iPhone 16 Professional vs. iPhone 16 Professional Max

In contrast to the 2023 pair of Professional iPhones, the 16 Execs do not differ in the rest aside from dimension (and that one different side that comes because of it). What which means is the seemingly arbitrary selection to suit a 3x telephoto on the 15 Professional and a 5x one on the 15 Professional Max is not on the record of issues in selecting a Professional from the 16 era. So Apple has made it simpler this yr, proper? Or is it the opposite means round?

Let’s look into the similarities and see if we will discover any much less apparent variations.

Desk of Contents:

For starters, you possibly can examine the entire specs sheets or straight proceed with our editor’s evaluation within the following textual content.

Measurement comparability

In the beginning – dimension. The Max would not take its identify calmly and is, certainly, an enormous smartphone. It is grown a little bit in comparison with final yr’s mannequin, the three additional mm in top and practically a mm of added width presumably being the final drop that pushes the lineup past some prospects’ tolerance of ‘giant’. That stated, if ‘giant’ is what you are after, the Max delivers.

The 16 Professional has gained a little bit of weight and can be 3mm taller and a mm wider than final yr’s mannequin – so in a means, it is the security internet for those who will probably be postpone by the brand new Max’s dimension, however do not fairly desire a small telephone. Alternatively, in the event you’re in search of a compact ‘Professional’, maybe this one nonetheless qualifies – with sufficient context and rationalization.

The 2 telephones share the identical supplies, construct and colour choices, so there’s not a lot to decide on right here. You may depend on the titanium body and third-gen Ceramic Defend show glass to supply loads of safety in opposition to drops, shattering and scratches. Each telephones are additionally IP68-rated, and, in typical Apple style, they exceed the usual’s 1.5m depth requirement and needs to be good to as deep as 6m (for 30 minutes, freshwater).

Show comparability

Physique dimension goes hand in hand with display dimension and the 16 Professional Max has the biggest show there has ever been on an iPhone. The 6.9-inch panel gives ample viewing space and possibly a few additional strains in an inventory when in comparison with the iPhone 16 Professional’s 6.3-inch display – you may should scroll that little bit extra on the non-Max, and stuff on display will probably be considerably smaller too.

Apart from that, there’s little to separate the 2 fashions. Apple has settled on the 460ppi pixel density as the elemental property (Tremendous Retina and all that) and varies the general decision relying on the diagonal. Most brightness is similar 900nits when in handbook operation and round twice that in the event you let the auto brightness take over. You additionally get HDR10 and Dolby Imaginative and prescient help on each.

Each Execs have ProMotion, Apple’s identify for a excessive refresh fee show. You aren’t getting a lot management over its habits aside from with the ability to flip it off and restrict the refresh fee to 60Hz, however Apple most likely is aware of what it is doing and provides you the optimum stability between smoothness and battery life.

Battery life

With nice dimension comes nice battery – are we quoting that proper? Each fashions get a bump in battery capability – 9.4% up for the Professional, 5.5% up for the Professional Max. The 16 Professional Max, particularly, is now nearly up there with the Androids of its caliber, and with 1,100mAhs on prime of the 16 Professional, you’d anticipate it to supply higher endurance, even when accounting for the bigger show.

Certainly, we bought a greater Lively Use Rating on the 16 Professional Max, with meaningfully larger numbers throughout all checks. That is to not say that the 16 Professional is unhealthy – fairly the alternative – simply that the 16 Professional Max is the higher possibility in the event you routinely have lengthy days away from an influence supply.

Charging velocity

Apple’s charging rankings set the usual for murkiness with a common spec for all latest fashions that claims ‘as much as 50% cost in half-hour with 20W adapter’. We examined with extra highly effective USB PowerDelivery adapters to provide them the perfect probability of outperforming that ‘spec’.

The 16 Professional did cost a little bit quicker than marketed, which wasn’t the case in our expertise with the 16 Professional Max, which underdelivered. Both means, it is a race with no actual winner, and each are nearly painfully sluggish to achieve a ‘full’ state, although the Professional Max once more is even slower than sluggish.

The iPhone 16 Professional and 16 Professional Max each help wi-fi charging, maxing out at 15W with generic Qi2 pads, or 25W with proprietary MagSafe pucks (plugged into 30W+ adapters).

Speaker check

Each Professional iPhones (identical to the non-Execs) function hybrid stereo speaker setups with one driver on the underside, and one other one up prime that additionally doubles as an earpiece.

