The new iPhone 13 Pro is here, but is it good enough to see off Samsung’s Galaxy S21 Plus? We put the two head-to-head in a battle royale to find out.
A new iPhone is a beautiful thing, and this year it’s hard to get more beautiful than the recently released iPhone 13 Pro. The top-tier iPhone of 2021 includes a similar design to the iPhone 12 Pro, but with a slightly thinner notch. Inside though, there have been more significant changes. There’s a larger battery, newly upgraded specs, and some heavily tweaked cameras. Really, when it comes down to the iPhone 13 Pro vs. iPhone 12 Pro, the newer device seems to have it sewn up. But we’re not here to compare old with new — we’re here to compare two contemporary rivals. The Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus is the midsized option in Samsung’s 2021 lineup. With flagship specs, a state-of-the-art camera suite, and a gorgeously modern design, Samsung’s Plus-sized smartphone is a worthy competitor for Apple’s latest. But which one of the two is the better smartphone? We put them head-to-head to find out. It’s getting harder and harder to decide between phones based on their looks because, honestly, so many phones just look great these days. This is definitely the case where these two phones are concerned, but they do look very different. The Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus is smooth and sleek, with a near-borderless bezel around the large display, broken only by a single punch-hole for the selfie camera. The iPhone 13 Pro is very different looking. It has steep sides, reminiscent of the iPhone 5S, and the display is broken at the top by a notch housing the selfie camera and forward-facing sensors. This notch is narrower than previous iPhone generations, but it is slightly deeper and doesn’t really add much additional screen as a result. Both of these phones have stunning OLED displays too, so you’ll get deep colors and inky blacks either way. The iPhone’s screen is sharper, thanks to the smaller display size, but the difference isn’t massive unless you’re right up against both. There’s a larger gulf in durability though. While we recommend you buy a case for both the S21 Plus and the iPhone 13 Pro, the iPhone is a fair amount stronger than the Samsung phone. It’s made from stainless steel, rather than aluminum, and the strengthened Ceramic Shield technology in the glass actually does make a difference in the iPhone’s durability. It’s a tough category to call. We think the Samsung is slightly better looking in terms of design, but the iPhone wins points for its durability. This is a tie. Winner: Tie It should come as no surprise that these phones have the latest and greatest technological advancements. The Galaxy S21 Plus has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888, which is more than powerful enough to keep your flagship phone churning through the top 3D games and swapping between apps for the next few years at least.
