x and 100x modes. Yes, the neural network helps to draw the moon, but the fact is that it can. And this is not the same for everyone, the result depends on the time of day, lighting, and moon phases.

For many more examples of zoom and more, see the folder here.

But in general, both phones (iPhone 14 Pro Max and Galaxy S23 Ultra) belong to the flagship segment, are equipped with excellent cameras and take good pictures both during the day and in the dark. However, when it comes to darkness, I personally prefer Samsung’s photos, as they seem sharper and have better colour reproduction, but in general, it’s a matter of taste.

I won’t overload the review with a billion photos (especially since the site automatically reduces them), here are a few examples. And all the photos taken on the Galaxy S23 Ultra and iPhone 14 Pro Max can be found in this folder, the resolution is original. I tried to take the same photos from the same angles. Those who want to study everything in detail can download the files and examine them.

There’s a more important point worth writing about here, and it’s the reason why I was so happy to get rid of my iPhone. I wrote more about it here in my article about the iPhone 14 Pro Max.

The fact is that compared to the 13 series, the 14 has a new focal length for the main camera. Because of this, the iPhone 14 Pro Max switches to a wide-angle lens in macro mode even when you are not very close to the subject. The 13 Pro Max did this only when the approach was very close.

What is the problem here? The fact is that the quality of the wide-angle lens is far from being as good as that of the prime lens. And the weaker the lighting, the more noticeable it is – noise, blurring, and graininess appear. And even if the lighting is good, the background is not as smoothly blurred when using a wide-angle lens as it is when using the main module. I showed many examples in the article about the iPhone.

Of course, you can turn off the ultra-macro mode. But this doesn’t solve the problem – the main lens simply doesn’t focus close up. You have to go almost to the other side of the room to get the shot in focus! I’m exaggerating, but yes, you need to shoot from a distance. What’s the problem with that? Firstly, in order to post photos somewhere, you need to process them and crop them, which takes time. Secondly, when you look at an object from a distance, it’s not always clear whether it’s clear, so I’ve often received pictures with blurry objects.

Now about Samsung. The Galaxy S23 Ultra also has this habit – when approaching an object, it switches to a wide-angle camera and it’s called focus enhancer. It does not improve anything, because the story is the same – the quality in low light is worse, the background is less beautifully blurred. BUT – there is an important BUT! If you turn off this “enhancer”, then the main camera focuses on objects nearby quite normally! While the 14 Pro Max is not able to do this. So I keep the focus enhancer off by default and switch it on if I need super-macro mode! Let’s look at some examples. Below you can see at what distance the Galaxy S23 Ultra focuses (left) and at what distance the iPhone 14 Pro Max focuses (right).

Attempting to shoot with the same focal length:

But such a beautiful shot as the one on the left can be taken with the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra. With an iPhone, you need to shoot from a distance or switch to a wide angle, and the quality there, as you already know, is not the best.

Well, now let’s compare selfies (all the photos from the test models are here):

In portrait mode, in my opinion, the S23U blurs the background more accurately.

But in the dark, the Samsung is definitely better, as it captures more light and skilfully improves it with software. The iPhone simply activates the “night mode” with the flash (with the screen turned on to maximum brightness) and the face looks bad and fuzzy.

Now let’s look at the video, there is no particular difference in quality. The only thing (pay attention to the end of the videos from the supermarket) is a familiar problem – the 14 Pro Max does not focus on its own when you come close to an object, you have to poke at the screen to switch it, Galaxy has no problems with this. And in terms of zoom and stabilisation, Samsung again tears up the Apple like a hot water bottle. I didn’t test the various special modes, because I don’t shoot video very often and I’m not ready to compare in detail.

In general, the Galaxy S23 Ultra is head and shoulders above its rival in terms of camera. The zoom is many times better thanks to the periscope lens, and close-up photos of objects are also better. And the rest can be discussed at the level of “taste”, but in standard conditions, both smartphones shoot photos and videos well.

The winner: Galaxy S23 Ultra

Software

This is a complex section that I won’t go into here. It’s impossible to compare two different OSes point by point and say which is better. A lot depends on habits. Someone will argue that “Android is full of shit, I tried it, I didn’t like it”. But you only tried it for 5 minutes, borrowing a friend’s phone to look at it, and what the hell. We know you pacifists.

It is clear that if you are used to something, you do many things without thinking, automatically. And when you pick up another device, you try to look for familiar settings, do familiar things, and… everything is different. Of course, it’s annoying! So it’s important to give yourself time and get used to it, then you’ll start to really see the things that are more conveniently implemented, and not just “go into denial”.

