iPhone 6 Plus vs. Galaxy Note 4: The Big Bang

Display

For software reasons, Apple stuck with multipliers of its original 320 x 480 pixels resolution. The iPhone 5 stretched out the screen to 16:9, leaving apps with a black bar until they were updated. The iPhone 6 Plus is the first to break away from the HVGA legacy and moves to an industry-standard 1080p resolution with a "desktop class" image scaler for apps that don't support the new screen yet.

Apple's bet is that the higher pixel density - 401ppi, better than Retina's 326ppi - is enough to hide upscaling artifacts. Truth be told the gamble has worked well enough, text remains readable even at small font sizes.

The screen itself is an IPS LCD with excellent colors, contrast and viewing angles. It's protected by the new Ion-strengthened glass. Apple claims it's tougher than Gorilla Glass 3, which we can't feel in our fingertips but what we can feel are the chamfered edges, which make side-swipes smooth as butter.

Samsung saved its first phone QHD screen for the Galaxy Note 4, while keeping the screen size from the Note 3. The result is an impressive 515ppi, a number that melts away the difference between PenTile and RGB matrices (for the record, the Note 4 has a PenTile Super AMOLED screen).

Colors are a matter of taste and Samsung gives you an option of multiple screen modes that adjust both saturation and the white balance. Viewing angles and contrast are perfect, as can be expected from an advanced OLED display. Samsung continues its relationship with Corning (those two have a joint venture) and uses Gorilla Glass 3. The glass has chamfered edges too, but the sharp metal rim makes off-screen swipes a bit less comfortable.

Perhaps due to the increased resolution, the Galaxy Note 4 screen is not the brightest AMOLED Samsung has produced recently, it tops out at 400nits. That doesn't compare too well against the 700nits or so of the iPhone 6 Plus. The LCDs employed by Apple are top quality too, with an impressive 1361:1 contrast ratio.

Maximum brightness is usually only used in broad daylight and it turns out the Galaxy Note 4 doesn't need all that much. In our sunlight legibility test it showed an impressive result, virtually equal to the likes of the Note 3 and the iPhone 5 - and better than the brighter Galaxy S5's screen.

The Apple iPhone 6 Plus doesn't do as well as its smaller sibling and while its result is certainly good enough, you'll have to bump up the brightness on a sunny day.

Sunlight contrast ratio

• Nokia 808 PureView
  4.698
• Samsung Galaxy Note 4
  4.033
• Apple iPhone 5
  3.997
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3
  3.997
• Apple iPhone 6
  3.838
• Samsung Galaxy K zoom
  3.675
• Nokia Lumia 930
  3.567
• Apple iPhone 5s
  3.565
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  3.549
• Alcatel Idol X+
  3.527
• Apple iPhone 5c
  3.512
• Samsung Galaxy Alpha
  3.509
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo
  3.487
• Motorola RAZR MAXX
  3.42
• Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III
  3.419
• Nokia Lumia 925
  3.402
• Gionee Elife S5.5
  3.386
• Samsung I9505 Galaxy S4
  3.352
• Samsung Omnia W
  3.301
• Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
  3.174
• Samsung I9000 Galaxy S
  3.155
• Samsung Ativ S
  3.129
• Samsung I9190 Galaxy S4 mini
  3.127
• Samsung Galaxy S4 zoom
  3.118
• Nokia N9
  3.069
• Apple iPhone 6 Plus
  3.023
• Samsung Galaxy Note
  2.97
• Samsung Galaxy Premier
  2.958
• Sony Xperia Z1
  2.95
• HTC One S
  2.901
• Samsung I8730 Galaxy Express
  2.861
• BlackBerry Q10
  2.856
• Samsung I9100 Galaxy S II
  2.832
• Samsung Galaxy S II Plus
  2.801
• BlackBerry Z30
  2.79
• Sony Xperia ZR
  2.672
• Huawei Ascend P1
  2.655
• Sony Xperia Z3
  2.618
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  2.616
• Sony Xperia T3
  2.609
• BlackBerry Passport
  2.595
• Nokia Lumia 900
  2.562
• Motorola Moto G 4G
  2.546
• HTC One Max
  2.537
• Nokia Lumia 720
  2.512
• HTC One
  2.504
• Motorola Moto G
  2.477
• Sony Xperia Z
  2.462
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  2.424
• Samsung Galaxy S III mini
  2.422
• Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro
  2.416
• LG G Flex
  2.407
• HTC One (M8)
  2.371
• Motorola RAZR i
  2.366
• Sony Xperia ZL
  2.352
• Samsung Galaxy Note II
  2.307
• HTC One (M8) for Windows
  2.291
• Oppo Find 7a
  2.279
• Alcatel One Touch Hero
  2.272
• Apple iPhone 4S
  2.269
• HTC Desire 600 dual sim
  2.262
• Nokia Asha 311
  2.25
• LG Nexus 5
  2.228
• Samsung Galaxy mini 2
  1.114

