S20 Plus vs iPhone Pro Max. Which to get?

[Denolan Moodley]

I'm looking at my next upgrade to be a Samsung s20 Plus or the iPhone Pro Max. I don't want the ultra because in all honesty I don't use my phone camera that often and I don't have 5G in South Africa. I want to know from you guys what you think?

[Vishera]

Those notches...Those prices...

If you don't use the camera then if i was in your place i would pick none of them.

[Darkseth]

Do you want iOS? Chose the iPhone

 

Do you want Android? Chose an Android device (it doesn't NEED to be Samsung. It can be Xiaomi, or Oneplus too for example, as Android smartphones can be substituted by every other Android phone).

 

 

Simple as that.

You can NOT compare these 2 phones, and say which is better. It's simply not possible.

They run different Operating Systems (iOS vs. Android), and for this reason alone, this question makes no sense.

 

 

Edit:

 

- Do you have other Apple devices? iPhone will have advantages. 

 

- Why 2 1000€ Smartphones? What about Phones for half the price? They also offer Flaggship-grade Performance.

What exactly do those 2 1000€+ phones offer you, a 500€~ phone doesn't?

[Commodus]

7 hours ago, Denolan Moodley said:

I'm looking at my next upgrade to be a Samsung s20 Plus or the iPhone Pro Max. I don't want the ultra because in all honesty I don't use my phone camera that often and I don't have 5G in South Africa. I want to know from you guys what you think?

If you're not big on the camera, then it really comes down to performance, battery life and your preference of software platform.

 

I'd lean toward the iPhone 11 Pro Max because it's likely to last longer on a charge, to run faster overall and get much better OS update support (about 5 years instead of 2-3).  However, I won't deny that the S20+ will have a sharper screen, more clever tricks (if gimmicks at times) and an OS with more flexibility.

 

One thing to consider is the in-person support infrastructure.  My partner's South African, and I know the country doesn't have as robust an infrastructure for supporting iPhones as you'd find in North America or Europe.  There are authorized Apple repair shops, but you'd want to be sure there's one nearby.  South Africa is one of those countries where Samsung and a few other Android vendors tend to dominate.

[Denolan Moodley]

5 hours ago, Darkseth said:

Do you want iOS? Chose the iPhone

 

Do you want Android? Chose an Android device (it doesn't NEED to be Samsung. It can be Xiaomi, or Oneplus too for example, as Android smartphones can be substituted by every other Android phone).

 

 

Simple as that.

You can NOT compare these 2 phones, and say which is better. It's simply not possible.

They run different Operating Systems (iOS vs. Android), and for this reason alone, this question makes no sense.

 

 

Edit:

 

- Do you have other Apple devices? iPhone will have advantages. 

 

- Why 2 1000€ Smartphones? What about Phones for half the price? They also offer Flaggship-grade Performance.

What exactly do those 2 1000€+ phones offer you, a 500€~ phone doesn't?

I'm currently indifferent to OS as I have had both Android and iOS in the past. I just never had the latest of either in the past 2/3 years so I'm not sure which device has improved the most since then and looking at them in a store doesn't give a personal account of the device compared to someone who owned it (S20 just got released but a Note 10 would be sufficiently comparable).

 

Given the exchange rate some of the phones you guys have at the 500€ mark is more like 850€ here. The only phone that maintains relative normal pricing is Samsung and as for Apple I can get one from USA because a buddy will bring it so the cost is comparable. 

 

 With regards to other android phones mentioned OnePlus doesn't not Operate in South Africa and even if I was able to source one I would get no warranty or cell phone insurance (Insurance company will only insure android phones that have an office in SA). 

 

With regards to Xiaomi and Huawei etc their skins on Android is not to my liking and I'm a bit paranoid with those companies.

 

FYI Google Pixel devices are also not available in SA and the insurance issue.

