I’ve been a Samsung fan for a long, long time. I’m also an Android fan, so I don’t spend my days wishing I had an iPhone instead. Samsung gives me almost everything I want in a flagship smartphone, and the stuff Apple usually does better isn’t the stuff I care about.But there’s one thing that makes me envy the iPhone as a Samsung fan, or at least the iPhone Pro models: the cameras.Samsung makes you buy the Ultra for the best camerasHere’s what frustrates me: if you’re a Samsung fan and want the best telephoto camera in the Galaxy S lineup, you’ve got just one option: the Ultra. The base and Plus models have never really moved beyond 3x. In fact, the Galaxy S20 and S21 didn't even have a true 3x telephoto camera. They just used a high-resolution sensor and cropped the image to achieve the same effect.The Ultra has been the only Galaxy S model with 5x optical zoom for the last couple of years. Before that, it even had a dedicated 10x telephoto lens. The problem is that the Ultra isn’t just the most capable camera phone. It’s also the biggest, most expensive, and the only model that comes with an S Pen whether you want it or not.Basically, if you want a more versatile camera system, Samsung leaves you with only one choice: its biggest and most expensive flagship. The Ultra models are excellent, and if you buy one, you'll probably be happy. But if you prefer a smaller and/or less expensive phone, you have to settle for noticeably weaker camera hardware.And it’s no longer just the telephoto camera. The Galaxy S25 Ultra and Galaxy S26 Ultra are also the only models in the lineup with Samsung’s higher-resolution ultrawide camera. The base and Plus models still use multiple lenses with older camera sensors. I don’t think the Ultra’s 200MP main camera is essential, but the gap elsewhere is becoming harder to ignore.Apple doesn’t make you chooseNow look at what Apple is doing, at least since the iPhone 16 lineup. The Pro and Pro Max models share the exact same camera system. Apple even upgraded both models again with the iPhone 17 series, so choosing the smaller Pro doesn’t mean giving up camera quality.The iPhone 17 Pro is compact enough to use comfortably with one hand, yet it delivers the same photography experience as the Pro Max. The Pro Max is Apple’s version of the Ultra (or is it the other way around?), but it isn’t your only option if you want the company’s best cameras.And yes, Samsung’s Ultra still has the edge when it comes to long-range photography. But Apple’s smaller Pro model gets much closer to its biggest flagship than Samsung’s regular Galaxy S phones do.That’s the part I envy. Not every iPhone has killer zoom — the regular iPhone 17 doesn’t even have a telephoto lens. It’s just that once you move past the base model, the size of the phone doesn’t decide the quality of your camera. Samsung has no answer to that.What about Samsung’s foldables?It’s the same story with Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold lineup: you get a 3x telephoto camera on everything from the Galaxy Z Fold 4 to the Z Fold 7. The Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra is expected to have just a 3x telephoto as well.And I have no hope this will change anytime soon. Apple will reportedly launch its first foldable iPhone this year without a telephoto camera, and Samsung will probably use that as an excuse not to improve the Galaxy Z Fold lineup either. In fact, the non-Ultra Z Fold 8 will have just two rear cameras as well.Plus, foldables are expensive and fragile, so I don’t really count them as an option. I want the Galaxy S lineup to get better, as that’s the lineup my daily driver comes from.The Galaxy S27 Pro may change the dynamicThankfully, there’s some hope that this limitation won’t be a problem much longer. Samsung’s launching a Galaxy S27 Pro next year. Unlike the S26 Pro, which didn’t end up being a real device, the Galaxy S27 Pro exists and will be a fourth model sitting between the Plus and Ultra models.The leaks so far suggest the S27 Pro will borrow the Ultra’s main and ultrawide cameras while getting an upgraded telephoto of its own. It may not match the Ultra, or even Apple’s Pro models. But it should be a noticeable step up from Samsung’s current non-Ultra phones.If the Galaxy S27 Pro really gets close to the Ultra's camera experience, Samsung will finally be giving buyers something Apple already does: a choice. Not everyone wants the biggest phone Samsung makes, and they shouldn't have to settle for a lesser camera because of it. Samsung offers and discounts Samsung Shop