Home Phone comparison Apple iPhone XS and Samsung Galaxy S9 - Which is better?

Apple iPhone XS vs Samsung Galaxy S9

52 out 100
Apple iPhone XS
VS
47 out 100
Samsung Galaxy S9
Apple iPhone XS
Samsung Galaxy S9

Compared 2 smartphones : Apple iPhone XS Manufactured in September, 2018, with display 5.8 with chipsetApple A12 Bionic, vs Samsung Galaxy S9, Manufactured in March, 2018 with chipsetSamsung Exynos 9 Octa 9810. Below are specs, tests, pros and cons for each device

  1. Differences
  2. Review
  3. Specs
  4. Benchmarks
  5. Battery Life
  6. Cameras
  7. Comments (0)

Key Differences

Device key advantages
Reasons to choose Apple iPhone XS
  • Built-in eSIM
Reasons to choose Samsung Galaxy S9
  • Higher pixel density: 568ppi
  • Lighter design: 163g vs 177g
  • Higher battery capacity: 3000mAh vs 2658mAh
  • Supports newer USB: 3.1 vs 2
  • Fingerprint scanner

Versions

Available versions and configurations
Memory Options - 4/64 GB
- 4/256 GB
- 4/512 GB		 - 4/64 GB
- 4/128 GB
- 4/256 GB

Review

Key Specs Apple iPhone XS and Samsung Galaxy S9
Display
Color accuracy, sharpness & brightness
Camera
Main & front camera tests
Performance
App & system performance
Games
3D gaming performance
Battery
Battery life, charging speed & type
Connectivity
Connectivity features
NanoReview Score
Overall score by NanoReview
Adjust each parameter’s importance to find the best match for you.
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Function
Importance (Weight)
Display:
Camera:
Performance:
Gaming:
Battery:
Connectivity:
Higher weight means greater impact on NanoReview score.

Tests & specs

Specs & test comparison
Smartphones:
Apple iPhone XS
vs
Samsung Galaxy S9

Display

Display quality comparison
Type OLED Super AMOLED
Size 5.8 in 5.8 in
Resolution 1125x2436 pixels 1440x2960 pixels
Aspect ratio 19.5:9 18.5:9
Pixel density 458 ppi 568 ppi
Refresh rate 60 Hz 60 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No No
Max brightness 625 nits 658 nits
HDR support Yes Dolby Vision Yes HDR10
Touch Sampling Rate 120 Hz n/a
Screen-to-body ratio 81.1 % 84.1 %
Features DCI-P3 Always-On Display
Display test
Peak brightness (auto)
Apple iPhone XS
635 nits
Samsung Galaxy S9
657 nits
sRGB gamut98.8 %n/a
PWM (Flicker)240 Hz240 Hz
Response time4.4 ms7 ms
Contrast∞ Infinite∞ Infinite
Sources: NotebookCheck [Apple iPhone XS], [Samsung Galaxy S9]

Design & Build

Design and ergonomics comparison
Height 143.6 mm (5.65 in) 147.7 mm (5.81 in)
Width 70.9 mm (2.79 in) 68.7 mm (2.7 in)
Thickness 7.7 mm (0.3 in) 8.5 mm (0.33 in)
Weight 177 g (6.24 oz) 163 g (5.75 oz)
Water resistance IP68 IP68
Back panel Glass Glass
Frame Metal Metal
Colors - Silver
- Gold
- Gray		 - Black
- Gold
- Gray
- Blue
- Purple
Fingerprint sensor No Yes rear
Screen-to-body ratio
Apple iPhone XS
81.1 %
Samsung Galaxy S9
84.1 %

Performance

Testing Apple iPhone XS and Samsung Galaxy S9 In benchmarks
Processor
Chipset Apple A12 Bionic Samsung Exynos 9 Octa 9810
Max Frequency 2490 MHz 2900 MHz
CPU Cores 6 (2 + 4) 8 (4 + 4)
Architecture - 4/1.6 (Tempest)
- 2/2.49 (Vortex)		 - 4/1.9 (Cortex-A55)
- 4/2.9 (Exynos M3)
Process TSMC Samsung
Transistor Size 7 nm 10 nm
Neural Processor Neural Engine Yes
Graphics Apple A12 GPU Mali-G72 MP18
GPU Cores 256 324
GPU Frequency 1100 MHz 572 MHz
FLOPS 576 GFLOPS 370.6 GFLOPS
GeekBench v6
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Apple iPhone XS
1307
Samsung Galaxy S9
734
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Apple iPhone XS
3447
Samsung Galaxy S9
1894
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)1307734
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)34471894
AnTuTu 10
AnTuTu 10
Apple iPhone XS
733639
Samsung Galaxy S9
470496
CPU202576137633
GPU217548168155
Memory14685386184
UX16666278524
NanoReview Score733639470496
3DMark Wild Life
3DMark Wild Life
Apple iPhone XS
5698
Samsung Galaxy S9
2272
Max Surface Temp.44.8 °C39.2 °C
Stability63 %93 %
Graphics Test34 fps13 fps
Graphics Score56982272
Sources: 3DMark [Apple iPhone XS], [Samsung Galaxy S9]
PCMark 3.0
PCMark 3.0
Apple iPhone XS
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S9
6347
Writing scoren/a6325
Web scoren/a5265
Video editingn/a5496
Data manipulationn/a5694
NanoReview Scoren/a6347

