iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Pixel 10 Pro XL vs Galaxy S25 Ultra: Watch Before You Buy!

I’m Olive from Versus, and I just put Apple’s new iPhone 17 Pro Max head-to-head with the Google Pixel 10 Pro XL and Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra. This is a full-on comparison covering design, display, speakers, cameras, performance, software, battery and—of course—price. If you’re deciding which flagship to buy in 2025, here’s everything you need to know.

Quick notes & giveaway

First—shameless plug: we teamed up with Pitaka for cases and are running a giveaway for an iPhone 17 Pro Max. To enter, comment which color you’d pick (one comment per person). We’ll pick a winner randomly in two weeks. Also, Pitaka sent over a few of their new Aramid cases—I’ll cover the options and pricing below.

Outline

Design & build
Displays & speakers
Cameras: wide, ultra wide, zoom, video, front cam
Hardware & real-world performance
Software & AI features
Battery, charging & endurance
Price and final verdict

Design & build

The iPhone 17 Pro Max brings a dramatic aesthetic shift—think Apple Watch Ultra influence. Apple ditched the classic camera bump for a horizontal camera bar and moved away from a full titanium frame to an anodized aluminum shell with a small matte ceramic glass window on the rear to preserve wireless charging. It’s a rugged, polarizing look—some will love it, others won’t.

The Pixel 10 Pro XL sticks with a polished aluminum frame and a frosted Gorilla Glass Victus 2 back. Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Ultra offers a matte titanium alloy frame with the same frosted Victus 2 on the back. The Galaxy also includes the S Pen, a unique advantage for productivity-minded users.

Weight: iPhone 17 Pro Max — 233 g; Pixel 10 Pro XL — 231 g; Galaxy S25 Ultra — 219 g.
All three: IP68. Google & Samsung claim 1.5 m for 30 minutes; Apple claims up to 6 m for 30 minutes (we didn’t test scuba diving in the office).

Displays

All three phones use LTPO OLED panels with 120 Hz refresh and sizes around 6.8–6.9 inches:

iPhone: 6.8″ LTPO OLED
Pixel: 6.9″ LTPO OLED
Galaxy: 6.9″ LTPO OLED

Measured typical high brightness (full white screen under simulated sunlight):

Pixel 10 Pro XL: 2,444 nits (highest typical brightness)
Galaxy S25 Ultra: 1,594 nits
iPhone 17 Pro Max: 1,228 nits (peak brightness remains outstanding)

Takeaway: the Pixel wins for sustained brightness in sunlight, the iPhone often has the best peak brightness and the Galaxy applies excellent anti-reflective coatings—meaning outdoors you might prefer the Galaxy despite it not being as bright as the Pixel. Security-wise, iPhone uses Face ID; Pixel and Galaxy use ultrasonic under-display fingerprints.

Speakers

All three ship with stereo speakers. My listening impressions:

Pixel: highest volume and the richest bass, but you can hear distortion when pushed to max volume.
iPhone & Galaxy: cleaner sound and better treble; iPhone slightly stronger bass than the Galaxy but just below the Pixel in raw punch.

Cameras

I’ll summarize the camera hardware and what it means in practice. For a deeper photo-by-photo comparison, we have a separate full camera breakdown.

Main sensors

iPhone 17 Pro Max: 48 MP main (same sensor as last year).
Pixel 10 Pro XL: 50 MP main, with improved OIS (advertised as 2× better stabilization vs Pixel 9 Pro XL).
Galaxy S25 Ultra: 200 MP main sensor—Samsung continues to push resolution.

Ultra wide

iPhone: 48 MP ultra wide (unchanged).
Pixel: similar megapixel count to iPhone for ultra wide.
Galaxy: 50 MP ultra wide.

Zoom setup

iPhone: new 48 MP periscope telephoto with 4× optical zoom. Note that the marketed 8× is actually a 50% crop of the sensor (not true optical).
Pixel: 48 MP periscope telephoto with 5× optical zoom.
Galaxy: dual-tele setup — a 10 MP 3× telephoto and a 50 MP 5× periscope telephoto.

Video capabilities

iPhone: up to 4K at 120 FPS and, for the first time, ProRes RAW recording for maximum post-production flexibility.
Galaxy: offers 8K at 30 FPS and log recording for filmmakers.
Pixel: native 4K at 60 FPS. 8K is possible via cloud processing (video boost) but can take 20+ hours to process. The Pixel also supports DCG 12-bit video via third-party camera apps (dual conversion gain sensor merging two ISO levels for cleaner footage).

Ultra wide video & front camera

Ultra wide video: iPhone and Pixel — 4K 60 FPS max; Galaxy can do 8K 30 FPS.
Front cams: iPhone introduces an 18 MP square sensor that lets you choose horizontal, square or vertical framing without rotating the device. Galaxy has a traditional 12 MP front cam; Pixel packs a 42 MP front shooter. All three can record front-camera video up to 4K 60 FPS.

