Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: Upgrade time?

Look at the back of these two phones at a distance and you’ll be hard-pressed to spot the differences. However, get closer and you’ll begin to realize that they’re not the same.

This is most obvious with the titanium build; the iPhone 16 Pro Max retains the titanium build launched last year, while the iPhone 14 Pro Max uses an older stainless steel body As a result, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is 13 grams lighter than the iPhone 14 Pro Max. There are also much slimmer bezels, with those around the display measuring just 1.15mm. This has enabled Apple to add a 0.2-inch larger display in a similar-size body.

There’s a pronounced difference in the thickness as well, and if you upgrade to the iPhone 16 Pro Max, you may notice it’s a tiny bit thicker. It doesn’t make a big difference in day-to-day use, but it is noticeable when comparing the two. Alongside the frame on both devices, you’ll notice the lack of a SIM card tray: if you were annoyed by the switch to eSIM exclusively with the iPhone 14 Pro Max, the iPhone 16 Pro Max won’t fare any better in your  estimation.

One of the benefits of the Apple ecosystem has been the wide range of accessories, and their compatibility with future versions of the iPhone. The iPhone 14 Pro Max uses the Lightning connector, and any accessories you have for your phone won’t work with the iPhone 16 Pro Max. This is because it uses the USB-C standard, which all iPhones since the iPhone 15 series have used.

On the sides of the phones are where you’ll also notice some big differences. The iPhone 16 Pro Max has the Camera Control button, which was launched this year, and the Action Button that debuted last year with the iPhone 15. The former is hit-and-miss, but the latter transforms a simple mute switch into an easy way to open apps, run shortcuts, or quickly launch the flashlight or camera. Of course, it can also still function as a Mute switch.

These two phones look and feel very similar, and that’s because the iPhone experience is largely the same. However, the iPhone 16 Pro Max has enough changes — the Action Button, Camera Control button, the titanium build, and the USB-C port — to make the upgrade worthwhile.

The iPhone 14 Pro Max is powered by the A16 Bionic processor, which is built on TSMC’s 4nm process, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max runs the latest A18 Pro chipset, built on the second-generation 3nm process. These may seem like just numbers, but they make a difference in two key areas: gaming and AI.

Across many benchmarks, the A18 Pro chipset regularly achieves a 20% advantage over the A16 Bionic chipset. If you’re a gamer, you’ll find the upgrade worthwhile as the iPhone 16 Pro Max can run AAA games like Assassin’s Creed and Resident Evil 4. Apple stepped up the gaming performance with last year’s iPhone 15 Pro Max — powered by the first Pro chipset for the iPhone — and the iPhone 16 Pro Max continues this trend.

The iPhone 14 Pro Max has a smaller battery than the iPhone 16 Pro Max, and you can expect battery life to be improved with the newer phone. However, the iPhone 15 Pro Max was a step back from the 14 Pro Max, and it remains to be seen how the iPhone 16 Pro Max battery develops over time. Based on limited testing so far, you can expect around two hours of extra battery life.

Despite the change from Lightning to USB-C, both batteries charge at similar speeds, requiring around an hour and a half to charge to full when plugged in. However, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is much faster at charging wirelessly and supports the latest MagSafe and Qi2 charging standards.

This is a much closer battle, but the iPhone 16 Pro Max is more future-proofed than the iPhone 14 Pro Max. The A18 Pro chipset enables the AI-powered future of the iPhone, and the A16 Bionic can’t keep up. It’s also already missing out on Apple Intelligence.

The iPhone 16 Pro Max camera is similar to that of the iPhone 14 Pro Max, except for improvements in three areas: the addition of the Camera Control button, a larger 5x zoom, and a better Ultrawide camera. Collectively, these enable a range of improved camera experiences for the iPhone.

Both phones feature a 48MP main camera, although the iPhone 16 Pro Max uses a Fusion camera that uses pixel binning to capture 24MP high-resolution images and a sensor crop to enable a 2x cropped-zoom. The ultrawide camera has also been improved from 12MP on the iPhone 14 Pro Max to 48MP on the iPhone 16 Pro Max. The latter has a smaller pixel size at 0.7 micrometers (versus 1.4µm), but the higher resolution and better light capture should mean slightly improved overall ultrawide photos.

The biggest difference in the camera is in the third lens. The iPhone 14 Pro Max features a 12MP telephoto camera that offers 3x optical zoom, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max uses the same periscope camera with 5x optical zoom that launched on the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Functionally, the iPhone 16 Pro Max has strong zoom capability throughout the 1x to 5x zoom ranges, while the iPhone 14 Pro Max is more limited above 3x.

If you switch to the iPhone 16 Pro Max from the iPhone 14 Pro Max, you may find the Camera Control button perplexing. It’s a physical button with a capacitive sensor underneath that allows you to swipe, press, or use gestures to control different aspects of the camera, such as the zoom, camera mode, and pro controls. It’s not the most intuitive, but it’s a unique camera experience considering only Sony also puts a camera shutter button on its phones.

This is another fairly close category. While the improvements in the iPhone 16 Pro Max aren’t extensive, they do improve the overall camera experience. In particular, the periscope lens on the iPhone 16 Pro Max is significantly better as it also uses 3D sensor-shift OIS for improved stabilization when taking photos and videos.

The iPhone 14 Pro Max and iPhone 16 Pro Max share one common trait: at launch, they were the most expensive iPhone you could buy. The iPhone 14 Pro Max launched at $1,099 for 128GB of storage — with the 256GB costing $1,199 — while the iPhone 16 Pro Max starts with 256GB of storage at the same $1,199 price tag. One big difference is the maximum storage: the iPhone 14 Pro Max is limited to 512GB, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max is available in a 1TB model.

The iPhone 14 Pro Max comes in four colors: Silver, Space Black, Gold, and Deep Purple, all with a stainless steel frame. Meanwhile, the iPhone 16 Pro Max uses a Titanium build and is available in Natural Titanium, Black Titanium, White Titanium, and the new Desert Titanium color.

It’s only been two years since the iPhone 14 Pro Max was released, but the iPhone 16 Pro Max has been upgraded in many ways.

It is bigger and thinner, has smaller bezels, and boasts a newer processor that delivers gains in CPU, GPU, and neural processing unit (NPU) performance for better gaming and AI performance. The camera has been improved throughout, especially in the zoom category, while the battery life should be slightly improved as well.

The iPhone 14 Pro Max is still a very capable phone, however. Although two years old, it still delivers a flagship experience. The iOS 18 update delivers all of the same benefits, but it won’t run Apple Intelligence, so it is already lacking in terms of future-proofing.

Ultimately, if you’re upgrading from the iPhone 14 Pro Max to the iPhone 16 Pro Max, you’ll get a far more customizable experience that’s also extremely familiar. You’ll also get the latest and greatest that Apple has to offer in the iPhone, but with many Apple Intelligence features not launching until next year, you may also want to wait until the iPhone 17 next year.