iPhone 16 Pro Max Review: Apple's Crown Jewel?

Alright, it’s that time of the year! Apple finally took the plunge and went all out on AI with its new iPhone 16 series. Calling the latest iPhones as built for Apple Intelligence. Of course, the company coined its version of AI, short for artificial intelligence, which the rest of the world uses for its products, but this is Apple, so you know it. However, one big miss is these phones do not come with any Apple Intelligence features out-of-the-box.

We’ve got the new iPhone 16 series and the Watch 10 model. I’m starting the proceedings with the all-new iPhone 16 Pro Max, the biggest iPhone in terms of display and size ever built by Apple. I will jump to the iPhone 16 Plus and Watch Series 10 models next, but those are for some other day, so stay tuned to Gadgets 360 for those.

The iPhone 16 series is the first set of iPhones built or designed for Apple Intelligence. However, this is probably happening for the first time that Apple kept an AI-related theme for its launch event in September – Glowtime – to highlight how the new features change how everyone will use iPhones going forward but missed offering those out of the box.

As a heads-up for readers, this review talks about how big of an upgrade the iPhone 16 Pro Max is over its predecessor in every way possible. Of course, I will do an in-depth piece when the latest iOS 18 update (read, stable) hits the new devices with Apple Intelligence features. But for now, let’s dive into the new Max, shall we?

iPhone 16 Pro Max Design: Familiar with Titan Touch

• Colours: Black Titanium, White Titanium, Natural Titanium, and Desert Titanium
• Weighs: 227 grams
• Dimensions: 163×77.6×8.25mm

Practically, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is 15 Pro Max on steroids. Why? Let me explain. If the 16 Pro Max is placed on a table with the display facing downward alongside the 15 Pro Max, not many people can figure out that this is the new-gen model – albeit if they notice closely. Design-wise, the iPhone 16 Pro Max packs a host of new things. Of course, the Camera Control is the biggest addition. Next, the bezels on the 16 Pro Max are slimmer than the 15 Pro Max. Last but not least, the 16 Pro Max packs the biggest display ever seen on an iPhone yet. I will deep dive one by one now.

Apple introduced the Action Button last year with the iPhone 15 Pro series 

After introducing the Action button on the iPhone 15 Pro Max, Apple has added Camera Control to its entire range of iPhone 16 models this year.

 

Just when we thought smartphone manufacturers were moving towards gesture-based controls for interactions, Apple took a different route by adding another physical button. The iPhone 16 Pro Max packs the power and volume rockers alongside the Camera Control and Action buttons – four physical buttons overall. While setting up the 16 Pro Max, I intentionally removed the camera app icon from the home screen so that I could use the all-new Camera Control. However, my muscle memory led me to the home screen for the first few days until I realised the 16 Pro Max had a dedicated camera button.

Once you get used to the Camera Control, there’s no going back. It’s convenient and easy to find, and the best feeling is that it sometimes gives a nostalgic point-and-shoot camera memory. The only problem is that vertical photos or videos are the new norm for social media, such as Instagram, Facebook, X, and other platforms like YouTube with Shorts. For a device like the iPhone 16 Pro Max, holding the phone with one hand and using the Camera Control to frame your shot is tricky. You need the second hand for better framing your shots. Camera Control on the smaller iPhone 16 Pro should be easily manageable. The Camera Control addition is a neat touch, and it’s like a shoutout to all photography enthusiasts to go all out with this one.

iPhone 16 Pro Max (right side) features a 6.9-inch display, while the 15 Pro Max (left side) packs a 6.7-inch display

If you are happy using the app on the home screen to launch the camera and want to utilise the camera control for something else, Apple has you covered. You can choose between launching the Camera app, code scanner, Instagram, Magnifier or none. With future updates, Apple is expected to add more third-party apps to the list.

The weight increase is minimal despite the screen size bump from 6.7 inches on the 15 Pro Max to 6.9 inches on the iPhone 16 Pro Max. It’s 227 grams on the 16 Pro Max versus 221 grams on the 15 Pro Max. The best part is the weight distribution. It’s even and aesthetically designed and can be managed by one hand. However, people with small hands will find operating the 16 Pro Max with one hand slightly inconvenient. I took some time to get used to the 16 Pro Max despite using the 15 Pro Max for almost a year. It’s funny that nearly a decade back, we used to get tablets with 7-inch screen sizes that had a proper heft and thick bezels.