[Darkseth]

Allright, i see^^

 

If the Samsung is not significantly cheaper, i would honestly take the iPhone 11 Pro Max. (Unless, Android has anything special, you "need/want").
Simply because it holds it's value WAY better if you sell it later, and it gets supported for 5~ Years

And many Apps are better optimized.

[freeagent]

I just bought a certified preowned XS Max 256GB in black, I got it for half price, or about what I paid for my 4S/5S/and 7.. well maybe about $10 per month more than what I'm used to paying for the phone portion of the bill. Its like a brand new phone, but didn't come with headphones. With tax I got it for 853 over 24 months. Also just bought a Limitless 2.0 for it from the Mous website, as the case is half price. I have one on my 7 and its held up pretty well for just about two and a half years, and can definitely take a drop. I like iPhones but I am cheap. I see the 11 Pro/Max refurbs are starting to pop up. Since I have 2 lines I may give this to my wife and get me the big daddy 11 in a few months when there is a sale.

 

Honestly I wasn't sure about a certified preowned, but when I pulled it out of the box it looked like a brand new phone but without the stickers on the back and front. It is a beautiful piece of hardware that I will probably use for quite some time.

[xtroria]

if you don’t mind either OS, i’d recommend iPhone because tbh it’s a more fluid OS

 

My friend who’s using s10+ temporarily told me it still has UI lag compared to XS Max

 

 if you keep your phone well, iphone also has better resale value

[Denolan Moodley]

19 hours ago, Darkseth said:

Allright, i see^^

 

If the Samsung is not significantly cheaper, i would honestly take the iPhone 11 Pro Max. (Unless, Android has anything special, you "need/want").
Simply because it holds it's value WAY better if you sell it later, and it gets supported for 5~ Years

And many Apps are better optimized.

Yes the reselling idea also crossed my mind given that Samsung Galaxy phones value depreciate like crazy compared to apple

[Denolan Moodley]

18 hours ago, freeagent said:

I just bought a certified preowned XS Max 256GB in black, I got it for half price, or about what I paid for my 4S/5S/and 7.. well maybe about $10 per month more than what I'm used to paying for the phone portion of the bill. Its like a brand new phone, but didn't come with headphones. With tax I got it for 853 over 24 months. Also just bought a Limitless 2.0 for it from the Mous website, as the case is half price. I have one on my 7 and its held up pretty well for just about two and a half years, and can definitely take a drop. I like iPhones but I am cheap. I see the 11 Pro/Max refurbs are starting to pop up. Since I have 2 lines I may give this to my wife and get me the big daddy 11 in a few months when there is a sale.

 

Honestly I wasn't sure about a certified preowned, but when I pulled it out of the box it looked like a brand new phone but without the stickers on the back and front. It is a beautiful piece of hardware that I will probably use for quite some time.

Preowned authorised apple phones is not really a thing in South Africa. My buddy has a short stay in the USA so I doubt he'll be able to score a preowned device.

 

[Denolan Moodley]

Thanks for your input guys.

 

Just as a side note so you can understand the struggle. In South Africa there is no Apple store per say as all Apple devices are sold via resellers. The most popular being iStore. Just to give you an idea of pricing, from this store a iPhone 11 Pro Max 64gb which is roughly $1100 in the USA costs about $1600 in SA. And the absolute horrible pricing doesn't stop there for apple.

 

Samsung also hates us as the new s20 Plus is about $1450 in SA.  

[Commodus]

4 hours ago, Denolan Moodley said:

Thanks for your input guys.

 

Just as a side note so you can understand the struggle. In South Africa there is no Apple store per say as all Apple devices are sold via resellers. The most popular being iStore. Just to give you an idea of pricing, from this store a iPhone 11 Pro Max 64gb which is roughly $1100 in the USA costs about $1600 in SA. And the absolute horrible pricing doesn't stop there for apple.

 

Samsung also hates us as the new s20 Plus is about $1450 in SA.  

