Apple today unveiled the eagerly anticipated iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus. Although the rumor mill proved accurate, Apple’s presentation delivered a few pleasant surprises, including a unique and intuitive new way to interact with your iPhone via touch and some truly stunning new camera improvements and tricks.

But, how does the new iPhone 6s stack up against the Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. recently-launched flagship, the Samsung Galaxy S6 edge+? Granted, the Galaxy s6 edge+ has the larger 5.7-inch screen and features the unique dual-curved edges, but the iPhone 6s really brings the fight to Samsung.

iPhone 6s vs. Galaxy S6 edge+: Design, specs, special features, pricing, more

Design and dimension

iPhone 6s: 138.1x67x6.9 mm, 129 grams. The color lineup now includes a new rose gold in addition to the silver, gold and space gray previously available. As expected the iPhone 6s looks identical to its predecessor, the iPhone 6, but is made from stronger 7000 series aluminum.

Galaxy S6 edge+: 154.4 x 75.8 x 6.9mm, 153g. The device is available in a new color, Silver Titanium, along with existing colors Black Sapphire, White Pearl and Gold Platinum.

Display

iPhone 6s: 4.7-inch Retina display, 1334×750 (326ppi) with 3D Touch. Covered in new glass manufactured with dual ion-exchange process. Apple claims its the strongest smartphone glass in the industry.

Galaxy S6 edge+: 5.7-inch Quad HD Super AMOLED, 2560 x 1440 (518ppi), dual edge screen

Internal components

iPhone 6s: The iPhone 6s  comes equipped with Apple’s new 64-bit A9 chip said to be 70 percent faster than the A8 chip in the iPhone 6. It also includes Apple’s M9 motion coprocessor for health and fitness tracking. Onboard storage options include: 16GB, 64GB, and 128GB models.

Galaxy S6 edge+: Samsung’s Exynos 7422 64-bit Octa core chip (2.1GHz Quad + 1.5GHz Quad), 4GB RAM, and 32GB or 64GB onboard storage.

Camera

iPhone 6s: Perhaps the single biggest improvement over previous models, the iPhone 6s boasts a 12-megapixel rear iSight camera capable of shooting both HD and 4K video. The FaceTime camera has also received a significant bump and now has 5-megapixels and a Retina flash that uses the iPhones screen as a flash for selfies by lighting up the screen 3x brighter than normal.

A new feature called ‘Live Photos’ automatically takes still shots 1.5 seconds before and after the main image and lets users view an animated picture as a mini movie.

Galaxy S6 edge+:  16 megapixel rear cameras and 5-megapixel front cameras capable of shooting 4K.

Sensors

iPhone 6s: Touch ID, Barometer, Three-axis gyro, Accelerometer, Proximity sensor, Ambient Light Sensor.

Galaxy S6 edge+: Accelerometer, Proximity, RGB Light, Geo-magnetic, Gyro, Fingerprint, Barometer, Hall, HRM.

Battery

iPhone 6s: No detail provided, but we expect the battery to be on par with the 2,915mAh unit in the iPhone 6.

Galaxy S6 edge+: 3,000mAh, 90-minute wired charging time and 120-minutes wireless charging.

Operating system

iPhone 6s: iOS 9, due out September 16.

Galaxy S6 edge+: Android 5.1 (Lollipop)

Special features

iPhone 6s: As anticipated, the iPhone 6s includes Force Touch, renamed ‘3D Touch’, described by Apple as the next generation on multi touch. 3D Touch distinguishes between a tap, a press and a deep press to let users ‘peak’ into apps and ‘pop’ between apps.

With iPhone 6s, Siri is now always on, allowing users to ask Siri stuff without touching their iPhone.

Galaxy S6 edge+:  The dual edge screen is a unique feature and the addition of Apps Edge allows users to access most-used or favorite apps and contacts by swiping the edge of the device. Samsung also introduced Live Broadcast which allows users to directly stream from your phone to YouTube.

Support for Samsung’s mobile payments service, Samsung Pay, which is compatible for use with NFC and MAGSTRIPE readers so it is virtually accepted everywhere a credit or debit card is accepted. It can store credit and debit card information and it is the first mobile payments solution to support store-branded credit cards.

Pricing and availability

iPhone 6s: Apple has kept the pricing for the iPhone 6s the same as that of the iPhone 6, $199 for the 16GB, $299 for 64GB and $399 for the 128GB version on a 24-month contract. Apple also introduced a new iPhone upgrade plan at $32 per month for an unlocked iPhone on a carrier of your choice and it allows you to get a new iPhone every year.

Pre-orders for the iPhone 6s open on Saturday, September 12 and the device goes on sale in multiple countries on September 25.

Galaxy S6 edge+: 64GB at $859.99, 32GB at $779.99 from T-Mobile with no contract.

Screenshot: SiliconANGLE