The iPhone 16 Pro Max weighs 227 grams, while the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra weighs 232 grams

The major changes you need to adapt to during daily use are in width and height. Compared to the 15 Pro Max (height 159.9mm and width 76.7mm), the 16 Pro Max measures 163mm in height and 77.6mm in width. As you can see, the 16 Pro Max is taller and wider than its predecessor.

Jumping to colours, the Pro models again come in titanium shades this year. Desert Titanium, which we got for the review, is the best among the four choices this year – Natural Titanium, White Titanium, and Black Titanium, among the others. All the colours look striking. On the other hand, the iPhone 16 models get some really good colours this year.

iPhone 16 Pro Max (left) vs iPhone 15 Pro Max (right) side-by-side comparison

The iPhone 16 Pro Max has Apple’s largest display ever and packs the thinnest borders on any of its products. Something that was instantly noticeable when I started using the 16 Pro Max for this review. Thin bezels mean more screen real estate and a more immersed experience. More on that in our display section.

The iPhone 16 Pro Max, built with Grade 5 titanium, feels solid in hands and gives reassurance in everyday use. At the front, Apple has used the latest-gen Ceramic Shield, and the textured matt glass back reminds me of 15 Pro Max.

iPhone 16 Pro Max Display: Stellar

• Screen: Biggest display on an iPhone, yet
• Display: 6.9-inch OLED, 1320×2868 pixels and 460ppi
• Peak brightness: 2000nits

Coming to the display, Apple has fit its biggest display in the 16 Pro Max, measuring 6.9 inches. To put some context, 16 Pro Max packs a bigger display than the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra (6.8-inch), launched earlier this year.

The phone supports a peak brightness of 2000nits

The Super Retina XDR display comes with Dynamic Island and features ProMotion technology with a refresh rate of up to 120Hz. The maximum brightness is 1000 nits (typical), and peak brightness is 2000nits (outdoors) – which we also saw on the iPhone 15 Pro Max. This year’s only change is that the minimum brightness can now go down to 1 nit, which wasn’t the case earlier. This means you can keep scrolling or browsing on your phone without bothering others in the same room while in bed.

The iPhone 16 Pro Max display has rounded corners that follow a curved design, which looks good. Talking about the display quality, the 16 Pro Max packs one of the best displays you can find in 2024’s iPhone models. In everyday usage, the 16 Pro Max display feels apt for all needs, be it multimedia, gaming or scrolling on social media. The bigger screen size with thinner bezels means you get a more immersed viewing experience, and that’s about it. The sunlight legibility is excellent, and 2000nits peak brightness is good enough for using the phone under harsh sunlight.

The phone offers 1320×2868 pixels screen resolution at 460ppi pixel density

iPhone 16 Pro Max Performance: High-Octane Device

• Chipset: A18 Pro chip
• Breakdown: Six-core CPU with six-core GPU and 16-core Neural Engine, 8GB of RAM
• Storage: 256GB, 512GB and 1TB

iPhone 16 Pro Max now packs the all-new A18 Pro chip, a successor to the A17 Pro chip that powers the 15 Pro models. During my review, I tried everything from AAA gaming to streaming, video editing, photo editing, and AI apps to see how powerful the new chip is. Not to my surprise, the 16 Pro Max doesn’t even stutter mildly anywhere – a similar case was with the 15 Pro Max (14 Pro Max and older Pro models). However, one of the big areas of upgrade is heat optimisation. Compared to the 15 Pro Max, the 16 Pro Max cools down quickly, thanks to Apple’s improved heat dissipation setup.

The phone comes with an IP68 rating for splash, water and dust resistance

Playing titles like Call of Duty: Mobile, Asphalt 9: Legends, Alto’s Odyssey and Fieldrunners 2 felt butter-smooth. I also tried out Ubisoft’s famous title, Assassin’s Creed Mirage, and the gaming experience was fantastic.

In the performance department, the A18 Pro on the iPhone 16 Pro Max doesn’t just seem incremental, and it makes the phone a better device for heavy graphics gaming and video editing on the go. Talking about synthetic benchmarks, below is a table to better reflect the performance bump.

Talking about connectivity, the iPhone 16 Pro Max can latch onto networks swiftly, be it a basement with low cellular networks. Much like the 15 series, the 16 Pro Max also has a USB-C charger and supports the USB 3.2 standard.

In my earlier iPhone reviews, I have said that haptic motors fitted in the iPhones are some of the best ones seen on modern-day smartphones. The same applies to the iPhone 16 Pro Max. Even the loudspeakers are amazingly loud (but in a good way). If you’re in a medium-sized room, you can try the powerful speaker setup on the 16 Pro Max, and you won’t be disappointed.

