The iPhone 13 Pro Max is Apple’s largest flagship device, but how does it compare to other iPhone 13 models?

This game is now over

Release time: Monday, November 1, 2021 at 3:55 PM

In the battle for flagship phones, Apple's iPhone 13 Pro Max aims to dominate. As the most expensive and most powerful model in the entire iPhone series, 13 Pro Max was built with professional users in mind.

It has not only carried out a series of better upgrades than the iPhone 13 siblings, but also much more advanced than last year's iPhone 12 Max Pro.

However, with the relatively low starting price of 128GB of storage at £1,049, are these improvements worthwhile?

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The most powerful, efficient, and stylish iPhone ever, despite its high price.

Price: iPhone 13 Pro Max can be purchased on Amazon without a SIM card, starting at £1,049.

Although technically speaking, both iPhone 13 Pro models are considered flagship models-in terms of specifications and price-the iPhone 13 Pro Max has officially become the most advanced iPhone model ever.

It is the larger and more expensive of the two "professional" phones released by Apple at the September 2021 conference. It is the only mobile phone in the latest series that starts at more than one dollar and measures up to 6.7 inches. This makes it more than half an inch larger than the cheap iPhone 13 Pro, while at least 100 pounds more expensive.

In terms of specifications, Pro Max is almost the same as last year's iPhone 12 Pro Max. It has the same Super Retina XDR OLED panel, protected by ceramic shielding technology, and can last 30 minutes underwater due to its IP68 waterproof rating. The iPhone 13 Pro Max runs on Apple’s latest generation operating system, iOS 15. The software comes with many additional features brought by the A15 bionic chip and the Pro camera settings on the iPhone 13 Pro Max. That is, shared playback, real-time text and movie modes.

The A15 bionic chip is Apple's "fastest and most efficient" processor, equipped with a 16-core neural engine, a 6-core CPU and a 5-core GPU. According to Apple, this not only makes the phone super fast and responsive, but also helps extend the battery life of the iPhone 13 Pro Max to 28 hours. You can read more about this situation in the "Battery" section below.

On the back of the iPhone 13, Pro Max is a 12MP camera system that combines a telephoto lens with wide-angle and ultra-wide-angle sensors. This means that both the iPhone 13 Pro Max and the smaller 13 Pro now offer a macro mode, allowing you to take pictures of close-up objects in an unprecedented way on the iPhone. On the front of the 13 Pro Max is a 12MP true depth selfie camera. The FaceID module is located inside the module, all in the notch at the top of the display.

The suggested retail price of the Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max is £1,049 and is available at Apple, Argos and Amazon.

As the most advanced iPhone ever, the 13 Pro Max is great value for money-but whether it is worth the money depends largely on how you will use it.

The ability to take macro photos and add movie modes and a huge display makes the iPhone 13 Pro Max a creative dream. The increase in power supply and battery life, coupled with a larger screen, will appeal to professionals. Dynamic screen refresh rate and neural engine will be the gospel for gamers. However, for everyday users, this phone seems a bit too much.

If you just use this phone for streaming or browsing, then spending such a large sum of money is difficult to prove, no matter how well the phone does these two tasks, and iPhone 13 Pro or even iPhone 13 will be more suitable Your needs and budget.

In terms of hardware, the iPhone 13 Pro Max has a display size of 6.7 inches, is equipped with a Super Retina XDR panel, and is protected by ceramic shield technology. Apple claims that this technology can provide four times the protection of the phone when it is dropped.

The upgraded Pro camera system is equipped with a new ultra-wide-angle, wide-angle and telephoto camera, which can capture more light, making it more suitable for taking pictures in low-light conditions than the previous iPhone. The new ultra-wide-angle sensor also allows the introduction of a macro mode, and the iPhone 13 Pro Max now has a minimum focal length of 2 cm, allowing even the smallest details to be captured.

At the same time, the improved telephoto lens provides more optical and digital zoom options, and due to the more advanced sensor displacement optical image stabilization function, the video and image look more stable.

