Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus: Should You Go iOS Or Android?
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Photo by Joshua Bartell on Unsplash
Luis Silva (May 2020, updated: March 2021)
Introduction
Does the best and biggest from Apple outstand the best and biggest from Samsung?
Let's start the drums of war.
In August of 2019, Samsung launched its Galaxy Note 10 Plus. The iPhone 11 Pro Max, however, has seen the light of day one month later.
We are looking at how the iPhone 11 Pro Max and the Galaxy Note 10 Plus compare to each other to help you decide which might be the right one for you.
If you have the time, click here to skip the spoilers and continue to the full comparison.
Bottom Line
Which is a better smartphone?
You shouldn't have to pay much more for the Galaxy Note 10 Plus, but it also is the better device of the two considering their specs.
It has a better display, more internal storage (256GB vs. 64GB), and external storage. But the iPhone 11 Pro Max will deliver better performance (+61%).
Are there other things worth mentioning?
The Galaxy Note 10 Plus also features an Always-On, larger (+0.3") display, a lightweight body (30 g./1.06 oz less), faster-charging speeds (45w vs. 18w), faster wireless charging (15w vs. 5w), reverse wireless charging, and more RAM (12GB vs. 4GB). But the iPhone 11 Pro Max also brings a cleaner user interface.
How much will the additional specs cost me?
If you're considering a new and unlocked smartphone, you're going to shell out an extra amount of about $49.
Is it worth getting the iPhone 11 Pro Max in 2021?
Yes, for sure. It's a pretty snappy device.
Is the Galaxy Note 10 Plus still worth buying in 2021?
Sure. It's starting to show its age, but it is still a decent device.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus and the Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max are about the same price, but you'll usually find the iPhone 11 Pro Max at a lower price. Remember that when you're comparing the two models.
You'll also see down below a "Tek-Score" for every section that we analyze. For a quicker analysis of how far they are from each other, we'll consider all their specifications. The global score will help you compare them to other phones because you'll probably have other phones in mind.
Our Tek-Score is based on a study done by Globalwebindex.com about the most wanted features from people looking to buy new smartphones.
For additional information regarding our smartphone comparisons, check this FAQ.
Some features are underlined with a red or green progress bar. It's there for you to better understand how they compare with other smartphones with similar prices.
By clicking here: you'll see which ones we've analyzed, but essentially, we're ignoring smartphones that are more than 20% cheaper or expensive.
Some items are underlined, and you can tap to access the related top 10 listings for up to seven different budgets.
| Price* | vs. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Device | iPhone 11 Pro Max |
Galaxy Note 10 Plus |
|
| Release Date | 2019, September | 2019, August | 0y. |
| OS Updates | 6 years | 3 years | -3y. |
| Security Updates | 6 years | 3 years | -3y. |
*Reference: Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.
Performance
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus is available with the Exynos 9825 processor, while the Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max brings the Apple A13 processor.
Now about the graphics chipset, while the former has a Mali-G76 MP12, the latter features a proprietary Apple GPU.
On the multicore portion of Geekbench 5 (IOS)(Android), which measures overall performance, the iPhone 11 Pro Max was, on average, 61% quicker while finishing its tests. Speed isn't everything, but in this case, it's a lot! iOS is much lighter than Android because Google does have a hard time optimizing Android.
We can classify the iPhone 11 Pro Max as high-end and the Galaxy Note 10 Plus as more like an upper mid-range.
iOS 13 runs out-of-the-box on the iPhone 11 Pro Max, and the Galaxy Note 10 Plus got the Android 9 (Pie) and OneUI.
PS: The Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 (with the Adreno 640 GPU) and the Exynos 9825 (with the Mali-G76) are market-dependent.
There's a performance increase of about 20% on the 855 for the Galaxy Note 10 Plus.
| Performance* | vs. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Features | iPhone 11 Pro Max |
Galaxy Note 10 Plus |
|
| SoC | Apple A13 | Exynos 9825 | |
| Graphics | Apple GPU | Mali-G76 MP12 | |
| Geekbench 5 Score | 3435 | 2137 | -1298 |
| OS | iOS 13 | Android 9 (Pie) and OneUI | |
| Tek-Score | -2.2 |
*Reference: Apple iPhone 12.
Display
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 |
|---|
The iPhone 11 Pro Max has a 6.5-inch AMOLED screen, which is slightly smaller than the Galaxy Note 10 Plus's 6.8-inch AMOLED display. Which one would you choose? Me, I'd go for an AMOLED screen, but a remarkable LCD is honestly as good.
