My 15 Days Review of iPhone 16 Pro Max: A comprehensive one!

In this article, I will allow you to track my 15 days review of iphone 16 pro max based on my experience, over the past few days. I only provide my own personal opinion about the phone and how it potentially may help you decide if it’s worth spending your time and money on it. We previously compared this phone to Samsung s24 ultra, you may also check on it.

We may commence!

As many of you may be aware, the new iPhone 16 pro max was released a month ago and I’ve been using it for a mere 15 days and I believe it is worth the hype as it without a doubt is an upgrade when compared to iPhone 15 pro max.

In this article, I will be doing a comprehensive analysis of the iPhone eco system and specifically the iphone 16 pro max and what new features it brings to the table, if the features are efficient and enough to add the phone to your wish list. So without wasting any further time, let us get right into it.

Design and build quality: It feels familiar but has been improved

Looking at the phone for the first time, the design won’t feel any different to you but IPhone has developed a significant design ethos over the past couple of generations and they seem to be stickling to it.

The triple camera features and flash along with the LIDAR sensor have all been placed at the rear of the set. The phone’s casing is very much similar to the 15 pro as the rear is still flat and beats the competition when it comes to feel, as it is made out of titanium.

Biggest change noted so far is the actual physical size. When compared to the iPhone 15 Pro Max, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is marginally bigger than last year’s version, however the difference isn’t really felt all that much. Apple’s smart design element choices make it easy to explain this further, however, we will discuss this in deeper detail.

Maximized Screen Area with thin Bezels

The size of the display on the iPhone 16 Pro Max has increased by a small margin from 6.7 inches to 6.9 inches which is a 0.2 inch increase. This might come across as a big leap on the spec sheet, however, I would argue that I didn’t see a massive difference in the phone’s size during regular use.

A huge contributing factor towards this is the excessive framing employed for numerous content pieces, particularly video, which also doesn’t aid in utilizing the space available to its fullest extent.

The bezels have been reduced even further, improving the phone’s graphic integrity to a single glass panel. A resolution of 460 pixels per inch (ppi) ensures the graphics remain of high quality.

Even though this is impressive, some other phones e.g Samsung do have greater maximum brightness than the 2,000 nits which Apple continues to keep as a maximum threshold.

A distinguishing feature that has caught my attention has to be the ability to set the brightness to just one nit, this has proved to be quite useful in low light environments such as watching a video at night without disturbing anyone else. 

Performance: Does The A18 Pro Chip Make Any Difference?

The A18 Pro chip makes the iPhone 16 pro max stand out from the iPhone 15 pro max. However, with that in mind, real life use has not shown me massive performance boost. Given the expectation of a high end device, I have not faced any major loading time while shifting between applications on everyday activities. 

Additionally, playing games on the iPhone 16 Pro Max is extremely easy, showcasing constant frame rates with no lags even during graphically demanding games. In terms of both performance and power consumption, the A18 Pro chip has also been a significant improvement to the iPhone’s battery life. 

Battery Life: An Incremental Change but a Change Nonetheless

On most days, I noticed that the battery life of the iPhone 16 Pro Max is slightly greater than that of the iPHONE 15 Pro Max. This is rather surprising to me as I wrote off the difference being too small; I regularly ended my day with an approximate 32% battery life on the 15 Pro but on the 16 I was getting around 46%. While the difference isn’t massive, it is still worth noticing especially for someone who would use one phone for the entire day and avoided charging it.  

With the advent of the USB-C port, iPhones come with faster charging and faster data transfer as well which is commendable. This shift, which was anticipated, is great news for those who prefer universal chargers, and this is particularly beneficial for people who frequently transfer heavy files like 4K movies. 

Check this out: 6 Reasons why Elon Musk Declares Pi Phone Superior to iPhone 16!

Cameras: Sharp Images, Impressive Zoom, and Night Mode

Apple has improved camera photos even more than ever with the zoom in the phone, nighttime photos look impressive as well.  IPhone’s 48 mega pixel zoom feature of the main camera has undergone significant change, it allowed for a much clearer and detailed view. While the multiplier of 10 maintains impressive quality, it starts getting blurry at x25 which is still fine.

The iPhone’s night mode improves in some areas. While it is good at illuminating dark scenes, there are cases where photographs taken in night mode render scenes brighter than they actually are. This allows dark scenes to be within view, but some night shots can turn out to look unnatural.

The selfie camera offers nothing new as it has been retained in previous generations of the iPhone and has a 12-megapixel sensor that does its job well for selfies and video calls. No complaints here just a performance that is smooth and has a good quality.

Video Recording: Not Choppy and Versatile

iPhone 16 Pro Max is great when recording videos. Shooting 4K at 60 fps I was able to smoothly zoom in from 0.5x up to an impressive 15x without compromising on detail. The new capture button makes this task easier while allowing you to focus on the shot without struggling with pinching the screen to zoom in.

This button is customizable allowing the assignment of multiple functions like taking pictures or launching other apps right away. For me this capture button is comfortable, but unlike me some may take a while to get used to it especially if you have used the pinch to zoom technique for a long time.

Build and Durability: Titanium Frame and Improved Protection 

The frame of the iPhone 16 Pro Max is similar to the one used in the iPhone 15 Pro, but for some reason, it still feels luxurious in a sense. Its light, tough, and Apple nailed the distribution of the device, so it is comfortable to hold with one hand, despite being larger than its predecessors. 

Moreover, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is said to support a better applicable drop protection. For example, I used a TORRAS 360 case that can withstand a 10-foot drop. It also has an integrated kickstand and extra more grip, which is great for watching videos or everyday use of the device. 

Software: iOS 18.1 Offers New AI-Driven Features.

I have had the chance to test the iPhone 16 Pro Max with the iOS 18.1 public beta, and I have to admit, the software run well. The update includes various artificial intelligence features like Siri and other text input tools that assist me in so many ways. And one more feature I was quite impressed with is the AI photo editing.

These advancements are not that significant, and in case you still have the iOS 18, you won’t notice much of a difference. But considering that iOS 18.1 is about to come out, it is wise to upgrade so as to enjoy everything this new version has to offer. 

Final Thoughts

So Some Would Say It’s An Upgrade While For Others It’s Incremental. Having used the phone for slightly more than a week, I can safely say that the iPhone 16 Pro Max is one of the best phone I have used. The increased screen size, enhanced camera system, enhanced battery life and slightly enhanced performance makes this one of the best flagship phones.