Hardware & real-world performance

Chips and memory:

iPhone 17 Pro Max: Apple A19 Pro.
Pixel 10 Pro XL: Tensor G5 (TSMC 3 nm).
Galaxy S25 Ultra: overclocked Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy.
RAM: iPhone & Galaxy — 12 GB; Pixel — 16 GB (reportedly 3 GB reserved/locked for AI features).
SIM situation: iPhone and Pixel are eSIM-only in the U.S.; elsewhere they support physical SIMs.

Real-world tests

Gaming:

Grid Legends: Pixel couldn’t run the game (Tensor compatibility issue). iPhone and Galaxy had stable FPS and near-identical temperatures.
Withering Waves (maxed graphics): iPhone was the most stable (dropped to 56 FPS) and ran the coolest. Pixel matched Galaxy in average FPS but ran hottest.

Content processing:

Lightroom export (99 photos): Galaxy finished first, iPhone arrived less than a minute later, Pixel took about 10 minutes.
CapCut 3-minute 4K render: iPhone fastest, then Pixel, then Galaxy—though all finished in under a minute.

Benchmarks & storage

Geekbench 6: iPhone leads, Galaxy second, Pixel trails.
3DMark Wildlife Stress Test: Galaxy tops loop performance; iPhone has the best low-loop score (best sustained stability).
Antutu: scores vary by architecture; Pixel again shows weaker numbers here.
Storage: iPhone uses Apple’s NVMe solution; Pixel and Galaxy use UFS 4.0. Despite UFS 4.0, Pixel’s storage speeds were surprisingly slow in our tests.

Bottom line: Tensor is still lagging performance-wise compared to Apple’s A19 Pro and Samsung’s Snapdragon variant. For heavy editing and sustained gaming, iPhone and Galaxy are the clear choices.

Software & AI

The three phones ship with fresh software skins:

iOS 26 (iPhone)

New “Liquid Glass” visual language—reworked icons, lock screen and system animations.
Fewer forced AI features compared to some rivals; notable additions include live translation for calls/conversations (with AirPods Pro) and finally call screening.

Pixel UI (Pixel)

Material 3 Expressive: bolder colors and animations.
Heavy AI feature set: Voice Translate for calls, Camera Coach, Magic Q for suggested replies, Magic Editor and Pixel Studio remain standout tools.

One UI 8 (Galaxy)

Evolutionary changes rather than revolutionary ones.
AI-assisted features such as Now Brief and a strong suite of generative editing tools (Generative Edit, Sketch to Image) and quick video edits like instant slow-mo via long-press.

Support promises: Google and Samsung officially pledge seven years of OS & security updates. Apple tends to support devices for a similar multi-year span in practice.

Battery & charging

iPhone 17 Pro Max: two capacities — international (SIM tray) 4,832 mAh; U.S. eSIM-only model 5,088 mAh.
Pixel 10 Pro XL: 5,200 mAh.
Galaxy S25 Ultra: 5,000 mAh.

Charging:

Wired: Google & Samsung advertise 45 W; Apple doesn’t publish numbers but claims 50% in 20 minutes.
Wireless: iPhone and Pixel support up to 25 W with MagSafe / Pixel Snap and Qi2; Galaxy supports Qi2 standard but lacks magnets (max 15 W).
Reverse charging: all three support reverse wired charging; iPhone & Galaxy support reverse wireless (iPhone limits it to Apple accessories); Pixel removed reverse wireless in favor of Pixel Snap.

100 W charger test:

Galaxy: full charge in 1 hour 12 minutes, peaked at 42 W.
iPhone & Pixel: both reached full charge in 1 hour 26 minutes. iPhone peaked at 37 W; Pixel peaked at 28 W.

Price

iPhone 17 Pro Max starting price: $1,199.
Pixel 10 Pro XL starting price: $1,199.
Galaxy S25 Ultra starting price: $1,299.

Note: the Galaxy has already seen early discounts which can bring its street price in line with—or below—the new iPhone and Pixel. That makes deals worth hunting for.

Conclusion — which one should you buy?

Each phone is an excellent flagship, but they serve slightly different priorities.

iPhone 17 Pro Max: If you want class-leading chipset performance, excellent sustained gaming stability, a highly practical front camera format, and a polished OS experience, the iPhone is a top pick. The new design pushes it toward a rugged “Ultra” aesthetic—some will love the toughness, others may miss the old elegance.
Galaxy S25 Ultra: Best choice if you want an all-around powerful Android device with mature software, the included S Pen, and excellent long-form performance. It’s the most refined Android experience here—just keep an eye out for discounts to justify the higher MSRP.
Pixel 10 Pro XL: If you want Google’s best AI-driven software features (translation, Magic Editor, Pixel Studio) and innovative camera tricks, the Pixel remains compelling. However, hardware performance and storage speeds lag the other two. If price sensitivity is a factor, Pixel models tend to drop in price quickly after release, making them great value a few months in.

“In many ways the iPhone 17 Pro Max feels more like an iPhone 17 Ultra than a Pro Max—rugged, less elegant, but packed with meaningful hardware upgrades.” — Ezi (scriptwriter)

Your turn

So which of these flagships would you pick for long-term use? Are you Team iPhone, Galaxy, or Pixel? Drop your choice and why in the comments—I want to hear your take. If you want an extra comparison point, check out our other Android vs iPhone breakdowns to help decide.