Two-minute overview
The iPhone 12 Pro Max is the greatest iPhone Apple has ever made, and it is also the best – though you’re solely prone to agree if you do not thoughts spending $1,099 / £1,099 / AU$1,849 for the privilege of proudly owning it, and do not thoughts conserving an enormous cellphone about your particular person each day.
The design of the 12 Pro Max mirrors that of the different handsets in 2020's iPhone 12 household: there’s a brand new flat-sided body, which appears to be like extra industrial, and is rather less comfy to carry than final 12 months's mannequin. It's an entire new look that is truly a bit outdated, given it debuted in the iPhone 4 a decade in the past, however made a comeback in latest iPad Pro fashions.
We're anticipating the iPhone 12 Pro Max to get changed by the iPhone 13 Pro Max when the latter launches quickly. While Apple retains round older primary fashions in its lineup, it sometimes quietly retires the bigger variations, that means you can discover the iPhone 12 Pro Max at different retailers, most likely at a reduction, however circuitously from Apple.
Given how incremental the upgrades are on the iPhone 13 Pro Max, although, we might nonetheless advocate the iPhone 12 Pro Max as a best choice for followers of massive Apple telephones. The arrival of iOS 15 additionally provides loads of new performance, from improved Apple Maps to extra nuanced Messages performance to watching or listening to media with others through SharePlay.
The iPhone 12 Pro max is decked out in premium-looking, extra muted colours although, and we're followers of the shiny steel rim round the edge (regardless of the indisputable fact that it is an actual fingerprint magnet). It offers the massive cellphone a contemporary and industrial look.
While the iPhone 12 Pro Max is definitely solely a really small quantity larger than final 12 months's 11 Pro Max, the bezels round the OLED show have been shrunk to permit Apple to extend the display dimension to six.7 inches – and it is a compelling purpose to select up the new bigger iPhone.
Images are clearer and extra seen on the bigger show, you'll be able to see extra of an online web page or picture in every day use – and as a movie-watching machine it is the best iPhone ever. It's one in every of the best shows on the market, in a position to render each colourful scenes and extra delicate tones with ease.
The headline characteristic on the new iPhone 12 Pro Max is the digital camera array: there are three cameras, all upgraded with a greater picture processor. While the digital camera block protrudes from the rear of the cellphone greater than on latest iPhones, the foremost 12MP sensor has been upgraded to seize much more gentle, and enhancements have been made to the picture processing too – a few of the pictures we took have been actually spectacular.
However, the 12 Pro Max wasn't that far forward of the iPhone 12 Pro's digital camera efficiency in our checks, which was stunning – pictures have been, on the entire, clearer and brighter from the 12 Pro Max, however not by an enormous quantity.
If you are a budding movie-maker, we might say it is positively price taking a look at the 12 Pro Max – it is packing Dolby Vision recording at 4K and 60 frames per second, so if you’re a content material creator in search of a cellphone that may file high-quality footage, the 12 Pro Max can positively do this.
HDR will even make your motion pictures look higher, with improved brightness and coloration; nonetheless, it may look a little bit synthetic, and clips will take up extra cupboard space in your cellphone. It's not a characteristic that almost all ought to look to improve for.
The 12 Pro Max begins at 128GB of storage, which is the naked minimal we’d count on, as the cameras will fill it up rapidly – and with 5G on board you can download content material quicker, making it simpler to refill your cellphone with motion pictures and music too.
5G is the way forward for cell connectivity, but it surely's not in itself a purpose to purchase the iPhone 12 Pro Max... but. Many elements of the world nonetheless haven't got 5G protection, so many customers will discover this characteristic redundant for now. In the subsequent few years connectivity will grow to be rather more widespread although, so shopping for a 5G iPhone is extra about future-proofing than having fun with next-gen speeds proper now, until you reside in the coronary heart of a serious metropolis.
And 5G largely simply brings quicker speeds (although it’s quicker than even Wi-Fi for many), so that you won't really feel like that is one thing that’s lacking out of your life proper now.
Apple has additionally added the revolutionary MagSafe tech to the iPhone 12 Pro Max, which lets you magnetically clip chargers, circumstances and equipment to your new iPhone. We like this addition, and extra equipment are showing all the time proper now; MagSafe will solely get higher as time goes on, and getting the iPhone 12 Pro Max will future-proof you as extra equipment seem on the market.
Along with the bigger show, one in every of the massive causes to go for the iPhone 12 Pro Max is the battery life – it has the greatest battery of all the new iPhone 12 vary due to having the largest chassis. We simply crested a day of use in our testing, and even on days once we actually pushed the battery arduous we got to 7:30pm earlier than we would have liked the charger – if you've learn our iPhone 12 Pro overview, and have considerations about whether or not it's going to final lengthy sufficient, we advise shifting as much as the Max.
