Don't pre-order the iPhone 17 Pro Max until you read this one-year review of the 16 Pro Max.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max sports the largest display seen on an iPhone yet
Alright, with the iPhone 17 series launch just days away, let's take a look at last year's top-of-the-line iPhone 16 Pro Max and see how well it's holding up. The reason is simple. In India, many people purchase a generation-old iPhone model when the new ones are introduced, and this one is likely more relevant to that group of readers. If you are among those who have already decided on the iPhone 17, stay tuned for our coverage of the upcoming 17 series.
A recap on why the iPhone 16 Pro Max was the greatest and best from Apple last year. The company widely advertised Apple Intelligence, and we will talk about that in a bit. The all-new Camera Control button was introduced on the entire iPhone 16 line-up and offered another way to access your cameras. Additionally, it got improved cameras with enhanced 5x telephoto capability. Apple also added some new features, like 4K 120fps Dolby Vision video support. The iPhone 16 Pro Max introduced the biggest display on an iPhone at 6.9 inches. The iPhone 16 Pro Max also got raw pro power with 3nm-based A18 Pro under the hood. Of course, the iPhone 16 Pro Max also promised a multi-day battery.
So, here's my iPhone 16 Pro Max: One-year-later review, which can also be a definitive "buy or wait for 17 series" guide.
You can also check out our in-depth review of the iPhone 16 Pro Max here.
The signature three-lens camera deco was first introduced in 2019 with the iPhone 11 Pro
Starting with the elephant in the room - battery. For iPhone users, the real-life litmus test is battery health, and trust me, many have this anxiety when looking at the battery health metric on an iPhone after downloading a new iOS update. Thankfully, the iPhone 16 Pro Max loaned by Apple last year still holds up at 100 percent, as shown in the screenshot below.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max still has 100 percent battery health
The Gadgets 360 team started with the iPhone 16 Pro Max in September 2024. Since then, the device has completed over 200 cycle counts, indicating the number of times its battery has been used. For those unaware, Apple uses a lithium-ion battery, and it can charge quickly up to 80 percent, after which it switches to slower trickle charging. Of course, there are conditions where software play comes into the mix, such as limiting charging to 80 percent when the battery temperature exceeds a certain threshold.
How did I manage a full-score battery health on the iPhone 16 Pro Max despite using it for a whole year? Well, the magic is in understanding how you have been using your device, including your charging habits. Enabling optimised battery charging is a great start, allowing the device to wait until it's fully charged, past 80 percent, before you need to use it. I also extensively use the charge limit feature—a great addition by the iOS team, and it lets me choose the limit of charging I want to stick to.
Talking about battery performance, well, the iPhone 16 Pro Max easily lasts over a day on a single charge, and that has been constant for a whole year. Of course, I still miss fast-charging support, which could have been a great addition. Hopefully, this year, on the iPhone 17 Pro models, fingers crossed.
iPhone 16 Pro Max (on the left) and iPhone 15 Pro Max (on the right) in a side-by-side comparison
Apple Intelligence was marketed as the next big thing by the company for its iPhone 16 series, but the hook never worked in favour. There were AI features that were rolled out, like Clean UP, Image Playground, and Writing Tools, but all worked just fine. In fact, the object eraser feature called Clean Up couldn't do a great job when compared to the likes of Samsung Galaxy smartphones, which have a better object eraser implementation. Last year, Siri was hyped, promising many new features, but those have also fallen flat.
Overall, the entire Apple Intelligence campaign should have been planned well and could have been a thing for the iPhone 17 this year. But never mind, it gave Apple some time to test it with a broader audience and this year, we expect an improved set of features with Apple Intelligence with the upcoming iPhone 17 series.
The entire iPhone 16 series came with Apple Intelligence features
The iPhone 16 series was the first to feature the all-new physical button, the Camera Control, which was a great addition to make the phone more point-and-shoot friendly. One year down, this was an excellent addition, making camera operation more convenient. The iPhone 16 Pro Max still remains my go-to camera smartphone option even after 365 days. Yes, I have seen good camera setups on various smartphones, like the Oppo Find X8 Ultra (Review), Vivo X200 Pro (Review) and Xiaomi 15 Ultra (Review). But somehow, the iPhone 16 Pro Max has been a device I couldn't ditch, thanks to its video prowess and excellent primary camera.
To recap, the iPhone 16 Pro Max comes with a 48-megapixel primary camera with an f/1.78 aperture and a 48-megapixel ultra-wide sensor with an f/2.2 aperture and 120-degree field of view. Then, there's the 12-megapixel telephoto sensor with 5x optical zoom in support. For videos, it gets 4K 120fps Dolby Vision support, while there's also Cinematic mode up to 4K Dolby Vision at 30 fps. At the front is a 12-megapixel selfie shooter that Apple calls the TrueDepth camera.
