The time has come to compare Samsung’s new flagship foldable with the very best smartphone Apple has to offer. This is a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 vs Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max comparison. The iPhone 16 Pro Max is a regular smartphone, though, not a foldable, of course. Just that fact alone should make things interesting. Keep in mind these two phones are very different.
As we usually do, we’ll first list the specs of both smartphones. Following that, we’ll be comparing their designs, displays, performance, battery life, and audio output. Despite the fact that the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is a foldable phone, it’s very close to the iPhone 16 Pro Max’s thinness even when it’s folded. It’s also lighter than the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which is very, very interesting. Either way, let’s get to it.
Specs
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7
Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max
| Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 | Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max | |
|---|---|---|
| Dimensions (unfolded/folded) | 158.4 x 143.2 x 4.2mm / 158.4 x 72.8 x 8.9mm | 163 x 77.6 x 8.3 mm |
| Weight | 215 grams | 227 grams |
| Main display | 8-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X (1-120Hz) | 6.9-inch LTPO Super Retina XDR OLED (1-120Hz, adaptive) |
| Cover display | 6.5-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X (1-120Hz) | N/A |
| Resolution | 2184 x 1968 / 2520 x 1080 | 2868 x 1320 |
| Chipset | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy | Apple A18 Pro |
| RAM | 12GB (LPDDR5X) | 8GB |
| Storage | 256GB/512GB (UFS 4.0) | 256GB/512GB/1TB (NVMe) |
| Main camera | 200MP (f/1.7 aperture, OIS, Quad Pixel AF, 0.6um pixel size, 85-degree FoV) | 48MP (wide, f/1.8 aperture, 1/1.28-inch sensor size, 1.22um pixel size, dual pixel PDAF, sensor-shift OIS) |
| Ultra-wide camera | 12MP (f/2.2 aperture, Dual Pixel AF, 1.4um pixel size, 120-degree FoV) | 48MP (f/2.2 aperture, 1/2.55-inch sensor size, 0.7um pixel size, PDAF) |
| Telephoto camera | 10MP (f/2.4 aperture, PDAF, 36-degree FoV, 3x optical zoom) | 10MP (f/2.4 aperture, 1/3.52-inch sensor size, 1.12um pixel size, PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom) |
| Periscope camera | N/A | 12MP (periscope telephoto, f/2.8 aperture, 1/3.06-inch sensor size, 1.12um pixel size, dual pixel PDAF, 3D sensor-shift OIS, 5x optical zoom) |
| Selfie camera(s) | 10MP (f/2.2 aperture, 1.12um pixel size, 85-degree FoV) | 12MP (f/1.9 aperture, 1/3.6-inch sensor size, 1.0um pixel size, PDAF, OIS) |
| Battery size | 4,400mAh | 4,685mAh |
| Charging | 25W wired, 15W wireless, 4.5W reverse wireless (charger not included) | 38W wired, 25W MagSafe wireless, 15W Qi2 wireless (charger not included) |
| Colors | Blue Shadow, Jetblack, Silver Shadow | Black Titanium, White Titanium, Natural Titanium, Desert Titanium |
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 vs Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max: Design
Both of these smartphones have glass on their backs, while their frames are made out of metal. Samsung uses aluminum, while Apple opted for titanium, though there’s some aluminum in there. When folded, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 is barely thicker than the iPhone 16 Pro Max. It measures 8.9mm when folded, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max is 8.3mm thick. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 is also 12 grams lighter than the iPhone 16 Pro Max, despite the fact it’s a foldable.
Samsung’s handset is shorter than the iPhone 16 Pro Max, while it’s also notably narrower when folded. When unfolded, the device is a lot thinner than the iPhone 16 Pro Max at only 4.2mm. Both smartphones have a flat frame all around. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 has a display camera hole at the top of both its displays, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max includes a pill-shaped cutout on its display, the so-called Dynamic Island.
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 has all of its buttons on the right-hand side. Its power/lock and volume rocker buttons are located there. The iPhone 16 Pro Max includes a power/lock button on the right side, along with a Camera control key. On the left, its volume buttons are placed, along with an Action button. Both phones have a flat back side, with three cameras. Their camera islands look considerably different, though. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 has three vertically aligned cameras on the same camera island. The iPhone 16 Pro Max has iPhone’s recognizable setup where the cameras are not placed in a particular line.
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 is IP48 certified for water and dust resistance, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max comes with an IP68 certification. Both phones are quite slippery.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 vs Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max: Display
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 includes two displays, of course. An 8-inch Foldable Dynamic LTPO AMOLED 2X panel is its main display. It offers an adaptive refresh rate of up to 120Hz, supports HDR10+ content, and has a peak brightness of 2,600 nits. This panel has a screen-to-body ratio of around 90%. The resolution here is 2184 x 1968 pixels. The cover display measures 6.5 inches, and it’s a Dynamic LTPO AMOLED 2X panel. It has an adaptive refresh rate of up to 120Hz, and it’s protected by the Gorilla Glass Ceramic 2. The resolution here is 2520 x 1080.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max, on the other hand, includes a 6.9-inch display. This is an LTPO Super Retina XDR OLED display. It has an adaptive refresh rate of up to 120Hz. HDR10 content is supported, as is Dolby Vision. The peak brightness it can offer is 2,000 nits. The screen-to-body ratio here is around 91%. We’re looking at a resolution of 2868 x 1320 pixels, and a 19.5:9 display aspect ratio. The Ceramic Shield glass protects this panel.
