Despite smartphones like theOppo discover X8 Pro , Apple iPhone 16 Pro , andGalaxy S25 Ultracosting more , the $ 1,000 damage point has still proven to be the ultimate fighting challenge of the smartphone industriousness .
While some companies offer up smartphones above this price , these are knight as ultra - premium flagship smartphones , and the flagship smartphone market is see by the good that a company can offer at , or downcast than , the wizardly $ 1,000 price decimal point .
Two company that have excellent offerings at this price are Samsung and OnePlus . The latter launched the OnePlus 13 a few weeks ago , and last calendar week , Samsung unveiled its solution : the Galaxy S25 Plus . However , while the OnePlus 13 features several improvement over last year ’s OmePlus 13 , Samsung ’s late smartphone is near identical to its predecessor .
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TheGalaxy S24 Plusoffered an excellent all - around experience , but with acompetitor that we dub magnificent , does the nearly - identicalGalaxy S25 Plusoffer enough ? Specifically , is its unaltered camera still one of the best ? Let ’s find out in this brief photographic camera compare .
Samsung Galaxy S25+ vs OnePlus 13 camera specs
Before we dig into showing the difference between these two tv camera in real - world performance , let ’s take a quick face at the television camera specs of each sound :
By far the biggest difference is each party ’s approach to the camera . Samsung has opted to hold back its current scheme of three cameras with three unlike resolutions , whereas the OnePlus 13 follows the Oppo discovery X8 Pro by choose for the same resolution sensing element across each photographic camera .
As we ’ve antecedently covered , this help oneself theFind X8 have the best smartphone cameraI’ve used mighty now — and that was without the second telephotograph of its Pro sibling — so does the OnePlus 13 continue the same movement ?
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Galaxy S25 Plus vs OnePlus 13: Zoom Tests
The Galaxy S25 Plus is not the Galaxy S25 Ultra so it does n’t have the same claims of 100X zoom , but the 3x telephoto lens is a fundamental reason to buy one of Samsung ’s small Galaxy S25 camera . Meanwhile , the OnePlus 13 promises fantabulous zoom performance on the OnePlus 13 , and on paper , it should offer good resolving thanks to the high resolution camera . It also offers more than 30x rapid climb — appropriate it to contend with the Galaxy S25 Ultra — whereas the Galaxy S25 Plus is by design throttle to 30x .
However , better ironware does n’t always translate into estimable public presentation , so how does each camera do ? get ’s reckon at a few zoom tests at each focal duration on these cameras .
There ’s no doubt that the Galaxy S25 Plus camera is importantly inferior to the OnePlus 13 here . In particular , I find many of the rapid growth length on the Galaxy S25 Plus to be just usable , whereas the OnePlus 13 is useable even at 100X rapid growth . Also , the Galaxy S25 Plus is limited to just 30x whereas the OnePlus 13 is more akin to the Galaxy S25 Ultra in its capabilities .
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Of course , you may not be concerned in zooming into building and balconies , but what about taking photos of a cruise ship ? This test show the point that each earpiece can catch at the high rapid growth storey , but again , the Galaxy S25 Plus is much poor than the OnePlus 13 . In many ways , the Galaxy S25 Plus is akin to a television camera from a few years ago , whereas the OnePlus 13 can challenge any smartphone at a like Mary Leontyne Price point .
I conducted several other Zoom mental testing , but they all ultimately cease in the same elbow room , with the Galaxy S25 Plus photos importantly inferior to the OnePlus 13 . However , is it the same when capturing lowlight photos ?
This tryout surprise me , more so because the Galaxy S25 Plus exceeded my expectations , at least based on its performance in daylight . At first , I thought this was potential due to the OnePlus 13 underperforming , but I think the Galaxy S25 Plus is far more able in low light than it is during bright lights .
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Other run yielded similar upshot , have in mind this is n’t just a one - off and rather is significative that Samsung ’s optimizations for lowlight have cede with child results , but at the hurt of daylight carrying into action .
Galaxy S25 Plus vs OnePlus 13: Portrait Mode Test
One of my preferred features on a Samsung earphone camera is the portrait mode . Samsung was one of the first companies to enhance the portrait mood capabilities on its smartphones , and as a result , there ’s a host of different background effects you may choose from . The good matter ? you could exchange the background signal effect after you ’ve taken the picture .
Meanwhile , the OnePlus 13 takes a different approach . OnePlus has focused on cook its background blur effect the best it can be , but much like Huawei and Oppo , it allows you to shift the aperture — and therefore , the depth of study — before or after you take the photo .
