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The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra and iPhone 16 Pro Max both deliver flagship-quality photography, but each excels in different areas.

Key Specifications

| Feature | Galaxy S25 Ultra | iPhone 16 Pro Max | |---------|------------------|-------------------| | Main sensor | 200MP | 48MP | | Max video | 8K | 4K Dolby Vision | | HDR format | HDR10+ | Dolby Vision |

Samsung's Strengths

Zoom photography: The 5x optical zoom produces sharper images with better contrast. The minimum focus distance of 25cm (versus iPhone's ~1 meter) makes it superior for close-up shots.

Low-light performance: AI-powered night mode captures more detail and accurate colors in dark conditions, making the S25 Ultra the more versatile camera in challenging lighting.

Flexibility: More resolution options, 8K video recording, and extensive manual controls.

iPhone's Strengths

Color accuracy: More natural-looking photos without oversaturation.

Video consistency: Reliable color and exposure throughout recordings, plus Dolby Vision support.

Processing: Less aggressive sharpening produces a more natural look.

Everyday Performance

Both cameras excel for typical photography needs—social media, family photos, and casual shooting. The differences become more apparent in zoom photography, very low light, and professional video work.

The Verdict

Choose the Galaxy S25 Ultra for zoom range, low-light versatility, and resolution options. Choose the iPhone 16 Pro Max for natural colors and consistent video quality. Both deliver excellent results for everyday use.

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The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is water-resistant with an IP68 rating, not technically waterproof. This rating means it can survive submersion in up to 1.5 meters (5 feet) of fresh water for 30 minutes under laboratory conditions.

What IP68 Means

  • 6 (Dust protection): Complete barrier against dust and particles
  • 8 (Water protection): Withstands submersion in still, fresh water at room temperature

Real-World Limitations

The IP68 rating doesn't cover all water exposure:

  • Chlorinated water: Pool chemicals can damage seals
  • Salt water: Ocean water is corrosive to electronics
  • Soapy water: Detergents compromise water-resistant barriers
  • High-pressure water: Showers and faucets can force water past seals
  • Hot water and steam: Heat affects the protective sealing

Protection Decreases Over Time

Everyday use gradually weakens water resistance. Drops, impacts, and normal wear affect the seals. Samsung's warranty does not cover water damage, reflecting the real-world variability of water exposure.

Safe vs. Risky Situations

Safe: Rain, accidental splashes, brief submersion from drops into shallow water, sweaty hands

Risky: Underwater photography, swimming, showering, pool or ocean exposure

Additional Durability

The S25 Ultra's titanium frame and Corning Gorilla Armor 2 glass provide excellent drop and scratch protection alongside its water resistance. For everyday accidents, the phone is well-protected.

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Samsung removed Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) functionality from the Galaxy S25 Ultra's S Pen, eliminating several features available on previous models.

Features No Longer Available

  • Air Actions: Gesture-based controls for presentations, media playback, and app navigation
  • Remote camera shutter: Using the S Pen button to take photos from a distance
  • S Pen charging: The stylus no longer has an internal battery

Why Samsung Made This Change

Samsung's usage data showed that only a small percentage of users utilized Bluetooth-dependent features. Removing these components made the S Pen lighter and helped reduce the S25 Ultra's overall weight by 15 grams compared to the S24 Ultra.

Core Features That Still Work

All essential S Pen functionality remains intact:

  • Note-taking and drawing
  • Screen-off memos (remove S Pen to start writing instantly)
  • Translate text by hovering
  • Magnify content on screen
  • AI Select and Circle to Search
  • Handwriting-to-text conversion
  • Lost S Pen detection (uses electromagnetic field, not Bluetooth)

No Separate Bluetooth Option

Samsung has confirmed they will not offer a Bluetooth-enabled S Pen accessory for the S25 Ultra. If remote shutter or Air Actions are important to your workflow, this is worth considering before purchase.

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The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra features a 5000mAh battery that delivers exceptional longevity. In testing by Tom's Guide, it lasted 17 hours and 15 minutes, making it the longest-lasting Samsung phone ever tested and a 30-minute improvement over the S24 Ultra.