Both the front and rear cameras support Apple's new movie mode and photography style, designed to make photos and videos look more professional. The FaceID sensor is embedded in the True Depth camera on the front. Compared with last year, it now occupies less display screen.

In terms of storage, the iPhone 13 Pro Max builds on the options of last year's series. You can now buy the Pro models of 128GB, 256GB, 512GB or 1TB. It’s still not possible to physically expand these storage options, which means that the only way to add built-in storage is to pay extra for the hardware.

Or, you can buy a smaller phone and pay extra for iCloud storage. When you sign up for iCloud, Apple mitigates this blow slightly by providing you with 5GB of additional storage space, but it is still painful. The iCloud plan starts at 79p per month, with an extra 50GB to £6.99 (2TB), and you need to weigh, over time, this is more cost-effective.

Apple’s iPhone 13 Pro Max runs iOS 15, the latest generation of Apple’s mobile operating system. Our favorite new addition in iOS 15 is the ability to copy text from internal images, called real-time text. Although this may seem trivial, it has saved us many times. Even in a relatively short period of time, we have already used this phone. The latest operating system also brings new features, allowing you to share movies, music or any content on the screen during a FaceTime call; the new Focus feature is designed to reduce your distractions when you work, sleep or spend time with friends; And redesigned notifications and Apple apps.

Speaking of Apple applications, iPhone 13 Pro Max comes pre-installed with a large number of applications. These include cameras, photos, health, information, mail, music, wallet, Safari, maps, Siri, calendar, iTunes Store, App Store, notes, news, weather, reminders, stocks, calculators, voice memos, etc. Plus free applications, including iMovie, Pages, Keynote, Numbers, GarageBand, Apple Store, iTunes Remote and Clips. These apps take up a lot of space-15.1GB when combined with operating system files-but if you don't need them, it's easy (albeit a bit time-consuming) to get rid of them.

This new software has been optimized to work with new hardware. Apple claims that the battery life of the iPhone 13 Pro Max is 8 hours longer than that of the iPhone 12 Pro Max-no, this is not a typo. When used for audio only, this jumps from 75 hours to 95 hours. You can read more information in the battery section below.

For many people, spending so much money on a mobile phone is both a status symbol and an actual purchase. Therefore, in terms of design, the iPhone 13 Pro is quite different from the cheaper iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini phones.

The Pro model is not covered by glass, but by aluminum. This not only makes them feel more premium to the touch, but it also makes them feel stronger and firmer.

The Pro model has fewer and fewer color options, and gray, gold, blue and silver are slightly softer than the cheaper pink, red and "star white". However, it is not boring, but adds a premium and professional appearance. If you are buying anything other than a transparent case, this is largely a controversial issue, but it is worth noting.

The notch on the iPhone 13 Pro Max and the entire iPhone 13 series is 20% smaller than the previous model, which means that more can be seen on the large screen of the Pro Max.

Elsewhere, the iPhone 13 Pro Max is thicker than last year's iPhone 12 Pro Max, but the difference is very small, only adding 0.1 mm of depth. It weighs 12 grams, which is obvious when you hold two devices at the same time. However, when held alone, this extra weight has little effect on the overall comfort of holding the phone. More importantly, the improvements made to the camera and battery are sufficient to ensure this growth, and we are not stingy at all.

The location of the improved camera module on the rear is always the same as on the Pro phone-there are two sensors on the left, a third sensor in the middle on the right, and below the flash. This high-tech setup protrudes so far, which prevents the phone from lying flat on the surface. Even in the case. Speaking of the protective case, the camera module on the 13 Pro Max is wider than that on the iPhone 12 Pro Max, which means that this year’s model cannot use last year’s protective case.

In terms of ports, the iPhone 13 Pro Max charges through the Lightning connector instead of the USB-C technology on the latest iPad. The power button can also be used to enable Siri. It is located in the upper right corner of the earpiece, opposite the volume buttons on the left. The speakers are located on both sides of the charging port.