Each ship glorious sound total, with a pleasant low-end presence and clear vocals and treble output. The Professional Max has a little bit of an edge within the vocals and the mid-high area, which additionally permits it to attain larger for loudness. A small benefit for the Professional Max right here, however a wonderfully nice Professional too.

Efficiency

Each iPhone Execs function the Apple A18 Professional chipset, the corporate’s newest in-house design. All of them have the identical 8GB or RAM too, so there should not be any actual distinction in efficiency.

One factor that units them aside is the bottom storage, the 16 Professional beginning at a considerably unacceptable 128GB, whereas the Professional Max cannot be had with lower than 256GB. It is price protecting that in thoughts when evaluating costs as a result of if you wish to match the Professional Max’s base storage on the Professional, the beforehand significant financial savings get halved to $100/€120 and one of many Professional’s key benefits turns into much less vital.

Benchmark efficiency

As anticipated, benchmark outcomes are very related between the 2. You may depend on industry-leading efficiency from both telephone, and it’s also possible to make certain that both 16 Professional will really feel easy and snappy for years to return.

Digital camera comparability

We did our share of complaining final yr when the iPhone 15 Professional got here with a 3x zoom digicam as an alternative of the 15 Professional Max’s 5x telephoto, and Apple has listened (as a result of, after all, they take heed to us) – the 16 Professional has the identical telephoto digicam because the 16 Professional Max. Actually, all the cameras are the identical between the 2 – the brand new ultrawide is shared, the tried and examined sensor-shift major digicam is similar, and the selfie shooter is similar.

Naturally, the digicam software program and {hardware} are additionally the identical between the 2. The brand new Digital camera Management is equally helpful (or annoying, relying on the place you stand), and the brand new format capabilities (4K120 video, JPEG-XL, spatial audio) are shared between the 2.

Picture high quality

For all intents and functions, the ensuing photos from the 2 telephones are an identical. They’ve the anticipated iPhone rendition, with conservative colour, huge dynamic vary and at the least a little bit bit questionable element remedy. As we have come to anticipate from iPhones, the 2x zoom degree is among the many higher implementations in the marketplace and you’ll depend on properly detailed 50-ish mm photographs. The iPhone 16 Professional and the 16 Professional Max seize the identical 5x zoom pictures too.

The brand new Professional-grade ultrawide cameras did not show to be a radical enchancment over final yr’s module, however it’s not one thing that it’s worthwhile to take into consideration when selecting between these two telephones.

iPhone 16 Professional daylight picture samples: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 5x

iPhone 16 Professional Max daylight picture samples: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 5x

On to some equally an identical selfies. We have a tendency to love iPhone selfies and although there’s not been an entire lot of {hardware} development, the 16 Professional and 16 Professional Max nonetheless seize fairly nice photographs with their front-facing cameras.

Selfie samples: iPhone 16 Professional • iPhone 16 Professional Max

Variations do not magically seem at evening, so the 16 Professional and 16 Professional Max will probably be capturing the identical photographs with all of their cameras. The first ones take fairly glorious pictures and the 2x zoom degree additionally stays a viable possibility even when mild ranges drop. The parity continues on the telephoto degree, the place this yr we do not have to choose between 3x and 5x – the 16 Professional can zoom so far as the 16 Professional Max.

iPhone 16 Professional low-light picture samples: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 5x

iPhone 16 Professional Max low-light picture samples: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 5x

Video high quality

With all of the discuss how the 2 telephones seize the identical photographs, it is solely pure that video high quality can be an identical between the 16 Professional and 16 Professional Max.

Under we now have a couple of framegrabs from the movies taken by the 2 telephones at every focal size so it is simpler to check.

iPhone 16 Professional daylight video samples: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 5x

iPhone 16 Professional Max daylight video samples: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 5x

iPhone 16 Professional low-light video samples: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 5x

iPhone 16 Professional Max low-light video samples: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 5x

Verdict

We’re not completely positive why we needed to look ahead to a yr to get true digicam equality between the 2 sizes of iPhone Professional, however regardless of the cause for the delay, we have now waited it out – the selection this era is much more so primarily based on dimension than it has been as of late.

With each fashions getting bigger this yr, the 16 Professional Max could lastly have turn out to be an excessive amount of size-wise. However if you would like probably the most iPhone you will get, the 16 Professional Max is exactly that – the largest show and greatest endurance, with all of the options and capabilities the ecosystem can supply.

For these trying to get the identical performance and the whole iPhone Professional expertise, solely in a extra pocketable package deal, the 16 Professional is the plain selection and the truth that it is cheaper would not damage its case both.