Screen size: 6.1 inches
Chipset: A16 Bionic
Cameras: 48MP main, 12MP ultra-wide, 12MP telephoto (with 3x zoom)
Apple's one-time flagship iPhone remains a top-tier handset thanks to its superfast A16 Bionic chipset, excellent three-lens rear camera setup and useful Dynamic Island digital cut-out. It's only going to get cheaper, too.
For
- Great design and build
- Incredible camera quality
Against
- 3x zoom isn't enough
- Battery life is weaker than previous models
Screen size: 6.1 inches
Chipset: A17 Pro
Cameras: 48MP main, 12MP ultra-wide, 12MP telephoto (with 5x zoom)
The iPhone 15 Pro Max boasts a gorgeous titanium design, an upgraded telephoto zoom camera, a customizable Action Button and helpful USB-C connectivity. If you've got the money to spend, it's the best iPhone Apple has to offer.
For
- Gorgeous redesign
- Excellent photography
- Cutting edge performance
Against
- Pricier baseline (but more storage)
- Charging should be faster
The iPhone 15 Pro Max is finally here, with Apple's latest flagship phone having debuted alongside the standard iPhone 15, the larger iPhone 15 Plus, and semi-flagship iPhone 15 Pro on September 12, 2023.
This successor to the excellent iPhone 14 Pro Max is pretty much the best iPhone money can buy in 2023, and you'll find a full breakdown of its pros and cons in our iPhone 15 Pro Max review. For our thoughts on Apple's other new models, check out our iPhone 15 review, hands-on iPhone 15 Plus review and hands-on iPhone 15 Pro review.
Our comparative piece on the iPhone 15 vs iPhone 14 highlights the key upgrades to Apple's latest standard model, but in this article, we compare the iPhone 15 Pro Max against the iPhone 14 Pro Max, specifically.
iPhone 14 Pro Max vs iPhone 15 Pro Max: specs comparison
Before we dive deep, the table below shows the core specs of the iPhone 14 Pro Max versus those of the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
| iPhone 14 Pro Max | iPhone 15 Pro Max (rumored) | |
|---|---|---|
| Display: | 6.7-inch OLED | 6.7-inch OLED |
| Resolution: | 1290 x 2796 pixels | 1290 x 2796 pixels |
| Refresh rate: | Adaptive 1-120Hz | Adaptive 1-120Hz |
| Chipset: | A16 Bionic | A17 Pro |
| Rear cameras: | 48MP main, 12MP ultrawide, 12MP telephoto with 3x zoom | 48MP wide, 12MP ultra-wide, 12MP telephoto with 5x zoom |
| Front camera: | 12MP | 12MP |
| RAM: | 6GB | 8GB |
| Storage: | 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB | 256GB, 512GB, 1TB |
| Battery: | 4,323mAh | 4,422mAh (unofficial) |
iPhone 14 Pro Max vs iPhone 15 Pro Max: price and availability
The iPhone 14 Pro Max was officially unveiled on September 7, 2022, before going on sale on September 16 for the following prices:
- 128GB: $1,099 / £1,199 / AU$1,899
- 256GB: $1,199 / £1,309 / AU$2,099
- 512GB: $1,399 / £1,529 / AU$2,419
- 1TB: $1,599 / £1,740 / AU$2,769
The iPhone 15 Pro Max was officially unveiled almost a year later, on September 12, 2023, and went on sale on September 15 for the following prices:
- 256GB: $1,199 / £1,199 / AU$2,199
- 512GB: $1,399.99 / £1,399 / AU$2,549
- 1TB: $1,599.99 / £1,599 / AU$2,899
As you can see, the cheapest iPhone 15 Pro Max is more expensive than the cheapest iPhone 14 Pro Max, but you do get twice the storage in the former (256GB vs 128GB). Comparing storage models like-for-like, iPhone 15 Pro Max prices in the US are actually identical to iPhone 14 Pro Max launch prices in the same region, while UK prices are slightly reduced. iPhone 15 Pro Max launch prices in Australia are a touch higher than their iPhone 14 Pro Max equivalents.
Obviously, since the iPhone 14 Pro Max is now the older phone of the two, you'll likely be able to pick up a new model for less than its original $1,099 / £1,199 / AU$1,899 starting price. Check out our iPhone 14 Pro Max deals page for the latest prices, or our iPhone 15 Pro Max deals page for any early offers on Apple's latest flagship phone.
iPhone 14 Pro Max vs iPhone 15 Pro Max: design and display
We've bundled the display and design sections of this comparison together primarily because there's not all that much to say about the former.
The iPhone 14 Pro Max and iPhone 15 Pro Max share the same 6.7-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display with ProMotion technology, meaning their refresh rates vary between 10 and 120Hz depending on the content being displayed on-screen.
Both displays have an identical 1290 x 2796 pixel resolution, as well as HDR10 support and the same peak brightness of 2,000 nits. Both the iPhone 14 Pro Max and iPhone 15 Pro Max feature Apple's Dynamic Island, too, though the latter's version of the technology is slightly more versatile.
Suffice to say, the more drastic differences between these two devices come on the design front.
At first glance, the iPhone 14 Pro Max and the iPhone 15 Pro Max might look quite similar. The former has a glass back, a stainless steel frame, dimensions of 160.7 x 77.6 x 7.9mm, and a weight of 240g. The iPhone 14 Pro Max also has a square camera block (made up of three lenses) in the top left corner of the rear panel, and that aforementioned Dynamic Island cut into the screen.