On paper, the displays on the iPhone 12 and 13 Pro Max are almost the same. They are listed as having the same 6.7-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display, the same 2778 x 1284 pixel resolution and 458 PPI. Contrast and support for the P3 wide color gamut still exist, using True Tone technology can adjust the white balance on the screen according to the lighting conditions you are in.

However, on the iPhone 13 Pro Max, the maximum brightness level has been increased from 800 nits to 1,000 nits. This improves the color and vividness of the screen, and makes it easier to read in a variety of light, including direct sunlight. The games and HD content on this monitor look great, the colors are bright, and the black tones look deep and dark. This not only improves the contrast, but also adds a high level of detail and realism not found in cheaper phones. Elsewhere, the display natively supports Dolby Vision, HDR10 and HLG.

The display of iPhone 13 Pro Max is also equipped with a new feature called ProMotion. This technology automatically selects the best refresh rate to suit any task you are performing. If you are just browsing, sending emails, or switching between apps, ProMotion will reduce the refresh rate to 10Hz. If you are playing games, editing videos, processing creative tasks, and streaming high-quality content, this refresh rate can reach up to 120Hz. In contrast, the display frequency on the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Mini phones is as high as 60 Hz.

This means that no matter what you throw on the iPhone, its display will respond and effortlessly meet your needs, and it also brings significant battery improvements. If your phone dynamically adjusts its energy for different tasks, it will use less energy overall. This, together with the larger battery pack seen on the iPhone 13 series, is undoubtedly the reason why the phone can last all day. Even in the most stressful tasks.

When reviewing this phone, the improvements to the iPhone 13 Pro Max camera hardware and software are what attracts us the most, enough to ensure that they almost upgrade themselves.

Take the sensor seen on its predecessor iPhone 12 Pro Max as an example. Apple has made some seemingly trivial adjustments, but they are actually significant. First, the ultra-wide-angle camera has a larger ƒ/1.8 aperture and a new autofocus sensor, which means it can increase light by 92%. In our tests, this means that photos taken even at dusk or in a dark room are clearer and more detailed.

When Apple added night mode to iPhone 11 in 2019, it changed the rules of the game because it meant that our photos looked great no matter what time of day it was. However, our biggest complaint about this mode has always been the need to wait one to three seconds to capture the scene effectively. This is a problem when trying to capture any form of movement or action at night. Although there is still a night mode on the iPhone 13 Pro Max, we hardly use it now because the sensor settings have been greatly improved, and the new sensor shift OIS technology has been adopted to enable it to shoot the same level of low temperature without delay. Light photo.

Elsewhere, the improved ultra-wide-angle sensor now has a 120° field of view, a larger f/1.8 aperture, and a new sensor with autofocus, allowing the addition of a macro mode. This new autofocus system can use a new minimum distance of 2 cm, allowing you to capture images and videos at close range like never before, whether it’s capturing details in food on Instagram, or picking parts of flowers or insects, etc. Wait more.

The new ƒ/1.5 aperture wide-angle camera is described as Apple’s largest sensor ever, capable of capturing 2.2 times more light than the iPhone 12 Pro. The new telephoto camera has a 77mm focal length and 3x optical zoom.

This advanced camera settings and features added to iOS 15 also support two new modes-film mode and photography style. Movie mode uses a technique called rack focus, which is often used in feature films to switch attention between subjects while adding a depth of field effect. This is available on the latest iPhone Pro models, even if you have limited experience or skills like us, it can create excellent, professional shots.

Photography style changes your photos by adding bright, rich contrast, warm and cool styles to the overall image. Going beyond standard photo filters, Photographic Styles uses "deep semantic understanding" to adjust light, brightness, exposure and contrast according to the ambient light in the scene, human skin tone, etc. These differences are subtle, but create an incredibly professional overall effect.

iPhone 13 Pro Max continues to support Deep Fusion and HDR video recording, and Dolby Vision is seen on 12 Pro Max, but the latter now supports 4K 60 fps on all cameras (4K higher than 30 fps on iPhone 12 Pro), including True Depth camera on the front. In addition to accommodating the FaceID sensor, this front camera also supports movie mode and photography style.

