iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Galaxy S26 Ultra... What do I prefer?

I've been a Samsung user for many years. For a long time, Galaxy phones were my go-to whenever it was time for an upgrade, so when I made the switch to Apple around two years ago, I wasn't entirely sure how long it would last.

Fast forward two years and I've recently gone back to Samsung, this time with the Galaxy S26 Ultra. I was genuinely interested to see how I'd feel about it after spending so long with an iPhone, and if I'm being completely honest, I expected the Samsung to tempt me back.

After all, this is the sort of phone that should do it. It's Samsung's latest and greatest flagship, packed with features, an incredible camera system, a fantastic display and the S Pen. After years of using Samsung phones, I thought I'd pick it up and immediately remember why I'd loved them so much.

But after using the Galaxy S26 Ultra and iPhone 17 Pro Max alongside each other for the last month, that simply hasn't happened.

In fact, if anything, the experience has confirmed that I'm pretty happy being an iPhone user.

Let's start with the physical side of things, because for me, the iPhone wins here by a fairly decent margin. The Galaxy S26 Ultra is a beautiful phone and there's no denying that it feels like a premium flagship, but I just prefer the iPhone in my hand. I prefer the way it looks, I prefer the way it feels and, after carrying both around for the last month, I consistently found myself reaching for the iPhone.

That's obviously subjective, but when you're using a phone every single day, I think that matters more than people sometimes give it credit for.

The display is a different story, though, and this is where Samsung gets its first win. Both phones have fantastic displays, but Samsung's Privacy Display is something I really didn't expect to like as much as I do. Being able to restrict what people sitting beside you can see on your screen, including specific apps and sensitive information, is genuinely useful.

It's a bit of a game changer.

Whether you're sitting on a plane, using your phone at work, sitting in a cafe or just standing somewhere with people around you, there are plenty of situations where you don't necessarily want everyone nearby seeing what's on your screen. It's one of those features that sounds like a gimmick until you actually use it, and then you start wondering why more phones don't have something similar.

So despite the iPhone 17 Pro Max having an excellent display, Samsung takes this one for me.

Then we get to the camera, and this is probably the category where my opinion is going to differ from a lot of the comparisons I've seen online.

I've watched plenty of YouTubers say that the cameras on the two phones are fairly comparable, and I can absolutely understand why. Both take excellent photos and neither is going to leave you disappointed.

But having used them side by side, I prefer the Galaxy S26 Ultra's camera.

For me, the Samsung produces sharper, more detailed images, particularly straight out of the camera. The S26 Ultra's 200MP main camera, 50MP ultra-wide and dedicated telephoto cameras also give you an enormous amount of flexibility, and I just prefer the overall look of the images I'm getting from it.

That doesn't mean the iPhone is bad at photography. Quite the opposite. It's an excellent camera phone, and Apple still has a huge advantage for me when it comes to video.

There's also one feature on the iPhone that nearly made me give this category to Apple, and that's the Camera Control button. I really like having a dedicated physical button for the camera. Being able to launch the camera quickly and control different settings without relying entirely on the touchscreen is something I've found myself using more than I expected.

But when I look at the actual photos, Samsung just edges it.

Then we get to the biggest reason I'm still using an iPhone: the software.

For me, iOS is simply better.

It's more intuitive, it feels snappier and it seems more responsive. I don't have to think about where something is or how I'm supposed to do something. I pick up the phone and generally everything behaves the way I expect it to.

The S26 Ultra is incredibly fast, and there's absolutely nothing wrong with Samsung's software. In fact, One UI gives you an enormous amount of functionality and customisation.

But I've realised that I don't necessarily want to spend time customising my phone or working out how to make it do something.

I just want it to work.

And after two years with iOS, going back to Samsung has really highlighted that for me. There are little moments throughout the day where I'll do something on the iPhone and think, yeah, this is exactly how I want my phone to work.

So Apple gets a fairly comfortable win here.

Performance is one category where I'm not going to pretend there's a huge difference. It's a tie. Both phones are ridiculously fast, and both perform better than the other in different situations. Whether I'm gaming, multitasking, browsing, taking photos or jumping between apps, I genuinely don't have anything to fault either phone for.

At this level of smartphone, I think performance has reached the point where most people simply aren't going to notice much difference during normal everyday use.

The ecosystem is another big reason why I've stayed with Apple. Samsung has an excellent ecosystem and, in some respects, it actually has an advantage because of how well it ties into Google, Windows and a much broader range of devices.

But Apple's ecosystem is just more polished and cohesive, at least for me.

There are so many little things that work together without you really having to think about them, and once you're invested in that ecosystem, it becomes incredibly difficult to leave.

MagSafe is another great example. I absolutely love it. Being able to magnetically attach chargers, stands, wallets and other accessories to the back of the iPhone is ridiculously convenient. I'd actually love to see Samsung introduce something similar, although I'd much rather see Samsung take the idea and put its own spin on it rather than simply copy what Apple is doing.

Samsung obviously has its own tricks too, with the S Pen being the biggest one. I like having it built into the S26 Ultra, and there are situations where it's genuinely useful, but I still think Samsung could do more with it. It's one of those features that I really like having available, but I don't find myself using anywhere near as often as I thought I would.

Battery and charging are another draw for me. Both phones have excellent battery life, both charge quickly and neither has given me any real concerns about getting through a full day. I prefer the convenience of MagSafe, but when we're talking about simply keeping the phone charged and getting through the day, there's really not enough between them for me to give either one the win.

And that brings us to the final result.

The iPhone 17 Pro Max takes four categories, the Galaxy S26 Ultra takes two, and we have one draw.

I've put the full breakdown into a graphic because, honestly, I think that's a much cleaner way of showing the result than throwing another table into the article.

What makes this comparison interesting for me isn't necessarily that Apple wins. It's why Apple wins.

I haven't spent a month using the Samsung and then decided that I prefer the iPhone. I've been using the iPhone for around two years now, and the S26 Ultra is the first Samsung I've properly gone back to using since making that switch.

I genuinely thought the S26 Ultra might pull me straight back onto the Samsung train.... It hasn't.

And that's despite the fact that I think Samsung has the better camera. Its Privacy Display is fantastic, the S Pen is unique and useful, and the S26 Ultra is an absolutely brilliant piece of hardware.

But using both phones together has made me realise that the things I value most aren't necessarily the things that look best on a specification sheet.

I want my phone to feel good in my hand. I want the software to be intuitive and responsive. I want it to work with the rest of my devices without me having to think about it, and I want the little things to make my day easier.

For me, Apple just does those things better.

The Galaxy S26 Ultra hasn't made me want to leave Apple. If anything, it's confirmed that I'm very happy where I am.

That doesn't make the Samsung a bad phone. Far from it. If the camera is your biggest priority, if Samsung's privacy features appeal to you, if you want an S Pen or if you prefer the freedom and flexibility of Android, the S26 Ultra is an incredibly compelling option.

But after two years with Apple, and a month of giving Samsung another proper shot, I'm still very much Team Apple.