Real-World Battery Performance

For everyday use, the S25 Ultra easily lasts a full day. Most users report 8-9 hours of screen-on time with typical activities like browsing, social media, messaging, and video streaming. The Snapdragon 8 Elite processor is notably more efficient than previous generations.

What Affects Battery Life

Several factors influence your actual battery experience:

  • Display brightness and refresh rate: The 120Hz display and 2600 nits peak brightness use more power
  • Network connectivity: 5G consumes more battery than Wi-Fi or LTE
  • Location services: Background GPS tracking impacts endurance
  • Camera usage: Extended video recording drains the battery faster
  • Gaming: Demanding games push the processor and battery harder

Users with intensive gaming habits or those in weak signal areas may need to charge more frequently.

Charging Capabilities

The S25 Ultra supports 45W wired fast charging, reaching approximately 70% in 30 minutes and a full charge in about an hour. Wireless charging runs at 15W, ideal for overnight charging on a compatible pad.

For most users, the Galaxy S25 Ultra's battery easily handles a full day of use, with charging speeds that quickly top you up when needed.

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The speakers on the Pixel 10 Pro are good. Solid smartphone speakers that got meaningfully better from the Pixel 9 Pro.

What improved:

The earpiece speaker at the top is finally good. Previous Pixels had a clear mismatch between the bottom speaker (decent) and top earpiece (weaker). Google fixed that. Both speakers now sound matched, making stereo content feel like actual stereo.

Bass is better too. Larger drivers mean more low-end presence. Music and movies sound fuller than before.

The positioning fix:

The bottom speaker moved to the right of the USB-C port. The old position got covered by your palm when holding the phone sideways. Much less of an issue now.

Volume:

Plenty loud. Louder than iPhone 16 Pro, matching Samsung. At maximum, sound stays reasonably clear without getting harsh.

Works well for:

YouTube, Netflix, podcasts, video calls. Casual music. Speakerphone for group calls.

Want headphones for:

Serious music listening. Situations needing real bass. Environments with background noise.

Spatial audio:

Supported on Dolby Atmos content. Adds depth for movies and spatial music mixes.

Find the best Pixel 10 Pro deals and experience the improved audio yourself.

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Good news: The fingerprint sensor on the Pixel 10 Pro is noticeably faster than the Pixel 9 Pro. Google upgraded the ultrasonic sensor and it shows.

How fast?

Place your finger on the sensor and the phone unlocks almost instantly. Not quite as fast as Samsung's latest phones, but fast enough that you won't be frustrated.

The ultrasonic advantage:

Unlike optical sensors that photograph your fingerprint, ultrasonic sensors use sound waves to create a 3D map. Better security and better performance with wet fingers.

Previous Pixels often rejected fingerprints after washing hands. The Pixel 10 Pro handles damp fingers much better. Everyday moisture rarely causes issues anymore.

Screen-off unlock:

You don't need to wake the screen first. Put your finger where the sensor icon appears and the phone unlocks directly. Faster than wake-then-unlock.

Face unlock backup:

The Pixel 10 Pro has secure face unlock (Class 3 certified). Banks and payment apps trust it. Useful when hands are full or you're wearing gloves.

Practical tip:

Register the same finger multiple times from different angles. Register both index fingers and at least one thumb for better recognition in varied situations.

Compare Pixel 10 Pro prices and find the best deal.

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Night photography is where Pixel phones have always shined, and the Pixel 10 Pro continues that tradition. This is genuinely the best low-light camera in a smartphone.

What Night Sight does:

Instead of one photo, the camera captures multiple shots at different exposures over 3-6 seconds. The Tensor G5 combines these using AI to create an image with far more detail than any single shot could provide.

In practice:

Point the Pixel 10 Pro at a scene that looks nearly black to your eyes. Night Sight reveals details, colors, and textures you couldn't see. Restaurant dinners, city streets at night, moonlit landscapes. Images look natural, not artificially brightened.

