Samsung and Apple have gone head-to-head in another camera battle, this time focused on zoom. Popular reviewer SuperSaf recently compared the Galaxy S25 Ultra and iPhone 17 Pro Max across different zoom ranges, and the outcome wasn’t quite what many expected.
Starting at 3x zoom, Samsung looked strong. Thanks to its dedicated telephoto lens, the S25 Ultra produced crisper and more natural images than Apple, which relies on a crop from the main sensor at that level. For anyone shooting quick portraits or closer details, Samsung has the early edge.
Things turned around at 4x. That’s where Apple brings in its own telephoto hardware, and the results were immediately sharper and cleaner than Samsung’s hybrid approach. From 4x through about 4.9x, the iPhone delivered photos with noticeably better definition and less noise.
At 5x, both phones came out nearly tied, with similar sharpness and detail. From there up to 10x, it was hard to declare a clear winner, as both held up well in everyday scenarios.
When zooming way in at 20x and even 40x, the Galaxy S25 Ultra started to show its strength again. Under good lighting, Samsung’s image processing pulled out finer details, especially when capturing distant signs or text.
But in low light, the iPhone stole the show. Its larger telephoto sensor consistently produced brighter, more usable shots at every zoom level, while the S25 Ultra struggled with grain and artifacts due to artificial sharpening.
In the end, Samsung still has the edge in extreme daylight zoom, but Apple’s strong noise control, especially in low-light, makes this one of the closest battles yet between the two brands.
For those curious, here’s a comparison between the S25 Ultra and last year’s iPhone 16 Pro Max, which shows just how much Apple has improved with the latest model. On Samsung’s side, the upcoming S26 Ultra, expected in January, is rumored to keep almost the same imaging hardware as the S25 Ultra, with a stronger push toward AI-based image enhancements, similar to what we’ve seen with Google’s Pixel 10 series.
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