iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra There have been some great smartphones this year, and three of the most popular come from Apple, Samsung, and Google. In today’s article, we’ll be comparing the best from each of them the iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

We’ll be taking an in-depth look covering the design, displays, performance, cameras, and more to see which of these flagships comes out on top in comparison to iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro. As the year draws to a close, I think it’s a good time to crown a new champion. So what is the best smartphone of 2022?

Unboxing

A quick mention, first, of what each of these phones comes with. So for the iPhone, we get the usual paperwork the Apple sticker, the SIM ejected tool outside the US, that is, and hopefully for the very last time, the Lightning cable. Thanks, EU. For the Galaxy, it’s simply the paperwork SIM Ejector and a USB C charging cable, and then the same again with the Pixel, except they also include a USB 8C adapter.

Design Or Durability

But let’s start with the comparison of the iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro with the phone compared with the design. And there are three key subcategories here durability, appearance, and practical aspect. I got each of these phones in black for the sake of showing a direct comparison of iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro, but of course, the color options are a big part of the design too.

Samsung wins here for choice with up to seven different options, compared to four for the iPhone and only three with the Pixel. The durability is the simplest to compare in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro. You’ve got Gorilla Glass Victors on the Pixel, Victors Plus for the Galaxy, and Apple ceramic Shield glass on the iPhone, which they claim to be the toughest on any smartphone.

It’s hard to prove this claim since in real-world use you could drop any of these phones and break them, and drop tests online show mixed results anyway for iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro. One key advantage, though, is having a flat display, which structurally means the iPhone has greater drop protection than either of the curved Android phones.

It also has an edge with water resistance, which has been tested for iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro to a greater depth of 6 meters compared to one and a half. And mainly it’s the fact that it uses stainless steel for the frame compared to the aluminum used on the Pixel and Galaxy. So that puts the Pixel in third and the iPhone on top for durability.

But most of us will mitigate the difference with a phone case and screen protector. Anyway, appearance is obviously the most subjective point in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro. For instance, I happen to like rounded corners like with the iPhone and Pixel compared to Samsung’s boxy squared-off Ultra, but I know others feel the opposite. I also much prefer a matte textured glass finish, which Apple and Samsung use, whereas the Pixel’s glossy surface doesn’t feel as smooth and spoils quite easily with fingerprints. It’s the same with the PROMAX’s flat sides.

They look great until you ruin them almost immediately with your fingerprints. You’ve then got the iPhone’s laughably big camera bump, a design which unfortunately has been the same since the 11 series and is so thick that the phone wobbles on your desk. Samsung just made the whole phone thicker and was, therefore, able to avoid a chunky camera bump, whereas Google’s is almost as thick as Apple’s. But having it extend the width of the phone fixes the desk wobble and creates a nice contrast with the rest of the phone.

We all spend more time looking at the front of our phones, though, and here’s Samsung wins for the screen-to-body ratio, giving us both the thinnest bezels and the smallest hole punch for the camera. The Pixel is a closed second, and both Android phones clearly beat the iPhone’s intrusive camera cutout and thicker bezels in comparison iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

I do like the symmetry of the iPhone’s bezels, but I think it’s the least visually appealing of the three. I think overall, the Pixel 7 Pro is the most aesthetically pleasing and has the most unique design of these three. I like the small details, like the symmetrical speaker grills, and I think it has a nice balance of thin bezels and a clean overall look. But let me know in the comments section which design is your favorite in comparison iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

Ergonomics Or Usability Or Security

Moving on to the practical side of things, Apple wins for the button placement, and it’s more convenient having the volume and power buttons on opposite sides where you won’t get them mixed up. It also has that handy meet switch, something I wish all Android phones had because an instant switch is much easier than doing this through software. The Pixel at least has the button slightly lower down than on the Ultra, which makes things a bit easier. If you live in the US, you’ll find that the 14 Pro Max has a SIM card tray.

Apple has gone eSIM only in the States, which has been met understandably with a mixed reception. I personally look forward to an eSIM-only future, and I’m sure both Samsung and Google will follow Apple very soon. But if you prefer a physical SIM and live in the US, you’ll find the iPhone less practical in comparison iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

Now, these three are all very big phones. The Ultra is clearly the biggest, but it does offer a slightly larger screen as well. The iPhone is quite noticeably the heaviest, which does make the build feel more premium and quality, but also makes it the most cumbersome, especially with those sharp edges. The Pixel, on the other hand, is the smallest and lightest, and therefore the most comfortable of the three to hold and use in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

Apple still holds the crown for Haptic feedback, offering the most nuanced haptics here, but I actually prefer the way the Pixel integrates Haptic feedback for iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro. For example, when scrolling your apps in the switcher, it’s really satisfying.