By the way, I know a lot of Android phone owners who tried to switch to iOS for work or out of curiosity and failed. At one time, I almost “couldn’t”, but I forced myself to do it for the sake of experimentation. Still, I am one of those people who find Android better and more convenient. Especially Android with a well-thought-out One UI shell, like Samsung’s.

In short, for me, Android is much more convenient for working with text (including the implementation of third-party keyboards, for example, there is a clipboard where copied words and texts are saved, which is very important to me), in many places, elements and settings are more logically placed (I won’t waste time describing all this), but iOS is far from being as simple and intuitive as it is commonly believed), better gestures (in particular, the “back” gesture is done on both sides of the screen), software works fully in the background (on the iPhone, downloading “heavy” files was simply immediately reset), and so on, this is still the main thing.

You can disagree with me, you can say, “I don’t need this and I don’t need that” and so on, but my opinion will remain with me. iOS is far from perfect, just like iPhones in general.

Winner: I’m not going to name a winner here. My personal opinion is that the Galaxy is more convenient, but in general, both phones have pros and cons, and each user chooses for himself.

Ecosystem

But enough of the generalities, I’ll point out some more distinctive points. For example, owners of Apple devices say that they will not switch to Android, even if it is 10 times better, because they have iPads, Macbooks, Apple TVs, etc. I won’t argue, Apple has a really cool ecosystem for interoperability of technology, the cloud, file sharing, etc.

But it is worth noting that Samsung, Huawei, and even Xiaomi have similar ecosystems. Maybe they are not as developed, but they exist, and we cannot say that they do not. So the issue of transition is again a matter of changing habits and dragging files from one convenient cloud to another.

As for me, I have an iPad and a Macbook at home. The tablet is mainly used by my son, and the Mac is my main work computer. And to be honest, I don’t suffer at all from the absence of an iPhone. The ecosystem’s capabilities were unnecessary for me personally. The only thing I used regularly was copying texts directly from my iPhone to my Mac and back. But I can’t say that life is over without this feature. Now I throw the same texts or photos into my Telegram notes and immediately receive them on other devices. But this is just my case, I know people who have more Apple equipment and who really actively use the possibilities of its interaction.

But Samsung has a “desktop” Dex mode, which has no analogue in Apple. Read more about it below.

Winner: iPhone 14 Pro Max

Stylus

We won’t mention the iPhone here, it doesn’t have a stylus and probably won’t. But the S23 Ultra has a stylus built into the body. I also wrote about how to use it and what it is useful for in my huge S23 Ultra review.

Do you use it? No, sometimes I let the kids draw when I’m visiting, and everyone is happy. Otherwise, finger control and texting from a comfortable keyboard suit me perfectly. However, some people find the stylus useful, so its presence is an advantage of Galaxy S23U.

The winner: the obvious one, the S23 Ultra

Data transfer

As for the modules, everything is on the same level, plus or minus the latest versions of Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, NFC for payment, navigation (different systems). As you know, Bluetooth is not used for data transfer in the iPhone, but I don’t think there are any perverts who do this on Android, so it’s not critical.

But what is critical is wired data transmission, or rather charging, that is, the connector. The Galaxy S23 Ultra has USB Type-C 3.2, and the iPhone 14 Pro Max has Lightning. iPhones have long been criticised for the proprietary connector, and it was retained even when both MacBooks and older iPads got Type-C. Personally, switching to Samsung has made things much easier for me! Now I can take one cable with me on trips and charge my phone and MacBook with it. And at home, too, and in any room there is a Type-C plugged into a socket. With the iPhone, I had to build a garden of cables.

Read also: Smartphones created in partnership with well-known brands: Winners and losers

It’s worth noting that the iPhone 15 was switched to Type-C – praise be to the higher powers!

It’s also important to mention an option that Apple doesn’t have – Dex mode. It allows you to use your Galaxy as a laptop PC. All you need is a monitor/TV and a keyboard/mouse, as well as a suitable cable. There is also the option to work wirelessly, but it is not the most stable, as I described in my review. I know that there are people who have no other PCs besides their Galaxy, but I personally could not do that. In any case, it’s interesting as an additional feature.

The winner: Galaxy S23 Ultra

Unlocking methods

This section is worth paying attention to, because there is a difference, and a noticeable one. As you know, after the disappearance of the button under the screen, iPhones have the only unlocking method – Face ID. And I have nothing against this method, in fact, the elongated hole in the screen is provided for it. 

Face ID is very convenient. You hardly notice the unlocking process, you just take the phone in your hand, hold it up to your face, and it’s already unlocked. It always works, even in complete darkness. Yes, there are nuances. For example, when I was in mask mode, it was very annoying to have to constantly enter the password in public places. And you can’t unlock the phone if it’s just lying on your desk (or, for example, hanging in the car’s cradle), you have to pick it up and make eye contact anyway. But this is exactly the moment you get used to and it does not cause any negative emotions. In general, when I came across test Androids while using my iPhone, I used to hold them up to my face at a special angle instead of just putting my finger on them. Now, of course, I’m used to it.

