Apple has revealed the iPhone 16 range, including the premium iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max. The question is, what’s the difference between the two?
Some differences between the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max are pretty noticeable, like the Pro’s smaller, more compact screen compared to the Max. However, other differences, such as battery life, aren’t as obvious at first glance.
What’s interesting this year is that the two models share more similarities than previous Pro iPhones, especially in terms of camera performance, making them more comparable than in past generations.
We haven’t had a chance to test the new iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max ourselves yet, but we’ll soon provide a detailed comparison. In the meantime, if you’re interested, we also have a separate comparison of the iPhone 16 Pro Max and the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra.
Pricing and availability
Apple has confirmed that the iPhone 16 series will be priced similarly to the iPhone 15 series. This means the iPhone 16 Pro will start at £999/$999. Pre-orders are already open, and the official release is set for September 20.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max, meanwhile, starts at £1,199/$1,199. Pre-orders for this model are also open, with its release scheduled for September 20.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max has a larger screen
This year, both the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max see improvements in their screens. As you might expect, the iPhone 16 Pro Max continues to offer the larger display of the two models.
Specifically, the iPhone 16 Pro features a new 6.3-inch 120Hz OLED screen, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max has a 6.9-inch 120Hz OLED display. Although these sizes might make the phones seem huge, especially the Pro Max, the increase is partly due to the much slimmer bezels on this year’s models.
While they are slightly larger than their predecessors, the difference isn’t as dramatic as it might first appear.
The iPhone 16 Pro has a new 5x periscope lens
Last year, the iPhone 15 Pro Max got a camera upgrade with a new 5x periscope lens, offering better zoom capabilities—up to 15x with digital zoom. The iPhone 15 Pro, however, only had the 3x telephoto lens from the previous generation.
This year, the iPhone 16 Pro catches up, featuring the same 12MP 5x periscope zoom as the Pro Max, along with the same 48MP main camera and upgraded 48MP ultrawide lens. This means that, on paper, both Pro models should deliver similar camera performance. We’ll confirm this once we’ve had a chance to test them out.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max will likely have better battery life
Apple usually avoids giving exact battery specifications at its launches, instead focusing on estimated battery life. However, with the 6.9-inch iPhone 16 Pro Max having more internal space compared to the iPhone 16 Pro, it’s likely that the Pro Max can accommodate a larger battery.
That has been the case with practically every combination of Pro and Pro Max, and we don’t expect anything different here.
This all essentially boils down to one fact; the bigger iPhone 16 Pro Max has a larger battery, meaning it can last longer between charges. However, that could also mean it charges slightly slower than the iPhone 16 Pro – we’ll have to wait and see for ourselves.
Both iPhones sport the same Action and Capture buttons
Last year, the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max introduced the Action button, allowing users to activate various functions with a single press. This feature was exclusive to the Pro models at the time but has now been added to the entire iPhone 16 lineup.
But that’s not all. Apple has also added a new Camera Controls button across the entire iPhone 16 lineup. Unlike the customizable Action button, this new button is dedicated to photography and video functions.
With the Camera Controls button, you can perform a light press to focus and a full press to capture your content. You can also swipe on the button to zoom in or out without needing to touch the screen. It provides quick access to various tools and shooting modes and serves as a shortcut to the Camera app throughout iOS.
Both offer Apple A18 Pro performance
No matter which Pro-level iPhone you choose, you’ll benefit from the same top-notch performance thanks to Apple’s new A18 Pro chipset.
Apple claims the new A18 Pro chipset offers a 15% increase in CPU performance, a 20% improvement in GPU performance, and a faster 16-core neural engine compared to last year’s A17 Pro chipset, which was exclusive to Pro iPhones.
While we haven’t run benchmarks yet, the A17 Pro already outperformed the current top Android chipset, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. So, it’s reasonable to expect even greater performance gains with the A18 Pro—until the rumored Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 is unveiled in the coming months.
Early Verdict
It seems that, even compared to recent iPhone releases, the differences between the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max are minimal.
The iPhone 16 Pro offers a more compact 6.3-inch display, while the Pro Max has a larger 6.9-inch screen, and the bigger model is expected to have better battery life due to its larger battery. Beyond these differences, both models deliver a high-end iPhone experience.
Ultimately, the choice will likely come down to your preference for screen size and comfort. We’ll reserve our final verdict until we’ve had a chance to test both Pro models in person.