Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. iPhone 14 Pro Max: Upgrade time?

It’s been 2 years since Apple launched nan iPhone 14 Pro Max, which ushered successful a caller era for Apple pinch nan revamped Dynamic Island and nan summation of an Always-On show (AOD). In nan 2 years since, Apple has pushed connected nan Pro Max scope to see not only these features, but besides a scope of caller hybrid experiences. These see nan Action Button — which replaced nan Mute move — and caller for the iPhone 16 series, nan Camera Control button, which helps unlock immoderate of nan caller and upcoming features of nan camera.

Then there’s nan push for AI. In nan 2 years since Apple launched nan iPhone 14 Pro Max, nan AI era has descended upon us, and nan iPhone 16 Pro Max is 1 of nan first iPhones built pinch Apple Intelligence successful mind. If you’ve sewage an iPhone 14 Pro Max, is now nan clip to upgrade? Is nan iPhone 16 Pro Max worthy upgrading to? Let’s dive into nan details.

Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: specs

Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: creation and display

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Look astatine nan backmost of these 2 phones astatine a region and you’ll beryllium hard-pressed to spot nan differences. However, get person and you’ll statesman to recognize that they’re not nan same.

This is astir evident pinch nan titanium build; nan iPhone 16 Pro Max retains nan titanium build launched past year, while nan iPhone 14 Pro Max uses an older stainless alloy assemblage As a result, nan iPhone 16 Pro Max is 13 grams lighter than nan iPhone 14 Pro Max. There are besides overmuch slimmer bezels, pinch those astir nan show measuring conscionable 1.15mm. This has enabled Apple to adhd a 0.2-inch larger show successful a similar-size body.

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There’s a pronounced quality successful nan thickness arsenic well, and if you upgrade to nan iPhone 16 Pro Max, you whitethorn announcement it’s a mini spot thicker. It doesn’t make a large quality successful day-to-day use, but it is noticeable erstwhile comparing nan two. Alongside nan framework connected some devices, you’ll announcement nan deficiency of a SIM paper tray: if you were irritated by nan move to eSIM exclusively pinch nan iPhone 14 Pro Max, nan iPhone 16 Pro Max won’t fare immoderate amended successful your  estimation.

One of nan benefits of nan Apple ecosystem has been nan wide scope of accessories, and their compatibility pinch early versions of nan iPhone. The iPhone 14 Pro Max uses nan Lightning connector, and immoderate accessories you person for your telephone won’t activity pinch nan iPhone 16 Pro Max. This is because it uses nan USB-C standard, which each iPhones since nan iPhone 15 bid person used.

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On nan sides of nan phones are wherever you’ll besides announcement immoderate large differences. The iPhone 16 Pro Max has nan Camera Control button, which was launched this year, and nan Action Button that debuted past twelvemonth pinch nan iPhone 15. The erstwhile is hit-and-miss, but nan second transforms a elemental shut up move into an easy measurement to unfastened apps, tally shortcuts, aliases quickly motorboat nan flashlight aliases camera. Of course, it tin besides still usability arsenic a Mute switch.

These 2 phones look and consciousness very similar, and that’s because nan iPhone acquisition is mostly nan same. However, nan iPhone 16 Pro Max has capable changes — nan Action Button, Camera Control button, nan titanium build, and nan USB-C larboard — to make nan upgrade worthwhile.

Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: capacity and battery

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The iPhone 14 Pro Max is powered by nan A16 Bionic processor, which is built connected TSMC’s 4nm process, while nan iPhone 16 Pro Max runs nan latest A18 Pro chipset, built connected nan second-generation 3nm process. These whitethorn look for illustration conscionable numbers, but they make a quality successful 2 cardinal areas: gaming and AI.

Across galore benchmarks, nan A18 Pro chipset regularly achieves a 20% advantage complete nan A16 Bionic chipset. If you’re a gamer, you’ll find nan upgrade worthwhile arsenic nan iPhone 16 Pro Max tin tally AAA games for illustration Assassin’s Creed and Resident Evil 4. Apple stepped up nan gaming capacity pinch past year’s iPhone 15 Pro Max — powered by nan first Pro chipset for nan iPhone — and nan iPhone 16 Pro Max continues this trend.

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The iPhone 14 Pro Max has a smaller artillery than nan iPhone 16 Pro Max, and you tin expect artillery life to beryllium improved pinch nan newer phone. However, nan iPhone 15 Pro Max was a measurement backmost from nan 14 Pro Max, and it remains to beryllium seen really nan iPhone 16 Pro Max artillery develops complete time. Based connected constricted testing truthful far, you tin expect astir 2 hours of other artillery life.

Despite nan alteration from Lightning to USB-C, some batteries complaint astatine akin speeds, requiring astir an hr and a half to complaint to afloat erstwhile plugged in. However, nan iPhone 16 Pro Max is overmuch faster astatine charging wirelessly and supports nan latest MagSafe and Qi2 charging standards.

This is simply a overmuch person battle, but nan iPhone 16 Pro Max is much future-proofed than nan iPhone 14 Pro Max. The A18 Pro chipset enables nan AI-powered early of nan iPhone, and nan A16 Bionic can’t support up. It’s besides already missing retired connected Apple Intelligence.

Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: package and updates

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Unless you’ve been surviving nether a rock, you’ll cognize Apple has unveiled its return connected AI. Dubbed Apple Intelligence — spot what they did pinch nan initials? — it’s nan early of nan Apple ecosystem, and nan iPhone 14 Pro Max won’t get it. If you want AI connected your iPhone, you’ll request to upgrade.

