iPhone 14 Pro vs Galaxy S22 Plus: Which top “middle” phone pays off more? | Comparative

The iPhone 14 Pro and Galaxy S22 Plus are two top phones that seek to deliver a very advanced experience, but without charging as much as the more expensive variants within the family.

In this duel between “middle” flagship smartphones, is it better to buy Apple’s or Samsung’s? Comparative shows you the answer now.

• design
• Multimedia and Resources
• Performance
• Drums
• Camera
• Price
• Conclusion

Apple iPhone 14 Pro

We started with the design with premium construction on each side. Both are made of metal, with a glass back covered for scratch protection. They are also IP68 certified to ensure resistance against water and liquids.

The iPhone retains the look of past generations at the rear, with the camera module square, and the lens forming a triangle. The Galaxy, on the other hand, has the block aligned to the side, but it no longer slides to the frame. The American also has the most compact body of the duo, while the Korean is the lightest.

Samsung Galaxy S22 Plus

On the front, the highlight of the S22 Plus is its biometric reader under the screen, something that Apple has not yet adopted on its mobile. The 14 Pro responds with Dynamic Island, a notch in a pill that has the advantage of being integrated with the software and having special interactions. However, it is still larger than the competitor’s hole notch.

It is worth remembering that none of them has a microSD card slot in the chips drawer. At least sixth-generation Wi-Fi and NFC are guaranteed on the connectivity side. The “Apple” also inserted Bluetooth 5.3 in its device, more advanced than the 5.2 version present in the rival.

As much as there is Dynamic Island on the iPhone, the Galaxy still delivers a more modern set. That’s why he takes the lead here.

Screen

On one side is the OLED screen of the 14 Pro with a focus on colors very close to reality and support for Dolby Vision. On the other, the Dynamic AMOLED 2X screen of the S22 Plus appears, which is much larger and has a superior frontal advantage to the competitor.

Either way, both offer Full HD+ resolution and HDR10 technology. They also have scratch protection, either on the side of the iPhone’s Ceramic Shield, or the Gorilla Glass Victus Plus present on the Galaxy.

In addition, none of the displays here disappoint in the strong brightness, which guarantees use even on sunny days. We still have in them a refresh rate of 120 Hz, with dynamic variation, to save battery.

Apple scores for color calibration and Dolby Vision; and Samsung scores for larger size and fewer borders.

Sound

Manufacturers didn’t skimp when it comes to audio. That’s why we find in the duo a stereo sound system, which takes advantage of the call speaker as a secondary channel, to give a more immersive experience.

As the second sound output of the iPhone is smaller than the one on the bottom, the power is limited. Even so, you will have a maximum volume on par with the Galaxy, in addition to a good balance between bass, mids and treble in both.

Remembering that Apple and Samsung have dispensed with the physical connector for headphones in their advanced smartphones, in addition to not sending any adapted accessories in the box.

With no advantage for either side, we were in a tie.

System

The 14 Pro comes with iOS 16 out of the box, versus the S22 Plus’s Android 12 pre-installed. In the fight for longer lifespan, Apple does better, offering even longer support time than the four software updates and five years of security packages promised by Samsung.

In any case, fluidity will not be a problem in these devices, boosted by the 120 Hz panel present in both. Not to mention the always-fast mobile network, guaranteed by 5G compatibility.

The iPhone now has the Always-on Display, a feature that the rival already had from past generations. But the great differential of “Apple” is due to the interactions with Ilha Dinâmica, whether in the display of information from an alert, or to expand with compatible applications.

In turn, the Galaxy’s One UI interface has a series of customizations and features, ranging from Edge Screen shortcuts to DeX mode, to transform the phone into a portable PC.

Longer longevity on one side; more advanced features on the other. We have one point for each.

In performance, we have a clash between the iPhone’s A16 Bionic chip, against the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 that powers the Galaxy. In our tests, the winner was the Apple component. The 14 Pro beat the S22 Plus by 14 seconds of advantage, in the sum of the time of the two rounds.

