iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. 15 Pro Max: Spec Breakdown video

You can buy the shiny new iphone 16 Pro Max now. But should you, I'm here to help you make that decision by breaking down how the specs of Apple's flagship 16 Pro Max compared to those of last year's top of the line 15 Pro Max. And remember that the specs can only tell us so much. So, subscribe to C net for all of our tests and advice on the new 16 Pro Max. Like previous years, there are two Pro models, the iphone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max. But unlike last year where the 15 Pro and Pro Max had different telephoto cameras. Both the 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max have the same cameras and are otherwise identical aside from the 16 Pro having a lower price and a smaller screen size and battery for this video. I'm focusing on comparing the 16 Pro Max and last year's 15 Pro Max. But pretty much everything I go over also applies to the regular 15 Pro and 16 Pro. And of course, you can find out more about these Pro models at C net.com. The 16 Pro Max starts at the same price as the 15 Pro Max, did it launch $1200? Both come in 256 and 512 gigabyte as well as one terabyte storage options. The 16 Pro Max features Apple's new A 18 pro chip while the 15 Pro Max is powered by last year's a 17 pro chip. Apple calls that new chip the brains behind Apple Intelligence. That's the company's new of A I tools of which a handful of features will come out in October for all iphone 16 models and the 15 pro and Pro Max. Some Apple Intelligence features include writing tools to proofread and change the tone of your messages. The ability to summarize online articles, image tools to eliminate unwanted distractions from your photos. And an A I powered overhaul of Siri complete with a new glowing border animation. Other Apple intelligence features that were announced in June, like the ability to integrate chat G BT, make your own emoji or create clip art style images are expected to roll out later. Visual intelligence is a new feature that uses your camera to show you info about the world around you. Kind of like Google lens. The iphone 16 S have a new camera control button not found on the iphone 15 S that you'll be able to press to access visual intelligence during its glow time event, Apple demonstrated how you could use it to identify a dog breed. For example, visual intelligence isn't available yet, but will come in a future software update, but you can still do lots of other things with the camera control key. Right now. It's basically a button with touch capabilities, sort of like a mini Macbook track pad. It can open the camera, take photos and be used to do things like zooming in and out. Both phones also have the action button that you can program to perform the function of your choice, like turning on your flashlight or recording a voice memo. Both phones can run ios 18 which has cool new features like the ability to change your app icon, colors, send texts via satellite and schedule messages. Check out the video linked on screen for some of my favorite lesser known I OS 18 features at 6.9 inches and with the resolution of 2868 by 1320 pixels, the 16 Pro Max has the largest screen ever on an iphone. The 15 Pro Max's display on the other hand is 6.7 inches with a 2796 by 1290 pixel resolution. Both of these premium phone screens have an identical pixel density of 460 PPI a 1 to 120 Hertz, variable refresh rate and always on display and a peak brightness of 2000 nets. Both also have that shape shifting dynamic island cut out that shows alerts and background activities from your apps. The list of similarities goes on the two phones are eight point five millimeters thick and are made of a titanium alloy that allows them to be relatively light. Despite their big displays, the 16 Pro Max weighs 227 g. For the 15 Pro Max is 221 g. Both are rated IP 68 for water and dust resistance. As for the cameras, both the 15 Pro Max and 16 Pro Max have a trio of lenses wide, ultra wide and telephoto. Each phone has a 48 megapixel sensor for the main camera with an F 1.78 wide angle lens. But the sensor on the 16 Pro max is faster. So there's less shutter lag. That means it's better for capturing fast subjects like kids and pets. The phones also have a 12 megapixel five times telephoto camera with an F 2.8 lens. I own a 15 Pro Max and I love that five times optical zoom on the telephoto specifically for taking concert videos. As I mentioned earlier, this feature used to be exclusive to the 15 Pro Max but is now included on both the 16 Pro and Pro Max, which I'm very happy about. Each phone also has an ultra wide camera with the 16 Pro Max sporting a 48 megapixel sensor and an F 2.2 lens. While the 15 Pro Max has a 12 megapixel sensor also with an F 2.2 lens. And for your selfies. Both phones have a 12 megapixel front camera with an F 1.9 lens. Both the 15 Pro Max and 16 Pro Max offer photographic styles that allow you to alter the look and feel of your photos. But the iphone 16 lineup features an updated version of photographic styles that's better at identifying skin undertones, highlights and shadows. My colleague Lisa at a Chico has raved about this change this latest version, her favorite feature on the iphone 16, both phones can record videos up to four K resolution at 60 frames per second. You can also shoot slow mo videos in four K up to 120 frames per second on the 16 Pro Max. While the 15 Pro Max allows you to shoot slow mo video in 1080 p up to 240 frames per second. In his 16 Pro and Pro Max review, my fellow C Patrick Hall and referred to this high slow mo video as his favorite iphone feature in years. He praised the slow mo video for its rich details, solid dynamic range and accurate colors. The proof is in the pudding and you can check out his full review linked on screen for more. Both the 15 Pro Max and 16 Pro Max can also shoot spatial photos for the vision pro and spatial video in 1080 p up to 30 frames per second. The 16 Pro Max also has a new audio mix feature for videos not found on the 15 Pro Max that can make your audio sound like it was recorded on a studio m it's really aimed at making voices and people speaking on camera sound better. But Patrick and I did test it on a noisy rooftop as I sing an original song about the new iphone. You can listen to hear how it removes the city sounds. I this week there's a lot to do. I just, it's got Apple. You can even make the 16 Pro Max also has better wind and noise reduction that should make your audio sound cleaner. In general, the 16 Pro Max also has a larger battery than the 15 Pro Max. Apple doesn't disclose battery capacity but claims the 16 Pro Max offers up to 33 hours of video playback. While the 15 Pro Max offers up to 29 hours. Both the 15 Pro Max and the 16 Pro Max have a USB charging for the 15 Pro Max supports 27 watt wire charging and while Apple hasn't officially disclosed how fast the 16 Pro Max can charge. There are reports that it can reach 45 watt speeds. In his review, Patrick noted that the regular 16 Pro got through a full day on a single charge, which isn't a giant improvement over the 15 Pro. Both the 15 Pro Max and the 16 Pro Max also support to charging up to 15 watts. But while the 15 Pro max tops out at support for 15 watt wireless charging via mag safe. The 16 Pro max can charge as fast as 25 watts. The catch is that the mag safe charger you're using needs a 30 watt wall plug last but not least. Let's go over colors. There's some overlap here. Both the 15 Pro Max and the 16 Pro Max come in natural titanium, white titanium and black titanium. But the 16 Pro Max also comes in Desert Titanium. Well, the fourth color option for the 15 Pro Max is blue Titanium. Those are some of the key similarities and differences between the brand new iphone 16 Pro Max and the 2023 iphone 15 Pro Max. So should you buy the new phone? Well, if you're coming from a 14 Pro model or 15 Pro model, the short answer is no, if you have a 13 Pro model and your battery is still working fine, you can also probably hold on to your current phone for a little while longer. But if you have a 12 Pro model or older, there is a strong case to be made for upgrading to the newest flagship model. Those updates will likely feel pretty exciting compared to your current phone. For more information on these phones, check out C net.com. Please let me know what you think of the new 16 Pro Max in the comments below and thank you so much for watching.