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Camera Control button is so bad, It changes settings when touched, so hard to take photos with so I always look grim when I take a selfie. That needs to be replaced with a normal button instead.
Screen is the most scratched of the the last three generations.
Camera button is indeed so bad that I can’t even use it as a shutter button cause I can’t 9999% take for granted that I didn’t accidentally change the zoom when taking the photo.
Aside from launching the camera it’s literally useless to me.
 
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Good video. A very good iPhone but did not get it as I was very satisfied with my 15 Pro Max. Don't think camera control is a very useful button. Thinking of upgrading to a 17 Pro Max soon.
 
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I have the 16 Pro. Performance has been very good, I'm happy with the camera system on it. Mine rarely gets warm/hot but obviously that will depend on how you use your phone. Shortly after getting the phone I disabled the camera button for two reasons: I didn't like using it, and I was often accidentally opening the camera app when I wasn't trying to. I really don't like how heavy the phone is and I don't intend to get a phone this heavy ever again.

Overall though, it's a really good phone if you don't mind its heavy weight.

Agree, it's overall great (although it has nothing risruptive). What I just don't like is the poor RAM. Poor because I bet my *** it won't last too upgrades without loosing lots of AI features. I hope to be wrong, but If these iPhone 17 comes with 12Gb,probably I'll be right.
 
You might want to wait for the aluminum frame 17 Pro with vapor chamber instead of getting the titanium frame 16 Pro. Will probably be better at handling summers.
In my opinion, the replacement of titanium frame is not what will make the iPhone 17 colder, but the swipe from back glass to aluminum. The frame is not what it makes the iPhone hot (nor even much heavier)
 
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Is it just me or does the front glass of iPhones seem to scratch easier with every single generation?
I have noticed the same thing. I never used a screen protector but with my 16 PM is far worse with screen scratches than any other iPhone I have ever owned.
 
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Former professional photographer here. When the Camera Control button came out, I thought it would be an incredibly useful tool. Even defended it here before it arrived. Boy was I wrong. I can't stand it and wish it was gone!
 
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Former professional photographer here. When the Camera Control button came out, I thought it would be an incredibly useful tool. Even defended it here before it arrived. Boy was I wrong. I can't stand it and wish it was gone!
You’d have to say why you can’t stand it for this comment to be useful for readers.
 
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We're approaching the iPhone 17 launch, and with less than a month to go, MacRumors videographer Dan Barbera decided to take a look back at his year with the iPhone 16 Pro Max.


The iPhone 16 Pro Max has held up well over the last 11 months, with no major problems with the durability or battery life. Battery health has held up well, and Dan's battery is still at 96 percent capacity.

Even with software optimizations over the last several months, the iPhone 16 Pro Max still runs hot at times. You're most likely to feel it heating up when the display is at max brightness in the sun, or when you're doing something that's demanding like playing a GPU-heavy game. Rumors suggest the iPhone 17 Pro will have a new vapor chamber cooling system, so we might see some improvement with next year's model.

There are minor scratches on the titanium frame of the device, but it otherwise looks good for a year of use. Dan doesn't use a case and shattered the back glass with a drop, but he had a no questions asked repair with AppleCare+. The iPhone 17 Pro Max will have an aluminum frame with less glass on the back, so it could be more durable. The front glass of the iPhone has deep scratches, but there's also a rumor that the iPhone 17 models will get a better scratch resistant coating that could improve things.

Camera Control isn't particularly useful except for opening up the Camera app, and it's downright annoying when a setting accidentally gets changed from a mistaken swipe. Performance with the A18 Pro chip has been impressive, and the next iPhone will be even faster.

If you have an iPhone 16 Pro Max, there's probably no reason to upgrade to an iPhone 17 Pro Max based on the rumors we've heard so far, but coming from an older iPhone, it'll be worth it. How has your iPhone 16 held up over the last year? Let us know in the comments below.

Article Link: Video Review: iPhone 16 Pro Max, One Year Later
In all honesty it’s one of the most boring iPhones of all time, sold on the false promise of its AI capabilities.

I have one and have decided it’s my last traditional slab iPhone. I’m not bothered with the 17 series at all from what I’m hearing about it, I will be interested again if we truly see a foldable device from Apple next year.
 
Just like with every other recent iPhone release, I have been having issues with the device getting very hot to the touch at random. That's the one thing that would make me upgrade to the new release- if the rumours about a bigger vapour chamber turn out to be correct.

The camera control button on the 16PM has been finicky for me at best, only use it accidentally these days...
 
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Just like with every other recent iPhone release, I have been having issues with the device getting very hot to the touch at random.
This happens on my iPhone 13 mini too, nowadays. It didn’t happen with its original software.

So it’s not just new phones that do this, but any phone with new software.

I am not too concerned about the heat but rather the massive battery power that this uses.

Do you use iCloud Photos? (I do.) That transmits images (and videos) to the cloud and generates new compressed versions for local storage. You’d think it would only do that when plugged in and on Wi-Fi, but perhaps it sometimes does it on battery when it deems it necessary, and maybe even occasionally over cellular?
 