If you're into big displays, don't waste your time searching for other devices, and go for the Galaxy Note 10 Plus. Other similarly priced smartphones just aren't that enormous.
The Galaxy Note 10 Plus has a higher-resolution 1440x3040 Quad HD display, and the iPhone 11 Pro Max makes do with a 1242x2688 Full HD panel. If you fancy edge-to-edge displays, the Galaxy Note 10 Plus isn't perfect, but it's pretty close to that.
No one likes to look at a shattered screen, so it's essential to know what kind of glass protection they have. The iPhone 11 Pro Max is shielded with a Corning toughened glass. The Galaxy Note 10 Plus display is preserved with a previous generation Gorilla Glass 6.
There's a phone with an Always-On display here, the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus.
If you set these displays for auto-brightness, these two go up to about 811 nits.
Most similarly priced devices only do around 633 nits, but there's a 161 nits gap above that for the Galaxy Note 10 Plus.
Are you considering watching HDR content? The iPhone 11 Pro Max does HDR10, while the Galaxy Note 10 Plus does HDR10+.
If this is something you value, the iPhone 11 Pro Max has a lower-specced screen.
About the iPhone 11 Pro Max, just know that all of its rivals can play HDR content and have an AMOLED screen, 76% offer you more than 60hz of refresh rate and have Gorilla Glass 6 or better, and 88% of them have an Always-On display.
Considering the Galaxy Note 10 Plus, I should say that 75% of its rivals can play HDR content, 83% have an AMOLED screen, and 79% of them have an Always-On display. Then again, only 12% of them have over 60hz of refresh rate and feature Gorilla Glass 6 or Victus.
| Display Density (DPIs)* | vs. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Features | iPhone 11 Pro Max |
Galaxy Note 10 Plus |
|
| Size | 6.5 | 6.8 | 0.3 |
| Screen Type | AMOLED | AMOLED | |
| Resolution (px) | 1242x2688 | 1440x3040 | 1039104 |
| Refresh Rate | 60hz | 60hz | 0 |
| Dots per Inch | 455.55 | 494.68 | 39.13 |
| Always-On-Display | No | Yes | |
| Notch | Wedge | Hole | |
| Peak Brightness | 811 nits | 794 nits | -17 |
| HDR | HDR10 | HDR10+ | |
| Sub Tek-Score | 5.9 | ||
| Protection | Corning toughened glass | Corning Gorilla Glass 6 | |
| Tek-Score | 2.1 |
*Reference: Sony Xperia 1.
Cameras
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 |
|---|
What about its shooters? Apple's iPhone 11 Pro Max features a 12 MP camera with an aperture of f/1.8, a 26mm wide-angle lens, four flash LEDs, HDR capabilities, and Optical Image Stabilization. It can record videos at up to 2160p.
It also has a secondary 12 MP camera with an aperture of f/2.0 plus a 52mm telephoto lens. And a third 12 MP (f/2.4) with a 13mm ultra-wide-angle lens.
The selfie camera is a 12 MP sensor with an f/2.2 aperture complemented with a 23 mm wide-angle lens.
DxOMark reviewed this camera and gave it 132 points. By including the telephoto and wide-angle lenses, it can go up to 143 points. If you click here, you can check what they think of it.
PS: keep in mind that all of its rivals can record videos in 4K or more, have an ultra-wide-angle lens, and feature Optical Image Stabilization. On the other hand, none of them feature a macro lens.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus, in its turn, features a 12 MP camera with an f/1.5 aperture and a 27mm, wide-angle lens. Then it has one flash LED, HDR capabilities, and Optical Image Stabilization. It records videos at up to 2160p. Were you looking for a four-shooter smartphone? Here it is. The second shooter has 12 MP (with f/2.1 plus a 52mm telephoto lens), the third has 16 MP (f/2.2) with a 12mm ultra-wide-angle lens, and the last one 0.3 MP that works as a depth sensor.
The Galaxy Note 10+ has a dual aperture camera. You can choose between f/1.5 or f/2.4.
Samsung included a 10 MP (f/2.2) sensor for selfies and a 26 mm wide-angle lens.
On DxOMark's reviewing article, they gave this shooter 118 points. And if we consider the telephoto and wide-angle lenses, we'll get to the final rate of 130 points. For an out-and-out review, click here.
Furthermore, if you must know, 92% of its rivals can record videos in 4 or 8K, and all of them have an ultra-wide-angle lens.
Looking at DxO's ranking, one can conclude that the Galaxy Note 10 Plus is approximately 33 points above other cameras with comparable prices. Although as of now, it isn't good enough.
