Apple officially launched the iPhone 14 series today. The iPhone 14 Pro Max is the company's newest pro-smartphone for all the customers who want a big-screen phone with all the new features. The iPhone 14 Pro Max is a worthy choice for those looking for a new iPhone thanks to the new pill-shaped notch, always-on display mode, first-ever 48MP primary camera on an iPhone, A16 Bionic chipset, and a lot more.

Along with iPhone 14 Pro Max, Apple also introduced iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, Apple Watch Series 8, and the brand new Apple Watch Ultra. In this article, we will be taking a closer look at the iPhone 14 Pro Max.

Price and Availability

The iPhone 14 Pro Max will be available to pre-order from September 9, 2022, with in-store availability and deliveries happening a week later, i.e., from the 16th. The iPhone 14 Pro Max has been priced at $1,099 for the base 128GB model. Despite rumors, Apple has not increased the price of the base model. Here are the prices of all the iPhone 14 Pro Max storage variants:

Colors

Apple's Pro model iPhones always feature subtle, minimal colors that look professional compared to standard models. And it's the same case with iPhone 14 Pro Max. Rumors suggested a new Purple color would be coming, and it seems that they have come true. The iPhone 14 Pro will be available in four colors, namely space black, silver, gold, and deep purple, at launch.

Similar to last year, we expect Apple to launch a new color variant of the iPhone 14 Pro Max sometime next year. But until then, what color would you like Apple to bring back or introduce? Let us know in the comments section down below.

Specifications

Design

Starting with the design of the iPhone 14 Pro Max, Apple's latest big-screen smartphone features the same outer look as the iPhone 13 Pro Max (which in turn featured the same design as the iPhone 12 Pro Max). It comes with the same flat-edge glass-sandwich design as the last year's model. It also offers the same surgical-grade stainless steel and Ceramic Shield protective glass on the front and the back as found on the previous generation Pro model.

Looking at the rear, you'll notice that the camera sensors have grown even more in size, and so has the phone's thickness (why? more on this down below). Apple is continuing with the same premium-looking textured finish it first introduced with the iPhone 11 Pro Max on the new Pro Max model. The iPhone 14 Pro Max is also IP68 dust and water resistance, protecting against water ingress to 6 meters depth for up to 30 minutes.

While the exterior of the iPhone 14 Pro has mostly remained the same, the front has undergone significant changes. As expected, Apple has gotten rid of the notch on the iPhone 14 Pro, and the smartphone ships with a ‘Dynamic Island’ notch up top. The new pill-shaped notch enables new ways to interact with iPhone, according to Apple.

It adapts to the software in real time and shows important alerts, notifications, and activities. It maintains an active state to allow users easier access to controls with a simple tap-and-hold. For example, you can see and control background activities like Maps, Music, or a timer with the Dynamic Island.

Display

The iPhone 14 Pro Max features a flat 6.7-inch OLED display that boasts 120Hz ProMotion refresh rate technology and a peak brightness of 1200 nits. Thanks to the new pill-shaped notch, the iPhone 14 Pro Max boasts an even higher screen-to-body ratio compared to the standard models.

Even though it looks like that Apple is using the same panel as last year, there are big changes under the hood. The company has opted for an LTPO panel this time. LTPO displays, as we all have come to know, are capable of dropping down to a 1Hz refresh rate allowing for features such as always-on mode. And finally, Apple has added an always-on display mode to the iPhone 14 Pro Max this year.

Always-On Mode

In a similar fashion to how many new Android phones can display information when they are inactive, Apple has added this highly-requested feature to the iPhone this year. When the always-on mode is enabled, users can conveniently check the time, recent notifications, and battery levels without waking up the display. It integrates directly with the iOS 16’s Lock Screen and shows important information when the screen is inactive. Even Live Activities are available at a glance.

Processor, RAM, and Storage

Unlike the iPhone 14 and 14 Plus, which are powered by last year's A15 Bionic processor, iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max feature Apple's new A16 Bionic chipset. The A16 Bionic is based on the newer 4nm node architecture (A15 Bionic found on iPhone 14 and 14 Plus is based on 5nm) and offers major improvements in all the departments.

It has a 6-core CPU (two performance cores and four power-efficiency cores) that offers up to 40% better performance. Handling the graphics is the new 5-core GPU that promises 50% improvement in graphics performance. It comes with a new 16-core Neural Engine that can perform nearly 17 trillion operations per second, resulting in better AI and ML capabilities. Apple says the A16 Bionic delivers best-in-class performance and energy savings.

Coming to the RAM, iPhone 14 Pro Max features 6GB of faster LPDDR5 RAM. Storage variants also remain the same as last year. The iPhone 14 Pro Max is available in four options: 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB.

Camera

Moving onto the camera department, the iPhone 14 Pro Max features major upgrades. A 48MP primary sensor replaces the 12MP sensor that the company had been using on its iPhones for quite some time. Like every other smartphone with 48MP (or higher) camera sensor out there, Apple makes use of the pixel binning technology on the iPhone 14 Pro Max to accommodate for the smaller pixel size and larger lens size.

Apple says that the iPhone 14 Pro comes with a next-generation computational photography engine that offers a multifold leap in low-light performance. The new Photonic Engine enables this dramatic increase in quality by applying Deep Fusion earlier in the imaging process to deliver extraordinary detail, and preserve subtle textures, provide better color, and maintain more information in a photo.

Besides the improved primary camera, the iPhone 14 Pro Max also offers an improved telephoto and ultra-wide camera. The 6-element telephoto lens has been replaced by a 7-element lens that allows for better portrait shots. As for the ultra-wide sensor, it now performs better in low light thanks to large pixels that let in more light.

Battery

The Pro Max models of iPhones usually offer the best battery backup of all the models, and it's the same case with iPhone 14 Pro Max. While the company hasn't detailed the exact battery size, Apple says the iPhone 14 Pro Max should offer an all-day battery life.

This year's premium model offers a similar 23W fast wired charging feature as last year's. Apple claims the iPhone 14 Pro Max can charge from 0-50 percent in about 30 minutes. However, it still uses the Lightning port for charging — Apple may not move to USB-C for another year.

As for the wireless charging, the iPhone 14 Pro Max is MagSafe compatible. However, there are no speed improvements, and the 14 Pro Max charges at the same wireless charging speed of 15W (7.5W with Qi-certified units). The device doesn't support reverse wireless charging — something that most of its Android competitors offer.

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Featuring the pill-shaped notch, a new 48MP camera sensor, always-on display, and a class-leading chipset, the iPhone 14 Pro Max seems like a worthy upgrade. We will be going hands-on with the iPhone 14 Pro Max in the coming days, so make sure to check back to know how the new iPhone model performs in real life.