Yes, the Samsung is better. Important is not only the baseband modem, the Qualcomm MDM 9645M, but also the RF Front End, the number of antennas, and the antenn

Yes, the Samsung is better. Important is not only the baseband modem, the Qualcomm MDM 9645M, but also the RF Front End, the number of antennas, and the antenna design. Both units have the Qualcomm X12 MDM9645M baseband modem and two transceivers, Qualcomm WTR3925 and WTR4905. But the iPhone has only 2 antennas and only able to support 4x2 MIMO while the Samsung has 4 antennas does currently support the 4x4 MIMO. The 256 QAM DL/ 64 QAM UL can be turned on with a firmware upgrade in both phones. Neither phone has it turned on at this time. The EVS -- Enhanced Voice Services offers significantly improved voice quality over even the HD voice with an improved codec and a better packet communications layer. Samsung has EVS turned on, the iPhone does not. The 4x4 MIMO, 256 QAM, and EVS are also contingent on the carriers implementing these features, but these are available on T-mobile and will soon be available on Verizon. I am disappointed that Apple did not do at least as good of a job as Samsung which provides the 4x4 MIMO, 256 QAM, and EVS. The 4x4 MIMO and 256 QAM are important not only for better signal quality but also a better use of spectrum, which in large cities is going to be an issue in the (near) future. One other feature to look out for is Band 66 support which covers the newly purchased AWS-3 spectrum (US). The LG V20 phone coming out at the end of this month will be the first phone to support band 66. In this sense, both the Samsung phone and the iPhone are already obsolete.