The Samsung Galaxy S21 is rumored to launch in mid-January, and leaks about the highly anticipated phone are trickling in like a broken faucet. The latest leak compares the Galaxy S21 Plus with the iPhone 12 Pro.
YouTube user Random Stuff 2 managed to secure a pre-production model of the Galaxy S21 Plus. Using the 12 Pro as a benchmark, he shows off the S21 Plus' massive screen real estate, picture quality and hole-punch selfie camera (via The Verge).
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Photo comparison: Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus vs. iPhone 12 Pro
Here at Laptop Mag, we love a good face-off between two top-of-the-line smartphones (see our iPhone 12 vs. Samsung Galaxy FE battle), so we're excited to see the Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus go head-to-head with the iPhone 12 Pro.
YouTube user Random Stuff 2 took a picture of a park scene with both the Galaxy S21 Plus and the 12 Pro. If you've been waffling between purchasing the iPhone 12 Pro and waiting for the Galaxy S21 Plus — and industry-leading camera quality is of utmost importance — you'll want to watch this. Just keep in mind, this is a pre-production Galaxy S21 Plus so things can change between now and launch.
Although the video quality of the phone face-off is shoddy, we can still spot some salient differences between the photos rendered by the Galaxy S21 Plus and iPhone 12 Pro. The stones within the gravel appear to be sharper and more conspicuous on the iPhone 12 Pro. On the Galaxy S21 Plus, however, the gravel appears to be less defined.
When it comes to colors, the aquamarine and pale-yellow jungle gym appear to be punchier and more vivid on the Galaxy S21 Plus while the iPhone 12 Pro renders cooler, more true-to-life colors. On the iPhone 12 Pro, the playground sand appears to have more delineation, giving you information about its gritty, rough texture. On the Galaxy S21 Plus, on the other hand, the playground sand is seemingly brighter, less defined and slightly overexposed compared to the iPhone 12 Pro.
Although the iPhone 12 Pro may be sharper and offers more accurate colors, this doesn't necessarily mean the Apple flagship phone is better. Some social media creators may prefer photos that are smoother, warmer and more vivid to lessen the harshness of their selfies. Videographers and photographers, however, may prefer raw, true-to-life pictures. It's all about your personal preference.
Holding a dark-gray S21 Plus model, Random Stuff 2 gushed about the S21 Plus's premium finish. According to leaks, this dark-gray model may be the Phantom Gray variant Samsung is poised to release next year. The YouTuber also pointed out the S21 Plus's ultra-bright, colorful, edge-to-edge display. He claims the screen-to-body ratio is 94%.
Geekbench results of the Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
Random Stuff 2 also uploaded the Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus's Geekbench results. The YouTuber suddenly made the video private, but luckily, another user with the moniker sakitech saved the video, giving us some fascinating insight into the S21 Plus's performance.
The Galaxy S21 output a single-core Geekbench 5 score of 1,115 and a multi-core score of 3,326. To give you some perspective, the Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus notched a single-core score of 818 and a multi-core score of 3,076. This isn't a mind-blowing performance leap, but it's certainly an upgrade.
According to our iPhone 12 Pro review, the Apple phone reached a single-core score of 1,585 and a multi-core score of 3,669. This Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus couldn't surpass the iPhone 12 Pro — after all, Apple wasn't kidding when it said its A14 Bionic chip is the world's fastest smartphone processor.
To keep abreast of all the news surrounding the upcoming Samsung phone line, check out our oft-updated Galaxy S21 rumor hub.
