iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. iPhone 15 Pro Max: What are the differences?
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This iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. iPhone 15 Pro Max face-off will help you get a better understanding of how Apple's newest release compares to its predecessor.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max sports a swanky new ultrawide camera, a fancy new Camera Control button, and a gigantic display, but is it really all that different from the iPhone 15 Pro Max? Let's do a deep-dive comparative analysis to find out.
iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. iPhone 15 Pro Max price
On Apple's official website, the iPhone 16 Pro Max has a starting price of $1,199 and it comes with the following:
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A18 Pro processor
8GB of RAM
256GB of storage
6.9-inch display
When the iPhone 15 Pro Max debuted last year, it, too, had a starting price of $1,199 with the following specs:
A17 Pro processor
8GB of RAM
256GB of storage
6.7-inch display
If you want to bump up your storage, it'll cost you extra for both models.
iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. iPhone 15 Pro Max display and design
If you thought the iPhone 15 Pro Max was too big at 6.7 inches, wait 'til you get your hands on the iPhone 16 Pro Max. This thing is a phablet (an amalgamation of the words "phone" and "tablet.")
The new iPhone 16 Pro Max now has a 6.9-inch, 2,868 x 1,320-pixel panel, up from last year's 6.7-inch, 2,796 x 1,290-pixel display.
It's also worth noting that the iPhone 16 Pro Max has ultra-thin bezels, so you're getting a higher screen-to-body ratio on the new-gen model. In other words, you're getting more display real estate on the Phone 16 Pro Max.
Other than that, both the iPhone 16 Pro Max and the iPhone 15 Pro Max have the following in common:
1,000-nit panel
2,000 nits peak brightness
Ceramic Shield display
Always-on display
ProMotion (variable refresh rate of up to 120Hz)
Dynamic Island
If you prefer a gigantic display, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is your best bet.
It's also worth noting that the iPhone 16 Pro Max has a new "Camera Control" button, too, that can be found on the right side of the chassis.
Both the iPhone 16 Pro Max and iPhone 15 Pro Max offer the following colorways:
White Titanium
Black Titanium
Natural Titanium
However, the iPhone 15 Pro Max also has a Blue Titanium color.
But that got swapped in favor of Desert Titanium on the iPhone 16 Pro Max.
iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. iPhone 15 Pro Max cameras
In regards to cameras, here are where the iPhone 16 Pro Max and iPhone 15 Pro Max match:
48MP wide camera
12MP telephoto with 5X optical zoom
12MP selfie camera
However, where they differ is the ultrawide lens. The iPhone 16 Pro Max now has a 48MP utlrawide lens, up from the iPhone 15 Pro Max's 12MP ultrawide lens. As such, your wide-angle pictures and landscape shots should look even more detailed and perform better in low-light environments.
Also, when it comes to video recording, the iPhone 16 Pro Max supports 4K at 120Hz capture, up from 4K at 60Hz on the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. iPhone 15 Pro Max battery life
Apple claims that the iPhone 16 Pro Max has the longest battery life ever on an iPhone. I'm talking about 33 hours of video playback.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max is rated for 29 hours of video playback.
However, we'll have to bring it in for in-house testing to really see how long the iPhone 16 Pro Max lasts on a charge. We ran a TikTok rundown with the iPhone 15 Pro Max's display at 50% of brightness, and it lasted 14 hours and 53 minutes on a charge — nearly 15 hours.
We can't help but wonder whether the iPhone 16 Pro Max will beat the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL, which lasted an incredible 18 hours and 50 minutes on a charge.
iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. iPhone 15 Pro Max: Audio
According to Apple, the iPhone 16 Pro Max has better "true to life" sound quality, thanks to its improved studio-quality mics.
And unlike the iPhone 15 Pro Max, the iPhone 16 Pro Max will let you layer audio on top of another in the Voice Memos app.
iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. iPhone 15 Pro Max: Winner
Let's be honest. Battery life is important to a lot of us. If Apple's 33-hour battery life claim is accurate, it's definitely worth the upgrade.
Plus, I got a chance to play around with the new Camera Control button, and it's definitely another big selling point. Add the bigger 6.9-inch display, and I'm sold.
Kimberly Gedeon, at Mashable since 2023, is a tech explorer who enjoys doing deep dives into the most popular gadgets, from the latest iPhones to the most immersive VR headsets. She's drawn to strange, avant-garde, bizarre tech, whether it's a 3D laptop, a gaming rig that can transform into a briefcase, or smart glasses that can capture video. Her journalism career kicked off about a decade ago at MadameNoire where she covered tech and business before landing as a tech editor at Laptop Mag in 2020.