One can place the iPhone 11 Pro Max more like a high-end and the Galaxy Note 10 Plus as lower high-end.
The one thing I love about these cameras is their telephoto zoom of about 2x. It will enable you to get a closer view of the subject before taking your picture.
As a side note, the iPhone 11 Pro Max zoom lens is 63mm below what you'll commonly find within similarly priced rivals.
The Galaxy Note 10 Plus's lens can be great in low light conditions and yield sharper results along the way without introducing camera shake because of its aperture.
| Picture Quality* | vs. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary Camera | iPhone 11 Pro Max |
Galaxy Note 10 Plus |
|
| Megapixels | 12 | 12 | 0 |
| Aperture | 1.8 | 1.5 | -0.3 |
| Lens | 26mm | 27mm | 1 |
| Lens Type | Wide-Angle | Wide-Angle | |
| Flash | 4 | 1 | -3 |
| HDR | Yes | Yes | |
| OIS | Yes | Yes | |
| Video | 2160 | 2160 | 0 |
| Score | 143 | 130 | -13 |
*Reference: Huawei Mate 40 Pro.
| Extra Camera(s) | iPhone 11 Pro Max |
Galaxy Note 10 Plus |
vs. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Megapixels | 12 | 12 | 0 |
| Aperture | 2.0 | 2.1 | 0.1 |
| Lens | 52mm (2x zoom) | 52mm (2x zoom) | 0 |
| Lens Type | Telephoto lens | Telephoto lens | |
| Megapixels | 12 | 16 | 4 |
| Aperture | 2.4 | 2.2 | -0.2 |
| Lens | 13mm | 12mm | -1 |
| Lens Type | Ultra-wide-Angle | Ultra-wide-Angle | |
| Score | 11 | 12 | 1 |
| Selfie Camera | iPhone 11 Pro Max |
Galaxy Note 10 Plus |
vs. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Megapixels | 12 | 10 | -2 |
| Aperture | 2.2 | 2.2 | 0.0 |
| Lens | 23mm | 26mm | 3 |
| iPhone 11 Pro Max |
Galaxy Note 10 Plus |
vs. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tek-Score | -0.8 |
Body
These phones have different heights (158 mm / 6.23 inches vs. 162 mm / 6.38 inches), but they share about the same width (77 mm / 3.03 inches).
They all come close in thickness: 8 mm (0.32 inches) vs. 7 mm (0.28 inches).
All of that goodness is presented in a sleek glass body. The iPhone 11 Pro Max is 30 g. (1.06 oz) heavier than its rival, which sits at 196 g. (6.91 oz). But because screen size also matters, I've developed a formula for a kind of "display size to phone weight" ratio. The iPhone 11 Pro Max got a score of 1.7, showing it's one of the heaviest phones for its screen size. Having said that, the Galaxy Note 10 Plus has 5.3, so nothing to state here.
If you like having color options, you can buy the iPhone 11 Pro Max in Space Gray, Gold, Silver, and Midnight Green. The Galaxy Note 10 Plus, in its turn, comes in Aura Glow, Aura Black, Aura White, and Aura Blue.
They share their size, so there ain't much to see here.
Is the lack of a fingerprint scanner a deal-breaker to you? There's one under the display of the Galaxy Note 10 Plus but not on the iPhone 11 Pro Max.
That doesn't mean you're out of security options on the iPhone 11 Pro Max. At least, Apple decided to include a Face ID scanner.
The iPhone 11 Pro Max truly is water-resistant. It can be submerged 1 to 3 meters deep, identical to the Galaxy Note 10 Plus. Remember that it shouldn't be for over half an hour, in standby and freshwater only, so no saltwater or pools here.
| Looks* | vs. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Body | iPhone 11 Pro Max |
Galaxy Note 10 Plus |
|
| Size | 158 x 77 x 8 mm (5.57 x 2.72 x 0.28 in) |
162 x 77 x 7 mm (5.71 x 2.72 x 0.25 in) |
-10010 |
| Weight | 226 g. (7.97 oz) | 196 g. (6.91 oz) | -30 |
| Build | Front and back glass | Front and back glass | |
| Colors | Space Gray, Gold, Silver, and Midnight Green | Aura Glow, Aura Black, Aura White, and Aura Blue | |
| Screen To Body Ratio | 85.31% | 92.52% | 7.21 |
| Disp.Size To Weight Score | 1.7 | 5.3 | 3.6 |
| Looks | 9.6/10 | 10.0/10 | 0.4 |
| Waterproof | IP68 | IP68 | |
| Biometrics | Face ID | Under Display Fingerprint | |
| Tek-Score | 0.9 |
*100% = 4+ colors + front and back glass + S2BR: 86+%.
