Samsung Galaxy S24+ vs. Apple iPhone 16 Plus: Large phones that do it all
by Steve Smith · Android PoliceA powerful Samsung
Samsung Galaxy S24+
The Galaxy S24+ is one of Samsung's best devices to date. If you want to get a Samsung device and don't need the Ultra, then the S24+ delivers a fantastic experience with its beautiful display, great performance, amazing battery life, and class-leading software support.
Pros
- Bright, fluid, and beautiful display
- Powerful performance
- Great battery life
Cons
- Camera's struggle capturing motion
- AI features aren't amazing
- Design feels uninspired
Apple's big iPhone
Apple iPhone 16 Plus
The Apple iPhone 16 Plus is a great option if you are on the iOS side or are looking to hop over the fence and want a large phone. It has a great-looking display, amazing performance, and fantastic battery life. It's missing a telephoto lens but takes great action shots.
Pros
- Vivid and bright display
- Camera and action buttons are useful
- Powerful performance and great battery life
Cons
- iOS is still more restrictive
- Lacks a telephoto camera
- Display stuck at 60Hz
Deciding which smartphone you’ll buy next is often predetermined by what you currently have in your pocket. If you're happy with your current device, it makes sense that you'll opt for an updated version of what they already have. This is particularly true if you're locked into a specific ecosystem or find comfort in being familiar with the software.
For more adventurous users, jumping between Android and iOS is a frequent occurrence. Both sides have amazing small phones for those who want a one-handed experience, and big devices that give you a bigger display. The Samsung Galaxy S24+ and the Apple iPhone 16 Plus are two great options for anyone who prefers the latter.
With big, beautiful displays, massive batteries, and powerful performance, these two large phones share a lot in common. Let’s break it down to see which one works best for your needs.
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Price, availability, and specifications
With both the Samsung Galaxy S24+ and the Apple iPhone 16 Plus having launched in 2024, finding them is as easy as looking wherever smartphones are sold. In addition to being available directly from their respective stores, both devices can readily be found from all major carriers, many smaller carriers, and retailers such as Amazon and Best Buy.
The Galaxy S24+ retails for $1,000 for the 256GB model and $1,120 for the 512GB one. Samsung went with more muted colors this year and is available in the Onyx Black, Marble Gray, Cobalt Violet, Amber Yellow, Jade Green, Sapphire Blue, and Sandstone Orange colorways, with the final three options being Samsung exclusive.
Apple’s iPhone 16 Plus comes in three storage capacities; a 128GB model for $899, a 256GB one for $999, and a 512GB version that retails for $1,199. Apple added some much-needed color to the iPhone series and it's available in Ultramarine, Teal, Pink, White, and Black colorways.
Samsung Galaxy S24+ Apple iPhone 16 Plus SoC Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy Apple A18 Display type AMOLED, 1-120Hz Super Retina XDR OLED, 60Hz Display dimensions 6.7" 6.7", 19.5:9 Display resolution 3120 × 1440 2796 x 1290 RAM 12GB 8GB Storage 256GB or 512GB 128Gb, 256GB, 512GB Battery 4,900mAh 4675mAh Charge speed 45W wired, 15W wireless 25W Charge options USB-C wired, Qi wireless USB-C Wired, MagSafe Wireless, Qi2 Wireless, Qi Wireless Ports USB-C USB-C SIM support Nano-SIM and eSIM Dual eSim Operating System Android 14 and One UI 6.1 iOS 18 Rear camera 50MP, f/1.8 OIS main; 12MP, f/2.2 ultrawide; 10MP, f/2.4 telephoto (3× zoom) 48MP f/1.6 OIS main, 12MP f/2.2 wide (120°) Cellular connectivity 4G LTE, 5G (sub-6 and mmWave) Sub-6 & mmWave 5G/LTE Wi-Fi connectivity Wi-Fi 6e, Wi-Fi Direct Wi-Fi 7 Connectivity NFC, UWB UWB, NFC Bluetooth Bluetooth 5.3 Bluetooth 5.3 Dimensions 158.5 × 76.2 × 7.6mm 160.9 x 77.8 x 7.8mm Weight 197g 199g IP Rating IP68 IP68 Colors Onyx Black, Marble Gray, Cobalt Violet, Amber Yellow, Jade Green, Sapphire Blue, and Sandstone Orange Ultramarine, Teal, Pink, White, Black Stylus No No Price $1,000 899
Read our review
Samsung Galaxy S24+ review: A safe bet
AI gimmicks aside, this is a very easy-to-recommend flagship
Design
Similar look and feel
The Galaxy S24+ and the iPhone 16 Plus share many similarities when talking about their overall designs. They are mostly the same size, give or take a couple of millimeters. At 197g for the Galaxy and 199g for the iPhone, they are also very similar in weight.
The front of the Galaxy and the iPhone are dominated by large displays and slim bezels. The Galaxy has a hole-punch selfie camera at the top, while Apple went with a pill-shaped design, which includes Dynamic Island.
