iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra: Guess the Winner?

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra Outpaces iPhone 16 Pro Max in PhoneBuff’s Speed Test

Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Ultra has outperformed Apple’s iPhone 16 Pro Max in a real-world app speed test conducted by PhoneBuff, as reported by MacRumors. Equipped with Qualcomm’s overclocked Snapdragon 8 Elite chip and 12GB of RAM, the S25 Ultra surpassed Apple’s A18 Pro-powered device, which runs on 8GB of RAM.

Performance Across Multiple Tasks

The test evaluated how quickly each smartphone could open and process tasks across a range of apps. Both devices followed the same sequence, launching popular apps like Facebook, Starbucks, Microsoft Office, Snapseed, and various mobile games.

From the outset, the Galaxy S25 Ultra established a lead in productivity apps, maintaining its advantage through image editing tasks. Notably, Snapseed image exports were completed significantly faster on Samsung’s device.

A standout result emerged in video processing, where the S25 Ultra exported LumaFusion videos 25% faster than the iPhone 16 Pro Max—an area Apple has traditionally dominated.

Gaming & Multitasking Performance

While iPhones have long excelled in gaming, Samsung’s flagship proved a worthy competitor. The Galaxy S25 Ultra matched or outperformed the iPhone in most tested games, including Subway Surfers and Flip Diving, though the iPhone claimed narrow victories in Going Balls and Forward Assault.

In the first lap of app launches, the S25 Ultra finished in 2 minutes and 18 seconds, 15 seconds ahead of the iPhone 16 Pro Max. Although Apple’s device gained ground in the second lap (which assesses RAM management), Samsung still secured what PhoneBuff called its “biggest speed test win in years.”

What Gives Samsung the Edge?

Experts credit Samsung’s superior performance to:
✔️ Overclocked Snapdragon 8 Elite chip
✔️ 40% larger cooling system
✔️ Android 15 with One UI 7
✔️ 4GB more RAM (12GB vs. 8GB)

While both devices offer exceptional real-world usability, these results suggest Samsung has taken a significant lead in raw processing power. However, Apple remains poised to strike back with its next-generation lineup.