Winner: iPhone 17 Pro MaxImage 1 of 2 Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max (Image credit: Lance Uanoff) Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra (Image credit: Lance Ulanoff)While not a perfect match, I often compared the iPhone 17 Pro Max's 48MP 4x optical zoom to the Galaxy S25 Ultra's 50MP 5x optical zoom. Winner: Samsung Galaxy S25 UltraImage 1 of 2 Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max (Image credit: Lance Ulanoff) Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra (Image credit: Lance Ulanoff)I took the same shot with each phone's main camera and got similar results. Winner: iPhone 17 Pro MaxImage 1 of 2 Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max (Image credit: Lance Ulanoff) Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra (Image credit: Lance Ulanoff)Not all selfie cameras are made equalSamsung's front-facing camera is a 10MP sensor. The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra selfie defaulted to a roughly 4K 2.3MB image, while the iPhone 17 Pro Max captured a nearly 5K 4.1MB image. Where the iPhone 17 Pro Max nudges ahead is on some of the feather details and, more noticeably, on my eaves.