iPhone 13 Pro Max
Introduced on September 14, the iPhone 13 Pro Max are Apple’s newest high end pro level flagship iPhones and are being sold alongside the more affordable iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini. The iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max are ideal for those who want iPhones with the most features and the best cameras.
Build
The 6.1-inch iPhone 13 Pro is the successor to the iPhone 12 Pro, while the 6.7-inch iPhone 13 Pro Max is the replacement for the iPhone 12 Pro Max. Both of the new iPhone 13 Pro models are nearly identical in design to the iPhone 12 Pro models, featuring flat edges, a stainless steel frame, a textured matte glass back, and a slight increase in thickness (7.65mm). The iPhone 13 Pro models are available in Silver, Gold, Sierra Blue, and Graphite. Both of the new models feature OLED Super Retina XDR Displays that support ProMotion technology with adaptive refresh rates ranging from 10Hz up to 120Hz, much like the iPad Pro models. The displays are up to 25 percent brighter.
Display
The iPhone 13 Pro has a 2532×1170 resolution with 460 pixels per inch, while the iPhone 13 Pro Max has a 2778×1284 resolution with 458 pixels per inch. Both iPhones feature 1200 nits max brightness for HDR, along with True Tone to match the color temperature of the display to the ambient light, Wide Color for rich, vivid hues, and Haptic Touch for feedback. Apple’s iPhone 13 Pro Max can be unlocked with the Face ID facial recognition system, which works with the 12-megapixel front-facing camera that supports Smart HDR 4, Deep Fusion, Night Mode, Cinematic Mode, Night Mode Selfies, and more.
Perfomance
An upgraded A15 Bionic Chip powers the new iPhones. It features a 6-core CPU with 2 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores and a 5-core GPU, which is one more GPU core than is available in the iPhone 13 models. There’s also a 16-core Neural Engine. The 5-core GPU offers 50% faster graphics performance than any other smartphone chip. Storage space starts at 128GB and goes up to 1TB at the high end. There’s a built-in three-axis gyro, an accelerometer, proximity sensor, ambient light sensor, and barometer.
5G connectivity is included for better quality video streaming, higher-definition FaceTime calls, and improved gaming, but the super fast mmWave speeds. Gigabit LTE is supported when 5G isn’t available, and to preserve battery life when using 5G, a Smart Data Mode reverts to an LTE connection when 5G speeds aren’t necessary. The new iPhone 13 models offer dual eSIM support and don’t come with a physical SIM by default, but there’s still a nano-SIM slot. The iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max support WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0, plus they include a U1 Ultra Wideband chip for spatial awareness.
Camera
The front-facing TrueDepth camera system has been updated and the Face ID notch is now smaller, 13 Pro Max feature a Ceramic Shield cover glass that is infused with nano-ceramic crystals for better protection from drops. IP68 water and dust resistance is included, and the new iPhones can hold up to submersion in 6 meters of water for up to 30 minutes. There’s an upgraded triple-lens rear camera with an f/2.8 Telephoto lens, an f/1.5 Wide lens, and an f/1.8 Ultra Wide lens. The Wide lens features an aperture that lets in 2.2x more light and the largest sensor in an iPhone yet, while the Ultra Wide lens lets in 92 percent more light for better low-light performance.
The 77mm Telephoto lens features 3x optical zoom in, up from 2.5x in the 12 Pro Max, and with the addition of the Ultra Wide lens, there is a 6x optical zoom range and support for 15x digital zoom. There’s also a LiDAR Scanner.
Along with the standard Portrait Mode, Night Mode, Time-Lapse and other photographic capabilities, the iPhone 13 Pro models gain Cinematic Mode, a feature that uses rack focus to seamlessly shift focus from one subject to another, artfully blurring the background and creating movie-quality depth effects. Cinematic mode shoots in Dolby HDR and the depth of field and blur can be adjusted using the iPhone’s camera app. 4K video recording at up to 60 fps is also supported.
Smart HDR 4 recognizes up to four people in a photo and optimizes contrast, lighting, and skin tones for each one, and Deep Fusion, a carry over from iPhone 12, activates in mid to low-light scenes to bring out texture and detail.
Photographic Styles are an upgraded kind of filter that applies selectively to an image, muting colors or boosting vividness without impacting skin tones. There are Vibrant, Rich Contrast, Warm, and Cool options, along with settings for Tone and Warmth for customization and refining.
There are several Pro-only photographic capabilities that are limited to the triple-lens camera system including macro photography and videography for close-up macro shots with focus at 2cm, Night Mode support for the Telephoto lens, Night Mode portraits that require the LiDAR Scanner, and ProRes video recording that lets users record ProRes video in 4K at up to 30 frames per second. ProRes video is launching later this year.
Battery
Battery life has improved significantly with larger batteries and the more efficient A15 chip. The iPhone 13 Pro offers up to 1.5 hours more battery life than the iPhone 12 Pro, and the iPhone 13 Pro Max offers up to 2.5 hours more battery life than the iPhone 12 Pro Max.
iPhone 13 Pro Max have built-in magnets and are compatible with MagSafe accessories, charging at up to 15W with Apple’s MagSafe Charger. The iPhones also support fast charging, which provides 50 percent charge in 30 minutes with a 20W power adapter. There is no power adapter or EarPods included with the iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max, and these accessories must be purchased separately. They do ship with a USB-C to Lightning cable for charging purposes.
