Comparison between Samsung Galaxy S10 and iPhone XS cameras

Samsung's latest flagship, the Galaxy S10 series,

went on sale worldwide

at the beginning of the month. With the Galaxy S10, Samsung is jumping on the triple camera bandwagon and offering an ultra-wide-angle sensor in combination with a regular wide-angle and telephoto sensor. With flagship smartphones these days being all about their camera, is the Galaxy S10 a better shooter than the iPhone XS? Find out in this comparison.

The Galaxy S10 comes with the same primary rear shooter as last year's Galaxy Note and S9. It's a 12MP f/1.5-f/2.4 aperture shooter with OIS and large 1.4um pixels. Any improvement whatsoever is due to Samsung improving its post-processing algorithm. The highlight of the Galaxy S10's camera system is the ultra-wide-angle sensor that allows you to take pictures even in tight places and with a new perspective.

In comparison, with the iPhone XS, Apple used a larger sensor with bigger and deeper 1.4um pixels. Coupled with the addition of Smart HDR, the iPhone XS offers better dynamic range and captures more detail than previous iPhones.

So, let's see how the two phones stack up in our camera comparison below.

Scene 1

Photo on iPhone XS Max

Photo on Galaxy S10+

Photo on iPhone XS Max

Photo on Galaxy S10+

The Galaxy S10's tendency to increase colors and saturation helps make its photo more vivid. The iPhone XS Max photo looks a bit dull in comparison. Where the Galaxy S10's triple-camera setup excels is in versatility. With the ultra wide angle shooter, one can capture the scene above with a completely different perspective.

Photo taken on Galaxy S10+

There's heavy fish-eye distortion around the edges of the photos above, but even then there's no denying how useful the ultra-wide angle is to the shooter.

Scene 3

Photo on iPhone XS Max

Photo on Galaxy S10+

The Galaxy S10 photo has better colors, although I would say its white balance is a bit off. The iPhone XS Max masters the white balance but the colors look a little dull. Or they look like what the scene looked like in real life.

Scene 4

Photo on iPhone XS Max

Photo on Galaxy S10+

Both phones do a great job here. The Galaxy S10 ends up capturing more details in the shadows.

Scene 5

Photo on iPhone XS Max

Photo on Galaxy S10+

The iPhone XS Max gets the scene color temperature absolutely wrong. The Galaxy S10 succeeds in white balance but accentuates the photo a little.

We want to hear from you

What do you think of the camera performance of the iPhone XS and Galaxy S10 based on the sample images above? Do you prefer photos taken from the Galaxy S10 or those from the iPhone XS?