The iPhone 16 Pro Max has a new camera, better performance, and a larger screen. These are the main improvements Apple has made to the new iPhone based on the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
On September 10, Apple released a new generation of iPhones, among which the iPhone 16 Pro Max is the top in terms of size and function. Let’s take a look at the changes in the 2024 iPhone 16 Pro Max compared to the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
size
As the name suggests, the iPhone 15 Pro Max is the largest phone in the lineup. At 6.29 inches long and 3.02 inches wide, it’s already a fairly large phone for most people. However, Apple did work to reduce its footprint when designing it, making it more compact than its predecessor.
For the iPhone 16 Pro Max, Apple believes that bigger is the right direction for the Pro model. Therefore, the new model is larger, 6.42 inches long and 3.06 inches wide.
iPhone 16 Pro Max
The iPhone 15 Pro Max and 16 Pro Max are both 0.32 inches thick.
In terms of weight, there is not much difference between the two models. The iPhone 15 Pro Max weighs 221 grams. In contrast, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is larger in size and weighs 227 grams.
Display
The iPhone 15 Pro Max is equipped with a 6.7-inch OLED display, which is called Super Retina XDR. It has a resolution of 2796×1290, a pixel density of Apple’s iconic 460 ppi (pixels per inch), and a contrast ratio of 2 million to 1. In terms of brightness, it can reach 1000 nits for daily use, HDR peak brightness is 1600 nits, and can be increased to 2000 nits when used outdoors.
The iPhone 15 Pro Max supports the always-on display function, and with the help of ProMotion technology, it can automatically adjust the refresh rate according to the content, up to 120Hz. On this basis, the screen of the iPhone 16 Pro Max has been increased to 6.9 inches, the resolution has been increased to 2866×1320, and the border is narrower.
Both the iPhone 15 Pro Max and 16 Pro Max use the Smart Island design, which is a UI-based solution used by Apple to hide the camera module, replacing the previous bangs design.
In addition, wide color gamut (P3) support, HDR display, TrueTone color adjustment function, and anti-fingerprint oleophobic coating are all retained on the screens of these two phones. It can be said that the quality of the two screens is almost the same, but the iPhone 16 Pro Max presents a better effect because the border is narrower.
camera
The iPhone 15 Pro Max has a square camera module on the back that includes three cameras and a LiDAR scanner. The iPhone 16 Pro Max adds some new features to this.
The iPhone 15 Pro Max’s main camera uses a 48MP sensor with an aperture of f/1.78 and is equipped with second-generation sensor-shift optical image stabilization technology. Due to the large sensor size, it can provide effective focal lengths of 24mm, 28mm, and 35mm, and outputs 24MP photos by default. This large sensor also allows Apple to create a virtual 12MP 2x telephoto camera.
iPhone 16 Pro Max
The main camera on the iPhone 16 Pro Max is basically the same, except that Apple renamed it the Fusion camera.
The iPhone 15 Pro Max’s ultra-wide-angle camera uses a 12MP sensor with an aperture of f/1.2, which has a wide 120-degree field of view, making it ideal for taking group photos. The iPhone 16 Pro Max’s ultra-wide-angle camera has been upgraded to 48MP, four times that of the previous generation, but the field of view and aperture remain the same.
The iPhone 15 Pro Max’s telephoto camera uses a 12MP sensor and f/2.8 aperture, but the quad prism design allows it to achieve 5x optical zoom instead of the previous 3x, and it is also equipped with 3D sensor shift optical image stabilization. Therefore, the iPhone 15 Pro Max can achieve up to 25x digital zoom.
Apple didn’t see the need to make many changes to the iPhone 16 Pro Max’s telephoto camera, however, it can be expected that it will be upgraded to a 48MP sensor.
All iPhone 15 Pro Max cameras benefit from 100% focus pixel coverage, which helps with better focusing, and the LiDAR sensor also helps with focusing in low-light environments.
iPhone 15 Pro Max
The iPhone 15 Pro Max continues to advance in computational photography, using Photonic Engine and Deep Fusion technology. For still photos, it supports six different portrait lighting effects, night mode, Smart HDR 5 and other features.
In terms of video, the iPhone 15 Pro Max supports 4K 60fps Dolby Vision HDR video recording, 60K 4fps movie mode, and 2.8K 60fps action mode. Slow-motion video recording remains at 1080p 240fps.