The Galaxy Note family is not only the bestselling phablet, but it's also the last bastion of the stylus. It's a feature that didn't quite catch on but much of the Note experience is centered around the S Pen and we certainly find it useful in daily usage.

The new S Pen and the screen digitizer are more accurate, with increased sensitivity to pressure and even the angle of the stylus. Hand-written notes turn out great even if you don't have the best handwriting (and we must admit after so much on-screen and hardware keyboards, our penmanship has waned).

The S Pen is the defining feature of the Galaxy Note series

The Galaxy Note 4 screen is extra-sensitive and can detect the S Pen from a distance (hover is used in parts of the UI), but also gloved fingers.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy Note 4. A slightly bigger screen fits into about the same frame and it's sharper to boot. On a more practical note, the sunlight legibility is better and the S Pen grows on you.

The Apple iPhone 6 Plus has a top-notch screen, though early, upscaled apps don't use it to its full potential and the sunlight legibility isn't as good as the iPhone 6.

Connectivity

With 2G and 3G connectivity practically maxed out, it's the LTE that matters. Here the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 comes in two versions - Cat. 6 (300Mbps) with the Snapdragon chipset and Cat. 4 (150Mbps) with the Exynos chipset. Both upload at 50Mbps.

The Apple iPhone 6 Plus has a Cat. 4 modem, but it supports HD Voice with Voice-over-LTE (VoLTE). There's HD Voice support on the Galaxy Note 4 as well, but for both handsets you'll need carrier support for the feature to work.

Both devices also support Wi-Fi calling (aka UMA), which can use a Wi-Fi connection to place voice calls. You need carrier support for this to work and a generous carrier will let you use any Wi-Fi hotspot, no matter which country you are in (great for calling home from abroad).

In terms of local connectivity, both devices can use the latest Wi-Fi 802.11ac standard, if you have the router for it. Otherwise it's dual-band a/b/g/n. The Galaxy Note 4 supports Wi-Fi Direct (and Samsung's similar alternative) for sending files between devices, while Apple uses its proprietary Air Drop system.

For Bluetooth the Galaxy supports the latest v4.1 standard, while the iPhone offers v4.0, both support Low Energy. That mode is used for wearables - smartwatches, sport bands, etc. - but the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 also offers ANT+ for wider support of sport accessories.

The other important wireless standard is NFC, which enjoys full support on Android, while Apple only piggybacks it for its Apple Pay system and nothing else.

Wired connectivity is handled by USB 2.0 but with different connectors. Samsung dropped the faster USB 3.0 and now uses a standard microUSB 2.0 port with MHL support, while Apple sticks to its proprietary Lightning adapter (which can be plugged in two ways).

USB 2.0-based wired ports: proprietary Lightning adapter and standard microUSB 2.0

Both can be turned to HDMI via an adapter, though Lightning seems limited to 1080p, while MHL will get out full UHD TV resolution. How else are you going to watch those 2160p videos you shot? Well, wireless Miracast is an option, which works with Smart TVs, Chromecast (and similar) sticks and the new Android TV. The iPhone 6 Plus can do wireless screen mirroring too, but only if you have an Apple TV hooked to your HDTV.

