iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. iPhone 14 Pro Max: Biggest expected improvements

With the fall launch of the iPhone 16 Pro Max drawing ever closer, owners of older iPhones will want to start considering whether it’s time to upgrade their aging handset. And that’s why an iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. iPhone 14 Pro Max comparison can come in handy — even if all we have to go on about the upcoming phone involves rumors. After all, rumored features can still give us a pretty good idea as to what you can expect from upgrading.

And the iPhone 16 Pro Max will have to deliver quite a lot to make an upgrade from the iPhone 14 Pro Max worthwhile. Though the phone will be two years old once the iPhone 16 Pro Max arrives in the fall, it remains a formidable device, with a powerful chipset, long-lasting battery and stellar camera setup.

For a look at how Apple’s premium phone might change from year to year, check out our iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. iPhone 15 Pro Max comparison. For now, we’re going to look at how Apple could convince owners of older Pro Max models that it’s now time to upgrade.

Here’s a look at the potential iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. iPhone 14 Pro Max improvements.

iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: Price

The iPhone 14 Pro Max cost $1,099 for a 128GB model when it arrived in the fall of 2022. But last year, the iPhone 15 Pro Max saw the price of the base model rise by $100. To take the sting out of that hike, Apple did up the storge on the base model to 256GB.

iPhone 16 Pro Max pricing is unknown at this point, but it would be a shock if Apple were to drop the price back to $1,099. So you’re going to pay more for a new Pro Max model if you upgrade from the iPhone 14 Pro Max.

iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: Design

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iPhone 14 Pro Max owners missed out on a change Apple made with the iPhone 15 Pro Max, in which the mute switch made way for a programmable Action button. You can still use that button to silence calls with a long press, but you can also set it up to  launch all sorts of things, from the iPhone’s flashlight to jumping into selfie mode in the Camera app. One bummer to the Action button: It only supports one action at a time.

The iPhone 16 Pro Max is almost certain to retain the Action Button — all iPhone 16 models are supposed to get it, as a matter of fact. But another button could join the mix, too.

Supposedly, Apple will be adding a second button that leakers have called the Capture button. Our understanding is that the Capture Button will act as a capacitive shutter button for the iPhone 16 Pro Max’s camera, though details on this potential feature are fairly sparse. Regardless, it should make capturing photos and videos much more frictionless than it currently is with an iPhone 14 Pro Max.

Upgrading iPhone 14 Pro Max owners can expect one other benefit introduced with the iPhone 15 Pro Max last fall. That latter phone switched to titanium for its frame, which is lighter and more durable than the stainless steel used for the iPhone 14 Pro Max. We’d expect the iPhone 16 Pro Max to stick with titanium for its design.

iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: Display

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Apple’s Pro Max models have been holding steady with 6.7 inch screens since the iPhone 12 Pro Max. But rumors suggest that will change with the iPhone 16 Pro Max, as the new model is tipped to get a larger 6.9 inch display.

We’ve seen 6.9-inch displays before, though not since the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. With bezels shrinking considerably in recent years — they’re 1.55mm on the iPhone 15 Pro Max compared to 2.17 mm on the iPhone 14 — Apple should be able to increase screen size for the iPhone 16 Pro Max without having to expand the phone’s dimensions.

In January, a report suggested that Apple might bring an under-display Face ID to the iPhone 16 Pro Max. This would eliminate the Dynamic Island introduced with the iPhone 14 Pro Max, leaving a single cutout for the front-facing camera. However, display analyst Ross Young has predicted that we might not see that potential feature until 2025 or even later.

iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: Cameras

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From the rumors we’ve seen, the camera is where the iPhone 16 Pro Max will make the biggest leap over the iPhone 14 Pro Max. And that’s only partially because of changes introduced with the iPhone 15 Pro Max.

That latter phone features a tetraprism lens for its telephoto camera, which boosts the optical zoom support to 5x. (iPhone 14 Pro Max owners make do with a 3x zoom.) That feature’s expected to return with the iPhone 16 Pro Max; in fact, Apple is likely to bring the improved zoom lens to the iPhone 16 Pro as well.

But that’s not the only change being tipped for the iPhone 16 Pro Max. Rumors indicate the new phone could benefit from a 48MP ultrawide lens, compared to 12MP on the iPhone 14 Pro Max.

Apple may not be done with telephoto lens changes either, as that camera could improve to a 300mm focal length. That’s more than double the current 120mm version. The telephoto lens also could get thinner with improved magnification.

In addition, a leak claims that the iPhone 16 Pro Max will have a larger 1/1.4 inch camera sensor for its main camera, which would improve low-light shooting. Don’t expect any front camera changes, though.

iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: Performance

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The iPhone 14 Pro Max comes with the A16 Bionic chip, the top-performing chip at the time of its release, though the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 powering Android phones like the Galaxy S24 lineup now beats it on most tests. Apple’s likely response will be the A18 silicon, which promises higher frame rates, improved performance and potential gains in power efficiency.

We won’t know the iPhone 16 Pro Max vs. iPhone 14 Pro Max performance differences until the new phone is announced. Leaked benchmarks indicated that the A18 Pro can outperform a MacBook Pro running on an M3 Max chipset, though.

Expect a gain in storage if you upgrade, as the iPhone 15 Pro Max made 256GB the base storage for the Pro Max model. The iPhone 14 Pro Max started at 128GB. It doesn’t seound like Apple is going to increase RAM beyond 8GB, though.

iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: Outlook

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Again, most everything we’ve shared about the iPhone 16 Pro Max is based on rumors or the expectation that features introduced with the iPhone 15 Pro Max last year will stick around for the new models. Still, all of these possible improvements represent some big leaps between the iPhone 14 Pro Max and the iPhone 16 Pro Max.

That doesn’t necessarily make an upgrade a no-brainer, though. You’re likely going to pay more for the iPhone 16 Pro Max than you paid for the iPhone 14 Pro Max two years ago. That fact alone may tempt you to try and squeeze another year out of the phone you have.

A lot will be determined by head-to-head testing and whether the rumored improvements to the cameras and chipset mean substantially better photos or noticeable performance gains. Rumors paint a pretty compelling picture, but we won’t have the complete story until this fall.

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