That's one of the most frustrating parts from what I know of South African phone shopping... you not only have a harder time getting some devices, but they're frequently marked up.  I imagine that's partly due to shipping and other challenges, but it stings in a country where only a small portion of the population can even consider a flagship like the iPhone or S20.

[Commodus]

1 hour ago, huilun02 said:

There might also be the struggle of realising that there are more than 2 smartphone manufacturers in the world

There's also your struggle of remembering the OP is in South Africa, and that this limits his choices.

 

Here's the on-contract phones at Cell C, one of the country's main carriers.  Notice what you don't see?  It's not much different at rival carriers like Vodacom and MTN.  He's already ruled out Huawei and Xiaomi, and it would be stupid for him to bring in a Google or OnePlus phone he can't get support for in the country.  Even LG and Sony flagships are harder to come across.

 

So, if you want a high-end phone in South Africa, you'll probably wind up with Apple or Samsung.

 

 

[Radioactive Snowman]

I'm putting in another recommendation for the iPhone, I picked up the Pro Max last Thursday and it is the best phone I've ever used. Its expensive, no one is denying that, but you get what you pay for.

 

The camera is simply incredible and it makes taking fantastic looking pictures effortless. The S20 also has a great camera I'd imagine but I can see it struggling to compete with the iPhone, especially when it comes to video.

 

My main gripe with Samsung phones though is their god awful software support, 2 years of support for the price premium they're charging is simply a joke and I can no longer recommend people spend over a thousand on a phone thats going to be outdated so soon, at least the iPhone is going to receive updates for 5-6 years.

[Denolan Moodley]

On 2/18/2020 at 4:09 PM, Commodus said:

There's also your struggle of remembering the OP is in South Africa, and that this limits his choices.

 

Here's the on-contract phones at Cell C, one of the country's main carriers.  Notice what you don't see?  It's not much different at rival carriers like Vodacom and MTN.  He's already ruled out Huawei and Xiaomi, and it would be stupid for him to bring in a Google or OnePlus phone he can't get support for in the country.  Even LG and Sony flagships are harder to come across.

 

So, if you want a high-end phone in South Africa, you'll probably wind up with Apple or Samsung.

 

 

Thanks I was going to say the exact same thing.

 

Tbh I didn't even know that LG and Sony were still in the smartphone space in SA  cause it's not even marketed.

[Denolan Moodley]

On 2/18/2020 at 5:27 PM, Radioactive Snowman said:

I'm putting in another recommendation for the iPhone, I picked up the Pro Max last Thursday and it is the best phone I've ever used. Its expensive, no one is denying that, but you get what you pay for.

 

The camera is simply incredible and it makes taking fantastic looking pictures effortless. The S20 also has a great camera I'd imagine but I can see it struggling to compete with the iPhone, especially when it comes to video.

 

My main gripe with Samsung phones though is their god awful software support, 2 years of support for the price premium they're charging is simply a joke and I can no longer recommend people spend over a thousand on a phone thats going to be outdated so soon, at least the iPhone is going to receive updates for 5-6 years.

Yes and in SA that support is far worse cause our carriers first add their rubbish to the update before they roll out an update or if they just don't care to share the update, A friend of mine only received Android 10 with 1 UI last week for his S8. 

 

While the update was available for months around the world.

[RejZoR]

43 minutes ago, Denolan Moodley said:

Yes and in SA that support is far worse cause our carriers first add their rubbish to the update before they roll out an update or if they just don't care to share the update, A friend of mine only received Android 10 with 1 UI last week for his S8. 

 

While the update was available for months around the world.

I absolutely hate how updates are handled on Android phones. Not only longevity is shitty as you lose updates after 2 years, on most brands even sooner if it's a lower end phone. Then within the brand it can take months to get updates. None of this nonsense with iPhones. If update is out and you check for it, you'll get it that moment. And most phones are supported for 5 years basically without exception, unless they do something big where they need to sack something a bit earlier. Which still makes it far longer supported than any Android.