While on the topic of multimedia, the Galaxy Note 4 has an IR blaster for digital equipment at home. The app is mostly limited to A/V tech, but you can install third-party apps too.

The IR blaster is transmit-only, it can't learn commands from existing remotes

Winner: Samsung Galaxy Note 4. Several small wins secure the victory: the 300Mbps LTE option (if your carrier even supports it), full NFC 2160p video over MHL, IR blaster, ANT+. You can dismiss each individually as something you won't use, but things pile up.

The Apple iPhone 6 Plus is the best connected iPhone yet (on par with the 6), things like the 150Mbps LTE and Wi-Fi 802.11ac, which we consider standard on Android flagships were not available on the iPhone 5s. The property limits of Apple's walled garden are easily seen in the proprietary Lightning adapter and the lobotomized NFC though.

Battery life

Apple continues to push for thinner devices, even when some users are calling out "it's thin enough, give us more battery!" Still, with Apple's complete control of the hardware and software ecosystem, it has always managed to provide great battery life out of relatively few milliamps.

Still, with its first time phablet-sized screen that has more pixels than the regular Retina screens every milliamp counts. And the count shows the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 has a 10% advantage with 3,220mAh versus 2,915mAh. The Note's battery is easy to swap out for a fresh one too.

Anyway, our battery test show the 10% difference in the Endurance rating - the Galaxy Note 4 gets 87 hours, while the iPhone 6 Plus gets 79 hours. Note that we used the Snapdragon 805 version of the Galaxy phablet.

Phablets are known for their great battery life and these two don't disappoint though a clear winner emerges quickly. It starts with a 5 hour lead in the Talk time test. Not that you'll ever talk for 24+ hours straight, but this just means voice calls don't have much of an impact to the overall battery life.

