I was previously using a 13 Pro, which I know many consider one of the "peak" iPhones. I was pretty satisfied with it, and I probably would've kept it longer and replaced the battery if I didn't totally kill it by bringing it into a pool with me this summer.
So then I decided that I wanted to try the larger form factor Pro, so I tried the 16 Pro Max. I was honestly disappointed, because it didn't really seem like an upgrade, other than the screen size. Even after the first week setup phase and even though it was setup as a new device, it ran warm doing normal and mundane tasks, the battery life was not impressive at all, and overall it didn't feel like an upgrade for someone like me who cares about thermals, raw performance, and battery life over design.
The titanium rails looked decent, but not as good as the polished stainless steel on the 13 Pro. I really didn't care about that though, because I personally don't need the frame to "protect" my phone since I wouldn't use a $1,200+ device without a case when I'm out and about. I also saw many pictures showing very obvious silver marks on the frame from chipping and scratching on the black titanium finish, which was the one I got. I knew that even with titanium, it really wasn't going to hold up to my 13 Pro, which I dropped caseless so many times and barely got a few chips in the frame even from falling bare on solid concrete. I gave it a week before returning it, after getting two subpar devices. First one with a dead pixel which I had to exchange, then the second one came with a volume up button that wouldn't click.
Now, after having used it for a week, the 17 Pro Max actually feels like a substantial upgrade to me. I used to care more about design, but the new design I don't mind at all. If anything, I appreciate that it actually looks new versus my 13 Pro with the camera plateau. The last 5 generations have looked pretty much exactly the same except for the rails changing and camera bump growing, now I can immediately tell by looking at the phone that I have the newest device.
I'm really not worried about dents or scratches, let alone all this whining about a "premium" design, because I have it in an Apple Silicone case anyway, which makes the phone COMPLETELY wobble-free when using it on a table! Finally!! That's a design choice that actually matters to me a lot!
I get a solid two-day battery life on 5G data every full charge, something I've never experienced before. The phone doesn't get hot or even warm doing simple things like surfing the web and watching YouTube. It dissipates heat extremely well when put under stress, like recording 4K ProRes.
The 8x zoom produces extremely high-quality photos of subjects so far away that it's kind of mind-blowing. Camera quality overall is a huge step up from my 13 Pro.
The anti-reflective glass is enough to keep the display totally in focus every time I'm using it under bright lights or sunlight. Despite all the fuss about the panel lottery, my LG GVC panel is absolutely perfect in uniformity across the entire display, looks sharp, crisp, and insanely good contrast compared to all of my previous iPhones.
I'm looking forward to making use of the bump up to 12GB RAM and huge upgrade in performance with the A19 Pro in the next few months with video projects in Final Cut Camera and games like Resident Evil.
Sure, we didn't get exactly get a premium design with the 17 Pro, I can admit that. But we actually got a remarkably NEW design after a long time, one that is focused on pro features and thermal efficiency. What we did get is premium performance, which I would argue was always the whole point of the iPhone Pro lineup.
So then I decided that I wanted to try the larger form factor Pro, so I tried the 16 Pro Max. I was honestly disappointed, because it didn't really seem like an upgrade, other than the screen size. Even after the first week setup phase and even though it was setup as a new device, it ran warm doing normal and mundane tasks, the battery life was not impressive at all, and overall it didn't feel like an upgrade for someone like me who cares about thermals, raw performance, and battery life over design.
The titanium rails looked decent, but not as good as the polished stainless steel on the 13 Pro. I really didn't care about that though, because I personally don't need the frame to "protect" my phone since I wouldn't use a $1,200+ device without a case when I'm out and about. I also saw many pictures showing very obvious silver marks on the frame from chipping and scratching on the black titanium finish, which was the one I got. I knew that even with titanium, it really wasn't going to hold up to my 13 Pro, which I dropped caseless so many times and barely got a few chips in the frame even from falling bare on solid concrete. I gave it a week before returning it, after getting two subpar devices. First one with a dead pixel which I had to exchange, then the second one came with a volume up button that wouldn't click.
Now, after having used it for a week, the 17 Pro Max actually feels like a substantial upgrade to me. I used to care more about design, but the new design I don't mind at all. If anything, I appreciate that it actually looks new versus my 13 Pro with the camera plateau. The last 5 generations have looked pretty much exactly the same except for the rails changing and camera bump growing, now I can immediately tell by looking at the phone that I have the newest device.
I'm really not worried about dents or scratches, let alone all this whining about a "premium" design, because I have it in an Apple Silicone case anyway, which makes the phone COMPLETELY wobble-free when using it on a table! Finally!! That's a design choice that actually matters to me a lot!
I get a solid two-day battery life on 5G data every full charge, something I've never experienced before. The phone doesn't get hot or even warm doing simple things like surfing the web and watching YouTube. It dissipates heat extremely well when put under stress, like recording 4K ProRes.
The 8x zoom produces extremely high-quality photos of subjects so far away that it's kind of mind-blowing. Camera quality overall is a huge step up from my 13 Pro.
The anti-reflective glass is enough to keep the display totally in focus every time I'm using it under bright lights or sunlight. Despite all the fuss about the panel lottery, my LG GVC panel is absolutely perfect in uniformity across the entire display, looks sharp, crisp, and insanely good contrast compared to all of my previous iPhones.
I'm looking forward to making use of the bump up to 12GB RAM and huge upgrade in performance with the A19 Pro in the next few months with video projects in Final Cut Camera and games like Resident Evil.
Sure, we didn't get exactly get a premium design with the 17 Pro, I can admit that. But we actually got a remarkably NEW design after a long time, one that is focused on pro features and thermal efficiency. What we did get is premium performance, which I would argue was always the whole point of the iPhone Pro lineup.