Battery
Specs-wise, the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus seems to have an advantage here. 4300 mAh vs. 3969 mAh is a no-brainer. But what does everyday usage have to say about that? If you charge them up and run some tests, this is how the iPhone 11 Pro Max comes out of it:
- By talking for 1 hour, browsing the web for 1 hour, and playing videos for 1 hour, you'll end up with 83% of the battery charge.
- If you do 1 hour of talking, 3 hours of web browsing, and 1 hour of video playback, this phone should end up with 69%.
- For 1 hour of talking, 1 hour of web browsing, and 3 hours of video playback, you'll likely end up with 73% of the battery charge.
And this is what you'll get out of the Galaxy Note 10 Plus:
- After 1 hour of talking, 1 hour of web browsing, and 1 hour of video playback, you should have 84% of the battery left for the rest of the day.
- From 1 hour of talking, 3 hours of web browsing, and 1 hour of video playback, this phone should end up with 68%.
- After 1 hour of talking, 1 hour of web browsing, and 3 hours of video playback, you'll likely end up with 74% of the battery charge.
It's a draw. You shouldn't expect notable differences here.
Just be aware that the Galaxy Note 10 Plus is also beating most smartphones. You can check here if it still is on our best-of listing.
Both phones support fast-charging. You can charge the iPhone 11 Pro Max at a maximum of 18w/hour and the Galaxy Note 10 Plus up to 45w/hour.
If you value wireless charging, they can do 5w vs. 15w.
You can wirelessly charge any compatible device from the Galaxy Note 10 Plus at up to 9w.
If you fancy quick charges, you can count on the Galaxy Note 10 Plus. That's rare because phones from this budget can only do about 22w.
Galaxy Note 10 Plus's Quick wireless charging is likewise snappy. You won't find many phones as fast at about its price.
| Battery* | vs. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Features | iPhone 11 Pro Max |
Galaxy Note 10 Plus |
|
| Capacity (mAh) | 3969 | 4300 | 331 |
| 1h Talk + 1h Web + 1h Video | 83% left | 84% left | 1 |
| 1h Talk + 3h Web + 1h Video | 69% left | 68% left | -1 |
| 1h Talk + 1h Web + 3h Video | 73% left | 74% left | 1 |
| Bat. To Phone Size Score | 3.6 | 3.3 | -0.3 |
| Sub Tek-Score | 0.0 | ||
| Fast Charging | 18w | 45w | 27 |
| Wireless Charging | 5w | 15w | 10 |
| Reverse Charging | No | 9w | 9 |
| Tek-Score | 1.0 |
*Reference: Samsung Galaxy A31.
Storage
The iPhone 11 Pro Max has 64GB of internal storage and 4GB of RAM. There's no extra storage here. It may not be a deal-breaker, but it sure is something to keep in mind. Be aware that at this price segment, others have more storage and more RAM. They're closer to 158Gb of storage and 9GB of RAM.
On the Galaxy Note 10 Plus, you'll find 256GB of internal storage and 12GB of RAM. If you ever run out of free space, you can add a MicroSD card. Again, you can get less RAM and less storage from almost all of their competitors. 6Gb/101Gb. That's the average.
Storage shouldn't be an issue on any of these phones. However, if you love to have or record tons of videos, 64 GB will be a problem sooner than later.
| Storage* | vs. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Features | iPhone 11 Pro Max |
Galaxy Note 10 Plus |
|
| RAM (GB) | 4GB | 12GB | 8 |
| Internal (GB) | 64GB | 256GB | 192 |
| Micro SD | No | microSDXC (shared SIM slot) | |
| Tek-Score | 7.3 |
*Internal Storage + 256GB Memory Card (Max: 512GB).
Connectivity
When it comes to connectivity, you can count on the traditional Bluetooth 5.0 chip. Both phones also have NFC, so nothing special here.
If you got used to counting on the good-old 3.5mm headphone jack, forget about it. Want a piece of advice? Forget about adapters and go for the wireless buds. You can also check other devices if you're willing to forget about them. The Galaxy Note 10 Lite or the Galaxy M51 can help you with that.