The S23 Ultra also has a face recognition option, and it works great, even in low light. I won’t say that it’s better than Apple’s, because it doesn’t have such advanced sensors. But it’s not critical for me either, because given the choice, I don’t want to use face recognition. Putting your finger on the screen is a simple and intuitive action. And you can do it in any position of the phone, without having to look at it. I’ve already adapted to putting my finger directly to the switched-off black screen when I take the phone in my hand – the unlock works anyway.

Android also has a feature called “trusted devices”. For example, a fitness bracelet, a smartwatch, headphones – when a Bluetooth device is connected to your phone, it will always be automatically unlocked. But I don’t use this feature, I don’t think it’s safe enough.

The winner: a draw

Sound

Both the Galaxy S23 Ultra and the iPhone 14 Pro Max have identical layouts – stereo speakers, one at the bottom, the other also serves as an earpiece. There’s not much to write about here – both smartphones sound good, there’s no noticeable difference, no nuances either. The Samsung has Tuning by AKG, the iPhone has no advertising collaborations.

The phones do not have 3.5 mm jacks, but they work with wireless headphones without any problems. Although (I can’t resist throwing another stone in the garden), the iPhone works so strangely with its own AirPods that I used Huawei instead and was satisfied.

The winner: a draw

Battery life

At the time, I chose the iPhone 13 Pro Max because at that time, in 2021-2022, it was one of the most durable flagship smartphones on the market. The same was true for the iPhone 14 Pro Max… before the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra was announced, which is even more durable according to independent tests (for example, from GSMArena). It gives me 1.5-2 hours more screen time, which is a lot. For a person who rarely lets go of the phone and whose leisure, communication, work, new information, etc. are concentrated in it, it is very critical.

In addition, the battery life of the 14th series iPhones decreases too quickly, which can be found on the Internet. 85-90% “health” after a year of use is commonplace. I had 100% for a long time, then the problem with rapid discharge described in the introduction began and the battery health began to reach 98%. I don’t know what would have happened next, probably worse. And the phone was only six months old!

Read also: Apple AirPods Pro 2 vs Huawei FreeBuds Pro 2: which headphones to choose?

But back to the batteries. There are a couple of other differences between the Galaxy S23 Ultra and the iPhone 14 Pro Max. First, the charging speed. For iPhones, this is a maximum of 27 watts and much depends on the adapter. 27 watts is the peak value, the average charging speed, according to measurements, is 15-20 watts. In short, you can’t dream of really fast charging. Apple fans usually say the famous “we don’t need it”. Well, okay, although, according to research, fast charging does not affect batteries in such a way that it would be significantly noticeable for 4-5 years. And few people use their phones for that long, and the standard wear and tear of a lithium battery is much more noticeable.

What about the Galaxy S23 Ultra? Samsung shies away from super-fast charging, which can be found in Chinese smartphones. But the S23 Ultra (as well as the plus version) received 45 watts. Not a record, but quite enough. If, for example, I need to go somewhere and the phone is not fully charged, it is enough to plug it in for 15-30 minutes and I will already get enough percentage to last me until late in the evening. With the iPhone, it was not so, the percentages were gaining terribly slowly, especially after 70%. In general, Samsung’s charging speed is more than twice as fast, and that’s great.

As for wireless charging, both phones support 15 W, but in the case of the iPhone, there are nuances – 15 W only with MagSafe magnetic accessories, otherwise it is half that.

The iPhone doesn’t have reverse wireless charging, but it still comes in handy – several times my S23U has acted as a “donor” for other phones, and I often charge my Galaxy Watch from it when travelling – it’s convenient and I don’t need to take the charger from the watch with me.

The winner: Galaxy S23 Ultra

Conclusions

So, there are 14 points in the article. Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra won in 8 of them unequivocally + in one in my personal opinion (software). The S23 Ultra has better ergonomics, a better screen, better cameras, MUCH better battery life and faster charging. And it costs significantly less. The iPhone 14 Pro Max won in only one point – Apple’s ecosystem is really well thought out. A draw on 5 points. The winner is obvious!

I think iPhone fans, if they come here, will say that I’m not very smart and I’m doing everything wrong, but in fact they don’t need this, they don’t need that, and the iPhone is the perfect and reference phone. Okay, everyone has the right to their opinion and everyone can buy what they like.

А я лише спробувала розповісти про те, чому флагман від Samsung кращий за флагман від Apple, причому кожним із них користувалася півроку, коли вони обидва були (а Galaxy S23U і зараз є) головними топ-моделями своїх брендів. Тож знаю, про що пишу.

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