Apple iPhone 12 Vs. Samsung Galaxy S20: Head-To-Head

We compare the most popular new iPhone from Apple’s iPhone 12 series with its closest rival in the 2020 Galaxy S series, the Samsung Galaxy S20.

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For rivals Apple and Samsung, you could say that 2020 has ranked among the biggest years in the smartphone wars since the very beginning. The launches of Apple’s iPhone 12 lineup and Samsung’s Galaxy S20 series have been nothing short of game-changing. For the iPhone 12, Apple debuted high-speed 5G connectivity for the first time while also fully re-designing the iPhone form factor--marking the start of a “new era” for the iPhone, as Apple CEO Tim Cook put it in October. Meanwhile, for the Galaxy S20, Samsung also brought 5G to its full Galaxy S lineup for the first time and switched up its long-running naming convention--skipping from the Galaxy S10 all the way to the Galaxy S20--among other significant updates.

And the iPhone 12 vs Galaxy S20 battle has really only just begun, as the iPhone 12 was delayed past Apple’s usual launch timetable, and has still only been available for a few weeks at this point. These two smartphones represent a key matchup because they really are the models that are geared toward the widest audience in their respective lineups. In other words, they are the iPhone and the Galaxy phone for the most people. But if you’re a prospective buyer looking to compare the two devices--and you’re open to either iOS or Android as an operating system--which is the better fit for you? What follows is our comparison of the new Apple iPhone 12 vs Samsung’s Galaxy S20 on features, specs and price.

Display And Durability

One reason that the iPhone 12 vs Galaxy S20 is a worthy matchup is the display size of each smartphone--which are nearly identical. The Galaxy S20 has just a bit more screen space to offer with its 6.2-inch display, compared to the 6.1-inch display on the iPhone 12. They’re also very close when it comes to their screen-to-body ratio, which has been pegged at about 88.6 percent for the Galaxy S20 and 86 percent for the iPhone 12 thanks to the minimal borders on both devices.

Both displays rate high on vividness and color quality thanks the use of OLED display technology, and both are very high-res--though the Galaxy S20 features a greater number of pixels at 3,200 x 1,440 resolution (or 563 pixels per inch) compared to the iPhone 12’s display resolution of 2,532 x 1,170 (or 460 ppi).

In a nutshell, either display will look terrific. But there is one area where Samsung’s phone stands apart: only the Galaxy S20 offers a 120hz refresh rate, which enables a smoother display experience--which is especially useful for playing games or scrolling through a mobile webpage. The iPhone 12 comes up short here, with the phone sticking with the usual 60hz refresh rate.

However, the previously mentioned redesign on the iPhone 12 did improve display durability, with the introduction of “Ceramic Shield” material to enhance its toughness. Ceramic Shield provides 4X better drop protection for the iPhone 12, Apple said. The phone also offers better protection against submerision, with a water resistance rating that covers a plunge into a depth of nearly 20 feet for a half hour. The Galaxy S20 also offers water resistance for 30 minutes worth of submersion, though it’s to a depth of about 5 feet.

Design

When it comes to the evolution of smartphone designs, device makers do tend to mirror each other--with Apple and Samsung being no exception. That dynamic has played out in their 2020 designs. We’ll explain.

All of the new iPhones, the iPhone 12 included, got a design overhaul that makes the device a lot boxier than it used to be. The iPhone 12 now has a squared-off, flat-edge appearance, in contrast to the curved edges of prior generations of iPhones (dating all the way back to 2014’s iPhone 6). The new iPhone 12 design also removes the border that had separated the stainless steel body and the display--making the body and glass flush.

While it may not be as noticeably dramatic of a change as on the new iPhones, the Galaxy S series did feature this type of design approach first. The Galaxy S20 is a departure from previous Galaxy S models with a substantial reduction of the curved edges on the device--ultimately making the display nearly flat on the top of the phone. Maybe it isn’t a coincidence that Apple went the same route with the iPhone 12 series, or maybe it is, and Apple already had this design in the works. Apple certainly isn’t saying.

Performance And Connectivity

We should start off by saying that speed is really not going to be a problem for either the iPhone 12 or the Galaxy S20. Both have mobile processors that are, simply put, feats of engineering. In other words, your apps and web browsing should load rapidly regardless of which phone you choose. But what about the power users--and particularly, fans of mobile gaming? That’s where small performance gains can start to matter more. And that’s where the iPhone 12 could have an advantage: Apple’s six-core A14 Bionic processor has scored higher on initial benchmarks than the chip powering the Galaxy S20, Qualcomm’s eight-core Snapdragon 865--including on gaming performance.