Moving on to the benchmarks, we see no surprise. “Apple” beats the Korean with a comfortable lead, both on Geekbench and on AnTuTu. There is nothing to complain about in the games in both, since they run all games with maximum quality and with great fluidity, due to the support up to 120 fps.

Multitasking performance gives the iPhone 14 Pro the point.

The iPhone features a 3,200 mAh battery, which seeks to combine with system optimizations to try to beat the Galaxy’s 4,500 mAh capacity. Is this possible? Our standardized tests indicated a small difference, but it goes from 40 minutes longer for the Korean model.

When we look at charging, Samsung leads the way. With a standard 25W charger, the S22 Plus reached 100% in less than an hour and took about 40 minutes less than the 14 Pro.

With greater autonomy and shorter recharge time, the point goes to the Galaxy S22 Plus.

Both in one and the other we find a triple set of rear cameras. The iPhone’s 48 MP main sensor and the Galaxy’s 50 MP sensor take great photos, by getting the colors and dynamic range right, in addition to having little noise in general. Night mode is automatically activated on the duo and does a good job regardless of your choice.

Their ultrawide does not disappoint with colors close to the main one, in addition to great sharpness. The 14 Pro’s differential is due to the autofocus, which allows use in macros. The telephoto lens of the two has a three times optical zoom, but Samsung manages to do a better job in images with more details from afar.

We have a balance between the positives on each side. That’s why we give it a draw here.

Photos taken with Apple iPhone 14 Pro

In videos, we find support for 4K resolution at 60 fps in all cameras of these smartphones. Only the S22 Plus is capable of recording in 8K at 24 fps with the main one, but it will take up a lot of storage space. Overall, we see in both efficient optical stabilization, very agile focus and clean audio capture.

What weighs in the iPhone’s favor is the additional features it delivers. We have as an example the new Action Mode, to generate footage close to sports cameras, in addition to being compatible with Dolby Vision technology.

The 14 Pro notes another point.

Photos taken with the Samsung Galaxy S22 Plus

The Galaxy can even do a good job of taking selfies, but Apple ends up keeping its strong point here and takes great care in enhancing skin tone and portrait mode, with a crop that is practically error-free. iPhone night photos do not suffer from noise and are also above Korean. At the very least, the duo provides 4K head-on footage at 60 fps.

The 14 Pro takes one more point.

These devices were officially launched in Europe by the respective manufacturers. The iPhone 14 Pro arrived in the country costing R$9,500, more expensive than the R$7,000 suggested price of the Galaxy S22 Plus. In the current scenario, we have both cheaper, still with a wide advantage for the Korean, which can be found for almost half the value of the competitor.

That is, Samsung gets the last point.

With a balanced score, your decision is more based on what is a priority for you. The iPhone 14 Pro is the most suitable for those who want a screen with better colors, a system with greater longevity, faster performance and superior cameras for videos and selfies.

If you prefer a more modern design, bigger screen, better software features and a battery with longer autonomy and shorter recharge time, the superior option is the Galaxy S22 Plus. Not to mention that Samsung’s flagship is also much cheaper than Apple’s, so it ends up hurting the consumer’s pocket less.

RESULT

Apple iPhone 14 Pro: 7 POINTS

• Screen with Dolby Vision and better colors
• Powerful, balanced stereo sound
• Longer-lasting software
• faster performance
• Superior ultrawide rear cameras
• Videos with Dolby Vision and better features
• Front camera with better selfies and portrait mode

Samsung Galaxy S22 Plus: 7 SPOTS

• More modern design with superior biometrics
• Larger screen with fewer borders
• Powerful, balanced stereo sound
• Software with more premium features
• Longer battery life and shorter recharge time
• Rear cameras with superior telephoto lens
• Lowest price in the Europeian market

Do you prefer the benefits of the iPhone or the benefits of the Galaxy? Reply to us in the comments space.

• The Apple iPhone 14 Pro is available at Americanas for BRL 8,639. The cost-benefit is medium and this is the best model in this price range.
• The Samsung Galaxy S22 Plus is available at Submarino for BRL 5,173. The cost-benefit is medium but this is the best model in this price range.