Camera Champions Face Off: iPhone 16 Pro vs. Galaxy S25 Ultra

When you’re looking for the best cam to usher in your pocket, you require to consider at present’s top-tier telephones. The imaging skills of the iPhone 16 Pro and Galaxy S25 Ultra are amongst the best money can get. And with touring interval improve, convey a telephone is likely to be some of the sensible cam. But for image info precisely how do these 2 cell titans distinction?

To be taught, I fired quite a few footage making use of each telephones in a spread of issues to see which telephone takes the best-looking images. What’s “best” is normally to particular person viewpoint so whereas I’ll offer my particular person tackle every examination as an skilled digital photographer and providing my causes I favor one over the varied different, you may properly find that you just favor the varied different. So look by way of the number of situations beneath and see if you happen to contain a varied ultimate thought.

Read far more: Best Camera Phone of 2025

All images revealed have truly been taken making use of every telephone’s default cam setting making use of default setups, until or else specified. While images from the Galaxy S25 have truly been posted as taken, the iPhone’s images have truly wanted to be remodeled by way of Adobe Lightroom as our posting system doesn’t maintain Apple’s default HEIF image structure. This process doesn’t influence the image in anyway.

Ready? Let’s dive in.

Starting out with an easy exterior scene. Both telephones have truly finished a superb activity catching an additionally direct publicity beneath and each images are loaded with info. It’s difficult to select in between them, nevertheless the iPhone has the aspect for me because it’s completed a considerably hotter image with much more natural-looking tones. The S25 Ultra’s image seems as properly saturated, particularly in heaven skies, which I find pretty disruptive.

It’s related story after we change to the ultrawide lenses on each telephones. I favor the hotter tones within the iPhone’s shot, that makes the S25 Ultra’s look pretty chilly comparative. I likewise favor the lighter darkness on the iPhone’s image, making it an easy win for the iPhone beneath. Notably, each telephones are doing a superb activity of creating up for the ultrawide lenses on the sides (a function activated by default on each telephones); the barrier continues to be straight in every shot and never bending as you ‘d typically see making use of a lens this broad.

There’s virtually no distinction in between these 2 exterior scenes. The bloom seems crisp on each images, with excellent normal direct publicity. The iPhone’s image is as soon as once more a little bit hotter in tone nevertheless it’s minimal.

The Galaxy S25 takes an easy win with this picture of bluebells. The shades are much more vigorous, particularly within the eco-friendlies on the blades of turf, which look pretty rinsed on the iPhone’s image. It actually resembles the S25’s cam lens is a little bit polarized to lower representations and increase saturation, nevertheless I don’t perceive if that holds true. Either means, Samsung takes the win beneath.

At 5x zoom factors worsen for the iPhone Despite the bluebells being pretty away, the telephone appeared incapable to perform a pointy focus on the blossoms. The S25 Ultra, alternatively, dealt with to perform a pointy image with richer shades.

I favor the iPhone’s image beneath although. It’s brighter and the hotter shades on the blocks on the encircling constructions look much more real looking.

The iPhone’s image is as soon as once more brighter beneath and I favor its shades as properly. The Galaxy S25 Ultra does have the aspect in nice info, nevertheless. You truly require to focus to see it nevertheless the little strains on the construction are a little bit sharper on the S25.

The S25 Ultra does have a bodily profit over the iPhone with its 10x optical zoom lens, which permits it to focus additionally higher whereas nonetheless protecting a pin-sharp image.

You can nonetheless electronically focus with the iPhone to 10x, and the outcomes aren’t poor. I favor the shades of the S25 Ultra’s shot beneath, nevertheless the excellence totally isn’t that recognizable.

Zooming in close to to see the good info, the S25 Ultra’s optical zoom image most undoubtedly has a little bit bit far more clearness nevertheless the digital upscaling on the iPhone’s shot has truly finished a superb activity beneath, as the excellence isn’t large.

iPhone 16 Pro vs. Galaxy S25 Ultra: Night settings contrasted

At initially glimpse, the one precise distinction in between the iPhone’s 5x shot and the S25 Ultra’s 5x shot is the shade equilibrium. And in truth, I don’t have a selection in between the hotter tone of the iPhone or the much more magenta prejudice of the S25.

However, if you focus close to to the data, the iPhone has truly created a sharper image beneath, with an odd sort of digital obscuring across the mild message within the S25 Ultra’s image. So in some circumstances the S25 Ultra’s zoom is sharper, varied different instances it’s the iPhone’s. I’m joyful they’re making this straightforward for me.

Again, the one precise distinction beneath stays within the shade equilibrium and I don’t truly perceive which I favor. The direct publicity, sound levels and amount of knowledge are virtually the identical.

