iPhone 15 Pro could beat Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra on display quality

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iPhone 15 Pro could use a Samsung-built display like the Galaxy S23 Ultra — but a much newer version

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra display showing fountain photo
(Image credit: Future)

The displays on the iPhone 15 Pro and rumored iPhone 15 Ultra may easily defeat the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra's simply because they'll be years newer.

Leaker chunvn8888 is claiming that while the new iPhone and latest Galaxy will both use Samsung Display-made panels, the new top-tier iPhones will use a newer "M13" panel, while the Galaxy S23 Ultra uses an older "M11" panel.

Samsung's apparently been using this display for a while. Chunvn888 says the M11 panel appeared first on the Galaxy S21 Ultra in 2021, and was also used on the Galaxy S22 Ultra last year before appearing again on the latest Galaxy S23 Ultra.

It's amusing to think that Samsung isn't using its own latest technology, but Samsung's display and mobile divisions are two parts of a separate, enormous company, and operate independently. Samsung's phone bosses have no doubt considered using the latest display tech from their colleagues in the display department, but for whatever reason decided to stick with their existing screens, rather than pursue the latest advancements like Apple apparently is.

In our Galaxy S23 Ultra review, we really liked the phone's 6.8-inch QHD 120Hz display, which we measured to offer better color gamut coverage and color accuracy than the iPhone 14 Pro Max, although it wasn't quite as bright as the iPhone's display. So with Samsung showing how well an older display can still perform it'll be interesting to see how a display with two generations of improvements could improve on it. Equally, we may find that the key to a great display isn't the hardware, but other tweaks made by the individual companies using these screens. 

Richard Priday
Richard Priday
Assistant Phones Editor

Richard is based in London, covering news, reviews and how-tos for phones, tablets, gaming, and whatever else people need advice on. Following on from his MA in Magazine Journalism at the University of Sheffield, he's also written for WIRED U.K., The Register and Creative Bloq. When not at work, he's likely thinking about how to brew the perfect cup of specialty coffee.