The S 22 Ultra takes a clear third place with the weakest Haptics and the switch this year to that new x-axis vibration motor didn’t do it any favors. The Pro Max has an entirely flat display. That’s part of why the bezels are thicker. But a matte display is easier to use and better for screen protectors. In fairness, both Android phones have only a slight curve, with the ultra being the most curved.

And I don’t often have issues with things like accidental screen touches, which is typically why people dislike curved displays. Each of these big phones has a one-handed mode, and you can access this with a swipe down. The iPhone and Pixel are similar in that they move your content down to the lower half of the screen, though there are more options for the Pixel, like the keyboard size and placements.

But the Galaxy goes one step further in having a movable and resizable window, which I think makes things even easier. It also has the built-in Spen to further help with convenience and productivity.

Samsung has optimized the One UI software to take advantage of this, with features like handwriting to text, and the Pen can assist with general navigation and even air actions over Bluetooth. I know not everyone is a fan of the Spen, and it’s not something I personally use very often either, but it is an extra feature that neither the iPhone nor Pixel offers in comparison to iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

Another practical aspect of phones is Biometrics. The reason the iPhone’s Camera Cutout is so big is that, well, for one, it plays into Apple’s marketing of the iPhone being instantly recognizable, but also because it houses the true depth sensors for Face ID. Only the iPhone is able to securely unlock with your Face because it’s a 3D technology.

Unlike the Face unlock used on Android phones, their secure Biometric method is an in-display fingerprint scanner, Ultrasonic for the S 22 Ultra, and Optical for the Pixel 7 Pro. As a result, Samsung’s is slightly faster, though I’ve generally found both to be equally as reliable with my use. I still have a preference for Face ID myself, especially now that it’s even faster, works in landscape and with masks, and is no longer spoiled by the notch in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro Displays

That’s because this year Apple turned the Camera Cutout into a feature by introducing Dynamic Island, and the fact that it can now change in size and appearance often disguises the fact that it’s using up some of the display. You can now tap on the Camera Cutout and interact with the phone, even multitask, whereas the Android hole punches adjust display distractions, albeit much smaller ones.

Now, I’m not for a second going to praise the iPhone’s multitasking over any Android phone really. You can’t even split screen with your apps, which I love doing on the Pixel Culture. But Dynamic Island is a cool and often useful feature that makes me feel a whole lot better about having a bigger cutout. And it’s no surprise that we’re already seeing Android copies of this feature. The only annoyance is having to wipe the selfie lens since you’ll constantly be putting fingerprints here.

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Now, this doesn’t seem to affect Face ID, but this isn’t an issue on Android phones. And they even have useful software features, like being able to swipe down from anywhere on the home screen to reach Quick settings. So you don’t have to swipe your finger over the lens like you would on the Pro Max. So we’ve covered the aesthetic part of the display design. But as for the actual display quality, there are pros for each in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

All three phones offer adaptive refresh rates up to a super smooth 120 Hz, but the Pixel and Ultra are marginally sharper with a full 1440p resolution, whereas the Promax falls just shy of this. The iPhone shows the best color accuracy, though. However, I do like that both the Ultra and Pixel offer more vivid colors in their default profiles.

The Promax also has the brightest display, the brightest on any smartphone, in fact. You see this when manually maxing out the brightness and notice how the Ultra is actually the dimmest until you enable the high brightness mode, at which point the Pixel falls quite away behind in the race iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

Most of us use adaptive brightness, though, and even in this simulated bright conditions test, you can see that all three phones can reach a very readable brightness level. You don’t often see the iPhone hit its peak of 2000 Nits, just like the Ultra rarely hits 1750.

And the brightness you actually see does fluctuate. Outdoors, in bright sunlight, the iPhone is the winner, but indoors viewing HDR content, for example, I often find that it’s the Ultra with the higher Max brightness. Once again, the Pixel trails behind, though in the race of iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

Two things I like, though, are, that it gets slightly dimmer than the Ultra and far dimmer than the Pro Max, so it’s the best for nighttime viewing. It’s the same deal with the always-on display as well, which we know is unusually bright for the Pro Max.