The Galaxy Note 10 Plus has two network variants: LTE or (LTE and) 5G.
| Connectivity | vs. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Features | iPhone 11 Pro Max |
Galaxy Note 10 Plus |
|
| Network | LTE | LTE (also available in 5G) | |
| Bluetooth | 5.0 | 5.0 | |
| NFC | Yes | Yes | |
| 3.5mm jack | No | No | |
| Tek-Score | 0.0 |
Price
You're likely not considering the iPhone 11 Pro Max to make all your pennies count. That, of course, depends on the place and the deals that you'll eventually find. It currently also is 4% more expensive than the competition at this price segment. Their average price is $862. The Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus, in its turn, isn't that cheap, but if it's worth it or not, it's up to you to decide.
Let's see if it really worths it or not.
Here are the best prices that we've found:
Reference: $900
Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max
Reference: $949
Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus
I earn a small fee from qualifying purchases. It doesn't affect the price you pay nor my opinions, but it will mean a lot if you click on one of these buttons before purchasing your next phone. You'll be helping to take this to the next level.
Prices on eBay are in $US but Europe-based. You can click to check the prices in your country.
Prices marked with ! are from renewed/refurbished/carrier-locked phones (except eBay prices that, as a last resort, can be from bids or used devices).
How much of a "phone" can your money buy?
That's how much "score" you can get with $100 based on the global score that you'll see in the next section (higher is better).
Have you found better prices elsewhere? The formula is simple: score/price*100.
| Value for money | iPhone 11 Pro Max | Galaxy Note 10 Plus | VS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon | - ! | 0.70 | - |
| eBay | 0.56 | - | - |
| Best Buy | - | - | - |
| Walmart | 0.84 ! | 0.81 | - |
Also, don't forget to check the latest deals from these four stores, and the state of the art on mobile technology, if you don't want to overpay on your next smartphone.
Related articles:
The Best Unbiased Smartphones For All Budgets
Smartphone Specs Statistics: The State Of The Art (Q1 2021)
So, what about that global rate? We'll get there. Just so you have an idea, take a look at where its adversaries average. The iPhone 11 Pro Max class is at 7.5, and the Galaxy Note 10 Plus 6.0.
Verdict: What Makes the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus Stand Out?
The iPhone 11 Pro Max's performance does stand out but the Note 10 Plus stands out pretty much elsewhere.
It has the perfect display, decent battery life that you can quickly charge and the ideal storage combination (256GB of internal storage plus a MicroSD slot). Unfortunately, it misses out on the 3.5mm audio jack.
You can easily find the Note 10 Plus cheaper than the 11 Pro Max. So, unless you love Apple's ecosystem, or plan to keep your next phone for up to 4 or 5 years, the Galaxy Note 10 Plus is the reasonable choice to make.
| Pros | iPhone 11 Pro Max |
Galaxy Note 10 Plus |
|---|---|---|
| #1 | Performance | AMOLED |
| #2 | AMOLED | Always-On-Display |
| #3 | Cameras | Cameras |
| #4 | Battery Life | Battery Life |
| #5 | Fast Charging | Fast Charging |
| #6 | Wireless Charging | Wireless Charging |
| #7 | Glass Protection | MicroSD Slot |
| #8 | Storage | |
| #9 | Glass Protection |
| Cons | iPhone 11 Pro Max |
Galaxy Note 10 Plus |
|---|---|---|
| #1 | Always-On-Display | Weight |
| #2 | MicroSD Slot | 3.5mm Jack |
| #3 | Weight | Price |
| #4 | 3.5mm Jack | |
| #5 | Price |
| Relative Score* | vs. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Global Score | iPhone 11 Pro Max |
Galaxy Note 10 Plus |
|
| Gaming Score | 1.3 | ||
| Tek-Score | 1.53 |
*Reference: Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.
For suggestions and bug reports, click here. Your help is appreciated. Thank you.
If you want to know more about them, click here:
Hello there!
I'm Luis Silva, and this is the place where I nerd out about technology. I've been a tech enthusiast for 25 years, and I have a degree in computer management.
I'm glad to have you here!
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And when you leave, please remember to come back in a not so distant future.
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Progress bars explained
#1: A big red progress bar means that this value is way below the average. In this case, it's 28.85MP, and the iPhone XR is 16.85MP below the average.
#2: In this example, the XR is just 0.36mm below the average, that's why the red bar is almost unnoticeable.
#3: On the other hand, the SE 2 is 1.8mm above (hence, the green bar) the 26.2mm of average.
#4: Performance-wise, the SE 2 is well above the average (of 2512) for its price range. That's the reason the green bar is that long.
Rivals
As of now, these are the rivals that were considered for each of them. They may change every time its prices are updated.
These are the lowest prices found on any of the usual stores.
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