It is powered by Apple’s A18 Pro chip built with second-generation 3nm architecture

iOS 18 will remain an update from Apple that will continue to make headlines until Apple Intelligence arrives on all new devices. One of the reasons why the 16 series is in the news is because they launch with a tagline that says “Built for Apple Intelligence” but do not offer it out of the box. As I mentioned at the start of this review, I will write another piece to talk about all new AI features in-depth when it hits 16 Pro Max. The latest iOS 18 update brings a host of upgrades – some that were much needed and some that I’m still trying to get used to. The Photos app was one of my go-to apps for pictures across devices, but ever since the iOS 18 update, the new refresh has been confusing. What I love about iOS 18 is the new personalisation options. Apple keeps adding to the list, and that’s good. More options to customise means more new home screen designs to play with.

The iPhone 16 series has been designed keeping Apple Intelligence at the core

I briefly tried the iOS 18 beta, which ships with a bunch of AI features and offers what Samsung has been offering for months. Some AI tools I tried on the beta release briefly were a writing tool for improving writing and the Notes app, which gets a summarise feature for recorded meetings. Apple is bringing what it calls Genmoji thanks to the company’s Image Playground app that lets your creativity go all out. Then, the favourite camera-related AI feature on Android is called Erase, but Apple has rebadged it to Clean Up, which can remove distractions or objects from your image. Of course, Siri is getting a whole bigger paint job and is almost refreshed. I will try them out in the final release before giving the verdict on who’s done it better.

iPhone 16 Pro Max Camera: Spectacular

• Cameras: 48MP primary, 48MP ultra-wide and 12MP telephoto
• Videos – Audio Mix is a new feature while recording videos
• Support – 4K 120 fps Dolby Vision
• Selfie – 12MP camera

Besides a bigger display and battery, the 16 Pro Max finally upgrades the ultrawide camera. From a 12-megapixel sensor, Apple has jumped to a 48-megapixel sensor. The telephoto, however, remains 12-megapixel only at the moment. Next year, we may get a triple 48-megapixel camera setup on the Pro models. Fingers crossed.

If you have been following Apple, then you already know that they have been steadily ramping up their camera game to match the needs of pro users – content creators, artists, photographers, directors, and more. The 16 Pro Max is another chapter in that journey and brings some exciting additions.

The phone gets an all-new 48-megapixel ultra-wide camera

Camera Control has to be one of those additions that have helped push the camera to be used more and more, at least for me. It is intuitive and easy to jump from zooming to modes and more. However, there’s a short learning curve attached, so be ready.

During Apple’s September launch, one of the executives talked about how the new 48-megapixel Fusion Camera can read data two times faster, enabling zero shutter lag. And I could test it during my review period; clicking photos of cars on the road while moving comes way better than before.

The entire iPhone 16 range gets the Camera Control button

Daylight photos on the 16 Pro Max come out stunning, which was the case with the 15 Pro Max. You have enough details in each shot, stunning dynamic range, excellent saturation, and, most importantly, natural and gorgeous colours. Some samples below to show you how good the cameras are on the 16 Pro Max. The primary 48-megapixel sensor is solid for daylight shots.

Daylight photos from the primary camera of the 16 Pro Max

This year, you can play around with your images with all-new Photographic Styles that adjust tones, colours, and more in real time. The new control pad in the Photography Styles puts you on top of your images and makes it convenient. Another small update is that you can now change the style after clicking an image, which wasn’t possible earlier.

Colour accuracy and ample details are highlights of the primary camera

Videography enthusiasts are getting another big update this year with 4K at 120fps support – what Apple calls its highest resolution and frame rate with slo-mo. The best part is that Apple this year is not forcing you to make real-time decisions on the frame rate. You can adjust the playback speed after capture in the Photos app. The addition of these features makes on-the-go editing wonders.
 

Macro shot

Portrait image

Bokehs come out amazing, too, with natural skin tones and no colour blowout. Something that iPhones are vouched for. Macro shots also come nice. However, you will need to do some work to make sure you nail the shot, or else you may end up with a few close-ups with the subject blurred.

Telephoto (5x) camera samples

The telephoto camera has also received a decent update, and I got some fantastic zoom results. At 10x and 15x, the 16 Pro Max manages amazing results with ample details. This is the first time I have noticed that the iPhone 16 Pro Max did better than the S24 Ultra in some zoom shots.

Shots were taken using an Ultrawide camera

The ultrawide camera is also capable and does an excellent job in daylight. There’s a noticeable upgrade over the 15 Pro Max shots in terms of image details captured.