The iPhone 15 Pro Max likewise has a glass back, similar dimensions (159.9mm x 76.7mm x 8.25mm), three rear cameras and a Dynamic Island cut-out, but, crucially, the metal surrounding Apple's newer phone is titanium, rather than stainless steel, making it stronger and significantly lighter (221g) than the iPhone 14 Pro Max. The display bezels on the iPhone 15 Pro Max are noticeably smaller, too.
Another big design difference comes in the charging department. The iPhone 14 Pro Max uses Apple's Lightning port, while the iPhone 15 Pro Max sports a new USB-C port. It's a little bit larger than the former, but will – if you have the right cable – bring some 10Gbps high-speed data transfer capabilities (the cable Apple ships with the iPhone is not a high-speed one).
The power and volume buttons are the same across both phones, but the iPhone 15 Pro Max replaces the mute switch with a new, configurable Action button, which is programmable via one of Apple's most smartly-designed utility interfaces ever. Here are five things the iPhone 15 Pro Max Action button can do, if you're interested.
On the colors front, the iPhone 14 Pro Max is available in a choice of either Space Black, silver, gold or Deep Purple, while the titanium-clad iPhone 15 Pro Max is available in a choice of either Natural Titanium, Blue Titanium, White Titanium or Black Titanium.
iPhone 14 Pro Max vs iPhone 15 Pro Max: cameras
The main difference between the cameras on these two phones is their respective 12MP telephoto snappers. While the iPhone 14 Pro Max offers 3x optical zoom, the telephoto lens on the iPhone 15 Pro Max offers 5x optical zoom, thanks to Apple's new 'tetraprism' periscope design.
Working in conjunction with that superior zoom on the iPhone 15 Pro Max is some improved 3D sensor shift optical image stabilization, which does a much better job of keeping shots stable versus those taken using the iPhone 14 Pro Max, especially on digitally zoomed videos.
Beyond that, though, both phones share an identical 48MP main camera, 12MP ultra-wide camera, and 12MP front-facing camera. Thanks to the former lens, the iPhone 14 Pro Max and iPhone 15 Pro Max are two of the best camera phones on the market, with the latter phone only winning out due to its aforementioned 5x optical zoom capabilities.
Here's how the rear cameras of the iPhone 14 Pro Max and iPhone 15 Pro Max compare in reality:
iPhone 14 Pro Max camera samples
iPhone 15 Pro Max camera samples
iPhone 14 Pro Max vs iPhone 15 Pro Max: performance
Both the iPhone 14 Pro Max and iPhone 15 Pro Max are undeniably fast handsets, but, being the newer of the two, the iPhone 15 Pro Max is objectively more powerful.
The iPhone 14 Pro Max runs on Apple's A16 Bionic chipset and 6GB RAM, while the iPhone 15 Pro Max uses the newer A17 Pro chipset and reportedly runs on 8GB RAM.
In our review of the latter phone, we said it's fair to call the A17 Pro a leap forward from the A16 Bionic because it's built on an even-smaller 3nm process, which delivers improved efficiency (think battery life), with a CPU that's 10% faster and a six-core GPU that's not only 20% faster but supports on-hardware Ray Tracing, too.
As such, you're also able to play console-quality games natively on the iPhone 15 Pro Max, where you can't on the iPhone 14 Pro Max. That said, the latter is still a supremely powerful phone that comfortably handle almost any task you throw its way.
iPhone 14 Pro Max vs iPhone 15 Pro Max: battery
Apple never shares the official battery capacities for its phones, but it's thought that the battery inside the iPhone 15 Pro Max is at least as big as the one inside the iPhone 14 Pro Max (independent sources suggest it's fractionally larger).
In our testing, the iPhone 15 Pro Max managed 28 hours of mixed-use, while the iPhone 14 Pro Max managed 26 hours with more limited use. So, you'll probably get slightly more juice from Apple's newer phone, but the figures are largely comparable.
On the charging front, Apple says that both phones can recharge to 50% in 30 minutes with an optional 20W USB-C adapter. In testing, both the iPhone 14 Pro Max and iPhone 15 Pro Max managed 47% charge in that time. Neither model supports faster wired charging, but both support Qi and, obviously MagSafe charging (and accessories).
iPhone 14 Pro Max vs iPhone 15 Pro Max: verdict
The iPhone 15 Pro Max represents an upgrade on the iPhone 14 Pro Max thanks to its lighter, titanium design, better telephoto zoom camera, customizable Action Button, and objectively more powerful chipset.
As such, if you don't yet own the iPhone 14 Pro Max and are keen to invest in Apple's biggest and best iPhone, the iPhone 15 Pro Max is the better choice of the two.
That said, the iPhone 14 Pro Max remains a top-tier handset, and the arrival of the iPhone 15 Pro Max will only bring its price down in the coming months. The two phones share the same 6.1-inch Super XDR Retina display, as well as the same main, ultra-wide and selfie cameras, so if you can't meet the newer phone's $1,099 / £1,199 / AU$1,899 starting price and aren't fussed by its aforementioned periscope camera, then the iPhone 14 Pro Max will comfortably see you through the next few years.