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As an iPhone 13 mini owner, it’s interesting to hear the diametrically opposed viewpoints on the Camera Control button.

But it would be more interesting if owners said why they love it or hate it so much they turn it off.
Disable the camera control button? How? Do you mean double click to open the camera app?
 
This is 100% false. Pro series outsold last year already, specifically the Max. Every new release outsells the previous release. This will be no different for the 17 Pro Max.
What I've said is 100% true. But, I guess you know which phones my friends are buying and using better than I do, right? What a weird and nonsensical comment.
 
In my personal experience the 16PM has been the worst iPhone i’ve owned. Battery health is at 85% with 400 cycles. Dies by 2:00 daily. It’s buggy as hell, blank screen, lockups, dropped calls all the time. Slow WiFi. Hands down the worst experience I’ve had. Looking forward to a fresh start with the 17PM
 
Agree, it's overall great (although it has nothing risruptive). What I just don't like is the poor RAM. Poor because I bet my *** it won't last too upgrades without loosing lots of AI features. I hope to be wrong, but If these iPhone 17 comes with 12Gb,probably I'll be right.
I agree, with 12gb RAM expected next month that will probably shorten the lifespan for the 16 Pro. I keep AI disabled so hopefully my phone will hold up better. I have no use for AI personally so I don’t see any reason to have it on. For the people that use AI I’m guessing they will want the 12gb RAM.
 
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You might want to wait for the aluminum frame 17 Pro with vapor chamber instead of getting the titanium frame 16 Pro. Will probably be better at handling summers.
I don’t know what that is, but sounds cool :) my main problem is it at times is very tough to view the display during bright sunlight, not so much the heat.
 
I don't own the 16 PM, but every time I try one I hate the size and weight of it. Not a fan of big heavy phones anymore. Hopefully going back to aluminum will help a lot to reduce weight and dissipate heat better.

These are major selling points when you start to notice how heavy phones are getting and how terrible an experience it is that the phone gets hot frequently.
 
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In my personal experience the 16PM has been the worst iPhone i’ve owned. Battery health is at 85% with 400 cycles. Dies by 2:00 daily. It’s buggy as hell, blank screen, lockups, dropped calls all the time. Slow WiFi. Hands down the worst experience I’ve had. Looking forward to a fresh start with the 17PM

I haven't posted here in a long time but this comment resonated with me. I've had the exact same experience, 4 months into owning my 16PM. Having owned almost every model since the 3G (skipped the 12 & 14), I can say in my experience the 16PM is hands-down the most awful iPhone experience I've ever had too. I often get "Call Failed" while making calls, doesn't matter how many bars of signal the phone shows or where I am. Calls randomly drop, the phone stays on cellular despite being feet from a WiFi access point, and the camera is horribly buggy. I quite often get a black screen opening the camera app. Usually force quitting fixes it, but not always.. While driving through the country a couple weeks ago I came across a long fright train going over a trestle, with a farm in the background. Thinking it would be a great shot, I pulled over and tried to take a couple stills and a video. The stills never saved, and the video preview was choppy and I couldn't get the record started. By the time I rebooted the phone the train was gone.
 
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Use my iPhone 16 Pro Max some every day and paired to my Ultra 2 Watch. Battery is still 100% and cycle count is 103. Have the battery saver charge level set so that at least is working. I am too old to get angry that Apple misled all of the 16 series buyers with the big glossy fake demo of vapor ware that still is not available and will not be for possibly another year, if ever.

There should have been many heads rolling down many bowling lanes with that outright deception. But, hey, the culprits still got their bonus while we the customer got the shaft.

Sadly for Apple's bottom line, I am not the only early adopter of many years who has said they will wait more to the end of the cycle to see what actually is delivered and pass on the bovine byproducts not delivered until the next year.

At least the core function, make a call, has worked all year. The photos are some what better that my iPhone 14 Pro Max.

I still believe the 12GB being mentioned for the iPhone 17 will still not be what is needed for AI, so the iPhone 18 gets the 16GB that is really necessary for AI since all the other product lines had to go to 16GB for AI.

Got to give Tim credit for trying the milk customers for more money, by hook or by crook.
 
I find the button extremely useful, for starting up the camera from any state of the iPhone, and for taking pictures without needing both hands (I don't bother with the "slide to adjust" bits).

And the Apple cases (and increasingly some aftermarket cases) cover/protect the camera control button just fine.
I respect your opinion and I am sure that a lot of people like it. My case has also prevented it being damaged, but I consider that to mainly be luck that I have not dropped the phone in the wrong place the wrong way. I have used the button mainly for the Ask feature, and not to use my camera. That is likely just a muscle memory thing, but to me the button is something that I paid for that I do not use. I bought the “Pro” phone mostly for the better screen, not because I consider myself to be a real photographer.
 
Let me guess.. you dont use MagSafe charging.
My 16 Pro still has 100% maximum capacity as well. I don't use Magsafe, most of the time I just charge overnight with a 5w old Apple brick when I'm at home. The other times I will charge while at work and I use an old ipad 12w charger.
 
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