If you need the best of all issues in an Apple smartphone, the iPhone 12 Pro Max is it. The giant and vibrant show, the enhanced digital camera, the longer battery life and superior grunt inside make this a compelling smartphone. If your arms can address the further heft (and your pockets with the heftier value), that is the mannequin to go for.
However, if the Pro Max feels a bit greater than you want, or is past your price range, the iPhone 12 Pro presents an identical characteristic set and efficiency for much less (though with out the prolonged battery life) – and the distinction between the cameras is not as marked as we anticipated.
If you are open to Android then there are additionally a couple of different top-flight telephones to think about, most notably the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra, which at the time of writing tops our checklist of the best smartphones. You may additionally need to check out the OnePlus 9 Pro, which matches or beats the iPhone 12 Pro Max in lots of areas whereas coming in at a barely lower cost.
Update: Apple has confirmed the iPhone 12 Pro Max will obtain iOS 15 when it lands later this 12 months, so you may get all the newest options on this handset.
iPhone 12 Pro Max launch date and value
After an October 13, 2020 announcement, Apple confirmed that the iPhone 12 Pro Max could be coming a couple of weeks after launch; whereas the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro have been out there on October 23, the firm opted to launch each the iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 12 Pro Max at a later date.
iPhone 12 Pro Max pre-orders opened on November 6, 2020, and also you're in a position to purchase the cellphone now round the world.
The iPhone 12 Pro Max value begins at $1,099 / £1,099 / AU$1,849 for 128GB of storage, rising to $1,199 / £1,199 / AU$2,019 for 256GB, and $1,399 / £1,399 / AU$2,369 for 512GB.
Apple telephones maintain their costs nicely, in order of May 2021, you may nonetheless roughly be taking a look at these costs, even if you store round. Though as the 12 months progresses we would not be shocked if some shops begin providing slight reductions, particularly throughout sale occasions.
Design
The iPhone 12 Pro Max is massive. It’s the greatest iPhone that Apple’s ever made, if solely by a couple of millimeters. However, because it additionally has the new squared edges of the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro Max, aping the brutal, industrial design of the new iPad Pro vary, it feels bigger in the hand.
That’s to not say it is a dangerous factor – if you’re not shopping for the 12 Pro Max since you need an enormous iPhone, then you definitely’re form of lacking the level.
Those angular edges imply the cellphone is not as comfy to carry as the extra rounded iPhone 11 Pro Max, the curved sides on which folded extra softly into the palm.
One of the key traits of the Pro Max this 12 months is the extra ‘mature’ colours it is available in – the exterior is a shiny stainless-steel band, and this, the entrance accent and the rear of the cellphone now are available in Graphite, Gold, Silver and Pacific Blue.
That shiny outer rim appears to be like fancy, but it surely’s additionally a magnet for fingerprints – prepare to shine it a good bit if you need to preserve it trying new and premium.
Given the price ticket, you’d count on an expensive-looking cellphone, and the iPhone 12 Pro Max positively appears to be like the half, particularly in the Gold coloration we reviewed.
Essentially, the design of the 12 Pro Max is only a bigger model of the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro, and regardless of the dimension it nonetheless suits nicely in the hand, and it is easy to hit the Siri / display lock button on the left and the quantity keys on the proper.
However, there’s one massive distinction: the three-camera setup on the rear of the 12 Pro Max protrudes a lot additional than on the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro, as there’s a bigger sensor beneath to tug in additional gentle (we’ll get as to whether that’s price it in the digital camera part, however – spoiler alert – it’s not dangerous in any respect).
This signifies that whenever you’re placing the iPhone 12 Pro Max down on a desk, it actually rocks back and forth if you’re tapping away on the display – it’s nearly enjoyable to play with absentmindedly, such is the protrusion. It’s actually noticeable, and can make most individuals take into consideration placing a case on the iPhone to simply flatten off the bump.
As talked about, that is the largest iPhone Apple has ever made, with dimensions of 160.8mm x 78.1mm x 7.4mm, and regardless of being thinner than final 12 months’s 11 Pro Max, it truly feels barely bigger in the hand, due to the sq. edges.
Be prepared for one thing which may annoy you before you purchase: Apple has dropped the charging block and Earpods from the field. You’re now simply getting a charging cable at buy – and it’s USB-C to Lightning, reasonably than normal USB-A to Lightning cable that Apple’s been placing in containers for years.
The USB-C cable does cost the iPhone extra rapidly – however you’ll have to exit and purchase a charging block at $19 / £19 / AU$29 from Apple to make use of it.