And secondly, I find the Pixel has the smoothest display of all three phones in comparison iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro. The iPhone is in a closed second, thanks to the great elements on iOS, but the Pixel’s 120 Hz is the smoothest I’ve seen yet. So the 14 Pro Max wins on a technical note for the display specs and is the best for viewing outdoors.

The S 22 Ultra is the best for viewing content like movies, because of its high screen-to-body ratio and the fact that it’s simply bigger. And then the Pixel 7 Pro is the smoothest to navigate, with the best looking, higher refresh rate in comparison iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

Speakers

When it comes to speakers in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro, the 14 Pro Max is the clear winner for one main reason it has a much better top speaker. Both Android phones have a noticeably quieter top speaker compared to the bottom one, whereas the iPhone balances the volume and sound quality much better, so it gives a superior stereo effect. It also has the most bass, and then the Pixel just beats out the Ultra for speaker volume as well.

Gaming And Performance

So the iPhone speakers benefit the phone for gaming as well. But it’s the power of Apple’s 15 Bionic chip that gives the phone the best frame rates and performance efficiency. However, the Ultra offers that huge canvas that makes gaming physically superior. You’ve got more space for the controls and games just look better on the bigger screen and with those vivid colors. And then you’ve got the Pixel, which offers the most comfortable experience as the smallest and lightest phone, important for longer gaming sessions especially.

All three of these phones are capable of high-performance gaming in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro, and each clearly offers its own advantage. So you’ll see the real-world benefit of the iPhone’s power advantage, and as expected, this is reflected in the benchmark tests as well of iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

Apple still has a clear lead in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro. I was more interested to see how Google’s second-gen tensor chip would compare to the Galaxy in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro, though, which in this instance is the Xmas version of the phone. And you can see that the Ultra generally has an edge over the Pixel in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

You’re looking at 6GB of Ram for the Pro Max, and then either 8 or 12 for the Ultra and Pixel, though this does depend on your region. All three start at 128 gigs of storage, but only the iPhone and Galaxy offer a 1 TB option. The Pixel maxes out to 256GB here in the UK. So again, the storage will vary by region, but Samsung and Apple offer the most, so there is a clear ranking when it comes to performance in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro. But you shouldn’t let these specs put you off getting the phone you want.

The Pixel might be the weakest on paper, but the smoothness of the display makes it feel really fluid, and it’s going to be more than powerful enough for most of the things you’ll need to do. Equally, the iPhone may be more powerful than the Ultra, but this isn’t going to matter if you’d rather be using Android than iOS.

Battery And Charging

I think a bigger concern for most people is the battery life in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro. The Pixel and Ultra each have a larger 5000 milliamp-hour cell compared to the iPhone. However, I mentioned the efficiency of the 14 Pro Max, and indeed, it does have the best battery life, not just of these three, but of any smartphone right now.

The eagle-eyed among you may have spotted the battery percentages during the performance testing. And although it all started at 100%, you can start to see how the battery lives are affected with high-performance tasks in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro. But of course, I wanted to see how the battery performance would be with normal, everyday use. So after setting up the phones and using them identically, this here shows a typical end-of-day battery result. The Promax is on top, the Pixel in second, and the Ultra surprisingly in third in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

I then left the phones overnight and checked in again in the afternoon to find the iPhone extended the lead in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro. The Promax has a very low battery drain on standby, I used the phones with the always-on displays turned on as well, just as they would normally.

So Apple has not only fixed those early battery drain issues, but the way the display intelligently turns off helps with the battery life too. That’s one of the weaknesses of the Ultra. The Ultra versus Pixel result was interesting, and although the Ultra may be slightly more powerful, it does use more battery for that.

I expect the Snapdragon version may close the gap a little, but this highlights my main issue with Samsung phones in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro. Some users get a better version of the phone because whichever chipset is ahead each year, the Snapdragon and XNA models simply aren’t equal, which I think is unfair to customers.

Apple and Google ship their phones with the same chipsets worldwide, so everyone gets the same performance from their phone. Where the Ultra has a clear advantage, though, is with charging annihilating both the Pixel and iPhone with the charging speed. The phone supports a higher 45-watt charging, but you don’t even need to use that to get fast speeds.

The results you see here of iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro are achieved with the same 30-watt charger for all three phones. They all support wireless charging, but only the Pixel and Ultra support reverse wireless charging. The iPhone’s unique charging feature is MagSafe, which I’ve personally found to be extremely useful thanks to the wide variety of MagSafe accessories that are now available.