The iPhone 15 Pro Max also introduces ProRes video recording, supports 4K 60fps, and can record videos directly to external storage devices via the USB-C port. In addition, the iPhone 15 Pro Max supports recording Log format videos for the first time and is compatible with the Academy color coding system.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max increases 4K Dolby Vision video recording to 120fps, adds ProRes video recording, and supports 4K 120fps external recording.
In terms of audio, the phone uses four studio-grade microphones to provide wind noise suppression and customizable audio mixing functions.
The front camera on the iPhone 15 Pro Max is part of the TrueDepth camera array, using a 12MP sensor with an aperture of f/1.9 and supporting 4K 60fps video recording. The front camera on the iPhone 16 Pro Max is essentially the same, but Dolby Vision video recording is limited to 60K 4fps.
A new feature of the iPhone 16 Pro Max is the addition of a camera control button, which is located on the side and can quickly call up the camera and serve as a shutter button. As a capacitive button, it also supports adjusting settings by clicking and sliding.
performance
The annual improvement of Apple’s A series chips mainly depends on the Pro series. The A17 Pro equipped with the iPhone 15 Pro Max is the first 3nm process chip. It is equipped with a six-core CPU, including two high-performance cores and four high-efficiency cores, and a six-core GPU with hardware-accelerated ray tracing function and built-in AV1 decoder. At the same time, the neural engine has also been upgraded, and the 16-core component can perform 35 trillion operations per second.
The A18 Pro on the iPhone 16 Pro Max is manufactured using the second-generation 3nm process and also has a six-core CPU with the same core allocation as the A17 Pro. Officials say this CPU is 15% faster than the A17 Pro while consuming 20% less power. Its CPU also integrates a new machine learning accelerator that is optimized for Apple Intelligence.
Compared to the iPhone 15 Pro Max, the iPhone 16 Pro Max’s six-core GPU has improved performance by about 20%, and the performance of hardware-accelerated ray tracing has also doubled.
The A18 Pro’s 16-core neural engine has also been updated to be faster, thanks in part to a 17 percent increase in memory bandwidth.
The A18 Pro also integrates a new image signal processor and video decoder, both of which are twice as fast as the A17 Pro.
Although the iPhone 15 Pro Max also supports Apple intelligence, the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which is equipped with a more powerful processor, obviously has a stronger AI.
In terms of cellular networks, both the iPhone 15 Pro Max and 16 Pro Max support 5G, covering sub-6GHz and millimeter wave bands as well as LTE networks. In places with poor signals, both phones can send distress messages through the satellite emergency SOS function.
For local connections, the iPhone 15 Pro Max supports Wi-Fi 6E as well as the second-generation ultra-wideband chip and Thread protocol, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max has been upgraded to Wi-Fi 7.
Starting with the iPhone 15 Pro Max, Apple switched from the Lightning interface to USB-C, which brings a data transfer rate of 10Gbps and can be directly connected for charging. For videographers, if there is no external recording device, the USB-C interface makes the iPhone easier to use for video shooting and quickly transfer videos. The iPhone 16 Pro Max continues to use the USB-C interface with unchanged specifications.
Battery life
The iPhone 15 Pro Max has the longest battery life in the iPhone 15 series. Apple says it can play local videos continuously for up to 29 hours, streaming videos for up to 25 hours, and audio playback time for up to 95 hours.
The battery life of the iPhone 16 Pro Max has been improved again, supporting up to 33 hours of local video playback, 29 hours of streaming video playback, and 105 hours of audio playback.
In terms of wireless charging, the iPhone 15 Pro Max supports Qi and MagSafe wireless charging, with charging speeds of up to 7.5W and 15W respectively. The iPhone 16 Pro Max increases the charging power of MagSafe to 25W, and the wireless charging speed is improved.
In terms of wired fast charging, the iPhone 15 Pro Max and 16 Pro Max can be charged to 20% in about 35 minutes using a 50W or higher power charger.
Is it worth the upgrade?
The iPhone 15 Pro Max is available in 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB versions, priced at 9,999 yuan, 11,999 yuan, and 13,999 yuan, respectively. The pricing and storage options of the iPhone 16 Pro Max are the same as those of the 15 Pro Max.
For iPhone 15 Pro Max users, they may not be interested in upgrading to iPhone 16 Pro Max this year. Although it has a larger screen and a new ultra-wide-angle camera, and the performance has been improved, these improvements are what they should have been. And Apple’s flagship Apple Intelligence can also be used on iPhone 15 Pro Max.
In fact, Apple does not have much expectations for iPhone 15 Pro Max users to change their phones. After all, it is targeting users who are still using iPhone 14 Pro Max and earlier models.