Talk time

• Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro
  33:20h
• Huawei Ascend Mate2 4G
  33:19h
• Nokia Lumia 1520
  28:34h
• HTC One (M8) for Windows
  28:34h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 4
  28:34h
• Sony Xperia Z1
  26:53h
• LG G3
  25:54h
• Samsung P6800 Galaxy Tab 7.7
  25:45h
• LG G Pro 2
  25:37h
• LG G Flex
  25:19h
• Sony Xperia T2 Ultra
  25:16h
• LG G2
  25:15h
• Huawei Ascend Mate
  25:12h
• Alcatel Hero
  25:02h
• Oppo N1
  25:01h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo
  24:52h
• Sony Xperia Z Ultra
  24:23h
• Apple iPhone 6 Plus
  23:49h
• Sony Xperia Z3
  23:13h
• Samsung P6200 Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus
  22:42h
• Huawei MediaPad 7 Vogue
  22:16h
• Nokia Lumia 1020
  22:13h
• Samsung Galaxy Core LTE
  22:13h
• Sony Xperia Z2
  22:13h
• Nokia Lumia 1320
  22:13h
• HTC One Max
  22:13h
• Samsung ATIV SE
  22:05h
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  21:20h
• Motorola RAZR MAXX
  21:18h
• LG Optimus G Pro E985
  20:45h
• Sony Xperia Z1 Compact
  20:42h
• Motorola DROID RAZR MAXX
  20:24h
• Motorola RAZR i XT890
  20:07h
• Huawei Ascend Mate7
  20:06h
• Oppo Find 7
  20:03h
• HTC One (M8)
  20:01h
• BlackBerry Q10
  20:00h
• OnePlus One
  19:56h
• Samsung Galaxy Grand 2
  19:55h
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 I9200
  19:54h
• Sony Xperia SP
  19:49h
• Sony Xperia T3
  19:48h
• HTC Butterfly S
  19:14h
• Oppo R819
  19:03h
• Asus PadFone X
  18:45h
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  18:15h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3
  18:12h
• LG G2 mini
  18:11h
• Oppo Find 7a
  18:11h
• Samsung I9505 Galaxy S4
  18:03h
• Sony Xperia ZR
  17:48h
• HTC One (E8)
  17:47h
• Samsung Galaxy Note II N7100
  16:57h
• HTC Desire 700 dual sim
  16:56h
• Samsung Ativ Odyssey I930
  16:41h
• Samsung I9295 Galaxy S4 Active
  16:40h
• LG Nexus 5
  16:40h
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  16:40h
• Sony Xperia M2
  16:40h
• Nokia Lumia 930
  16:40h
• Sony Xperia M2 Aqua
  16:39h
• Motorola Moto E
  16:38h
• Motorola Moto E Dual SIM
  16:38h
• Sony Xperia Z
  16:03h
• Samsung Galaxy K zoom
  16:01h
• Samsung Galaxy S4 zoom
  15:32h
• LG Optimus G E975
  15:30h
• Sony Xperia ZL
  15:22h
• Nokia Lumia 720
  15:17h
• Xiaomi Hongmi 1S
  14:51h
• HTC Desire 816
  14:46h
• Alcatel Idol X+
