Apple’s iPhone 12 family is a genuine success story: six of the top 10 smartphones sold worldwide in January 2021 were Apple devices, with the iPhone 12 Pro Max leading the popularity in the US. This tells us something. People actually want a device with a large screen and a high-performance camera. In fact, demand for the iPhone 12 series is also expected to remain strong through Q3, ahead of the iPhone 13’s fall debut.
iPhone 12 Pro Max: Display
Overall, the Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max performed strongly, accurately rendering content for readability under most test conditions and adapting color and brightness very smoothly as conditions change.
It was especially strong on video, displaying excellent brightness and contrast with HDR10 content (though oddly, it was too dark when displaying SDR content. iPhone 12 Pro Max deftly handled aliasing, a problem with many other high-end devices, and in gaming applications produced smooth, curved lines.
iPhone 12 Pro Max: Design
Simply put, the iPhone 12 Pro Max is a stand out phone. Its size alone draws attention, but the shiny surgical-grade stainless steel edges and matte- textured glass back give it a more luxurious feel than the regular iPhone 12.
Like Apple’s other new iPhones, the iPhone 12 Pro Max also features an overall refreshed design with flat edges and new color variations that echo the vintage look of the iPhone5.
But of course, what really stands out about the iPhone 12 Pro Max is its huge screen. Many companies, including Apple, Samsung, and Motorola, have been releasing large- screen devices for years. In fact, Samsung’s Galaxy S20 Ultra has an even larger 6.9-inch screen.
However, the purchase decision has become more difficult as hand set makers like Apple offer more choices than ever before with regard to size and price.
The huge screen of the iPhone 12 Pro Max is ideal for people who really do everything on their phones. If you’re the kind of person who looks through your inbox on your morning commute, frequently watches movies on long flights, or reads books on your phone every night before bed, you’ll probably want the biggest screen you can get your hands on.
iPhone 12 Pro Max: Performance
Apple’s home- grown silicon is hard to beat. iPhone 12 Pro Max incorporate the A14 Bionic processor, the company’s top-of-the-line mobile chip. iPhone 12 Pro Max was a complete beast when it launched, and that remains true today. Everything about this phone’s performance remains top-notch.
In a head-to-head test conducted by Android Authority last fall, Apple’s iPhone 12 (not the Pro model, but with the same processor) easily crushed Samsung’s Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. Apple’s phone consistently outperformed Samsung’s flagship in both CPU and GPU. The Note 20 Ultra was a Snap dragon 865. Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 888, found in many 2021 flagships, is one generation faster than the 865, but Qualcomm was unable to close the gap. In speed test GX testing, the iPhone 12 Pro Max still outperformed the 888-powered Samsung Galaxy S21.
The performance of the iPhone 12 Pro Max has not changed since day one. Even after several software updates, it is still as fast, smooth, and powerful as it was on day one. That’s what we like about it. And it will continue to be so. Apple devices tend to maintain their performance profiles over time when compared to Snapdragon-powered competitors. In other words, the iPhone 12 Pro Max will continue to perform well for years.
iPhone 12 Pro Max: Cameras
Around the back, Apple uses the same camera arrangement as in 2019, with three 12-megapixel cameras covering ultra- wide, wide, and telephoto ranges, with4x optical zoom in, 2x optical zoom out, and10x digital zoom in. The camera has dual optical image stabilization and features portrait mode, portrait lighting effects, night mode, smart HDR, and panorama functionality.
Optical image stabilization has been upgraded to a DSLR-style sensor shift, where the sensor moves but the lens does not, keeping images sharper and allowing for longer exposures that capture more light, up to 2seconds handheld, with up to 5,000 adjustments per second, This is approximately five times the number of adjustments of a similar system used in the iPhone 11 Pro series.
Apple also introduced Apple Pro RAW for its Pro line, a new image format that combines RAW photos with computational photography features like Deep Fusion and Smart HDR. This includes full control over color, detail, and dynamic range from the iPhone’s Camera app. Users can edit Pro RAW images in the Photos app or in third-party Raw editors such as Light room.
Apple has enhanced its video capabilities to include the ability to record in 10-bit HDR. This is the first iPhone to record in Dolby Vision HDR, allowing users to edit on the iPhone and play back on compatible screens via Air Play. This is possible even at 4K resolution at 60 fps. It also supports 1080pslowmotionat240 fps, stereo audio recording, and audio zoom.
There is a standard notch and True Depth camera array at the top of the screen, which can capture 12-megapixel images with portrait mode and portrait lighting effects. It is capable of 4K video recording at up to 60fps and cinematic video stabilization, 4K30fps HDR with Dolby Vision, and 1080ps low motion video at 120fps.
Battery life
Battery life on the larger iPhone 12 Pro continues to be good. You can’t kill this phone. iPhone 12 Pro Max has a larger battery than the standard iPhone 12 Pro and it shows. Not only can you use it for a full day, but the battery last sat least a day and a half between charges. Even on days of intense use (streaming video for hours), it still has 40% left at midnight.
Sometimes, by the time six months have passed, the maximum battery life is shortened. Not so with Apple’s iPhone 12 Pro Max. It is still going strong and lasting longer than many of its competitors. We know that Apple is tweaking its software over time to preserve battery life on older phones. We expect the iPhone 12 Pro Max to maintain solid battery life for some time.
Software
While iOS is certainly not for everyone, given its popularity, it cannot be dismissed. iOS 14 is one of the most powerful upgrades to iOS to date, making the platform behave more like Android than ever before.
For example, iOS 14 supports app widgets; Android has done so since the beginning. Most widgets I tried worked well and were easy to set up. Not all first-and third-party apps have widgets. Hope fully more widgets will be provided by app developers.
iOS 14 has (finally!) There is also an app drawer of sorts, called the App Library, which is the right most panel of the home screen and contains all the apps installed on the phone. This is another feature that Android devices have from the beginning. I appreciate that Apple organizes apps by use/type and categorizes them automatically. I find myself using the App Library more often to access apps as well as using the icons on the home screen.
Verdict
The biggest advantage of choosing the iPhone 12 Pro Max is its much wider screen and longer battery life than other iPhone 12 versions. It also has a closer zoom than Apple’s other models, but many of Apple’s most attractive camera features are available on other models.
It was great that Apple introduced additional features like reverse wireless charging to further differentiate the Pro Max from the rest of the bunch. Especially since its battery life and size make the Pro Max ideal for such a feature.
In general, the iPhone 12 Pro Max is the iPhone to get if you value a huge screen and long battery life. However, if you just want the latest model and don’t care about such extras, or if you also have an iPad and don’t need the biggest iPhone, the standard iPhone 12 or iPhone 12 Pro would be a better choice.