Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 16 Pro Max: Battle of the titans

The Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge is coming out at the end of the month as one of the first slim phones in the world, and we’re excited to see how people will react to holding a phone that’s nearly as thin as a piece of paper. However, it’s competing against its thick Apple rival, the iPhone 16 Pro Max.

As we settle into the middle of 2025, it’s survival of the fittest — or should we say, “thinnest”? — and the two phones are competing over who weighs less and how much can deliver more to their users regardless of their size. Here’s what we have to say.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 16 Pro Max: specs

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 16 Pro Max: design

The Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge is as thin as its name suggests, if the exact dimensions listed in the spec chart above are anything to go by. Leaked images have shown the S25 Edge to have a thin frame around the handset and two vertically-aligned cameras on top of the slight camera bump — a detail that is noticeably absent from the rest of the Galaxy S25 lineup. They have also shown the phone to have a microphone on the top and bottom, and a side button beneath the volume button on the right edge of the frame.

Meanwhile, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is a bit thicker at 8.25mm, with a titanium frame with a brushed metal finish, flat edges, and a matte glass back that make it easier to grip the phone. It has a triple-lens camera layout similar to that of the iPhone 15 Pro Max, and a Camera Control button dug into the right side of the frame underneath the power button, which sticks out like the other buttons sitting on the left edge.

Aside from the thickness (or lack thereof), we’re waiting to see if the S25 Edge comes out looking the way they do in the leaks. For now, the iPhone 16 Pro Max takes the trophy in the design category.

Winner: iPhone 16 Pro Max

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 16 Pro Max: display

The Galaxy S25 Edge is rumored to have a 6.7-inch AMOLED display with a peak brightness of 2,600 nits, a variable refresh rate up to 120Hz, and a 3120 x 1440 QHD+ resolution, which will allow users to access their photos, videos, files, social media, games and more at a lightning-fast pace. The quick access will also be helped by the fact that the S25 Edge’s screen will take after the S25 Plus and S25 Ultra and support Dynamic AMOLED 2X and ProScaler, greatly enhancing photo and video quality.

The display on the iPhone 16 Pro Max is 0.2 inches bigger than the S25 Edge, given that it sits at the high-end of the iPhone 16 lineup. It has a 6.9-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display with ProMotion and always-on tech, gives off a 2868 x 1320 resolution and a maximum of 2,000 nits, and has an adaptive refresh rate of 120Hz, same as the S25 Edge.

Though both phones have the smoothest refresh rate, the iPhone 16 Pro Max may be too big for some people to hold because of how large the screen is compared to the S25 Edge — and the iPhone 16 Plus, for that matter, as its display measures the same. You might find an easier time gripping the S25 Edge because its display is smaller. You’ll have an even better time viewing videos and photos, as well as playing games, with the higher resolution and the quality bump from ProScaler.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge 

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 16 Pro Max: performance

Visual quality and performance go hand-in-hand, and no tech company knows that better than Samsung and Apple. But since the Galaxy S25 Edge comes out in a week, we’ll talk about its performance stats first. This phone runs 12GB of RAM whether you pick the 256GB or the 512GB version, and they house the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite, which relies on multi-core performance and has eight CPU cores and an Adreno GPU, which runs everyday tasks as smooth as silk. If you have a tendency to have intense gaming sessions on your phone, you’ll be happy to know that the Galaxy S25 Edge has a vapor chamber and new thermal interface material (TIM) to prevent the phone from overheating — and burning your hands — while playing anything on Xbox Game Pass.

Meanwhile, the iPhone 16 Pro Max operates on the A18 Pro processor, which makes everything run fast and smooth for how little memory it has — 8GB of RAM. You can play resource-heavy games on this phone, but because it has only one CPU core, it will overheat pretty quickly if you play on your phone in a hot environment or use a case that doesn’t allow it to cool down as fast as it heats up. That makes the iPhone 16 Pro Max well suited for those who will only use it for light tasks like web surfing, taking pictures and videos, and texting. But for people who want to do more on their phone without breaking a sweat, gaming included, the Galaxy S25 Edge is the way to go.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge 

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 16 Pro Max: battery and charging

The Galaxy S25 Edge has a 3,900mAh battery, which is slightly smaller than the batteries in the rest of the Galaxy S25 lineup, where the base model has a 4,000mAh battery and the S25 Ultra has a 5,000mAh battery. Samsung claims that the S25 Edge supports 25W wired charging, 15W wireless charging and reverse wireless charging. However, Samsung didn’t exactly mention how fast the phone would charge when it’s plugged in.