Jumping to low-light photos, there is considerable improvement in this department. Especially considering the 15 Pro Max lately was disappointing in challenging low-light conditions. Below are some night samples where 16 Pro Max flexes its muscle in low-light conditions.

Low-light photos from the iPhone 16 Pro Max

Portrait at night, shot on iPhone 16 Pro Max

Why not test 16 Pro Max with the current flagship from the Android domain – Samsung Galaxu S24 Ultra? Below are some photos for your comparison. Though note, to merge both the shots, the quality has taken a slight hit, but this is representational to show you how well Apple has improved its low-light cameras on the new Pro models.

iPhone 16 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra: Low-light shots compared

iPhone 16 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra in low-light conditions

Another iPhone 16 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra night sample

In this image, the 16 Pro Max keeps colours and tone natural while the S24 Ultra blows it away with too much unnatural light

The selfie camera is the same as the 15 Pro Max, and we don’t see any variation in that either. Selfies come out excellent with natural skin tones and colours across different light conditions. The low-light photos, however, have a scope for improvement. Overall, the iPhone 16 Pro Max packs a stellar camera trio, and you cannot put it down compared to any phone in the market.

iPhone 16 Pro Max Battery: Powerhouse

• Battery: Claimed bigger battery capacity
• Video playback: Up to 33 hours (advertised)
• Charging: Up to 50% charge in 35 minutes

By now, you may already know that Apple is the only company that doesn’t advertise spec sheets. So, when it came to battery bump on the new iPhone 16 Pro Max, the only data Apple shared is that it offers up to 33 hours of video playback compared to the 15 Pro Max (and 14 Pro Max), which offered up to 29 hours of video playback. We did our HD video loop test, and 16 Pro Max impressed with a respectable 28 hours and 33 minutes of playback time.

The iPhone 16 Pro Max is a capable smartphone when it comes to battery prowess

Talking purely about battery performance, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is a stellar device that can offer over 8 hours of screen-on time. With heavy usage that included a couple of hours of gaming and streaming and a good 30-40 minutes of camera use for photos and videos, the phone easily lasted over a day with almost 25 percent of battery still left.

In multiple tests we did on the review unit, the 16 Pro Max easily did over 8 hours of active screen on time, and the max we got was 8 hours and 30 minutes with 13 percent juice left. Of course, you can derive more battery backup if you turn off the always-on display and reduce camera use. On days with moderate use, the iPhone 16 Pro Max gave us nearly two full days of battery life.

A MagSafe case by beats, a Silicone Case from Apple, and a case from Daily Objects for the iPhone 16 Pro Max

Apple has really pushed the envelope when it comes to battery performance, which is something that will be tough for competition to match.

However, wired charging speed remains the Achilles heel of the iPhone 16 Pro Max. In an era where phones offer full charging within 30 minutes, the 16 Pro Max reached 55% charge in 35 minutes. A full charge with a 20W adapter takes about 100 minutes and, at times, can take up to 120 minutes, depending on multiple factors.

The iPhone 16 Pro Max isn’t a small phone by any means

iPhone 16 Pro Max Verdict

Who should buy the iPhone 16 Pro Max? The answer is simple – for iPhone users who are not already using the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Get it, of course, if your budget allows. For those who still prefer an under Rs. 1 lakh phone and are okay with compromising on some aspects, there’s the base iPhone 16 with mostly all the goodies this year minus a 120Hz refresh rate display and a third telephoto camera. The best thing is that this is a sale season, and you can grab some great deals if you prioritise switching to an iPhone, as discounts are available across models in both online and offline stores.

Camera Control is one of the highlights of the new 16-series

Compared to the 14 Pro and 13 Pro series, the iPhone 16 Pro Max packs some of the biggest upgrades, while the 15 Pro Max now looks underrated. It has the biggest display on an iPhone yet. In my testing, the 16 Pro Max delivered unprecedented battery performance, and of course, this is a Pro device, so even heavy-duty users can go for this. The display is incredible, and the only downside is the slow wired charging, which seems to be taking forever to be upgraded.

One big bummer is that there are no Apple Intelligence (read, stable) features on the 16 Pro Max, which certainly makes it look like not a great deal at the moment. But remember, these phones are built from scratch to work with Apple Intelligence, so an iOS update with all the goodies may drop in a few weeks.

The two biggest alternatives to the iPhone 16 Pro Max are the iPhone 15 Pro Max (Review), retailing at all-time low prices during the festive sales in India. And, the second is the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra (Review), the closest flagship that can take on the 16 Pro Max.