  14:41h
• BlackBerry Q5
  14:31h
• Sony Xperia E3
  14:28h
• Oppo Find 5
  14:17h
• LG Nexus 4 E960
  14:17h
• Nokia Lumia 620
  14:17h
• Motorola Moto G 4G
  14:17h
• Pantech Discover
  14:17h
• Huawei Ascend P6
  14:17h
• Nokia Lumia 635
  14:17h
• Nokia Lumia Icon
  14:15h
• Motorola Moto X
  14:06h
• Motorola Moto G
  13:41h
• HTC One
  13:38h
• Huawei Ascend P7
  13:36h
• Nokia Lumia 520
  13:33h
• HTC One X+
  13:31h
• Sony Xperia C
  13:29h
• Xiaomi Mi 3
  13:28h
• Samsung Galaxy Alpha
  13:20h
• Samsung Galaxy Grand Neo
  13:20h
• Nokia Lumia 630
  13:20h
• Samsung I9190 Galaxy S4 mini
  13:10h
• HTC Desire 616 dual sim
  13:00h
• Samsung Galaxy Grand I9082
  12:45h
• LG Optimus GJ E975W
  12:39h
• HTC First
  12:31h
• Motorola DROID RAZR M
  12:31h
• Sony Xperia M
  12:31h
• Sony Xperia L
  12:30h
• Huawei Ascend P1
  12:30h
• Nokia Lumia 928
  12:27h
• Apple iPhone 6
  12:23h
• Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
  12:18h
• Samsung Galaxy S III I747
  12:18h
• HTC Butterfly
  12:18h
• Samsung Galaxy Note N7000
  12:14h
• HTC One mini
  12:04h
• Samsung I8530 Galaxy Beam
  11:58h
• HTC Desire 600 dual sim
  11:58h
• Samsung Galaxy Core I8260
  11:52h
• Gionee Elife S5.5
  11:32h
• HTC Desire 500
  11:31h
• Samsung Galaxy Premier I9260
  11:30h
• HTC DROID Incredible 4G LTE
  11:25h
• Asus PadFone 2
  11:20h
• Nokia X
  11:13h
• HTC DROID DNA
  11:07h
• HTC One SV
  11:07h
• Samsung S8600 Wave 3
  11:07h
• LG Optimus L9 P760
  11:07h
• HTC Windows Phone 8X
  11:07h
• Samsung I9105 Galaxy S II Plus
  11:06h
• HTC Desire X
  11:03h
• Meizu MX3
  11:02h
• Samsung I9500 Galaxy S4
  11:01h
• Apple iPhone 5s
  10:46h
• Nokia XL
  10:45h
• Apple iPhone 5c
  10:18h
• Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III
  10:15h
• Samsung S7710 Galaxy Xcover 2
  10:03h
• HTC One V
  10:00h
• Samsung Galaxy Express I8730
  10:00h
• Meizu MX 4-core
  10:00h
• HTC One mini 2
  09:58h
• HTC One X
  9:57h
• HTC One S C2
  9:42h
• HTC One S
  9:42h
• Samsung I9103 Galaxy R
  9:40h
• Samsung Galaxy Ace 3
  9:32h
• HTC Sensation XL
  9:30h
• Sony Xperia J
  9:14h
• Acer CloudMobile S500
  9:05h
• Nokia Lumia 710
  9:05h
• Nokia Lumia 810
  9:05h
• Motorola ATRIX HD MB886
  9:04h
• HTC Vivid
  9:02h
• Nokia Lumia 920
  8:56h
• Nokia Lumia 610
  8:51h
• HTC Rhyme
  8:48h
• LG Optimus 3D Max P720
  8:42h
• Apple iPhone 5
  8:42h

