Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro: Pick on your own size!

The top-of-the-line iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max come with the A16 Bionic chipset. Manufactured on a 4nm node, it relies on the tried-and-tested six-core layout consisting of two performance and four efficiency cores. In terms of memory, there's 6GB of LPDDR5 RAM on both devices, which should be giving some performance edge over the regular LPDDR4X on the regular iPhone 14.The iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max start at 128GB and also come in 256GB, 512GB, and even a full 1TB of storage.

You'll be hard-pressed to find faster and better-performing phones right now. The Apple A15 provides exceptional raw power that is tightly reined in by the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max with efficiency in mind. No lag, no second thoughts, just instantaneous action whatever task you throw at either of them. 

When it comes to software updates, iPhones are famous for their five- to six-year software update policy. Having this in mind means that both the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will certainly be up-to-date until 2027 or 2028, which is the best the mobile industry currently has to offer.

Both phones have 5G support, but the more intriguing novelty here is the all-new emergency satellite connectivity, a feature that is yet to go live in the US and Canada first. Thanks to it, iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will be able to link up with satellites in orbit and send short rudimentary text messages to emergency services or relatives. Basic Find My functionality will also be available, even with no cellular support in sight. 

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Apple is planning a substantial camera paradigm shift that was kickstarted by the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max. Cupertino has opted for a larger new camera sensor, a massive 1/1.3-inch 48MP one, which uses pixel-binning to blend four pixels into one and eventually deliver 12MP photographs, as it does now, but with enhanced dynamic range and light sensitivity in low-light conditions. ProRAW lets you take full 48MP images, but make sure to take these with good lighting. Yep, gone is the 12MP sensor of old that was used across multiple iPhone generations, of course with substantial updates. However, as the saying goes, "there's no replacement for displacement", and the 48MP new sensor opens up a whole trove of potential upgrade paths for future iPhones down the line. 

But how do the new iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max fare? Well, in terms of overall quality, there aren't any differences between the two phones, and even in comparison with the previous iPhone 13 generation, you might struggle to find any significant differences in image quality. 

The iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max arrived with the same triple camera system: the 48MP wide-angle camera is joined by a 12MP ultra-wide and a 3X 12MP telephoto lens in order to achieve maximum versatility. There's a new 2X shooting mode, however, which crops the 48MP sensor and achieves a much more usable portrait zoom range in comparison with the longer 3X one. There are improvements to the FaceTime selfie camera, which now has autofocus and a wider, f/1.9 aperture. 

There are many other camera improvements coming with the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max, like an adaptive True Tone flash, improved computational photography features like Night mode, Smart HDR 4, improved Portrait mode with Portrait Lighting, Photographic Styles, and much more. 

Even though the two new iPhones come with 48MP sensors, there's no sight of 8K video recording, which is good news, as it has allowed Apple to focus on the existing video-shooting capabilities of the two iPhones. There's a new Action mode for smooth video that accommodates shakes, jitters, and strong vibrations, as well as Cinematic mode now being available in 4K@30fps and 4K@24fps, which honestly looks breathtaking.

Apple has kept batteries mostly in the same ballpark as the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max as far as capacity is concerned. Paired with the new chip and more efficient display, this should be hitting all the necessary boxes to ensure that the latest and greatest iPhones don't embarrass themselves in comparison with their older peers. So, what's the deal with the iPhone 14 battery?

Officially, Apple says the iPhone 14 Pro lasts up to 23 hours in video playback, up to 20 hours in streamed video playback, and up to 75 hours in audio playback mode, while the iPhone 14 Pro Max scores up to 29 hours in video playback, up to 25 hours in streamed video playback, and up to 95 hours in audio playback. That's mostly similar to the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max in terms of battery life.

Our own tests, which involve automated web surfing, 3D gaming, and video playback over a Wi-Fi network at 200 nits of pre-set screen brightness on both devices, the top-end iPhone delivered the following results:

Charging-wise, Apple equipped the Phone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max with 20W wired charging, as was the case with the iPhone 13 Pro Max and iPhone 13, respectively. Both feature 15W MagSafe wireless charging, but neither phone has USB Type-C (this is likely coming with the iPhone 15 series later this year). However, next year's iPhone crop will almost certainly make the change over to the USB standard due to legislation.

Ho fast do these charge? Well, given the differences in battery size, one would expect that the smaller iPhone will top up faster, and by a slight margin, that's true along the whole range. A 30-minute charge on either phone will get you more than 50% of battery juice, enough to last you hours upon hours. 

So, which should you get, the iPhone 14 Pro Max or the iPhone 14 Pro?

It all boils down to your size preferences and how large are you willing to go. If you're gunning for the Pro-series themselves, you already know you're in for the best of the best, so the differences between the two phones, aside from their size, are just a few key ones.

If you want the best possible battery life and the most screen real estate, the the iPhone 14 Pro Max should be your top pick. Honestly speaking, you are unlikely to get disappointed, provided that you can handle its extra size and weight. The price should also be of consideration - the Pro Max version is always more expensive by at least $100. This year, that would mean you could have to pay $1,199 for the entry-level iPhone 14 Pro Max, which could be a tough nut to swallow.

Meanwhile, if you don't really need the larger battery and display and would gladly rather have a more compact phone, it's hard to stay away from the much more sensible iPhone 14 Pro. The reality of the situation is that you're unlikely to miss on anything with the smaller phone: after all, it has all the new features that the Pro Max boasts, but in a more manageable size, thank you very much. And, as an added bonus, it is a bit more affordable.

Regardless of which one you pick, you will have the best iPhone Apple has in its portfolio... Until next year at least, but rest assured any of those two will happily serve you for many years to come.