Software

Before we look at the cameras, I want to mention software where there’s the obvious issue of iOS versus Android. That’s going to be the biggest factor separating the Pro Max from the Ultra and Pixel, and most people already know which one they want.

For some, that’s the fluid, reliable, but closed-off ecosystem of iOS. The interplay with other devices in particular is fantastic and sets the Apple ecosystem ahead of its Android competitors. You then got the S 22 Ultra, which really pushes Android’s greater freedom of expression.

With loads of customization options and a feature-packed OS, it can be a unique Android experience with Spen features and one of the best productivity features on a smartphone with Samsung Dex. But the phone also comes filled up with annoying bloatware like duplicate apps, and this is where the Pixel has a big advantage in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

Stock OS on the Pixel 7 Pro is the cleanest Android experience you’ll find it’s why lots of people, including myself, like it so much. And there are some neat exclusive Android features here, like a smarter Google Assistant and cool screening. Even before we get into the camera software, you’d really need a whole separate article dedicated to this topic. And the software doesn’t just apply to these particular models either. So rather than make this article overly long, let me know if you’d want to see another article on that in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

You should also factor in longevity because how long you can use each of these phones affects their value as well. Again, the iPhone will offer the greatest number of years of support. The current iOS 16 will be supported on phones at least six years old. Samsung is offering four years of Android updates and five for security, whereas Google will offer just three years of Android updates and again, five for security. So make sure to factor this in if you plan on keeping the phone for many years.

Cameras Main Lens

Moving on to the cameras in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro. We have a clear winner on paper in the Ultra, which has the most lenses and the biggest numbers on the spec sheet with that 108-megapixel main lens. But we’re experienced enough now to know that numbers don’t mean everything.

I’ve previously said that the 14 Pro Max has the best camera on a smartphone, but Google has an excellent track record with the Pixel, and the 7 Pro is a new contender. And then the Ultra has the benefit of having undergone numerous optimizations and updates since it’s been out much longer.

So Samsung’s camera is probably as good now as it’s ever going to get. Let me start by showing you some general trends, the main one being that the Pixel consistently showed the most accurate wide balance. The Galaxy shots were slightly cool and pink, and the iPhone shots were slightly green and too warm.

Notice also the natural boker blowing the background with the Pixel and especially the Pro Max compared to the Ultra with close-up subjects, as is characteristic of Samsung, the Ultra often over-saturates and ramps up the contrast, which definitely looks more striking, albeit not realistic. And just look at the pink skin tones here.

It’s quite soft around the edges though, and even noisy around the subject. That’s something we noticed in the full Ultra review as well. And the iPhone and Pixel shots are noticeably sharper and cleaner. Even the iPhone here has oversaturated the colors a bit, so the Pixel offers the most natural and true-to-life image. It is a little dim, but the Pixel’s contrast really brings out that detail in the leaf too.

Again here we can see that white balanced distribution going left to right of green pink and then neutral. This time the Pixels processing gives that oversaturated pop of color. And certainly zooming in, you can see that extra detail captured by the Pixel and the iPhone even more so, a recurring theme that sets them apart from the Ultra.

Sometimes it’s the Ultra that has the best white balance though, so the trends do fluctuate. Once again, the Promax shows the best detail despite having the lowest megapixel count but also spoils this with those overly warm colors.

With these shots here, you can see the same consistency with the processing. And once again there’s some noise with the Ultra shot and the Pixel has the most natural image. But look at the level of detail captured by the Pro Max. This very clearly shows why the megapixel count isn’t everything. All three phones use Pixel binning, so these are the default lower res versions.

But the iPhone and Ultra both allow you to select the four-megapixel range and take a high res image instead. 48 for the Pro Max and 108 for the Ultra. Unfortunately for Samsung, we know that the high res mode can cause the colors to become extremely saturated and you lose out on HDR too. The Pro max almost goes the opposite way. It loses contrast, the colors become flatter and the dynamic range improves, thanks to Apple’s Pro Raw tech.

The downside there is the huge file size, so the iPhone has a trade-off as well. I know some people will like the Ultra’s vibrant and punchy look. It’s like a pre-applied filter for a social media-ready result. But it’s not true to life, and I personally prefer more natural-looking images that I can choose to edit myself if needed. It’s a shame Google doesn’t let you take photos using the full 50 megapixels, so the iPhone takes the lead when it comes to sharpeners and detail iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

Here you can see a similar natural white balance with the Pixel and Ultra, whereas the Promax shot is way too warm. It’s also quite a lot brighter, but with Apple prioritizing the subject as they often do, it’s resulted in slightly blown-out highlights. Keep an eye on the sky here as we switch to the high res modes because the Ultra now becomes blown out, warmer in color, and richer in contrast, whereas the iPhone HDR, albeit in need of some editing, improves.