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In our review, so far, the difference between the iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max is very small. Almost to the point where it is difficult to recommend the latter over the former. However, when it comes to battery life, there is no competition.

Although the iPhone 13 Pro Max is an absolute powerhouse, full of the latest technology and excellent display effects, it claims that the iPhone 13 Pro Max can be used for 28 hours when it is dedicated to video streaming. This is 8 hours longer than the iPhone 12 Pro Max and 11 hours longer than the iPhone 13. When used for audio only, this spikes to 95 hours, compared to 80 hours for the 12 Pro Max and 55 hours for the iPhone 13. These are impressive, almost unbelievable statements, and these statements can not only be used for practical use.

In our loop video test—we played high-definition video in a loop until the battery was depleted—the iPhone 13 Pro Max lasted 29 hours. The video played all day, all night, in the morning, and the phone did not overheat.

In our actual tests, we used our mobile phone to play at least one episode of "Love at First Sight", send WhatsApp messages, play "Sim City", listen to Spotify, watch TikTok and several audio calls-the mobile phone use time is much longer.

In our long history of mobile phone evaluation, we discovered for the first time a mobile phone with a battery life of more than two days. In fact, this phone can easily run for approximately 56 hours before it needs to be plugged in again. This is an unprecedented time to truly elevate the iPhone Pro 13 Max above its similar products and competitors.

This is even more impressive when you see the powerful features of the Apple 13 Pro series. Apple claims that its new 6-core CPU used in the entire iPhone 13 series is 50% faster than its competitors and iPhone 13 Pro Max. The CPU has also joined a new 5-core GPU designed by Apple, which is said to provide the same percentage of speed upgrades.

In daily work, these speed improvements and ProMotion technology make this phone responsive and smooth. These improvements are even more pronounced when playing graphics-heavy games (such as Fornite) or streaming high-quality content from Netflix. The refresh rate of the iPhone 13 Pro Max and the increase in processor speed provide an ultra-smooth, ultra-fast experience, and we are impeccable. More than 4G and Wi-Fi.

With the iPhone 13 series, Apple has made the straightforward, step-by-step nature of its setup process easier. In addition to guiding you through every stage from transferring files to enabling Siri and setting up FaceID, Apple can now back up and manage your data more easily.

So far, if you don’t have enough storage space on your device to back up your files, photos, etc., you must manually delete the items to transfer them to the new phone. Now, Apple allows anyone who switches to iPhone to use as much iCloud backup space as they need during setup. The company even allows you to keep your data in this iCloud backup for three weeks, giving you the opportunity to manage your device storage.

If you are coming from an Android device, Apple also makes it easier for you to move albums, files and folders, and accessibility settings to your new iPhone, thanks to the improved Move to iOS app.

You don't need to have an Apple ID to set up this phone. However, if you want to copy apps, settings, or access the full functionality of iOS 15, you will eventually need to log in or set up. This can be done easily in "Settings".

Just as the iPhone 13 mini occupies a relatively niche audience, the iPhone 13 Pro Max will not appeal to everyone. In fact, it will not appeal to most people. It's big, it's expensive, and theoretically, it doesn't make a big leap compared to the cheap iPhone 13 Pro.

Few of us can guarantee to spend more than £1,000 for a mobile phone, but-this is a big one-for those who can afford it, this is the best mobile phone money can buy. Its large screen is clear and vibrant, making it ideal for streaming and working where needed. Its high price means that Pro Max has a wide range of hardware and software functions, surpassing all competitors. Its excellent battery life and larger display make it very different from the iPhone 13 Pro.

iPhone 13 Pro Max is also sufficient to guarantee an upgrade to last year's Pro Max model. If you can afford it, and you think "the bigger the screen, the better", then this is an obvious choice.

The iPhone 13 Pro Max is available at multiple retailers in the UK, starting at £1,049.

For more product guides and reviews, please go to the technical section. Want to learn more about Apple? Try our best iPhone guide or read our Apple Watch 7 review. 

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