We’ve been tracking down deals all week, but the level of Black Friday shopping is almost over. Of course there will be one last storm on Cyber Monday, but if you have any holiday shopping to do, don’t put it off any longer.
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The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra remains a unique productivity tool with its built-in S Pen and Dex support. You can use USB-C for wired video, but wireless screencasting works too, so the Ultra is very versatile.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra and Google Pixel 10 Pro XL
The Ultra is also the best Samsung camera phone right now. The 2026 model is coming in a few months, but rumors about it dampen expectations of a major upgrade. This generation, Samsung upgraded the ultra-wide camera to a 50MP sensor, up from 12MP on the S24 Ultra (here’s how the two phones compare). The phone already has a large 200MP 1/1.3″ sensor and two telephoto cameras: a 50MP 5x/111mm periscope and a 10MP 3x/67mm mid-range telephoto camera.
The Google Pixel 10 Pro XL benefits from Google’s experiences in UI design, messaging, AI and more. However, its hardware suffers from an underperforming Tensor G5 chipset – it’s nowhere near the performance of the Galaxy’s Snapdragon 8 Elite. And Google is working with Samsung on building Android 16’s native desktop experience.
Pixel cameras had their all-around brilliance – they captured miracles with aging hardware. Now the Pixel 10 Pro XL has competitive hardware with a 50MP 1/1.31″ main, 48MP 5x/113mm periscope and 48MP ultra-wide. Photos still have that “Pixel feel”, although they’ve fallen behind the market leaders in terms of quality. Fortunately, Google and Samsung aren’t available at their best.
There are other things to consider — the Pixel 10 Pro XL had a brighter screen when we tested it (reaching 2,340 nits compared to 1,417 nits for the S25 Ultra), but the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra had better battery life (14:49h vs. 12:29h active usage score). The Samsung also scored 100% faster (0:59h vs 1:22h).
The Google Pixel 10 Pro has the same chipset and cameras, so the same considerations apply. The phone is equipped with the brightest display we’ve ever tested and measures 6.3″ in size. The relatively large 4,870mAh battery won’t last as long as we’d like with a 12:06H active usage score. Slow charging doesn’t help either.
Then there’s the Google Pixel 10 – it’s the same size as the 10 Pro, but has a lower resolution display (1080p+ vs 1280p+) and dials back the brightness a bit (it’s still one of the brightest displays you’ll find).
Foldables
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 impresses with its dimensions – it measures 158.4 x 72.8 x 8.9 mm and weighs 215 grams. The Pixel 10 Pro XL is 162.8 x 76.6 x 8.5mm and 232g. Yes, the non-folding Pro XL is slightly larger and heavier than the folding Samsung! The Pixel 10 Pro Fold measures 155.2 x 76.3 x 10.8 mm and weighs 258 grams.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold
Performance and multitasking are firmly in Samsung’s favor – the Snapdragon 8 Elite undercuts the Tensor G5 and DeX is more robust than Android 16 desktop mode.
Neither phone can match its rugged counterpart’s camera hardware. The Samsung has a 200MP 1/1.3″ main like the S25 Ultra and the same mid-range telecamera, 10MP 3x/67mm, but no periscope and just a 12MP sensor on the ultra-wide. The Pixel has a smaller 48MP 1/2.0″ sensor in the main and similarly unfocused 10.5MP. Its upper hand is the long telephoto lens on its 10.8mp 5x/112mm camera.
The Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold has a price advantage over the Galaxy Z Fold 7, despite being $100 less on a phone that doesn’t cost more than $1,000. Both phones promise 7 years of OS upgrades. Whether their chipset and RAM capabilities (only 12GB on the Galaxy vs 16GB on the Pixel) is enough in the 2030s.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 is a significant upgrade from its predecessor. Uses the room with a regular shape when closed on the Z Flip 6 more easily than the oddly shaped 3.4.
Also, the new model is slimmer (6.5mm open and 13.7mm closed vs 6.9mm and 14.9mm) with a larger 4,300mAh battery (+300mah) to boot. The Akinos 2500 is a bit of a curveball if you were expecting a Snapdragon, but it’s certainly fast enough — the ZFlip 7 is even the first ZFlip with DeX support. Unfortunately, Samsung neglected to upgrade the cameras—a 50MP main (1/1.57″) and a 12MP ultra-wide get you.
The Motorola Razr Ultra 2025 has been named as the best flip phone ever. It features a 4.0″ cover and a 7.0″ internal display (vs. 6.9″ on the Samsung). Both phones are rated IP48 for basic internal protection and weather resistance.
The RAZR uses the Snapdragon 8 Elite that you’d expect out of Samsung. And it has more RAM to boot, 16GB vs 12GB. Not ready to help with that, however, is Motorola’s replacement for Dex.