It is not sensible for Apple to do that – it says it’s making this transfer to cut back digital waste, as everybody has charging blocks and headphones already, however whereas that’s true barely anybody may have the proper block to permit them to make use of this new cable – it might have made much more sense to do that when Apple had been supplying this charging lead for a couple of years.
If you do not have the proper block, or if you’ve by no means owned an iPhone earlier than, you’ll have to think about the value of a brand new charging block on high of the already-high price ticket of the 12 Pro Max.
The key takeaway: if you need an enormous iPhone, and all the advantages that brings, then you definitely’ll get pleasure from the design of this larger mannequin – however you actually received’t be capable of attain throughout the display together with your thumb.
Display
The iPhone 12 Pro Max has the largest show of any iPhone ever created – that in itself is an efficient purpose to improve.
In conserving with new expertise that appeared on final 12 months’s 11 Pro and Pro Max, all the fashions in the iPhone 12 vary are packing OLED shows, and particularly at this dimension it actually makes an enormous distinction. Apple is asking this a ‘Super XDR OLED display’, and in layman's phrases this interprets to a transparent, vibrant and sharp display with wonderful coloration copy.
It's an actual improve for anybody coming from the older iPhones – the show right here is startlingly higher, and pictures actually pop with coloration and element.
Thanks to the thinner bezels round the new iPhone 12 Pro Max show the display is ready to stretch additional to the edges of the system, leading to a 6.7-inch show in comparison with a 6.5-inch affair on the 11 Pro Max, and it appears to be like actually spectacular. That further display property is de facto noticeable subsequent to final 12 months’s cellphone, and provides to the sense of immersion when watching motion pictures or comparable.
It’s not an enormous step ahead when it comes to brightness – it is a very comparable OLED panel to the one we noticed on the 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max – but it surely’s pin-sharp, and streamed or downloaded content material appears to be like dynamic on the bigger show, with excessive distinction ratios making issues like blockbuster motion motion pictures and nature documentaries look extremely absorbing.
Apple has added the Ceramic Shield to the entrance of the iPhone 12 Pro Max, because it has with others in the iPhone 12 vary – that is designed to make it 4 occasions much less prone to crack in the occasion of a drop.
We didn’t take a look at that declare throughout our overview – partly as a result of we don’t need to randomly see if we will smash an costly cellphone simply to see what occurs – however Apple can also be claiming the iPhone 12 vary is scratch resistant, due to a ‘dual ion exchange’ course of.
That’s not one thing we noticed in our utilization. As with the iPhone 11 Pro Max final 12 months, early in our testing small nicks and scratches started showing on the system. Nothing that’s apparent in every day use, however when the display is off you'll be able to clearly see small nicks and scuffs, regardless of us not placing the cellphone in a pocket with razor blades (and even keys and unfastened change).
If you’re pondering you may get away with out a case when upgrading, the hardiness of the iPhone 12 Pro Max has positively been improved, but it surely appears it’s nonetheless going to point out indicators of wear and tear and tear if you don’t preserve it protected.
Camera
The greatest purpose to improve to the iPhone 12 Pro Max sits on the rear of the cellphone: it is the digital camera array. Three 12MP cameras reside right here – normal huge, ultra-wide and the 2.5x telephoto zoom – they usually’ve been upgraded from final 12 months too, with Night Mode out there for the ultra-wide sensor in addition to the foremost shooter.
While you would possibly suppose there's not a lot distinction between the 12 Pro Max and the 12 Pro, Apple has got down to make the Pro Max the alternative if you need to have the best digital camera expertise on an iPhone.
It achieves that wholly with the big new iPhone. The sensor is greater inside (due to the bigger dimensions) and that leads to a digital camera that may soak up extra gentle and take brighter, clearer photos, one that after once more nibbles away at the causes you may need to have a separate digital camera.
The result's easy: if you need to take the best photos with an iPhone, you'll be able to't look wherever else however the 12 Pro Max.
Apple has been making an enormous deal about 'computational pictures', with the chipset inside the iPhone 12 vary clever sufficient to know what it is taking a look at and alter the ensuing picture in accordance. Deep Fusion, which debuted final 12 months on Apple's iPhones, analyses pictures pixel by pixel to create the best potential outcome post-capture.
The new Smart HDR 3 functionality appears to be like for various scenes when the photograph is taken, grabbing a number of exposures and stitching them collectively intelligently to offer you the best image, whereas Night mode, which requires you to maintain the cellphone nonetheless for a various period of time (relying on the situations) can flip a darkish, gloomy setting right into a wealthy and vibrant scene.