If there's a smartphone matchup that figures to define 2024, it's the inevitable Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. iPhone 16 face-off. These two upcoming models represent the most affordable flagships from the two biggest phone makers. What Samsung and Apple do tends to set the tone for the rest of the smartphone world.
The Galaxy S24 kicked off the phone wars when it launched earlier this year during Galaxy Unpacked, so now the ball's in Apple's court to respond back with the iPhone 16 at the September 9 Glowtime event. Samsung has certainly raised the bar for all other releases this year, thanks in part to its set of Galaxy AI features that make up the most compelling parts of the phone.
Meanwhile Apple's event is still to come, but it's coming in fast. We've heard a load of details about Apple's next wave of flagships and Apple itself revealed what to expect from the software at WWDC back in June. iOS 18 has a big emphasis on customization and Apple Intelligence — the latter of which is currently only available in beta on iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max
This Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. iPhone 16 comparison looks at the upcoming battle between the two entry-level models. (For what's happening on the high end of the product lines, check out our Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra vs. iPhone 16 Pro Max face-off.) It may be early to compare these two phones, but it's already shaping up to be quite an interesting showdown.
Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. iPhone 16: Specs
Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. iPhone 16: Price and availability
Samsung kept the pricing of the Galaxy S24 firmly at $799 for the base model with 128GB of storage and 8GB of RAM. What's nice is that there are 7 different color options to choose from if you get the phone directly from Samsung, which is far more than what most phones offer.
Things may still change, but we'd have a hard time believing Apple would make a change to its pricing for the iPhone 16, especially since the entry-level model currently matches the S24's $799 cost. Apple has held the line on iPhone pricing for the last few years, only increasing the cost of the iPhone 15 Pro Max by $100 over its predecessor. (And in that case, it increased the base storage of the phone to 256GB to take the sting out of the cost.)
We don't know exactly when Apple will release the phones, but past experience tells us that pre-orders should open the Friday after the Glowtime event, followed by a general release a week later. That's September 13 and September 20, though one rumor claims we could see availability pulled forward by a single day.
Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. iPhone 16: Design and display
Samsung made iterative changes to the Galaxy S24, but otherwise it bears a resemblance to its predecessor. The display and rear panel on the S24 are both flat, joined by an aluminum frame. Where we see the biggest design change are the bezels, since they're trimmed down even more to make it look like the screen covers nearly the entire facade.
Likewise, the iPhone 16 is likely to retain the iPhone 15's basic look with one key difference. Early design prototypes show the rear camera array of the iPhone 16 with vertically stacked lenses; on the iPhone 15, those lenses are arranged diagonally. The likely reason is giving Apple's entry-level flagship the ability to capture spatial video as the iPhone 15 Pro models can do now. This would let you view 3D-like clips on the Apple Vision Pro headset.
Another design change apparently headed to the iPhone 16 is the addition of the Action button that Apple introduced to its iPhone 15 Pro models. The button functions as a shortcut trigger, and you can customize it to do things like launch apps, turn on the phone's flashlight or fire up the camera. A second button — a so-called Capture button — could wind up on the iPhone 16, too, presumably to give users direct access the camera at any time. Dummy units leaked of the handset alongside other iPhone 16 models allude to this possibility.
Samsung kept the same display size on the Galaxy S24, a 6.2-inch AMOLED panel with a resolution of 2340 x 1080 resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate. Even though the company claims a maximum brightness of 2,600 nits, our own display benchmark testing reveals a peak brightness output of 1,340 nits, which is less than the iPhone 15's 1,401-nit reach.
There's not as much pressure for Apple with the iPhone 16, since its current model outshines its rival. However, the biggest area of opportunity for Apple would be to upgrade beyond a fixed 60Hz display refresh rate, compared to the 120Hz variable rate that the Galaxy S24 offers. Don't expect anything to change with the iPhone 15, as display expert Ross Young doesn't expect Apple to use the necessary LTPO panel on its entry-level flagship phone until 2025.
Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. iPhone 16: Cameras
When it comes to the hardware, Samsung didn't make that many changes with the Galaxy S24. It's still rocking a 50MP main camera, 12MP ultrawide shooter and 10MP telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom.
