iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Galaxy S26 Ultra: What’s different in cameras, performance and price?

Samsung’s Galaxy S26 Ultra and Apple’s iPhone 18 Pro Max are the two most expensive mainstream flagship smartphones you can consider in India, but their approach to the premium experience is quite different. The Galaxy S26 Ultra focuses on a feature-packed Android experience, with a built-in S Pen, Privacy Display, and a multi-camera setup designed around different zoom levels. Whereas the iPhone 18 Pro Max brings Apple’s new A20 Pro chip, a variable-aperture camera, and a set of professional video controls.

Must Read: iPhone 16 Pro vs iPhone 18 Pro: What has changed and should you upgrade?

Both phones offer large displays, powerful processors and extensive storage options, but the differences become clearer when you look at their cameras, charging, software and India prices.

Performance, camera and battery

The Galaxy S26 Ultra uses Samsung’s customised processor, with the company claiming a 19 per cent CPU, 24 per cent GPU and 39 per cent NPU improvement over the Galaxy S25 Ultra. It also supports up to 16GB RAM and 1TB storage.

The iPhone 18 Pro Max runs on Apple’s A20 Pro chip, built on a 2nm process. It gets a 6-core CPU, a 7-core GPU and a dual 16-core Neural Engine. Apple also adds a new vapour chamber for sustained performance.

For cameras, Samsung uses a 200MP main camera, 50MP ultra-wide, 50MP 5x telephoto and 10MP 3x telephoto. It also supports 10x optical-quality zoom. Whereas Apple uses three 48MP cameras, including a variable-aperture main camera and a 48MP telephoto with 4x optical and 8x optical-quality zoom. Apple also adds manual controls for aperture, shutter speed and white balance.

Battery life is another area where both phones bring notable features. Samsung’s Galaxy S26 Ultra offers up to 31 hours of video playback and supports charging up to 75% in around 30 minutes. It also supports 60W wired charging and 25W wireless charging. The iPhone 18 Pro Max, meanwhile, claims up to 45 hours of video playback and can deliver around seven hours of video playback with just five minutes of wired charging. It can reach up to 50% charge in around 15 minutes with a compatible 60W-capable adapter. For wireless charging, the iPhone 18 Pro Max supports up to 25W MagSafe and 25W Qi2 charging, with MagSafe reaching 50 per cent in around 30 minutes when paired with a 35W adapter or higher.

Storage and India price

The Galaxy S26 Ultra starts at ₹1,39,999 for 12GB+256GB, followed by ₹1,59,999 for 12GB+512GB, and it also has a 16GB+1TB storage variant.

The iPhone 18 Pro Max starts at ₹1,79,900 for 256GB, while the 512GB, 1TB and 2TB versions cost ₹2,04,900, ₹2,54,900 and ₹3,29,900, respectively.

If you are comparing the two, the key difference is what you want from the flagship experience. Samsung offers the S Pen, Privacy Display and more dedicated zoom hardware, while Apple puts greater emphasis on variable-aperture photography, professional video controls, A20 Pro performance and its iOS ecosystem.