Better than competitors:

Samsung phones often make night photos look like daytime. Impressive but unnatural. iPhones produce good night photos with warmer tones. The Pixel 10 Pro finds the sweet spot. Photos look like what you actually experienced.

Astrophotography mode:

Put the phone on a tripod in a dark location and the camera switches to astrophotography mode. It captures for up to 4 minutes. Results can include visible stars, the Milky Way, even meteor streaks.

Night video:

Night Sight Video through Video Boost processes nighttime footage in the cloud, dramatically reducing noise and improving exposure.

Check Pixel 10 Pro prices to get Google's best low-light camera.

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Voice Translate is probably the most futuristic feature on the Pixel 10 Pro, and it actually works.

The basic idea:

You're on a call with someone who speaks a different language. Enable Voice Translate, pick their language, and start talking. The AI translates what you say and speaks to them in your voice, in their language. When they respond, you hear their words in English, in what sounds like their voice.

The AI needs just a few seconds of hearing you talk to mimic your voice for translations.

How to use it:

During any call in the Google Phone app, tap call assist and select Voice Translate. Pick the other person's language (Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Hindi, and several others). Start talking.

Privacy:

Everything happens on your phone. No audio goes to Google servers. Nothing is recorded or saved.

What works well:

Clear speech with natural pauses translates accurately. Business conversations, simple coordination, basic communication.

What's tricky:

Speaking too fast confuses it. There's a noticeable delay between speaking and hearing the translation. Complex sentences with idioms can come out awkwardly.

The other person doesn't need a Pixel. They hear what sounds like you speaking their language through a normal call.

Get the Pixel 10 Pro to experience Voice Translate and other AI features.

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Think of these as the same phone in two sizes. Everything important is identical. The differences are physical.

The size factor:

The Pixel 10 Pro has a 6.3-inch screen. Comfortable one-handed use. Fits easily in pockets. Around 206 grams.

The Pixel 10 Pro XL has a 6.8-inch screen. Two-handed operation basically required. At 231 grams, you'll feel it. But the bigger screen is great for video, gaming, and productivity.

The battery story:

This is where the XL separates itself. The 5,200mAh battery versus 4,600mAh makes a real difference. The XL often gets through a full day plus the next morning. The Pro is a solid one-day phone.

Charging speeds favor the XL too: 45W wired versus 30W, and 25W wireless versus 15W.

What's identical:

Same Tensor G5 chip. Same cameras. Same AI features. Same software. Same seven years of updates. Same display quality. Same Pixelsnap magnetic charging.

The $200 question:

The Pro starts at $999. The Pro XL starts at $1,199.

Choose the Pro if you prioritize portability and one-handed use.

Choose the Pro XL if you prioritize battery life and screen real estate.

Compare prices on both models to find the best deal.

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Let me be straight: the Pixel 10 Pro handles gaming capably, but it's not a gaming phone.

Google designed the Tensor G5 chip to excel at AI tasks. Photo processing, on-device language models, computational photography. Raw gaming performance wasn't the priority.

What works well:

Most mobile games run fine. Minecraft at high settings, stable 60fps. Call of Duty Mobile, PUBG at balanced graphics. Apple Arcade games, Google Play Pass titles. The Pixel 10 Pro handles these smoothly.

Where it struggles:

Genshin Impact at high settings runs 40-55fps with dips during combat. Want stable 60fps? Drop to medium settings.

Other demanding titles like Wuthering Waves show similar behavior. Playable, but not at max settings.

The heat factor:

Play for 30-45 minutes and the phone gets warm. Keep playing and it throttles to manage heat. Frame rates drop. There's no active cooling.

Compared to a Galaxy S25 Ultra or dedicated gaming phone, the Pixel loses in sustained performance.

Bottom line:

Gaming occasionally to pass time? The Pixel 10 Pro works. Gaming is your main phone activity? Look at Samsung, OnePlus, or dedicated gaming phones like the ROG Phone 9.

Find the best Pixel 10 Pro deals if it fits your usage pattern.

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