Despite being the newer phone, we were actually surprised by how things turned out when we took 200 photos between the Galaxy S24 and iPhone 15. This is another case of how a main camera's performance can make all the difference. Knowing how that camera shootout turned out, you could say Apple's in a good position heading into the fall when it's expected to release its new iPhones.
There have been a number of iPhone 16 camera are rumors, with the most of the rumored changes targeting the iPhone 16 Pro models. (The standard Pro could adopt the new telephoto lens Apple added to the iPhone 15 Pro Max, and both iPhone 16 Pro models are expected to see a higher resolution ultrawide lens.)
Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. iPhone 16: Performance
iPhones usually smoke Samsung's flagships in speed competitions, but things could get interesting now that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset is being fully embraced by Android phones like the Galaxy S24. Our own benchmark tests show that it's a powerhouse, beating out the iPhone 15 in the multicore Geekbench 6 test. We're even more astounded by its graphic processing power, easily producing the smoother frame rates than the iPhone 15 in 3DMark's Wild Life Unlimited test.
Rumors suggest that every iPhone 16 model will feature some version of the A18 silicon currently in development. For the standard iPhone, that will mean jumping from the A16 Bionic straight to the A18 lineup. However it's still expected that the Pro models will have a better version of the A18 than the entry-level iPhone 16. Presumably that'll be called A18 Pro.
That could be a significant move, as the A18 would be built on a 3nm process. The A16 Bionic inside the iPhone 15 Pro is a 4nm chip, and when chipsets get smaller, their transistors move closer together. That generally translates to better performance and greater power efficiency.
Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. iPhone 16: Battery life and charging
Power efficiency is just one of the key features of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, and as a result, we see greater leaps with the Galaxy S24's battery life over the Galaxy S23.
In Tom's Guide's battery benchmark test, the Galaxy S24 held out for 13 hours and 28 minutes, with its display set to the default adaptive refresh rate. That's more than two hours longer than the iPhone 15, which goes to show the power efficiency of Qualcomm's chip.
iPhone 16 battery rumors suggest that we'll see a small capacity increase from 3,349 mAh in iPhone 15 to 3,561 mAh in iPhone 16. That's not a huge jump, since it's an increase of just 6% but combined with the prospect of extra energy efficiency from the A18 chipset it should mean some kind of increase to battery life. However we won't know for sure until we get the iPhone 16 into our labs for testing.
Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. iPhone 16: Software and special features
The Galaxy S24 debuted with Android 14 while the iPhone 16's later ship date means it will run on the still-unannounced iOS 18 update. But the real story on the software front are the on-board AI features.
Samsung proved that Galaxy AI offers practical features that streamline process, like the ability to act as an interpreter with Live Translate and the ability to turn almost any video in a slow motion one with Instant Slow-Mo. While these Galaxy AI features were launched exclusively for the Galaxy S24 series, subsequent One UI 6.1 updates brought them to older Galaxy phones.
Apple Intelligence took center stage at WWDC 2024, revealing exactly what plans Apple has to catch up to its rivals. Some of those changes include an upgraded version of Siri, with better conversational skills and awareness plus "agent-like" behavior that lets Siri carry out tasks across iOS and inside other apps.
Features like on-device image generation, built-in ChatGPT support, summarization and proofreading abilities, AI image editing features and more are also on the way. Meanwhile iOS 18 will come with a bunch of key upgrades like home screen customization, iPhone mirroring, locked apps and a hidden folder, satellite messaging and more.
While most iPhones will support iOS 18, iPhone 16 should be one of the few that actually runs Apple Intelligence features. That's all down to the rumored RAM upgrade, with Apple admitting that devices packing less than 8GB of RAM aren't powerful enough to run on-device AI features.
Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. iPhone 16: Outlook
We've got a some time to wait before a proper Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. iPhone 16 clash gets underway, but at least we have a better idea with one of them available right now. The Galaxy S24 indeed does push the boundaries a bit further with its AI-assisted features, long battery life, and outstanding processing performance, but we'll still be waiting for Apple's answer in the form of the iPhone 16.