The iPhone 16 Pro Max, on the other hand, has an even bigger battery with 4,685mAh of power capacity. It supports 30W fast charging, reaching 50% charge in 30 minutes or less. It also supports 25W MagSafe wireless charging, 15W Qi2 wireless charging, and 4.5W reverse wireless charging. This shows that a bigger battery doesn’t always mean faster charging, it just means it takes little longer to get to full charge. Although, it is tough to call which phone has the best battery and charging time since they’re close is size and capacity, and the speed in which in the S25 Edge reaches a full charge, let alone a half charge, has not been determined.

Winner: Tie

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 16 Pro Max: cameras

Despite the Galaxy S25 Edge having two rear cameras, its main camera has a 200-megapixel lens sitting atop the 12MP ultrawide camera. The latter camera is quite a significant downgrade from the 48MP ultrawide camera found on the S25 Ultra, but that’s only because there aren’t any other cameras aside from the main one to compensate for it. However, the 200MP camera would provide for high-quality photos and videos, considering how well it captured every detail on the S25 Ultra.

The iPhone 16 Pro Max, meanwhile, has a 48MP Fusion camera, a 48MP ultrawide camera, and a 12MP telephoto camera with 5x optical zoom, balancing out the visual quality of every picture and video it captures. The ultrawide camera provides a 120-degree field-of-view for landscaping and group photos, while the 12MP telephoto helps to capture the tiniest objects up close and personal when zoomed in, like small insects and leaf cells. The 48MP camera ensures every photo and video is crystal clear. We don’t know how well the cameras on the S25 Edge will pan out, so the iPhone 16 Pro Max gets the photo finish — for now.

Winner: iPhone 16 Pro Max

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 16 Pro Max: software and updates

The Galaxy S25 Edge will operate on Android 15 out of the box, with Samsung’s One UI 7 layered on top of it. The combined software guarantees enhanced privacy features, improved multitasking, and AI capabilities like Gemini. Just like the other phones in the Galaxy S25 line, Samsung has promised seven years of OS and security updates for the S25 Edge.

As for the iPhone 16 Pro Max, it runs on iOS 18 out of the box, but it can be updated to the latest version. Basically, iOS 18 comes with Apple Intelligence, which will summarize your emails, text messages, social media notifications, and help improve your writing by providing grammar and spelling checks to ensure you get your point across to anyone you’re talking to with poise. There’s also an advanced Siri that lights an iridescent ring around the display when you say its name. Apple didn’t say how many years of OS and security updates the phone would get, as it updates the OS for months at a time.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 16 Pro Max: price and availability

At launch, the Galaxy S25 Edge will be sold at $1,099 for the 256GB variant, and $1,199 for the 512GB version. As for what colors it will be sold in, it will come in Titanium Icyblue, Titanium Silver, and Titanium Jetblack. No, the first and third colors are definitely not typos.

The iPhone 16 Pro Max has been on the market since September 2024, and its price depends on how much storage space you need. The 256GB variant costs about $1,199, while the 512GB version costs $1,399, and the 1TB variant costs $1,599. It comes in Black Titanium, White Titanium, Natural Titanium, and Desert Titanium.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 16 Pro Max: verdict

Although our review has yet to be published, the Galaxy S25 Edge appears to be winning this battle. It’s easier for big hands to hold for how slim it is, camera design justifies the overall design of the phone, and the performance it delivers is highly optimal, especially for gamers. Its thinness may make it look fragile, but it has a titanium frame around its circumference and is the first smartphone to have the Gorilla Glass Corning 2 on glass screen, offering the phone double the protection from cracks and scratches if it falls.

Plus, the S25 Edge is a little more affordable than the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which could be helpful information for people who need a new phone but don’t want to break the bank for an Apple phone. They say great things come in small packages. In this case, they come in slim packages.