iPhone 15 Pro/Pro Max or S24 Ultra: Which one to choose in 2024?

Samsung has already made its big launch of the year, and as such, we already have the two biggest flagships of each ecosystem ready for a gigantic and interesting duel, that is, the most recent iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max, as well as the entire range Galaxy S24, with a special appreciation for the Ultra model.

All of this raises the normal question of… Which one to buy? An iPhone 15 Pro Max or a Galaxy S24 Ultra? Let’s do it by steps!

iPhone 15 Pro/Pro Max or S24 Ultra: Which smartphone to choose in 2024?

Therefore, when it comes time to choose one of the great references in the mobile world, the reality is that we cannot just look at the design, or the pure and hard performance. We have to go a little further! We have to look at the resale price after 1 or 2 years, the initial purchase price, the update policy of each manufacturer, etc…

Buying a smartphone is already very similar to buying a car. It is an extremely important device for your day-to-day life, and deep down, just like your car, it also conveys a bit of your personality to the outside world.

Acquisition Price

It is true that Apple’s true top of the range is the iPhone 15 Pro Max, as this is the only device in the iPhone 15 range to have all the extras and features. However, unlike what happens with the S24 Ultra and S24 or S24+, the reality is that the iPhone 15 Pro is not that different, failing only in screen size, battery, and maximum optical zoom capacity (3x instead 5x).

What is clear, means that in terms of acquisition cost, if you want an iPhone 15 Pro, you will save €250 compared to the S24 Ultra or the iPhone 15 Pro Max, as both cost €1499 in their base version. For me, it’s a positive point for Apple, especially since the size and shape of the iPhone 15 Pro continues to be one of the most interesting and comfortable on the market.

However, if you really want the best of the best, the price is the same in both ecosystems (€1499 for the version with 256GB of internal storage).

Resale Price

It is increasingly common to buy a high-end device, thinking about what we are going to do in 1, 2 or 3 years. In other words, in the amount that we will be able to recover in a sale, to make the leap again to another, more advanced top of the range.

Here, it is undeniable that Apple is ahead of all other devices on the market. After all, after 2 years, the 2021 iPhone 13 Pro is still worth around €650~750 in the world of Used, while the S21 Ultra from the same year costs €300. The S22 Ultra, which also rivaled this same iPhone, is already worth a little more money, being available between €400 and €500.

It’s undeniable, if you want some return on resale, the best choice is always the iPhone.

Hardware

In this field, it is easy to say that Samsung wins! We have the best hardware the industry has to offer, including the fastest RAM, the most efficient storage, the brightest screen, the most flexible camera module, as well as an S-Pen that serves as an extra that won’t found on no other smartphone.

However, hardware doesn’t tell the whole story, with software becoming increasingly important. This is exactly why Apple continues to grow after all these years.

Software

In the past, the Android ecosystem was somewhat open, while the Apple ecosystem was completely focused on what the North American apple giant had to offer.

Nowadays things are not quite like that. Yes, it is undeniable that Apple continues to have the superior ecosystem, with everything working and communicating almost perfectly with each other. However, Samsung also already has its own ecosystem, with watches, earbuds, tablets, etc… All produced in-house, and all with exclusive features.

However, this only makes sense if you have or want to have more products from each of these manufacturers. If it’s just the smartphone and nothing else, you have to worry about the Operating System (iOS vs OneUI – Android).

In this case, it is somewhat dependent on preferences. Personally, I find Apple’s interface less complicated and more fluid, which I prefer for my day-to-day life. However, with a Galaxy S24 Ultra you will have a device ready for everything and everyone, almost like a Swiss army knife. In these cases, I always say it’s a great idea to go to a store and try both to get an idea of ​​what the experience is like.

Updates and Security

The update policy was one of the main selling points of Apple’s iPhones, but, over the years, Samsung has also managed to improve this aspect (a lot), thus reducing the difference.

The iPhone is generally kept updated for five years, and all models receive the update at about the same time. In turn, Samsung now promises seven years of features and security updates for its Galaxy S24 phones, with 4 years of Android updates and 5 years of security fixes for its 2023 models.

Updates are faster and more numerous on the iPhone, however, Samsung is not far behind.

In the field of security, iOS is more secure than Android, that’s a fact. Data protection is one of the points in which Apple is ahead of Samsung, but it is worth noting that, recently, thanks in particular to Android’s advances in terms of data security, the difference is a little smaller.

Conclusion

There are advantages and disadvantages for both sides. With an iPhone, you already know that you will be able to get a better deal on a future exchange for a Samsung Galaxy.

However, if you want to wait a few weeks or months, you will also be able to buy an S24 Ultra at a much more advantageous price compared to the iPhone, which has few or no promotions throughout its first year of life.

Then we have the hardware and software, which of course have differences, but… Quite honestly… Everything will be the same. There are 2 serious tops of the range, which will offer you a lot of what you really want in a smartphone capable of doing everything or almost everything. It is very important to touch each one of them before proceeding to purchase, in order to understand which software is best for you.