[freeagent]

My old 5S got updates until iOS 13 dropped. My old S3 was updated once or twice. Junk. Android is balls.

[SnowTech]

On 2/16/2020 at 11:44 AM, Denolan Moodley said:

I'm looking at my next upgrade to be a Samsung s20 Plus or the iPhone Pro Max. I don't want the ultra because in all honesty I don't use my phone camera that often and I don't have 5G in South Africa. I want to know from you guys what you think?

They both are great phones, and if you don't use the camera they are almost tied, although i would select the S20+ for a couple of reasons:

Its slightly cheaper then the iPhone (512GB) costs $1499, while the S20+ (512GB) costs $1349. Also the S20+ has a 120Hz display with a 240Hz touch response rate, which makes the 60Hz and 120Hz touch response of the iPhone sound bad (although it is not.) The S20+ has a more color-accurate display and a bigger battery capicity and it comes with a lot more RAM, altough with the iPhone optimization it isnt such a big difference.

If your looking into performance, both have great chipsets The S20+ with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 (Not sure if its in south africa or not) or Exynos 990, while the iPhone comes with a A13 Bionic. I think they are pretty tied but i am not sure.

I know you dont use the camera very often, but the S20+s camera is better then the iPhones.

Android 10 with OneUI 2 is what the S20+ offers in software, which i think is a great software. The 11 Pro Max comes with iOS 13, which is also great but i think for most users android would be better. Also if you plan on keeping the phone for more then 2 years / want more then 2 years of major software updates then the iPhone is the way to go because i am pretty sure there will only be 2 years on the S20+, maybe 3 years as rumors say.

[Commodus]

10 hours ago, SnowTech said:

They both are great phones, and if you don't use the camera they are almost tied, although i would select the S20+ for a couple of reasons:

Its slightly cheaper then the iPhone (512GB) costs $1499, while the S20+ (512GB) costs $1349. Also the S20+ has a 120Hz display with a 240Hz touch response rate, which makes the 60Hz and 120Hz touch response of the iPhone sound bad (although it is not.) The S20+ has a more color-accurate display and a bigger battery capicity and it comes with a lot more RAM, altough with the iPhone optimization it isnt such a big difference.

If your looking into performance, both have great chipsets The S20+ with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 (Not sure if its in south africa or not) or Exynos 990, while the iPhone comes with a A13 Bionic. I think they are pretty tied but i am not sure.

I know you dont use the camera very often, but the S20+s camera is better then the iPhones.

Android 10 with OneUI 2 is what the S20+ offers in software, which i think is a great software. The 11 Pro Max comes with iOS 13, which is also great but i think for most users android would be better. Also if you plan on keeping the phone for more then 2 years / want more then 2 years of major software updates then the iPhone is the way to go because i am pretty sure there will only be 2 years on the S20+, maybe 3 years as rumors say.

Have to challenge a bunch of this.

 

First: how is the S20+ display more colour-accurate?  It's sharper, for sure, but I don't believe there's been a side-by-side test for accuracy with iPhones (DisplayMate is a bit sketchy since it tends to hand out superlatives like candy, and has worked with Samsung in the past).

 

Also, early benchmarks suggest the A13 in the iPhone 11 Pro Max still outperforms the Snapdragon 865 in the Galaxy S20 series, although these current tests are fairly limited.  This repeats a pattern from last year where the A12 still outperformed the Snapdragon 855 in most respects.

 

The S20+ has more flexible camera tech.  Better?  Not necessarily.  Remember, Samsung is notorious for exaggerating colours and oversharpening.  And Apple has historically been much better at video.  I'm entirely prepared to cede this to the S20+ if it wins in thorough side-by-side testing, but making an unsupported blanket statement like this is a bit much.

 

Why do you think Android would be better "for most users?"  Keep in mind that most users don't obsess over third-party launchers or worry about having their icon layout just so; they're everyday people who want to check Instagram or listen to music on the commute to work.