iPhone 13 Pro Max vs. iPhone 14 Pro Max: Did Apple’s Biggest iPhone Improve?
Reading Time: 5 minutesIs newer always better? Here, we pit the iPhone 14 Pro Max against its predecessor to see if it’s worth upgrading.
The iPhone 14 Pro Max is the latest and greatest smartphone from Apple, and it comes with quite a few changes compared to its predecessor, the iPhone 13 Pro Max—one of the highest-selling phones of 2021.
Both devices launched with a price tag of $1099, but you can now pick up the iPhone 13 Pro Max for much less on Amazon. So, let’s compare the two and see if the new iPhone is a worthy upgrade.
Dimensions and Design
- iPhone 13 Pro Max: 160.8 x 78.1 x 7.65 mm; 240 grams
- iPhone 14 Pro Max: 160.7 x 77.6 x 7.85 mm; 240 grams
The iPhone 14 Pro Max is almost identical in size to the iPhone 13 Pro Max, but only slightly thicker and narrower, and has a bigger camera module. Unfortunately, this means your iPhone 13 case won’t fit the iPhone 14. Both devices weigh the same, use stainless steel frames, have Ceramic Shield glass on the front, and have the same boxy design.
One notable difference between the two is that the iPhone 14 Pro Max doesn’t come with a SIM card slot. In fact, for customers in the US, all iPhone 14 models use e-SIM only. So, if your carrier doesn’t support e-SIM or you’re a frequent traveler, the iPhone 13 Pro Max will be more suitable.
The iPhone 13 Pro Max is available in six colors: Alpine Green, Silver, Silver, Gold, Graphite, and Sierra Blue. The iPhone 14 Pro Max is available in four colors: Deep Purple, Silver, Gold, and Space Black.
Display
- iPhone 13 Pro Max: 6.7-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display; 2778 x 1284 resolution; 458 PPI; 1,200 nits peak brightness; 120Hz ProMotion; True Tone display
- iPhone 14 Pro Max: 6.7-inch LTPO Super Retina XDR OLED display; 2796 x 1290 resolution; 460 PPI; 2,000 nits peak brightness; 120Hz ProMotion; Always-on display
The display is perhaps the biggest difference between the iPhone 14 Pro Max and the iPhone 13 Pro Max. The Dynamic Island on the iPhone 14 Pro series is the new face of the iPhone and differentiates the latest models from the older ones.
The Dynamic Island is a pill-shaped cutout that can intuitively morph into different shapes based on what you’re doing on your phone. It can show notifications, incoming phone calls, and ongoing background activities such as active timers, now-playing tracks, podcasts, and more.
It’s essentially a glorified replacement for the notification panel, but given how it’s designed, it also serves as a great multitasking tool. Note that the Dynamic Island feature is only available on the iPhone 14 Pro series; the base iPhone 14 still comes with a notch, just like its predecessor.
The display is nearly identical between the two devices, but the iPhone 14 Pro Max flaunts two key changes. First, a higher peak brightness of 2,000 nits, and second, an always-on display that can scale down the refresh rate all the way to 1Hz for battery saving.
And while the implementation is unique, Apple’s always-on display is not that good. So, don’t let that be the deciding factor.
Camera
- iPhone 13 Pro Max: 12MP f/1.5 primary, dual-pixel PDAF, sensor-shift stabilization; 12MP f/2.8 telephoto lens, 3x digital zoom, OIS; 12MP ultrawide camera with f/1.8 aperture (120-degree FoV), macro photography; Front: 12MP f/2.2, PDAF, 4K video at 60FPS
- iPhone 14 Pro Max: 48MP f/1.8 primary, sensor-shift OIS, dual-pixel PDAF, 4K video at 60fps; 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide (120-degree FoV), dual-pixel PDAF, macro photography; 12MP f/2.8 telephoto, OIS, 3x digital zoom; Front: 12MP f/1.9, PDAF, 4K video at 60FPS
Apple has capped iPhone cameras at 12MP resolution since 2015, while Android companies have been boasting about their high-resolution cameras for as long as we can remember. In 2022, Apple finally made the leap with the iPhone 14 Pro series and introduced a new 48MP main sensor.
With the new 48MP camera and 65% larger image sensor on the iPhone 14 Pro Max, Apple promises sharper and more detailed photos with improved low-light performance. The 48MP lens offers four times the resolution of a 12MP unit, so you can now zoom into or crop your photo without losing much detail.
Note that the default file size of your photos will still be 12MP as the phone will use pixel binning to merge neighboring pixels in a 4-to-1 matrix. However, you can manually set your iPhone 14 Pro to shoot in 48MP if you want a full-sized photo.
Processor
- iPhone 13 Pro Max: A15 Bionic; 5nm process; 5-core GPU
- iPhone 14 Pro Max: A16 Bionic; 4nm process; 5-core GPU
It’s expected that each new generation of iPhone will come with a new chip, but Apple has decided to end this practice. It’s why the iPhone 14 doesn’t get the A16 Bionic chip, but the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max do—in the same way that only the Pro models get the new Dynamic Island feature.
Clearly, Apple is trying to widen the gap between the Pro and non-Pro models. The question is, does it make a difference? Is the new A16 Bionic chip on the iPhone 14 Pro Max a worthy upgrade over the A15 Bionic chip on the iPhone 13 Pro Max?
The answer depends on the type of user you are, but for most people, it doesn’t make any difference. There are some incremental upgrades on paper, but you’ll struggle to tell the difference in performance between the two devices in real-world use.
RAM and Storage
- iPhone 13 Pro Max: 6GB RAM; 128GB/256GB/512GB/1TB storage
- iPhone 14 Pro Max: 6GB RAM; 128GB/256GB/512GB/1TB storage
There is no difference in terms of RAM and storage between the iPhone 13 Pro Max and the iPhone 14 Pro Max. Both devices have 6GB of RAM and up to 1TB of internal storage.
Battery
- iPhone 13 Pro Max: 4352mAh battery; 15W MagSafe wireless charging support
- iPhone 14 Pro Max: 4323mAh battery; 15W MagSafe wireless charging support
The iPhone 13 Pro Max made headlines when it launched for having the best battery life of any smartphone, so naturally, people were curious to see how the next iPhone would one-up it.
Sadly, the iPhone 14 Pro Max does not have better battery life than the iPhone 13 Pro Max. The former has a 4323mAh cell, while the latter has a slightly bigger 4352mAh cell, but that’s not the whole story.
Since the iPhone 14 Pro features an always-on display, it performs slightly worse than its predecessor in the battery department. Fortunately, the charging speed remains exactly the same for both devices—50% charge in about 30 minutes with a 20W adapter.
Is the iPhone 14 Pro Max a Good Upgrade?
The iPhone 14 Pro Max has quite a few improvements, such as the new Dynamic Island cutout, 48MP main camera, always-on display, A16 Bionic chip, Emergency SOS via satellite, and Crash Detection. If you value these features, the new iPhone is a great device.
That said, it’s not a significant upgrade over the iPhone 13 Pro Max due to its nearly identical battery life, charging speed, camera design, outdated Lightning port, and e-SIM-only limitation. But if you own the iPhone 12 Pro Max or older, the iPhone 14 Pro Max is a worthy upgrade.
Reference: https://www.makeuseof.com/iphone-13-pro-max-vs-iphone-14-pro-max/