This gives you more battery juice for things like browsing where the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 scores another victory with 1 hour and 40 minutes lead. We put the brightness sliders on both phablets at 50% but the Galaxy Note 4 is brighter at that setting (290nits vs. 210nits) so you can squeeze out more out of the Note 4.

Web browsing

• Huawei Ascend Mate2 4G
  16:41h
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  14:52h
• Huawei Ascend Mate7
  13:53h
• Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
  13:14h
• Sony Xperia C
  12:45h
• Nokia Lumia 1520
  12:40h
• Sony Xperia Z1 Compact
  12:37h
• HTC One (M8) for Windows
  12:31h
• HTC Desire 700 dual sim
  12:30h
• Sony Xperia T2 Ultra
  12:17h
• Sony Xperia Z3
  12:03h
• Nokia XL
  11:54h
• HTC Desire 816
  11:48h
• LG G2
  11:42h
• Sony Xperia Z2
  11:32h
• HTC One Max
  11:20h
• Sony Xperia ZR
  11:20h
• HTC Butterfly S
  11:07h
• Asus PadFone X
  11:07h
• LG G2 mini
  11:02h
• Nokia Lumia 1320
  10:58h
• Motorola Moto G 4G
  10:52h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 4
  10:44h
• Apple iPhone 6
  10:29h
• Nokia Lumia 630
  10:18h
• BlackBerry Q5
  10:04h
• HTC One (E8)
  10:02h
• Nokia Lumia 635
  10:00h
• HTC One
  9:58h
• Apple iPhone 5s
  9:58h
• Apple iPhone 5
  9:56h
• Samsung Ativ Odyssey I930
  9:54h
• Sony Xperia M2
  9:48h
• Sony Xperia E3
  9:48h
• Samsung I9190 Galaxy S4 mini
  9:47h
• OnePlus One
  9:46h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo
  9:43h
• Alcatel Hero
  9:40h
• Samsung Galaxy Core LTE
  9:37h
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  9:36h
• LG G Pro 2
  9:31h
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  9:31h
• LG G Flex
  9:31h
• Sony Xperia T3
  9:23h
• Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 LTE
  9:16h
• Motorola RAZR MAXX
  9:12h
• Samsung Galaxy K zoom
  9:10h
• HTC One (M8)
  9:06h
• Oppo N1
  9:05h
• Apple iPhone 6 Plus
  9:05h
• Samsung Galaxy Grand 2
  9:05h
• Apple iPhone 5c
  9:05h
• Motorola Moto G
  9:04h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3
  9:04h
• Samsung Galaxy S4 zoom
  8:51h
• Samsung Galaxy Note II N7100
  8:48h
• Motorola Moto E Dual SIM
  8:42h
• Motorola Moto E
  8:42h
• BlackBerry Q10
  8:42h
• Sony Xperia M2 Aqua
  8:38h
• Samsung Galaxy Alpha
  8:25h
• Asus PadFone 2
  8:20h
• Nokia Lumia 810
  8:20h
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 I9200
  8:17h
• Motorola Moto X
  8:17h
• Huawei Ascend Mate
  8:17h
• HTC One mini
  8:12h
• Xiaomi Mi 3
  8:04h
• Nokia Lumia 610
  8:01h
• HTC One X+
  7:56h
• Samsung Galaxy Grand Neo
  7:43h
• Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro
  7:42h
• Motorola DROID RAZR M
  7:42h
• Sony Xperia E dual
  7:42h
• Samsung I8190 Galaxy S III mini
  7:38h
• Nokia Lumia 720
  7:37h
• Samsung I9295 Galaxy S4 Active
  7:35h
• Samsung I9505 Galaxy S4
  7:24h
• Motorola DROID RAZR MAXX
  7:23h
• Huawei MediaPad 7 Vogue
  7:23h
• HTC Radar
  7:17h
• Nokia Lumia 520
  7:15h
• Huawei Ascend P7
  7:13h
• Samsung ATIV SE
  7:12h
• LG Optimus GJ E975W
  7:11h
• Samsung Galaxy Grand I9082
  7:09h
• Samsung Galaxy Express I8730
  7:09h
• Oppo Find 7a
  7:09h
• Meizu MX3
  7:09h
• Sony Xperia M
  7:09h
• Motorola RAZR i XT890
  7:06h
• Sony Xperia J
  7:06h
• Samsung I9500 Galaxy S4
  6:58h
• Apple iPhone 4s
  6:56h
• Samsung P6800 Galaxy Tab 7.7
  6:54h
• Xiaomi Hongmi 1S
  6:54h
• Samsung Galaxy Core I8260
  6:54h
• HTC One V
  6:49h
• Sony Xperia E
  6:40h
• LG G3
  6:40h
• Sony Xperia L
  6:40h
• BlackBerry Curve 9380
  6:40h
• Samsung I9105 Galaxy S II Plus
  6:40h
• HTC DROID DNA
  6:40h
• LG Optimus G Pro E985
  6:40h
• Samsung Galaxy Premier I9260
  6:40h
• Motorola ATRIX HD MB886
  6:40h
• HTC First
  6:39h
• Samsung Galaxy Ace 3
  6:38h
• Sony Xperia Z
  6:37h
• Samsung S7710 Galaxy Xcover 2
  6:35h
• HTC Desire 600 dual sim
  6:34h
• HTC One mini 2
  06:33h
• HTC Desire 500
  6:31h
• Huawei Ascend P6
  6:30h
• Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III
  6:27h
• BlackBerry Z10
  6:27h
• HTC Butterfly
  6:24h
• Sony Xperia SP
  6:18h
• Samsung Galaxy S III I747
  6:16h
• Samsung Focus S I937
  6:15h
• HTC One SV
  6:15h
• Nokia Lumia 510
  6:13h
• Sony Xperia ZL
  6:04h
• Samsung Galaxy mini 2 S6500
  6:03h
• Samsung P6200 Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus
  6:02h
• Samsung Rugby Smart I847
  5:53h