With a large 4,700mAh battery, the Moto Razr Ultra 2025 lasts longer (15:10h vs 11:52h active usage score). 68W wired charging is much faster than Samsung’s 25W. In half an hour, this phone reaches 78%, compared to 46% (despite filling a battery that is 400mah larger). A full charge takes half the time – 45 minutes vs 1 hour 31 minutes. Wireless charging is also faster, 30W vs 15W.
Motorola is only promising 3 OS updates and an additional year of security patches for the RAZR. This is much smaller than the 7 OS updates that Samsung is promising for the Galaxy Z Flip 7. To make matters worse, the Galaxy launched with Android 16, while the RAZR launched with Android 15, which widens the gap in updates.
Alternatives
The good news – the vanilla Pixel 10 uses the same chipset as the two Pro phones. The bad news – well, we’ve already covered that. We’ll note that the 128GB phones (both vanilla and Pro) use slower UFS 3.1 storage, so you’ll want to pick up at least a 256GB phone for the faster UFS 4.0 chips (and extra storage, of course). Battery life is about the same as the Pixel 10 Pro.
This phone is equipped with mid-range cameras.
We have a detailed Pixel 10 vs Pixel 10 Pro article if you want a more in-depth comparison between the two 6.3″ options.
The OnePlus 15 finally got the green light from the FCC, but it’s not available yet (we’ll check back on Cyber Monday). So, let’s take a look at its predecessor. You can pick up the base 12/256GB OnePlus 13 for $700 and the upgrade to 16/512GB is $100 more. Even though it’s a previous-gen chip, the Snapdragon 8 Elite is still one of the fastest and the 6.82″ 1440p+ LTPO OLED is great.
The phone is equipped with three 50MP cameras on the back, including a main 1/1.43″ sensor and a 3x/73mm periscope. This part is arguably better than the OnePlus 15. The 6,000mAh battery on the older model won’t last as long as the 7,300mah on the new one (but with an active usage score of 15:28h, that’s a busy day).
Another alternative that steps outside the usual “Apple or Samsung” choices is the Nothing Phone (3). It’s slightly cheaper than the OnePlus at an equivalent memory tier and it shows. The Snapdragon 8S Gen 4 is a step down from the flagship level and so is the 6.67″ 1260p+ non-LTP OLED display.
The phone also has three 50MP cameras on the back, including a huge 1/1.3″ sensor in the main and a 3x periscope. Image quality isn’t quite at the level of the Hasselblad-branded OnePlus camera, however (the latter of its kind, included in the score. Min, compared to 95% of the OnePlus 13).
Note that both phones launched with Android 15 and nothing promises an OS update more than the OnePlus 4. Both phones are already running Android 16, so this is an update.
Refurbished iPhones
The Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max is only a generation behind the current model, but it’s that much cheaper. We have a detailed iPhone 16 Pro Max vs 17 Pro Max comparison article for you. Some of the highlights include a stronger titanium frame instead of scratch-prone aluminum. Battery life is the same, although the new model charges significantly faster (65% vs. 46% in 30 minutes, full charge in 72 minutes vs. 117 minutes).
Camera-wise, you’ll miss out on the new Telefono module—the 16 Pro Max has a 12MP 5x/120mm camera compared to the upgraded 48MP 4x/100mm on the 17 Pro Max. The 2025 phone gets an improved 18MP multi-aspect selfie camera with a wider 20mm lens, compared to the 12MP 23mm camera on the older phone.
The Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max is even cheaper, and the price difference widens if you want more than the base 256GB of storage. Here’s our in-depth iPhone 15 Pro Max vs 16 Pro Max comparison. We also have a 15 Pro Max vs 14 Pro Max article, if you’re upgrading from an older model.
The iPhone 15 Pro Max has a smaller display at 6.7″ compared to 6.7″ on the two most recent editions. It also has a lower-resolution 12MP ultra-wide, which is down from the 48MP you’ll find with the 16 Pro Max. However, telephoto and selfie cameras are essentially the same. Charging is fairly similar, but the 16 Pro Max lasts longer (17:18h vs 16:01h active usage score).
We know some of you prefer smaller phones, so here’s the Apple iPhone 15 Pro. It’s a downscaled 6.1″ version of the Pro Max, however, with some other key differences—like the 12MP telephoto camera has a smaller 3x/77mm lens, down from the 5x/120mm maximum. Here’s a detailed comparison between the two iPhone 15 Pros. We also have an iPhone 14 Pro vs. 15 Pro article.
We recommend either going for the 128GB model as the cheapest option or picking up at least a 512GB unit. Especially with the small difference between the 256GB and 512GB options. With a little patience, you can find the 1TB model for around $700.
The iPhone 16E is only a few months old, but refurbished units are already showing up. It has an Apple A18 chipset, which is newer than the A17 Pro inside the 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max. The single 48MP camera on the back (with a tiny 1/2.55″ sensor) isn’t great, though, as the 16e is relatively small (6.1″ display, 167g), making it a solid option for a second phone.
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