With that said , do a direct comparison of all the features is n’t possible , but it is possible to practice the nonpayment out - of - the - boxful portrait mode option and see how each speech sound compare .
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Both phone are fairly adequate here with selfie slam and while the cleverness is better on the OnePlus 13 , I think the detail and backcloth is slightly secure on the Galaxy S25 Plus . Samsung also has more options in the camera allowing you to get really creative with your portrait photos .
What about selfies ? Here ’s how each phone performed with a immediate selfie test in day .
Samsung has outperformed the OnePlus 13 here as the latter has a unusual hue across the photo , whereas the Samsung has groovy color and background particular reproduction . Alongside the good detail and color , I also love that Samsung lets you use all of its portrait modality options with the front tv camera , as well as the rearward tv camera .
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Galaxy S25 Plus vs OnePlus 13: Video Zoom Tests
Part of the reason to buy the Galaxy S25 serial is the tops smooth television rapid climb , which makes it well-fixed to transition between dissimilar Lens , particularly when exploring the max rapid climb lengths . To test this , I conducted the same TV zoom psychometric test on both the OnePlus 13 and the Galaxy S25 Plus . Which is upright ?
permit ’s take a facial expression , start with a day rapid growth examination on the Galaxy S25 Plus .
Now permit ’s take a look at the same test on the OnePlus 13 .
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Of course , it ’s not just during the daylight that you may be tempted to test Zoom , so how does each do when there ’s significantly less weak ? permit ’s take a further looking at them , originate with the Galaxy S25 Plus .
Now have ’s calculate at the OnePlus 13 :
Unsurprisingly , neither earpiece is particularly good at zooming in lowlight , and I would just avoid using either for lowlight zoom video recording . That say , at the lower zoom focal lengths , the OnePlus 13 appears much sharper and vindicated , and while each fails at the high focal length , the OnePlus 13 seems to be more usable before it reaches that point .
OnePlus 13Nirave Gondhia / Digital Trends
What about the Galaxy S25 Ultra?
The OnePlus 13 beats the Galaxy S25 Plus in many of the camera shootouts , especially when consider the former ’s operation in our zoom trial , but what about Samsung ’s ultra - flagship ? This have a secondary telephoto electron lens that offers 5x optical rapid growth and is more akin to the dual telephoto frame-up on the OnePlus 13 ’s cousin , the Find X8 professional .
As it turns out , even a subaltern television camera and a higher cost tag are n’t enough for Samsung to topple the OnePlus 13 , which reaffirm how impressive OnePlus ’s latest flagship smartphone is . We ’ve mystify a more elaborate equivalence in the works , but here are a few examples of how the OnePlus 13 stacks up against the Galaxy S25 Ultra at each of the dissimilar zoom focal lengths outline in the camera finder .
Here ’s the cruise ship model from above , also captured on the Galaxy S25 Ultra .
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It ’s worth remark that most of these are the same , but the OnePlus 13 has a 6x choice while the Galaxy S25 Ultra use a 5x option , but only the latter offers ocular zoom at this focal length . Despite this departure , I would pick the OnePlus 13 for its camera versus Samsung ’s bigger flagship , which is a statement I did n’t carry to make as this twelvemonth ’s smartphones were all unveil . This is a much closer contest than against the Galaxy S25 Plus , which shows the capabilities of the OnePlus 13 and its location against Samsung ’s latest card .
Which smartphone camera should you use?
croak into this comparison , I expect it to be clean close , but I ’m quite surprised at just how improved the OnePlus 13 is . The Galaxy S25 Plus is as capable as the Galaxy S24 Plus , but the biggest challenge for Samsung is that the rival has become much tougher .
The OnePlus 13 has nearly identical camera specification , but OnePlus has solved its camera woes of old years , and the result is a knockout triumph . While the Galaxy S25 Plus proffer slight improvements thanks to the improved ISP in the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy C.P.U. , the same mainframe — and better overall hardware — delivers a vastly superior television camera experience on the OnePlus 13 .
If you ’re look for a $ 1,000 smartphone and have narrowed down your choice to these two phones , and the tv camera is the most significant broker , look no further as the OnePlus 13 is the photographic camera that I would choose . Of of course , barrage animation and charging are also extremely important , but it turn out that the OnePlus 13 metre not only the Galaxy S25 Plus but even the more expensive flagship Galaxy S25 Ultra in this regard .
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OnePlus 13 3xNirave Gondhia / Digital Trends
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