Things altered after I modified to the ultrawide lenses, nevertheless. The S25 Ultra’s shot is most undoubtedly brighter, catching much more info within the rocks within the foreground and within the constructions distant. The iPhone’s image is way darker normal.

Just to perplex factors much more, the iPhone’s nighttime image with its ultrawide lens is considerably brighter than the S25 Ultra’s on this occasion that I fired in theArctic I actually wanted to establish the image metadata to make sure I had not mixed these up, nevertheless I’ve not. The iPhone’s image has truly caught far more mild information beneath and created much more info on the ice door to the appropriate.

The iPhone’s nighttime image is as soon as once more a little bit brighter beneath nevertheless it’s likewise maintained the sensible highlights on the membership indication managed. On the S25 Ultra’s image, these highlights are virtually shed to pure white nevertheless the fantastic eco-friendly and yellow tones have truly been maintained within the iPhone’s image. The shades typically are considerably hotter on the iPhone’s shot, however, which could not be to your desire. Here, I imagine they perform properly.

But on this occasion, the iPhone has truly created a unusually warm-looking image that I truly don’t corresponding to. Those cozy shades had been absent on the time of seize and it doesn’t assist the scene, particularly not with such stable orange tones overhead. The S25 Ultra’s image is much more properly balanced normal and it’s a considerably sharper image as properly. It’s an very simple win for Samsung beneath.

Things don’t improve for the iPhone when making use of the ultra-wide lens. Its image is as soon as once more pestered by extraordinarily cozy tones, whereas the S25 Ultra’s shot is each far more color-accurate and brighter.

iPhone 16 Pro vs. Galaxy S25 Ultra: Which takes significantly better selfies?

While the Galaxy S25 Ultra’s selfie is a little bit brighter, I don’t like what it’s completed with the shades. My face has truly been made an uncommon colour of orange and my denim coat is a a lot deeper blue than it truly is. The complexion on the iPhone’s shot are much more precise, and its shot is sharper too.

Both telephones have a wider-angle setting for the selfie cam, though the iPhone’s seems to be an entire lot larger. That’s most undoubtedly price making an allowance for if you happen to typically corresponding to to pack nice offers of fine mates proper into your workforce footage. You may most definitely press on the very least a few further good mates in if you happen to utilized the iPhone, or want to decide on that you just just like the very least and go away them out of construction if you happen to utilized the S25Ultra Otherwise, the image distinctions coincide as beforehand.

iPhone 16 Pro Vs Galaxy S25 Ultra: Which cam is significantly better?

I’ve created lots of these distinction objects on completely different generations of telephones in my 14 years at and I don’t keep in mind having truly finished one which’s felt this shut. The bother is that neither telephone excels often in a single location; the iPhone 16 Pro’s ultra-wide pictures aren’t as sensible because the S25 Ultra’s, apart from on these occasions when they are surely, confusingly. I’ve taken much more images not consisted of beneath that each help just a few of my verdicts and recommend versus them. Go quantity.

But there are some takeaways I can provide self-confidence. Generally speaking, the iPhone’s shades are far more all-natural than the S25 Ultra’s, which might in some circumstances look extraordinarily saturated. This has truly held true with virtually each Samsung telephone contemplating that the agency started inserting video cameras in them and it’s nonetheless the occasion at present. Those looking out for an additional all-natural base image to make use of your very personal filters and impacts over will definitely be significantly better matched with the iPhone 16 Pro.

But that’s a lot much less the occasion within the night, when the iPhone far more often provides hotter tones that look a lot much less all-natural than the S25Ultra’s So, if night digital pictures is essential to you, the S25 Ultra is likely to be the significantly better various. Overall, its night setting images from all lenses had been brighter and sharper.

Sure, the S25 Ultra has the extended zoom selection nevertheless you ‘d actually require to understand you’ll make the most of a 10x zoom to validate deciding on one over the varied different. Personally, I find the 5x zoom diploma a superb nice space and beneath the telephones are virtually on the identical degree. And on these unusual occasions you may want to press factors much more, the iPhone’s digital zoom can nonetheless provide sharp outcomes.

There are varied different factors for digital photographers to consider as properly: Apple’s Pro Raw is improbable and whereas the agency’s Photographic Styles might be useful for together with an modern intention to your images, Samsung’s brand-new machine for simulating the shade high quality from occasion footage you feed it features remarkably properly– I actually imagine I might get hold of much more utilization out of that normal. I’ve not additionally entered into video clip high-quality both, which is a complete varied different publish, particularly if you consider each telephones shoot Log video clip, though simply the iPhone makes use of Pro Res.

Deciding in between the telephones primarily based fully on the video cameras is nigh on tough. Which one you must get hold of will definitely moderately boil all the way down to the bigger inquiry of iphone versus Android; which system you’re presently making use of and which one will definitely perform finest with varied different objects of know-how in your life. But for straightforward picture high-quality, you may too throw a coin.