A decisive victory comes in the video playback test - both devices have large, 1080p screens that let you view FullHD footage at 1:1. Here the Galaxy Note 4 wins by over 50% with a whopping 17 and a half hours, while the iPhone manages the still-respectable 11 hours.

Video playback

• LG G Flex
  19:57h
• Huawei Ascend Mate2 4G
  18:01h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 4
  17:25h
• Motorola RAZR MAXX
  16:35h
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  15:03h
• Motorola DROID RAZR MAXX
  14:17h
• Huawei Ascend Mate7
  14:04h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3
  13:32h
• Samsung I9190 Galaxy S4 mini
  13:12h
• Nokia Lumia 1020
  13:12h
• Sony Xperia T2 Ultra
  13:12h
• HTC One Max
  13:11h
• Sony Xperia C
  12:53h
• Samsung Galaxy Premier I9260
  12:51h
• Nokia Lumia 1520
  12:31h
• Samsung I9505 Galaxy S4
  12:30h
• BlackBerry Q5
  12:28h
• Huawei Ascend Mate
  12:18h
• Sony Xperia Z2
  12:16h
• Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 LTE
  12:10h
• Sony Xperia Z3
  11:47h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo
  11:38h
• Samsung P6800 Galaxy Tab 7.7
  11:37h
• Samsung I9500 Galaxy S4
  11:29h
• Samsung Galaxy Note II N7100
  11:27h
• OnePlus One
  11:23h
• HTC One (E8)
  11:16h
• HTC One (M8) for Windows
  11:15h
• Apple iPhone 6 Plus
  11:15h
• Oppo N1
  11:15h
• BlackBerry Q10
  11:15h
• HTC One (M8)
  11:14h
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  11:05h
• Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
  11:02h
• Asus PadFone X
  11:01h
• HTC Desire 816
  10:34h
• Apple iPhone 5s
  10:31h
• LG G2 mini
  10:23h
• Apple iPhone 5
  10:12h
• Samsung Galaxy K zoom
  10:08h
• Samsung ATIV SE
  10:07h
• Sony Xperia M2
  10:04h
• HTC First
  10:03h
• HTC One
  10:02h
• Sony Xperia Z1 Compact
  10:01h
• Motorola Moto X
  10:01h
• Nokia Lumia 635
  10:00h
• Samsung Galaxy Express I8730
  10:00h
• Nokia Lumia 630
  10:00h
• Samsung I9105 Galaxy S II Plus
  10:00h
• LG G3
  9:57h
• Sony Xperia T3
  9:56h
• Nokia 808 PureView
  9:53h
• Sony Xperia M
  9:49h
• Alcatel Hero
  9:49h
• Samsung I8530 Galaxy Beam
  9:42h
• Samsung Rugby Smart I847
  9:34h
• Samsung Galaxy S4 zoom
  9:30h
• LG G2
  9:28h
• HTC One S C2
  9:28h
• HTC One S
  9:28h
• Xiaomi Mi 3
  9:28h
• Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III
  9:27h
• Apple iPhone 6
  9:24h
• Apple iPhone 4s
  9:24h
• Samsung Galaxy mini 2 S6500
  9:22h
• Sony Xperia M2 Aqua
  9:21h
• Oppo Find 7a
  9:19h
• Nokia Lumia 1320
  9:17h
• HTC Butterfly S
  9:03h
• Motorola DROID RAZR M
  9:00h
• Sony Xperia E
  9:00h
• Samsung Ativ Odyssey I930
  8:59h
• Sony Xperia Z Ultra
  8:45h
• BlackBerry Z10
  8:44h
• Samsung Galaxy Grand 2
  8:41h
• LG Optimus G Pro E985
  8:40h
• Nokia N9
  8:40h
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 I9200
  8:34h
• HTC Butterfly
  8:28h
• Sony Xperia E3
  8:26h
• Samsung Galaxy Note N7000
  8:25h
• LG Optimus GJ E975W
  8:15h
• Samsung Galaxy S III I747
  8:14h
• HTC One X+
  8:11h
• Samsung Galaxy Grand I9082
  8:11h
• Motorola RAZR i XT890
  8:11h
• Sony Xperia J
  8:11h
• Huawei Ascend P7
  8:10h
• Samsung Galaxy Alpha
  8:05h
• Samsung I9100 Galaxy S II
  8:00h
• Samsung Focus S I937
  7:55h
• Samsung S8600 Wave 3
  7:52h
• HTC Desire 500
  7:50h
• Samsung I8190 Galaxy S III mini
  7:46h
• Sony Ericsson Xperia neo V
  7:45h
• Apple iPhone 5c
  7:41h
• Huawei Ascend P1
  7:38h
• Asus PadFone 2
  7:38h
• Nokia Lumia Icon
  7:34h
• Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G T769
  7:33h
• Samsung S7710 Galaxy Xcover 2
  7:30h
• Samsung Galaxy Note I717
  7:30h
• HTC DROID DNA
  7:30h
• Sony Xperia ZR
  7:30h
• Samsung Galaxy Core I8260
  7:30h
• Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro
  7:29h
• Sony Xperia SP
  7:27h

In the end, it's the iOS' efficient standby that allows the iPhone 6 Plus to remain this close to the Galaxy. Android has more lax multitasking rules, which enables plenty of helpful background services but that does have an impact on battery life.

Ultimately, you can get three days of moderate usage with both devices, but under heavy use the Galaxy Note 4 will easily outlast the iPhone 6 Plus.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy Note 4. It won all three tests by good margins and while its standby is not the most efficient, the Galaxy Note 4 battery is a long distance runner. And you can have two if you want.

The Apple iPhone 6 Plus numbers are good on their own but heavier usage impacts battery more than it does the Galaxy and the only option to extend it is a bulky battery pack.