Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra vs Vivo X200 Ultra

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra

The Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy delivers a meaningful generational jump in both CPU and GPU, rivaling Apple's A18 Pro and outscoring the iPhone 16 Pro Max in multi-core. The 40 percent larger vapor chamber keeps the phone cool even under sustained gaming loads. The r/apple thread citing a 36% GPU lead over the iPhone 16 Pro Max generated heated discussion, with most commenters conceding the Snapdragon chip is genuinely fast even if they still wouldn't switch.

• The phone benchmarks crazy high, rivaling Apple's A18 Pro — a little lower in single core but higher in multi-core.
• Samsung's 40 percent larger vapor chamber keeps the phone from warming up in normal use and benchmarks are up 30-40 percent depending on the task.
• Playing Genshin Impact at max settings for nearly an hour produced no stutters and no hot spots — a noticeable improvement over the S24 series.
• Multi-core Geekbench hits 9,793 versus the iPhone 16 Pro Max at 8,772 — the S25 Ultra pulls ahead thanks to extra cores and 12GB of RAM.
• The Snapdragon 8 Elite is the most welcome generational upgrade this year, with a boosted 'for Galaxy' variant delivering more CPU headroom than the standard chip.
• Under heavy loads the S25 Ultra becomes a bit power-hungry, which can cause faster-than-expected battery drain when multitasking or running demanding apps.
• Everyday tasks run smoothly and there was no meaningful performance difference versus the OnePlus 13 running the same chip.
• Apple users on r/apple concede Apple has fallen behind on GPU performance, saying 'competition is good' after the S25 Ultra posted a roughly 36% GPU lead in benchmarks.

Vivo X200 Ultra

The MediaTek Dimensity 9400 with up to 16GB RAM provides flagship performance with impressive power efficiency, outperforming Snapdragon 8 Elite in battery tests.

• The Dimensity 9400 delivers benchmark scores that match Snapdragon 8 Elite while consuming less power — a win for battery life and thermals
• Gaming performance is excellent with Genshin Impact running at stable 60fps and thermal management keeping the phone comfortable during extended sessions
• 16GB RAM ensures excellent multitasking and app retention — the phone handles camera processing and gaming without breaking a sweat

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra

The only new hardware is a 50MP ultrawide with an f/1.9 aperture and autofocus — the 200MP main, 10MP 3x and 50MP 5x telephoto lenses all carry over from the S24 Ultra. Reviewers agree the ultrawide is a genuine improvement and low-light video processing is noticeably cleaner, but colors still skew saturated and shutter lag persists — a complaint echoed on Reddit by would-be switchers. Samsung's imaging is now slightly behind the Vivo X200 Pro and Xiaomi 15 Ultra but remains top-tier.

• The new 50MP ultrawide delivers more fine detail than the S24 Ultra's sensor, and the wider f/1.9 aperture helps keep noise low.
• Some low-light ultrawide shots are sharper than both the Google Pixel 9 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max, but the rest of the cameras feel static.
• Samsung's penchant for slightly overboard sharpening is still visible, though the new ultrawide beats what the Pixel 9 Pro can do.
• Photos straight from the camera are a little too natural-looking, and most shots need editing to look their best.
• The 3x optical zoom uses a small, outdated sensor and is now a weak point of the camera setup.
• All cameras stay the same as on the S24 Ultra except the ultrawide, and Samsung is relying on the new ISP to improve quality.
• The S25 Ultra takes better zoom and ultrawide photos than last year with cleaner skin tones, and shutter lag is finally put to bed.
• Samsung has aimed for consistency, and after six months the stills are vibrant yet muted — pictures up to 15x zoom remain tack-sharp.
• The shutter activation is slow and not as instant as competing phones — a persistent Galaxy flaw Samsung should address.
• Side-by-side low-light video clips versus the S24 Ultra show clearly more fine detail from the S25 Ultra.
• iPhone-curious switchers on r/apple still call out shutter lag as the thing holding them back: 'I just want to open the camera and snap a picture right away. I don't want to have a motion blurred photo.'

Vivo X200 Ultra

The crown jewel — a triple ZEISS camera system headlined by a 200MP 1-inch periscope telephoto that redefines what smartphone zoom can achieve.

• The 200MP 1-inch periscope telephoto is a game-changer — zoom quality at 10x matches or exceeds what most phones deliver at 3x, and 20x remains remarkably usable
• The 50MP 1-inch main sensor with ZEISS T* coating delivers the most natural colors and widest dynamic range of any smartphone — it's a photographer's dream
• ZEISS Multifocal Portrait mode offers 24mm, 35mm, 50mm, 85mm, and 135mm equivalent focal lengths, simulating a professional portrait lens kit
• Video quality is excellent at 4K60 with Dolby Vision HDR, though stabilization at maximum zoom can be shaky in handheld scenarios