iPhone 15 Plus vs Galaxy S23 Plus: the battle of the pluses

Last year, Apple decided to resurrect the “Plus” model (by retiring the best-selling mini), and this created another rivalry in the smartphone world. Yes, we are talking about arch nemesis and main rival Samsung and its long-running Galaxy S Plus model.

The first new iPhone Plus model fared quite well against its Galaxy Plus rival (you can check out that pair in our detailed comparison), but it’s time to try to predict how the upcoming iPhone 15 Plus will fare against the next generation. It’s the outdated Galaxy S23 Plus. Our information is based on industry insiders, leaks and rumors at this point, so take it with a grain of salt. Here we are!

Expectations between iPhone 15 Plus and Galaxy S23 Plus:

• iOS 16 versus Android 13
• A16 Bionic vs Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
• The iPhone 15 Plus will be cheaper at $899, compared to the $999.99 S23 Plus price
• The S23 Plus has a third camera (telephoto, with 3X optical zoom)
• The S23 Plus sports a 120Hz display, as opposed to the iPhone’s slower 60Hz
• The S23 Plus starts at 256GB of storage, while the iPhone 15 Plus starts at 128GB.
• The S23 Plus has a larger battery and potentially faster wired charging
• The iPhone 15 Plus unlocks with Face ID, while the Galaxy S23 uses an under-display fingerprint scanner

Summary:
Design and size
Show differences
Performance
Camera
Audio quality
Battery and charging
Specifications
SummaryTo know more:
iPhone 15 Pro Max vs Galaxy S23 Ultra: expected differences
iPhone 15 Pro vs iPhone 14 Pro: expected differences
Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus review

Design and size

Apples and galaxies

The Galaxy S23 Plus and iPhone 15 Plus, as their names suggest, are larger versions of their respective base models, the S23 and iPhone 15. The Galaxy S23 retains the familiar design of its predecessor but now lacks any camera island on the back. The iPhone 15 Plus also follows in the footsteps of its father, the iPhone 14 Plus.

Both phones offer flat screens, but the iPhone 15 Plus is expected to be more square, just like its predecessor, while the Galaxy S23 Plus is just a little more rounded and easy to grip. There’s also a potential difference in size, the iPhone 15 Plus is expected to boast a 6.7-inch OLED screen, while the Galaxy S23 Plus features a 6.6-inch AMOLED display.

The Galaxy S23 Plus weighs 196 grams and we expect the iPhone 15 Plus to come very close to that number given that its predecessor weighed 206 grams. As for the colors involved, we know the shades of the Galaxy S23 Plus and have an idea of ​​the colors of the iPhone 15 Plus.

Galaxy S23 Plus colors:
Cream
Lavender
Green
Black Ghost

Expected colors for iPhone 15 Plus:
midnight
starlight
(PRODUCT)RED
dark pink
sky blue
yellow

Show differences

Refresh rate is king

Talking about the screen, the S23 Plus features a 6.6-inch AMOLED display with a refresh rate of up to 120Hz. The iPhone 15 Plus, on the other hand, features a 6.7-inch OLED screen slightly larger inches but with a refresh rate of only 60Hz. The resolution of both screens will be roughly the same, as will the pixel density PPI (pixels per inch), so you shouldn’t notice large discrepancies in detail between the two phones.

When it comes to brightness, the Galaxy S23 Plus is rated at 750 nits and HDR up to 1,500 nits peak brightness, while the iPhone 15 Plus is expected to mimic its predecessor’s display stats, boasting a rated brightness of 800 nits and peak up to 1,200 nits. HDR.

All in all, both phones should have equally good displays when it comes to resolution and detail, but the smooth 120Hz of the Galaxy S23 Plus is definitely an edge over the iPhone 15 Plus. On the other hand, the iPhone 15 Plus of this The year is expected to have a pill-shaped cutout supported by the Dynamic Island feature, so it may be a UI advantage for the iPhone.

Performance

A16 against Snapdragon 8 Gen 2

The Galaxy S23 Plus sports the latest and greatest Qualcomm has to offer: the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. And while the gap between A-series Bionic chipsets and Snapdragon flagship processors has narrowed over the years, we expect a slight advantage for the iPhone 15 plus.

We might be tempted to pull up some benchmarks between the A16 and the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, and you might, but there’s a chance the iPhone 15 Plus will benefit from software improvements and score completely differently.

It’s hard to compare the hardware between an Android and iOS device, these are different ecosystems and are optimized differently. If we are to be picky, the Galaxy S23 Plus comes with more RAM (8GB versus the 6GB expected for the iPhone 15 Plus), but it really won’t make any difference in terms of speed, both have fast LPDDR5 memory.

Now, when it comes to built-in storage, the base model Galaxy S23 Plus starts at 256GB, while the iPhone 15 Plus is expected to kick off at 128GB, but the iPhone should also be cheaper, so things settle down. they stabilize when we take into account the price, in terms of memory.

Camera

Pure math

There are three cameras on the back of the Galaxy S23 Plus. These are a 50-megapixel main camera, a 12-megapixel ultrawide, and a 10-megapixel telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom.

Three is more than two, it’s simple math, and the iPhone 15 Plus is expected to have the same dual-camera setup as its predecessor: a 48MP main camera (upgraded from 12MP) and a 12MP ultrawide camera.

Now, of course, things aren’t that simple and we’ll need to test both camera systems side-by-side to draw any meaningful conclusions, but on paper the Galaxy S23 Plus has the edge. Having a 3X optical zoom is super useful for framing distant objects, getting better portraits, etc.

Audio quality

Samsung appears to have made significant improvements to the speakers in the Galaxy S23 Plus over its predecessors, though the speaker layout remains unchanged, with a bottom-up speaker working alongside the earpiece to produce a stereo effect when gaming or watching movies in landscape mode. .

Moving on to the iPhone 15 Plus, we expect it to feature the same bottom speaker and an earpiece. However, if we look at (or listen to) the iPhone 14 Plus speaker, we know that we should expect loud, rich sound with noticeable bass from the iPhone 15 Plus as well.

Of course, none of these phones include a headphone jack, which isn’t surprising in today’s smartphone landscape. However, you can still easily enjoy your favorite Bluetooth headphones or speakers, or alternatively, you can opt for a dongle as a backup solution.

Battery and charging

The numbers don’t tell the whole story

The Galaxy S23 Plus comes with a large 4,700mAh battery and support for 45W fast charging. The iPhone 15 Plus, on the other hand, is expected to retain the battery capacity of its predecessor, 4,325mAh. If we look at the tests between the S23 Plus and last year’s iPhone 14 Plus, we’ll see that the numbers don’t tell the whole story. We expect both phones to be pretty close when it comes to battery life.

Now, charging is a big unknown right now, mainly due to the fact that the iPhone 15 Plus will, for the first time in history, feature a USB-C port. This standard allows for faster charging speeds, but it’s unclear whether Apple will go all out or take a much more conservative approach.

Specifications

Summary

We’re looking at two very different devices here, despite their similarity in naming scheme. First, there’s the Android versus iOS debate, and it’s not something to be taken lightly. If you don’t want to switch platforms, then you’ll be better off with your current one, then one of these phones will do the job.

If you’re looking for a change, the Galaxy S23 Plus offers more on paper, with an extra telephoto lens, bigger battery, faster charging (potentially), and a brighter screen.