See the iPhone 13 Pro Max go up against the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra in a speed test

01 October 2021
The timed side-by-side speed test is still a thing.

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This test only means three things.
1. USF3.1 is finally competitive with NVME, allowing the S21 to load apps neck to neck with the iPhone.
2. The A15 is still faster than Snapdragon 888, as shown by the video export test.
3. iOS hits the sweet spot of 6GB of RAM, probably the first time it can keep all the apps in memory.

That's about it.

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    • Nuid20
    • pHt
    • 01 Oct 2021

    People did not notice one thing, in many tests the "machine" waits for the animations in S21 to load, they are a tad slower than on the iphone so that adds up some seconds, and also in some tests, the actions to minimize failed in few steps for the S21 Ultra, so in fact it's a bit BIASED.

    Despite that, -+ 7 seconds, despite one or the other is suck a bullshit... I would rather prefer the cameras on S21 Ultra, than having +7 seconds speed on the Iphone 13...

    And here the Iphone 13 Pro Max costs around 1400$ not 1099$, same as S21 Ultra, wich is around 1100$ right now.

    But fanboys are fanboys, either from samsung or apple.

    If i had to pick one, i would rather prefer the freedom (itunes) and functionalities from S21 Ultra ( remember desktop mode and full featured usb c ), better cameras overall in general situations and overall seems a better package for the price.


    PD: I have a Xiaomi MI11 wich for me, it beats both machines in terms of price and equates most of the "high end" functionalities for much lower price tax bought mine for 650$ for that price i can upgrade next year for the price of a Iphone 13 pro max or S21 Ultra.

      ST, 01 Oct 2021The 12GB are for real multitasking, not only background pro... moreKeep listing specs while the executives of Samsung continue to happily use their iPhones and leave you with their useless spec sheets 🤣

        • R
        • RN
        • txE
        • 01 Oct 2021

        Anonymous, 01 Oct 2021Only 10 seconds? For me Samsung is better. It is more usefu... moreDon't forget, it also has more customization (s)

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          • AnonD-1016461
          • gqv
          • 01 Oct 2021

          Anonymous, 01 Oct 2021Strange the iPhone still uses just LPDDR4X RAM and yet bree... moreNo it's DDR5

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            • AnonD-1016461
            • gqv
            • 01 Oct 2021

            I want to see the difference between Mi 11 Ultra and iPhone 13 pro max
            I think this year mi 11 ultra is the top android flagship MIUI 12.5 is great and smooth

              • S
              • ST
              • dPU
              • 01 Oct 2021

              SizN80, 01 Oct 2021LOL!😂😁 12gig of RAM for nothing!Great performance by the iP... moreThe 12GB are for real multitasking, not only background processes. The feature everyone will go crazy about once the iPhone gets it, just like USB-C, no notch, a better file manager, 4k screen, and always-on display. You know, the stuff from 2017.

                • ?
                • Anonymous
                • xq5
                • 01 Oct 2021

                Only 10 seconds? For me Samsung is better. It is more useful and feature packed.

                  LOL!😂😁 12gig of RAM for nothing!Great performance by the iPhone 13 Pro Max, let’s also not forget Android Central have said the 13 Pro Max has better battery life than any android to, android taking a lot of L’s once again…
                  From android central “Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max review: The ultimate battery life flagship”
                  https://www.androidcentral.com/iphone-13-pro-max-review

                  iOS optimization FTW year after year. 😁

                    • D
                    • AnonD-762416
                    • Sec
                    • 01 Oct 2021

                    Shanti Dope, 01 Oct 2021Hopefully after a year, both of them will stay as fast and ... moreI have seen a lot of new Flip3 users fed up with the lie that their "old" iPhone 12's were supposed to "just work". Because they don't.

                      Anonymous, 01 Oct 2021It will be the same every year s22 ultra will over take the... more” It will be the same every year s22 ultra will over take the 13 pro max”

                      12 Pro Max was already faster than S21 ultra, S22 very likely won’t beat 13 pro max either, those apps will get optimized more for 13 pro max hardware and they are going to work even faster.

                        • ?
                        • Anonymous
                        • 043
                        • 01 Oct 2021

                        Bigmeme, 01 Oct 2021The bot had to swipe twice to exit for most apps on the gal... moreNo don’t subtract that, because that’s what real people would also have to do. If Samsung designs their OS to that behavior, it‘s their fault

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                          • TytanJohnCena
                          • m2A
                          • 01 Oct 2021

                          YAY. iphone better than samsung, tested by some apple fanboys.
                          Price 1099$‽ In which universe?!
                          Tests like that shows nothing, its just to trigger a fight. If S21 uses higher resolution then obviously it will take longer for games and videos/pictures to load, but things like that makes no difference anyway.
                          And people are like: "wow, 7 seconds faster. I'm buying iphone, it is way better"

                            • ?
                            • Anonymous
                            • P$e
                            • 01 Oct 2021

                            Anonymous, 01 Oct 2021It will be the same every year s22 ultra will over take the... moreNo

                              Hopefully after a year, both of them will stay as fast and consistent as they did in this test.

                                • ?
                                • Anonymous
                                • P$e
                                • 01 Oct 2021

                                Anonymous, 01 Oct 2021It will be the same every year s22 ultra will over take the... moreNo

                                  • ?
                                  • Anonymous
                                  • TL%
                                  • 01 Oct 2021

                                  Anonymous, 01 Oct 2021This is the level of expertise here on GSMArena... You do r... moreThey were suspended in the ram but weren't running. When you open them again, they merely pick up where they left off. In other words, no multitasking. This happens in both iOS and Android.

                                    If I do a speed test video, I wouldn't just rely on the time of opening apps. I would do heavy mobile gaming, including console emulation. That really shows how fast the chipset can perform under intensive usage. Just opening apps alone doesn't do any justice at all.

                                      • ?
                                      • Anonymous
                                      • puk
                                      • 01 Oct 2021

                                      Anonymous, 01 Oct 2021Both phones were running one app at a time. Where did you s... moreThis is the level of expertise here on GSMArena... You do realize apps were getting just minimized and not force closed and opening them in reverse order again is where it either picks them up from RAM or starts them from scratch which would mean losing a lot of time.

                                        The bot had to swipe twice to exit for most apps on the galaxy. It adds up to about 3-4 seconds. So subtract that time from galaxy's

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