And once again, just to show off the difference in sharpness and the level of detail, the Pixel and Ultra are fairly similar, but the iPhone takes a strong lead. As I said, these are general trends and what you’ll see most often, but not always here the Pixel shows natural colors, is the cleanest, and easily the best photo.

The Ultra is a little oversaturated and warm, but as you probably spotted this straight away, just look how awful the PROMAC shot is. That’s older OnePlus levels are bad in terms of processing the colors and saturation are way off. With portrait mode, the Pixel punches in quite a lot more and despite only using the main lens, usually offers an accurate cutout and the most natural-looking portrait effect. The Ultra’s cutout is more shallow and has sharper edges. However, you get the advantage of having two different focal lengths.

With the Promax, the cutout is more subtle, but you also have three different focal lenses to choose from, so it’s a bit more versatile in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

Cameras Zoom

So let’s look at the zoom now and notice the consistency between lenses is actually better on the iPhone and Ultra than the Pixel. The iPhone shots are all too cool, and the Ultra shots are all too pink, but there’s less variation than with the Pixel. We’ve got a 3x optical lens on the iPhone, 5x on the Ultra in Pixel, and then an extra 10x lens on the Ultra as well.

And if I crop in on this 10x shot here, you can immediately see how the Android phones offer far better zoom performance than the Pro Max, which really struggles as it approaches its maximum zoom level at 15x.

The Pixel does a surprisingly good job of keeping up with the Ultra, thanks to Google’s software. Despite only having one telephoto lens, though generally, the ultra has an edge at this zoom level here at 50x, I’m now cropping on the pixel as well, since that max is out at 30. And you can see that the ultra shot is cleaner and the sharpening Samsung applies helps to refine the edges. Some would argue that Google’s processing is more natural than Samsung’s, even though the image isn’t quite as clean.

So that’s now more to your own preference as to which you think looks better. But don’t forget that the ultra can take a 50x zoom shot on the phone itself and even a 100x shot, whereas you need to crop later on iPhone and pixel shots for these extreme zoom levels. So overall it’s a clear third party for the iPhone and despite a good effort from the Pixel, the Ultra is still the king for zoom photography. Macro shots, on the other hand, I’d give to the Pixel iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

The Ultra has a really nice exposure and the detail is almost as good as on the Pixel. Both are better than the iPhone, but the Pixel has a slight edge and wins again for the white balance.

Cameras Night Mode

Now, with low light and night mode, this is where the Ultra usually struggles compared to the other two. I first wanted to show the Ultra wide lens shots where the Pixel is the clear winner with easily the cleanest image, but then switching to the main lens is the 14 Pro Max that really pulls ahead in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro. Again, the Ultra is struggling with noise and you can see that the Pixel is letting that orange light affect the color in the sky, whereas the iPhone handles this really well.

Just to give you some context in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro, this is how dark the scene actually was. That’s what I could see with my own eyes, so it’s a pretty impressive result here I was initially struck by two things the greater detail shown by the iPhone but also the excellent color contrast on the Pixel, especially in that blue sign.

The Android phones raise the shadow exposure more and therefore reveal more detail there, which can of course be of benefit. Although this isn’t as realistic. The problem for the Ultra is that this has led to slightly overexposed highlights switching to the high res modes This is where the iPhone excels in low lights because of Pro Raw.

It offers the best dynamic range here because the shadows stay as dark as they should be. But the highlights aren’t overexposed. It’s the best representation of the real-life scene. You can see that trying to use the high res mode with the Ultra is no good at night and the highlights are completely blown out.

And zooming in you can see how much the iPhone benefits from the full 48 megapixels and is ahead in terms of detail and sharpness. With a bit more light the results can change. And here is the Ultra with the best low-light performance and the Pro Max with the worst. First of all, the Ultras HDR is the best and you can see that the highlights are blown out on the Pixel, and especially on the iPhone. The Promax shot is too green, and the white balance is much better with the Android phones here.