The all-new Camera Control button debuted on the 16 series
How have the photos evolved with a year's worth of software updates from Apple? Well, everything has only improved. The overall quality is still top-notch, and the primary sensor is still my point-and-shoot favourite. The iPhone 16 Pro Max remains a capable smartphone for daylight shots. It captures amazing colours and enough details to give any Android flagship a run for its money. Even the low-light performance has remained intact through the year. However, Apple needs to come up with some better computational photography solutions for the iPhone 17, as its rivals have significantly improved their low-light performance.
Daylight (1x) camera sample from the 16 Pro Max
Telephoto (5x) daylight sample from the iPhone 16 Pro Max
Close-up sample from the 16 Pro Max
Low-light sample from the iPhone 16 Pro Max
After the novelty wore off, how often did I actually use the pro features? Once you get used to the Pro-grade camera features, there's no going back, and that holds for the iPhone 16 Pro Max. Notably, the pro-grade features cater not only to creative professionals but also to non-professionals who love to post well-captured images on their social media profiles.
Zoom performance is one area where Apple can elevate the overall experience of the new iPhone's top-tier model. The iPhone 16 Pro Max features the longest optical zoom in an iPhone yet. The 120mm lens with 5x shooting capability, enabling sharper close-ups, allows plenty of framing options. However, the 5x zoom has proven practically valuable for certain situations where excessive zoom wasn't required. At the same time, for scenarios like concerts and landscapes, it did feel lacking in quality compared to the competition.
The all-new Camera Control button debuted on the 16 series
The 16 Pro Max sports a triple camera setup
Overall, the iPhone 16 Pro Max remains my companion for most outings and especially where shooting is the highlight. You can read my in-depth iPhone 16 Pro Max review here, which extensively includes camera samples and more.
For anyone reading so far, you might be thinking, forget day-one benchmarks. How does the phone handle multitasking, heavy app switching, and opening large files now? Is there any noticeable slowdown after a year of accumulated data and OS updates? The simple answer to your question is that the iPhone 16 Pro Max, powered by the A18 Pro chip, can still outperform many Android flagships in day-to-day, hardcore performance parameters. It can load up a graphically intensive game in a jiffy and maintain peak performance, as if it were still a brand new device—no complaints on the performance front.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max is snappy when it comes to everyday tasks and even for gaming. Pictured here next to the iPhone 15 Pro Max to compare the bezels around the display
The design seems perfect for someone with comparatively larger hands, considering this one features a 6.9-inch display. One-handed usage for long is still not recommended if you're on the move, though not impossible. This is mainly because the 16 Pro Max has a slippery back, and it gets tough to maintain balance while on the move.
The 5G performance is still top-notch, and I faced zero problems while using the 16 Pro Max with Jio and Airtel networks on 5G data. The 5G download speeds on the 16 Pro Max are incredible, and I've done this multiple times, downloading entire movies for offline viewing while on a flight. Connectivity-wise, the 16 Pro Max remains one of the top devices you can rely on. Call clarity remains impressive, and I've faced no call drops due to any device-related issues.
On the AI front, Siri became a powerhouse for tasks like summarising long articles while on the fly or even helping you with drafting emails in a specific tone. Apple also introduced real-time transcription and translation, and it worked flawlessly.
You can use visual intelligence through Camera Control to look for things you see
Where things have got a mixed bag response is the software. The continuous iOS updates brought different avatars of the device. Faced everything right, from bugs that took a few seconds to open chat apps like WhatsApp and Telegram for sharing images from the gallery to app boot delays. But I'm happy to report that these were phases, and all of these issues never became annoying since iOS updates are regular and constantly fixing such minor chinks in the armour. Apple still leads the way when it comes to updates, a fact that Android users have known for years.
Overall, the iPhone 16 Pro Max's biggest highlight wasn't just about the physical size but the big leap into practical on-device AI, camera ergonomics, and the promise of multi-day battery life. All of this made the iPhone 16 Pro Max feel like a generational upgrade over a simple iterative one.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max is available at lower prices now, making it a great deal for those looking for a true flagship experience
What stood out to me were two key aspects: the solid battery life, which gave me confidence on long days, and the reliable performance, which encompasses everything the iPhone 16 Pro Max had to offer.
With the sale season around, should you wait for e-commerce sales like Amazon Great Indian Festival or Flipkart Big Billion Days Sale to get your hands on the new iPhone 16 Pro Max, possibly skipping the 17 series? Why not. Both sales will offer never-before-seen prices for the last iPhone 16 series, and you won't be disappointed in any way when picking these devices. But, you need to hurry as the iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max will be discontinued by Apple soon after the launch of the new 17 series.
Of course, if you want the latest and greatest from Apple, then wait for a few days, and you can get your hands on the 17 series, which, in all probability, will be available starting September 19 in India.
Stay tuned to Gadgets 360 for updates on the iPhone 17 series.
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