Looking at the back and sides of these devices quickly reveals how similar they are. You get a mostly blank glass back except for a couple of camera sensors, and both phones have their cameras in the upper left-hand corner. Samsung’s triple camera setup sees each lens individually protruding from the rear, while Apple’s dual camera array has both lenses individually raised with a small color-matched island surrounding them.
Samsung and Apple have gone with flat sides again this year for their respective phones. The power and volume buttons can be found along the right edge of the Galaxy S24+. The bottom houses the physical SIM tray and USB-C ports for the Galaxy and just a single USB-C port for the iPhone. The action and volume buttons can be found on the left side of the iPhone, while the power and new camera buttons can be found on the right side.
The action button is programmable and allows you to launch apps, toggle the flashlight, or use it to turn off the sound. The camera button is both a physical button and a capacitive one, allowing you to quickly launch the camera and control the shutter. A vibrating motor mimics the feel of a half press, while fully pressing the button takes a picture. By swiping on the camera button itself, you can quickly set a variety of settings, like aperture and shutter speed.
Unlocking your device works a bit differently on the two devices. The Galaxy S24+ offers an ultrasonic under-display fingerprint reader, or you can unlock it with your face. The fingerprint reader is lightning quick and the face unlock works well enough when you have good lighting. The iPhone 16 Plus doesn’t have a fingerprint reader, instead, it relies on Face ID. Face ID is quick and accurate and will even work in the dark.
Slowing design innovation
For better or for worse, the overall look and feel used here is quickly becoming a trend. With minimal defining features, Samsung is starting to look increasingly lazy with its designs. Between the Galaxy S24+ and the Galaxy Watch Ultra, Samsung appears comfortable with designs that look remarkably similar to Apple’s. At least other brands moving to flat sides have defining features, such as Google retaining the Pixel 9 Pro XL’s large camera visor.
Samsung’s design department just doesn’t feel like it's innovating as much as it should. While I’m all for manufacturers borrowing software implementations from each other, I wish these devices weren’t converging into a similar design philosophy.
That’s not to say that Apple is at the forefront of innovation. They have been using the same basic design since the iPhone 12, (which itself is reminiscent of the iPhone 4) and is due for its own design overhaul. Let's be clear, these aren’t bad designs, it's just that these devices have an overall Apple feel and I expect more from Samsung.
Display
Can’t go wrong with either
Source: Apple / YouTube
Having a bright and beautiful display is a necessity for any flagship in 2024 and both companies deliver in spades. Samsung equipped the Galaxy S24+ with a large 6.7-inch AMOLED 2X display. With 2600 nits of peak brightness, a resolution of 3121 x 1440 pixels, and a 120Hz refresh rate, the Galaxy S24+ has one of the best panels on the market.
It's more than bright enough to be used in direct sunlight and the 120Hz refresh rate makes for a very fluid experience when doing anything on the display. Being a Dynamic LTPO display means the Galaxy can drop the refresh rate as low as 1Hz when showing static images, helping with battery life.
Apple too went with a large 6.7-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display. With a 2796 x 1290 resolution and up to 2000 nits of brightness in high brightness mode, the iPhone 16 Plus is a beautiful display. For some reason, Apple stuck with a 60Hz refresh rate for the iPhone 16 Plus; in 2024, it's inexcusable for a device this expensive to have such a low refresh rate, and you're going to notice, especially if you're coming from a panel with a 120Hz refresh rate.
For display protection, Samsung uses Gorilla Glass Victus 2 while Apple uses Ceramic Shield glass. Both should offer great overall protection for your display, but a screen protector is still your best bet to keep them from scratching or breaking.
Software
Comfort matters
When looking to purchase a new smartphone, what you currently have in your pocket is going to heavily influence what device you end up buying unless you enjoy bouncing back and forth between Android and iOS or you are just unhappy with your current platform.
The Samsung Galaxy S24+ runs Android 14 and One UI 6.1.1. Like most tech companies, Samsung has spent quite a bit of time talking about its Galaxy AI implementation. Much like Google’s Gemini (which is also available to use), the AI features range in their usefulness.
Galaxy AI can change the tone of your text, translate conversations in real time, and provide transcripts of recordings in Samsung’s Recorder app. There’s also Circle to Search, which allows you to quickly highlight and look up a part of your display by drawing a circle around a particular item.
The most important change this year is Samsung’s commitment to Android OS and security upgrades. Samsung is committing to seven years for both, allowing you to hold onto your device longer than ever without losing out on the latest features.
Apple’s iPhone runs iOS and the iPhone 16 Plus ships with iOS 18. Beginning this year, Apple now allows you to place icons and widgets on your home screen wherever you wish — you're no longer required to place them in the upper left-hand corner, which gives you greater flexibility when setting up your home screen.
