Opinions on the Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max will differ. There will be many people who adore the large screen and the long battery life, but there will also be a sizeable percentage of iPhone devotees who simply can’t stand the enormous 6.7in display. They could like something that is more portable and simpler to use with one hand.
This argument, like the iPhone Pro Max, hasn’t changed much in the last 12 months. It’s still the longest-lasting iPhone, even though the iPhone 14 Plus comes close this year. It’s still a huge, beautiful slab of glass and polished stainless steel.
All You Need to Know About the Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
So what, if anything, is new in 2022? Not a lot can be said about the device’s physical appearance, including its size, weight, buttons, and housing for the rear camera. If someone pulled out their iPhone Pro Max from their pocket, it would be difficult to determine if it was a 13 or a 14 Pro Max from a distance—unless, of course, they had purchased the device in the new purple color.
Nevertheless, once you begin using the phone really, you’ll find that there are many of fresh things to experiment with this year. The new, 48MP main camera with high resolution and superb RAW image output is perhaps the standout feature, but there are many other fascinating advancements as well.
A significant improvement is the new “Dynamic Island” front camera notch, which also features a sophisticated new notification system. The Always On Display, which may display a variety of information, including your images, even while the phone is idle, is another option. Finally, it can communicate through satellites, but at the time of writing, only in the US and Canada, and it has the ability to detect automobile wrecks owing to an updated accelerometer.
Review of the Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max: Price and rivalry
The iPhone 14 Pro Max is the biggest Pro product this year, and it will set you back a hefty buck. Even the most basic variant, which only has 128GB of storage, costs £1,199 SIM-free; the price goes up to £1,309 for the 256GB model, £1,529 for the 512GB model, and £1,749 for the 1TB phone.
This is essentially £100 more expensive than the iPhone 14 Pro, £150 more expensive than the iPhone 14 Plus, and $250 more expensive than the iPhone 14. Although pricey, the price of a flagship smartphone these days is not exceptionally out of the ordinary.
In recent years, Android phones have reached similar heights, but as always, those ready to switch from iOS will get more for their money. For instance, the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra has a starting price of £1,249, double the storage of the iPhone 14 Pro Max, and has decreased in price since its release; it is presently available at Amazon for £872.
The Google Pixel 7 Pro is also a great option if you decide to take this route. It costs £849, features three cameras, including a longer 5x telephoto lens than the iPhone Pro Max 14, and has an identical-sized AMOLED screen.
If you don’t mind a little more thickness, you can even get a folding phone. For instance, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 is currently available for less than £1,300, while the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 is even more affordable at roughly £800.
Yet, if you’re determined to continue with Apple and your iPhone has seen better days, you can still purchase an iPhone 13 for £749 or an iPhone 12 for £649. Both lack the iPhone 14 Pro Max’s new features, large screen, and camera quality, but they are significantly less expensive.
Design and main features of the Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
The iPhone 14 Pro Max is a wonderfully designed example if you’re okay with a huge display and the pocket-stretching dimensions that go along with it. I’ve had an iPhone 13 Pro for a full year, and the front has barely developed a hairline thanks to the Ceramic Shield glass on the front and back.
This is well accented by the matte finish glass at the back and the polished stainless steel frame. All of the customary Apple touches are accurate and present. This includes Face ID for rapid unlocking, payments, and password entry, IP68 dust and water resistance (up to 6m depth for 30 minutes), and wireless charging via Apple’s stylish MagSafe system.
Although I must admit that I have a soft spot for the somewhat more blingy Silver model, I was sent the new Deep Purple color for this review, and it looks fantastic.
I do have complaints. The camera housing protrudes even further than it did last year, so those who choose to go no-case-commando will experience extreme rocking when texting on a desk or table. Purchase a case as a favor to yourself. Also, the phone is simply too large for me. Nevertheless, if you enjoy large objects and have no interest in the “how big is too big” discussion, this may be right up your alley.
The Dynamic Island, a notification system that surrounds the TrueDepth camera cutout at the top of the screen, and the Always On Display are the only new features that will have a visible influence on how you use the phone on a daily basis. Both are incredibly exquisite blends of hardware and software design.
Review of the Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max: Display
The iPhone’s display is an OLED unit, as it has been for a few generations, which results in flawless black levels and vivid colors. Due to somewhat thinner bezels on the Pro models, the resolution is marginally higher than on the phones from last year. The increase in pixel density from 1,284 x 2,778 to 1,290 x 2,796 is only 2ppi. In other words, the sharpness won’t change.
But, this year’s Pro models have seen a notable improvement in brightness, with peaks of up to 1,600cd/m2 during HDR playback and 2,000cd/m2 during outdoor use with adaptive brightness enabled.
These assertions are actually conservative. In my tests, I saw portions of the screen approach 2,286cd/m2 in bright ambient lighting and witnessed maxima of 1,607cd/m2 in HDR video. But I’m not totally sure this is required. Peaks half as bright as this are more than adequate for reading in any circumstance. It’s just posturing at this point, not to put too fine a point on it.
Still, this screen is excellent. Given that it is OLED, it makes for an excellent display for watching any form of media. It is extremely color-accurate and can reproduce 98.3% of the P3 color range. The average Delta E color difference with sRGB-compliant software, like a web browser, was 0.83, but using Calman ColorChecker patches for HDR playback, I saw an average Delta E of 1.84. These are excellent scores that guarantee the colors you see onscreen will closely like the ones the person who created the TV show, movie, image, or graphic you’re looking at intended.
Cameras on the Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
Although there are generally little differences between this model and prior Pro iPhones, the new 48MP camera is a significant improvement, even though the aperture is narrower than it was on the iPhone 13 Pro (f/1.8 vs. f/1.5). Although the new camera has a slightly larger field of view, you probably won’t notice much of a difference in normal use and in ideal lighting (24mm vs 26mm).
Nevertheless, if you enable RAW mode and shift to a low-light setting, you’ll notice that the new camera is able to resolve considerably more detail than the previous one. The iPhone 14 Pro Max takes nighttime photos in a sharp, clear, and colorful manner that consistently astounds me.
The only inconvenience is having to remember to press the RAW button each time, but I can understand why Apple made this choice as 48MP RAW photographs take up more than 50MB per shot.
Things are far less exciting there. The reach of Apple’s telephoto camera has to be increased, but instead you get the same old ultrawide and 3x zoom cameras as last year.
You also have the option to zoom at a 2x magnification, but this isn’t that fascinating. Apple hasn’t added a second lens to the camera; instead, a deft piece of software cleverly cuts the middle 12MP of the 48MP image and shows it as a 2x telephoto. You could accomplish the same thing by cropping into a 48MP photo taken with the primary back camera.
Judgment on the Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
All of this comes down to a rather straightforward assessment of the iPhone 14 Pro Max. If battery life is your first priority when choosing an iPhone, this is the model to get if you have the money. If you’ve already decided to spend a lot of money on one of the most expensive Apple smartphones, the price difference between it and the 14 Pro isn’t enough to deter you.
The performance and battery life are among the best, and the camera and display are both excellent. Yet, the cost is currently so exorbitant that you might want to take a moment, sit down, and give switching some serious thought. Even though it’s a good phone, do you really want to spend £1,200 on one that can’t be folded and lacks the telephoto lens of a device that costs much less?