But speed is not just about the CPU. When you’re out and about, it may have more to do with the cellular service you’re getting. And now, finally, the iPhone can match up to Galaxy phones on supporting 5G. Both variants of the high-speed mobile connectivity are available for the iPhone 12 and Galaxy S20. Those are millimeter-wave (or mmWave), the higher-speed but less widespread version of 5G, as well as the more widely available form, known as sub-6GHz.

Camera

The rear camera system on the iPhone 12 comes with dual 12-megapixel cameras—including a new wide camera, in addition to an ultra-wide camera. The wide camera offers an improved ƒ/1.6 aperture, with the ability to take in 27 percent more light than the iPhone 11 camera, according to Apple. Key camera features include support for Night Mode on every camera, including the 12-megapixel TrueDepth camera on the front. Night Mode is also getting improvements with better contrast and brighter photos in low-light situations, while other camera features include portrait mode with advanced bokeh and depth control, as well as portrait lighting with six effects (Stage, Stage Mono, High‑Key Mono, Natural, Studio and Contour).

The Galaxy S20 sports three rear cameras, including a telephoto camera that offers a stunning 64 megapixels for improved detail in images. The wide-angle and ultra-wide cameras both offer 12 megapixels. Enhanced zoom capabilities are one major addition, with the Galaxy S20 cameras offering up to 30X zoom. Plus, the camera system gets improved night mode capabilities, through automatically increasing sensitivity where needed in a shot to reduce blur.

Meanwhile, Samsung addresses the issue of feature overload with phone cameras on the Galaxy S20—with a new option called “Single Take” that removes the need to decide which mode to use in the spur of the moment. With some help from AI, the Single Take option automatically captures photos and videos using several modes at once—including live focus, ultra-wide and smart crop. Users can then decide which images and videos they want from a gallery of options.

Battery Life, RAM And Storage

Comparing devices on battery life is always a challenge, due to the huge number of variables involved. That’s perhaps why Samsung doesn’t make any promises about potential battery life on the Galaxy S20, instead pointing out that the device has a sizable battery capacity of 4,000 mAh. That’s significantly larger than the battery on the iPhone 12, which has been reported at 2,815 mAh. However, Apple does give some sense of possible battery life on the iPhone 12, with the company saying the device can get up to 17 hours of video playback. The use of high-efficiency cores in the phone’s A14 processor may help to boost the battery life and compensate for the smaller battery capacity on the iPhone 12.

The Galaxy S20 also has a lot more RAM to help with boosting performance--with an amazing 12 GB of RAM included (more than many laptops). The iPhone 12 reportedly has a third of that for RAM, at 4 GB.

On storage, there are three options on the iPhone 12--64 GB, 128 GB or 256 GB. The Galaxy S20, on the other hand, is only available with 128 GB of internal storage--though it also comes with a microSD slot enabling up to 1 TB of additional storage.

Other Details

For the Galaxy S20, additional features include the ability to connect to Samsung’s DeX Android desktop using the phone. The device also comes with support for Network Storage, enabling corporate users to access their own servers when saving files.

In terms of other new features on the iPhone 12, Apple has added support for magnetically attachable MagSafe accessories. The accessories can snap onto the back of the phone and offer another way to perform wireless charging.

Also worth noting: For the iPhone 12, Apple isn’t providing a power adapter plug and the EarPods wired headphones--two accessories that have typically come in the iPhone box in the past.

Price

While differences on smartphone features and specs matter, the buying decision will often come down to price, of course. And while this might’ve been hard to believe not long ago, Apple’s iPhone 12 is actually the more affordable option in this comparison vs Samsung’s Galaxy S20. The starting iPhone 12 price is $799, for a model at the base level of 64 GB of storage. The iPhone 12 cost goes up to $849 for a model with 128 GB of storage--which puts it on par for internal storage with the Galaxy S20 (which is only available with 128 GB). The Galaxy S20 price, meanwhile, runs a not-so-trivial amount higher than the iPhone 12 by coming in at $999.99. In other words, buying the iPhone 12 can save you as much as $200 compared to the Galaxy S20, so long as you’re not picky about how much internal storage you’re going to get. And on an even playing field for storage, Apple’s iPhone 12 price will still be $150 less vs Samsung’s Galaxy S20 price.

A few years back, while the tech world was in shock over Apple’s $1,000 price tag for the iPhone X, who would’ve predicted that an iPhone that’s as capable as the iPhone 12 could ever be the budget pick vs a premium Samsung Galaxy phone? To be fair though, the Galaxy S20 certainly has some key elements that you won’t get with the iPhone 12--particularly around the camera, RAM and display refresh rate. But even with the iPhone 12’s $150-$200 discount compared to the Galaxy S20, the iPhone 12 still has a faster processor--as well as comparable specs in key areas, such as OLED display technology and support for both versions of 5G.