All the panels that we talked about here are really good, actually. They’re both very vivid and have great viewing angles. They’re also more than sharp enough, and the brightness is also not a problem. Well, granted, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 does dim up a bit too soon outdoors when it’s warm, its main display. We’re presuming it’s so that it doesn’t heat up too much, but it’s something worth noting. Other than that, we don’t really have any complaints. Even the crease control on that main panel is really good.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 vs Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max: Performance
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy SoC fuels the Galaxy Z Fold 7. That is an overclocked version of the Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, Qualcomm’s most powerful processor at the moment. It’s a 3nm chip, and it’s paired with 12GB of LPDDR5X RAM and UFS 4.0 flash storage.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max, on the flip side, is fueled by the Apple A18 Pro processor. That is a 3nm chip, and the best Apple has to offer. That processor is paired with 8GB of RAM inside the iPhone 16 Pro Max. Apple uses NVMe flash storage. Neither of these two smartphones offers expandable storage, by the way.
The performance that both of these phones offer on a daily basis is sublime. They’re both very snappy in every way. You can quickly jump between apps, they’re great for multimedia, browsing, messaging, and anything else you can imagine. Even heavy multitasking on the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is not a problem whatsoever. Both phones can also handle the most demanding games without a problem.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 vs Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max: Battery
Samsung’s foldable phone includes a 4,400mAh battery on the inside. The iPhone 16 Pro Max, on the other hand, has a 4,685mAh battery to offer. While the Galaxy Z Fold 7 has really good battery life, it cannot measure up to the iPhone 16 Pro Max, not at all. We’ve managed to cross the 7-hour screen-on-time mark on the Galaxy Z Fold 7, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max offered much better results than that.
For a lot of people, the iPhone 16 Pro Max can be a two-day phone in terms of battery life. If you’re not a demanding user, that can easily be the case. That is harder to achieve with the Galaxy Z Fold 7. Even though Samsung’s foldable will offer enough battery juice for most people, the iPhone 16 Pro Max will do the same for pretty much everyone. It simply offers more in that regard, and that’s it. It’s one of the best high-end smartphones for battery life at the moment.
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 supports 25W wired, 15W wireless, and 4.5W reverse wireless charging. The iPhone 16 Pro Max, on the other hand, comes with 38W wired, 25W MagSafe wireless, 15W Qi2 wireless, and 7.5W Qi wireless charging, on top of offering 4.5W reverse wired charging. Do note that neither of these two smartphones comes with a charging brick inside the box. Despite the fact the iPhone 16 Pro Max has a higher peak charging speed, it slows down considerably during charging. It takes almost two hours to fully charge, while the Galaxy Z Fold 7 can be fully charged in around an hour and a half.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 vs Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max: Cameras
Both devices have three cameras on the back, but their offerings are notably different in comparison. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 has a 200-megapixel main camera (1/1.3-inch sensor size), along with a 12-megapixel ultrawide camera (120-degree FoV). A 10-megapixel telephoto camera (3x optical zoom) is also on offer here.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max, on the other hand, includes a 48-megapixel main camera (1/1.28-inch sensor size). A 48-megapixel ultrawide camera (1/2.55-inch sensor size) is also included on the back of the device. The third camera back there is a 12-megapixel periscope telephoto camera (1/3.06-inch sensor size, 5x optical zoom).
Both main cameras do a great job, though they offer rather different images. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 has more vivid images, while the ones from the iPhone 16 Pro Max are closer to real life. Both phones are capable of offering well-balanced shots, though, it all depends on what you prefer. When it comes to the ultrawide cameras, the iPhone 16 Pro Max has the upper hand, and the same goes for the zoom camera. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 has a regular telephoto camera, which is not that great to begin with. The iPhone 16 Pro Max’s periscope camera is superior, but it’s also not the best in the market, not even close.
Audio
What about audio? Well, both smartphones come with stereo speakers. The ones on the iPhone 16 Pro Max are notably louder, however. The Galaxy Z Fold 7’s speakers are not dim, but they’re less loud when directly compared. The sound output is good from both smartphones.
There is no audio jack on either one of these two smartphones. You’ll need to use their Type-C ports if you’d like to connect your wired headphones. Alternatively, Bluetooth 5.4 is on offer with the Galaxy Z Fold 7, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max supports Bluetooth 5.3.
The post Phone Comparisons: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 vs Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max appeared first on Android Headlines.
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