Do you request Apple Intelligence? While immoderate of nan generative features will apt suffer their entreaty quickly, galore of nan individual features person applicable uses astatine activity aliases home. In particular, AI-powered summaries of Notes, Emails, webpages, group chats, and notifications from immoderate app will make it easier to read, digest, and respond to thing that happens successful your regular life.

Then location are Writing Tools to thief amended your writing, summarize information, and make you look much master aliases personable successful your tone. If you struggle pinch written communication, Apple Intelligence — and truthful nan iPhone 16 Pro Max — could beryllium a worthwhile upgrade.

Notification Summaries successful Apple Intelligence connected nan iPhone 16 series. Nirave Gondhia / Digital Trends

The remainder of nan iOS 18 characteristic group is disposable connected some devices, truthful you won’t announcement a marked quality pinch nan iPhone 16 Pro Max, isolated from for Apple Intelligence. That intends you’ll still get nan aforesaid location surface customization and theming, reactions and tapbacks successful iMessage, a customizable power center, and overmuch more. These are conscionable immoderate of nan apical reasons to update to iOS 18.

Apple has committed to a minimum of 5 years of updates for some phones, meaning nan iPhone 14 Pro Max will beryllium supported until astatine slightest 2027, and nan iPhone 16 Pro Max till astatine slightest 2029. The second launches connected iOS 18, while you tin update nan iPhone 14 Pro Max to nan newest OS correct now.

Newer is usually better, and successful this case, nan expertise to tally AI makes nan iPhone 16 Pro Max a worthwhile upgrade.

Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: cameras

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The iPhone 16 Pro Max camera is akin to that of nan iPhone 14 Pro Max, isolated from for improvements successful 3 areas: nan summation of nan Camera Control button, a larger 5x zoom, and a amended Ultrawide camera. Collectively, these alteration a scope of improved camera experiences for nan iPhone.

Both phones characteristic a 48MP main camera, though nan iPhone 16 Pro Max uses a Fusion camera that uses pixel binning to seizure 24MP high-resolution images and a sensor harvest to alteration a 2x cropped-zoom. The ultrawide camera has besides been improved from 12MP connected nan iPhone 14 Pro Max to 48MP connected nan iPhone 16 Pro Max. The second has a smaller pixel size astatine 0.7 micrometers (versus 1.4µm), but nan higher solution and amended ray seizure should mean somewhat improved wide ultrawide photos.

• 3. Camera Control menu

The biggest quality successful nan camera is successful nan 3rd lens. The iPhone 14 Pro Max features a 12MP telephoto camera that offers 3x optical zoom, while nan iPhone 16 Pro Max uses nan aforesaid periscope camera pinch 5x optical zoom that launched connected nan iPhone 15 Pro Max. Functionally, nan iPhone 16 Pro Max has beardown zoom capacity passim nan 1x to 5x zoom ranges, while nan iPhone 14 Pro Max is much constricted supra 3x.

If you move to nan iPhone 16 Pro Max from nan iPhone 14 Pro Max, you whitethorn find nan Camera Control fastener perplexing. It’s a beingness fastener pinch a capacitive sensor underneath that allows you to swipe, press, aliases usage gestures to power different aspects of nan camera, specified arsenic nan zoom, camera mode, and pro controls. It’s not nan astir intuitive, but it’s a unsocial camera acquisition considering only Sony besides puts a camera shutter fastener connected its phones.

This is different reasonably adjacent category. While nan improvements successful nan iPhone 16 Pro Max aren’t extensive, they do amended nan wide camera experience. In particular, nan periscope lens connected nan iPhone 16 Pro Max is importantly amended arsenic it besides uses 3D sensor-shift OIS for improved stabilization erstwhile taking photos and videos.

Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: value and availability

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The iPhone 14 Pro Max and iPhone 16 Pro Max stock 1 communal trait: astatine launch, they were nan astir costly iPhone you could buy. The iPhone 14 Pro Max launched astatine $1,099 for 128GB of retention — pinch nan 256GB costing $1,199 — while nan iPhone 16 Pro Max starts pinch 256GB of retention astatine nan aforesaid $1,199 value tag. One large quality is nan maximum storage: nan iPhone 14 Pro Max is constricted to 512GB, while nan iPhone 16 Pro Max is disposable successful a 1TB model.

The iPhone 14 Pro Max comes successful 4 colors: Silver, Space Black, Gold, and Deep Purple, each pinch a stainless alloy frame. Meanwhile, nan iPhone 16 Pro Max uses a Titanium build and is disposable successful Natural Titanium, Black Titanium, White Titanium, and nan caller Desert Titanium color.

Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: verdict

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It’s only been 2 years since nan iPhone 14 Pro Max was released, but nan iPhone 16 Pro Max has been upgraded successful galore ways.

It is bigger and thinner, has smaller bezels, and boasts a newer processor that delivers gains successful CPU, GPU, and neural processing portion (NPU) capacity for amended gaming and AI performance. The camera has been improved throughout, particularly successful nan zoom category, while nan artillery life should beryllium somewhat improved arsenic well.

The iPhone 14 Pro Max is still a very tin phone, however. Although 2 years old, it still delivers a flagship experience. The iOS 18 update delivers each of nan aforesaid benefits, but it won’t tally Apple Intelligence, truthful it is already lacking successful position of future-proofing.

Ultimately, if you’re upgrading from nan iPhone 14 Pro Max to nan iPhone 16 Pro Max, you’ll get a acold much customizable acquisition that’s besides highly familiar. You’ll besides get nan latest and top that Apple has to connection successful nan iPhone, but pinch galore Apple Intelligence features not launching until adjacent year, you whitethorn besides want to hold until nan iPhone 17 adjacent year.