So although the Ultra typically had the poorest low light performance, it depends on the situation, and it will sometimes beat the other two phones in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

Cameras Video

With low-light video. There’s a pretty obvious difference in quality. The Ultra is really struggling here with the Autofocus. The image resolution, and the highlights it’s obviously bad, the Pixel is doing pretty good, but the overexposure to compensate for the lack of light results in a noisy image, whereas the Promax video is super clean and handles the exposure really well.

You see a similar difference in the day as well. The Ultras video has oversaturated colors, but the main issue is how unusually soft it is, and even noisy in places, even when there’s good lighting. This is something we talked about in the full review as well, and the general video performance is disappointing.

The Pixel only slightly oversaturates the colors, but is much closer to the iPhone in terms of sharpness, albeit noticeably dimmer as well. Still, neither can compete with the sharpness detail, and smoothness of the Promax, which is why Apple still holds a clear lead for smartphone video.

Front Cameras

Switching to the front cameras, the Pro Max captures the most detail. The white balance is also too warm. The Pixel, on the other hand, is too pink with skin tones and also has the softest image. The Ultra sharpens selfies the most and also raises the shadow exposure, so features like hair appear really detailed in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

If you zoom in, you can see that it’s actually a bit oversharpened, even noisy around the subject, and the colors are slightly off. For instance, my eyes look more yellow than green, it’s lacking contrast, which is why it’s harder to see the scratch on my cheek that Lily kindly gave me about ten minutes before taking these, and which is most obvious on the Pro Max.

So there’s not really an obvious winner here, but I’ve probably still said the Ultra, especially because of the high res 40-megapixel mode for selfies. With selfie video, the Pixel is again the softest, so the Ultra video looks better, but the Pro Max is noticeably ahead in terms of brightness and sharpness.

Apple prioritizes the subject exposure, especially on the front lens, which unfortunately means the highlights in the background are blown out. So the HDR is better on Android phones. But I understand why Apple does this for selfie videos, and I think the trade-off is worth it overall in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

I think overall the Pixels camera is technically the best in most situations. It will more accurately capture a photo that’s true to the real-life scene, which is how you’d objectively appraise a camera’s quality. Samsung has some seriously impressive hardware and the zoom performance is second to none, but the camera is let down by the software and Samsung’s aggressive image processing similarly, the iPhone has some white balance and HDR issues, but the level of detail it captures is unrivaled.

I still think it has the best overall camera system factoring in the low light and video performance too. So despite some strong competition, the 14 Pro Max holds onto its camera crown.

There’s a lot more we could delve into here for the hardcore camera enthusiasts that could easily make up a full-length camera comparison, video on its own, HDR recording, cinematic in action modes, raw photography and so much more. So let me know in the comments if you’d want to see a further in-depth camera comparison as well iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

Which Phone Should You Buy?

So which of these phones is the best overall? But of course, we need to factor in the price, and I’ll show you both the original pricing and the current prices at the time of recording. Obviously, the Ultra, having been out longer, will be easier to find at a big discount.

But prices and discounts are really going to vary by country and when you buy the phone, generally, the Pixel 7 Pro undercuts the other two for the price by quite a big margin, which I think is massive for its overall value. Spec-wise is not quite as impressive as the Ultra or Pro Max, but I think the overall package offers the best value in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

I’d say the iPhone 14 Pro Max is technically the most impressive phone with the best display, specs, battery life, performance, and arguably cameras as well. You’ve got to hand it to Apple for the execution on the 14 Pro Max. Even if this wasn’t the most exciting development from last year’s model, here in the UK at least, it is by far the most expensive though.

On the other hand, you could easily argue that actually, it’s the Ultra that is the most capable phone. It falls only just share of the iPhone in most of those categories, but with the Spen and the extensive suite of extra features, you can do more with the Galaxy than the other two phones.

It all comes down to what you need from your phone and how you plan to use it. The point I’m trying to make is that personal preference is a huge factor. These phones are close enough in performance that your preference for maybe a particular design, or perhaps its iOS or Android that you want in iPhone 14 Pro Max Vs Samsung s22 Ultra Vs Pixel 7 Pro.

Everyone has their own specific factor that will sway you one way or the other. On a personal note, my favorite phone this year has been the Pixel 7 Pro. It looks great, it satisfies all of my needs, and I think it beats the other two here in terms of value for money. But this article is really designed to highlight all of the differences, the pros and cons of each phone, and that way you can decide for yourself which is the best smartphone of 2022. So let me know in the comments what your answer is to that question.

Maybe it’s none of these phones and you have an alternative that deserves the crown. Thank you very much for reading, and I’ll see you at the next one.