You can also now lock apps, requiring Face ID, Touch ID, or a passcode to open them. You can also outright hide apps if you wish. The Control Center has received an overhaul, and you can now swap out controls at the bottom of the lock screen. The Photos app has been redesigned and now functions more similarly to Google Photos and Apple has finally adopted the RCS communication standard.
Apple also spent a lot of time talking about Apple Intelligence, with its improved Siri functionality and integration with ChatGPT. Unfortunately, it’s not available at launch and will slowly roll out over the next several months. Apple has always been an industry leader in software support and that continues here, too. They support their devices for at least five years, which also receive the same day-1 software upgrades throughout their lifecycle.
Performance
All the power you need
We’ll keep this section short and sweet: both the Galaxy S24+ and iPhone 16 Plus are incredibly powerful devices that can easily handle whatever you want them to do. This is true whether it’s something simple, such as web browsing, or something far more demanding, like playing games and video editing on your device.
The Samsung Galaxy S24+ ships with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor in the USA or an Exynos 2400 for our international readers. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is the stronger of the two processors. No matter which one you get, it’ll be paired with 12GB of RAM.
Apple devices use its in-house designed processors, which frequently land at the top of the performance charts. The iPhone 16 Plus ships with the latest and greatest A18 processor that’s paired with 8GB of RAM.
Battery life
All-day usage and then some
Battery life is also quite good for both devices. The Samsung Galaxy S24+ ships with a 4900mAh battery that can easily last you a full day of heavy use or up to two days with lighter use. It has a max wired charging speed of 45W, 15W wireless and can reverse wireless charge at 4.5W. You can charge your device up to 65% in about 30 minutes.
Apple doesn’t list its battery size, but the iPhone 16 Plus is rumored to have a 4675mAh battery. Much like the Galaxy, you can expect a full day of heavy usage or two days if you don’t play around with it as much. It can be charged up to 20W wired, 25W with MagSafe wireless charging, 15W with a Qi2 wireless charger, or 7.5W using a Qi wireless charger. Using a USB cable gets you up to a 50% charge in 30 minutes.
Camera
Depends on your use case
Camera quality is another important factor when selecting a flagship smartphone. The Galaxy S24+ comes with three different lenses to maximize its photographic potential; a 50MP f/1.8 primary lens, a 12MP f/2.2 ultrawide, and a 10MP f/2.4 telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom. It can record in 8K up to 30fps, 4K up to 60fps, and 1080p up to 240fps. The Galaxy also has a 12MP f/2.2 front-facing lens that can record 4K video up to 60fps.
The iPhone comes with a dual camera setup which includes a 48MP f/1.6 primary lens and a 12MP f/2.2 ultrawide lens. It can record 4K video at up to 60fps and 1080p video at up to 240fps. It also ships with a 12MP f/1.9 selfie lens that can record 4K content up to 60fps.
Both devices are going to offer incredibly detailed photos in great lighting conditions and fantastic nighttime photos. The Galaxy has the iPhone beat in terms of versatility. Having that extra telephoto lens makes a difference when you need to zoom in to capture that breathtaking photo. The iPhone is going to trounce the Galaxy whenever motion is involved.
Samsung cameras struggle to take photos of moving images. If you routinely take pictures of your kids or pets, the iPhone is going to offer a much more pleasant experience.
Which is right for you?
Just to reiterate a common theme throughout this entire article, whichever device you have in your pocket is going to heavily influence which one of these devices is the best for you. In many ways, both the Galaxy S24+ and the iPhone 16 Plus are equally matched, making their respective software the most critical component of either device.
If you're currently rocking an Android device or are open to changing platforms, then the Samsung Galaxy S24+ narrowly pulls out the victory here. Its display is top-notch and outpaces the iPhone’s due to its higher refresh rate; battery life and performance are also great with its Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor and 12GB of RAM. And while the camera system may struggle to capture moving images, it’s more versatile with its telephoto lens.
Editor's choice
Samsung Galaxy S24+
Does just about everything right
The Samsung Galaxy S24+ is for those of you who want a well-rounded device that can handle anything you can throw at it. With one of the best displays on a smartphone, flagship performance, and great battery life, this Android favorite outpaces the iPhone.
$1000 at Amazon $1000 at Best Buy $1000 at Samsung
There is only one option for iOS users out there who are happy with their platform of choice, and that's to stick with an iPhone.
The Apple iPhone 16 Plus offers amazing performance and great battery life; its camera system is less versatile, but excellent overall, and does a far better job of capturing moving images. The large display is beautiful, too, but Apple needs to get on board with the faster refresh rates. It’s also disappointing that Apple Intelligence isn’t ready for launch and won’t be fully available for several more months.
Runner-up
Apple iPhone 16 Plus
Apple's best non-Pro iPhone
For those of you who prefer iOS and want a large device, then the Apple iPhone 16 Plus is where it's at. It has powerful performance, a great display, and amazing battery life. The main knocks against the iPhone are the lack of a telephoto camera and its 60Hz refresh rate.