Memory

RAM
RAM Size 4 GB 4 GB
Memory Type LPDDR4X LPDDR4X
Memory Frequency 2133 MHz 1794 MHz
Channels 2 2
Storage
Storage Capacity- 64 GB
- 256 GB
- 512 GB		64 GB
Storage TypeNVMeUFS 2.1
Memory CardNoMicroSD

Software

OS iOS 12 (Upgradeable to iOS 18.3.2) Android 8.0 (Upgradeable to Android 10)
OS Size 11.8 GB 14 GB
UI Skin n/a One UI 2.5

Battery

Volume 2658 mAh 3000 mAh
Max Charging Power 15 W 15 W
Battery Type Li-ion Li-Po
Removable No No
Wireless Charging Yes Qi (10 W) Yes Qi/PMA (10 W)
Reverse Charging No No
Fast Charging Yes (50% in 60 min) Yes (40% in 30 min)
Full Charge Time 2:40 h 1:35 h
Battery Life Test
Battery Life
Apple iPhone XS
16:06
Samsung Galaxy S9
15:09
Web Browsing05:44 h05:32 h
Video Playback09:44 h09:42 h
Games03:54 h03:45 h
Standby Mode84 h75 h

Main camera

Matrix 12 MP 12 MP
Photo resolution 4032x3024 pixels 4000x3000 pixels
Zoom Optical, 2x Digital
Flash Quad LED Dual LED
Stabilization Optical Optical
8K Recording No No
4K Recording Yes (Up to 60 fps) Yes (Up to 60 fps)
1080p Recording Yes (Up to 60 fps) Yes (Up to 240 fps)
Slow Motion 240 fps (1080p) 960 fps (720p)
Lenses count Standard: 12 MP
Telephoto: 12 MP		 Standard: 12 MP
Features - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- RAW support		 - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
Main lens
Matrix12 MP12 MP
Aperturef/1.8f/1.5 - 2.4
Focal length26 mm26 mm
SensorApple iSight XSamsung SAK2L3
Sensor size1/2.551/2.55
Pixel size1.4 μm1.4 μm
AutofocusPhase autofocus (Dual Pixel)Phase autofocus
StabilizationOpticalOptical
Telephoto
Matrix12 MPn/a
Aperturef/2.4n/a
Focal length52 mmn/a
Sensor size1/3.4n/a
Pixel size1 μmn/a
StabilizationOpticaln/a
Main camera DxOMark results
Photo quality
Apple iPhone XS
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S9
104
Video quality
Apple iPhone XS
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S9
91
Overall camera score
Apple iPhone XS
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S9
99

Front camera

Matrix 7 MP 8 MP
Photo resolution 3088x2316 pixels 3264x2448 pixels
Aperture f/2.2 f/1.7
Focal length 32 mm 25 mm
Sensor CMOS Samsung S5K3H1
Sensor size n/a 1/3.6
Pixel size 1.12 μm 1.22 μm
Autofocus Phase autofocus Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel)
Stabilization Digital Digital
Video resolution 1080p (Full HD) at 30 fps 1440p at 30 fps
TOF 3D sensor No No

Connectivity

Wi-Fi version Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac)
Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display		 - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
Bluetooth version 5 5
Bluetooth features SPP, PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, LE, HSP, HID, HFP, HDP, GAP, GAVDP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, LE, HSP, HID, HFP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP
USB type No USB Type-C
USB version 2 3.1
USB features - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG		 - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG
GPS - GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo		 - GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo
NFC* Yes Yes
Infrared Port No No
Connectivity
SIM Count*12
SIM TypeNanoNano
SIM Moden/aDual SIM Standby
eSIM Support *YesNo
Hybrid SlotNoYes
2G BandsGSM 850, GSM 900, GSM 1800, GSM 1900GSM 850, GSM 900, GSM 1800, GSM 1900
3G BandsHSDPA 850, HSDPA 900, HSDPA 1900, HSDPA 2100HSDPA 850, HSDPA 900, HSDPA 1900, HSDPA 2100
LTE Bands*LTE (B700/B800/B850/B900/B1700/B1800/B1900/B2100/B2600)LTE (B700/B800/B850/B900/B1700/B1800/B1900/B2100/B2300/B2500/B2600)
LTE category1618
5G SupportNoNo

Sound

Speakers Stereo Stereo
3.5 mm Jack No Yes
FM Radio No No
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Speaker Test
Max Volume
Apple iPhone XS
87.3 dB
Samsung Galaxy S9
86 dB

Other

Class Flagship Flagship
Announced September, 2018 yr February, 2018 yr
Release Date September, 2018 yr March, 2018 yr
Launch Price ($) 1000 720
Sensors - Barometer
- Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Face Sensor		 - Barometer
- Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint sensor
* Attention! Config, frequencies, NFC, and other specs may vary by region.

Results

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