iPhone 18 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: All the differences
The iPhone 18 Pro Max is a prime upgrade target for iPhone 14 Pro Max users. | Image by PhoneArena
While most eyes will be fixated on the foldable iPhone this fall, and rightly so, one device will stand as the undisputed most advanced iPhone out there. The unsung crown jewel of the lineup is the iPhone 18 Pro Max, traditionally the largest and most advanced conventional iPhone we get annually.
This year, Apple is preparing a couple of exciting upgrades for the phone. The first 2 nm Apple chip, a larger battery, and an improved camera system hint at a phone that focuses on the basics.
Sounds like a great upgrade for users of the iPhone 14 Pro Max, an aging iPhone model that has been around since 2022. That one was the last stainless-steel iPhone, the last one with a mute switch, and the first one to have the floating Dynamic Island punch-hole system. A bizarre mix of old and new features, marking the frontier between two ages.
Should iPhone 14 Pro Max users upgrade their devices this fall? If it were me who was using the iPhone 14 Pro Max, I'd upgrade in a heartbeat.
iPhone 18 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max differences:
| iPhone 18 Pro Max | iPhone 14 Pro Max |
|---|---|
| Aluminum design language with an expansive camera plateau in the back | Apple's last stainless-steel iPhone with a mute switch |
| Narrower second-gen Dynamic Island at the front | The first iPhone with a Dynamic Island |
| 2 nm Apple A20 Pro chip | Apple 16 Bionic inside, built on a 4 nm manufacturing node |
| 12 GB of RAM on board | Just 6 GB of RAM, no Apple Intelligence support |
| Apple C2 modem, offering improved efficiency | Less efficient 5G modem |
| Starting at 256 GB and up to 2 TB of storage | Starts at 128 GB and with a maximum of 1TB of storage |
| Variable aperture on 48MP main camera | The first iPhone with a 48MP main camera |
| 48 MP periscope with 4x optical zoom | The final iPhone with 3x telephoto camera |
| A massive 5,567 mAh battery (5,391 mAh battery in the physical SIM model) | A much smaller 4,323 mAh battery |
| 60 W wired faster charging, 25 W MagSafe 2.0 support | 25W wired charging, 15W standard MagSafe wireless charging |
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Design and Size
Aluminum to... succeed stainless steel
No surprises here: the iPhone 18 Pro Max is very similar to the iPhone 17 Pro Max. This essentially means an aluminum build with the expansive camera plateau in the back, where the cameras, LED flash, and LiDAR scanner are positioned. The signature iPhone flat design will also remain unchanged.
The new iPhone also doesn't differ too much in terms of size, meaning that we get the same 8.75 mm thickness as the iPhone 17 Pro Max. However, the iPhone 18 Pro Max is one heavy boy-–at 249 grams, it's the heaviest conventional iPhone ever released. The iPhone 14 Pro Max is slightly lighter at 249 grams.
The iPhone 14 Pro Max, on the other hand, was Apple's last stainless-steel iPhone. It was also the last one to lack the Camera Control button and customizable Action button, as it featured the iconic physical ring switch. The camera island at the rear is also refreshingly compact when you compare it to the camera plateau of today.
The iPhone 14 Pro Max was also the first iPhone to feature the floating Dynamic Island punch-hole. The iPhone 18 Pro Max features a much smaller Dynamic Island, roughly 35% smaller in comparison, which would free up more screen real estate for on-screen content and improve the immersion.
The iPhone 14 Pro Max is also nearly a millimeter thinner than the iPhone 18 Pro Max.
|
|
| Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max | Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max |
| Dimensions | |
|---|---|
| 163.4 x 78.0 x 8.75 mm (~13.49 mm with camera bump) | 160.7 x 77.6 x 7.85 mm (~12.03 mm with camera bump) |
| Weight | |
| 249.0 g | 240.0 g |
See the full
Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max specs comparison
or compare them to other phones using our
Phone Comparison tool
Colors-wise, the iPhone 14 Pro Max was available in Space Black, Silver, Gold, and the signature for the lineup, Deep Purple. Meanwhile, the iPhone 18 Pro Max comes in Black, Glacier, Silver, and the new hero Burgundy color options.
Display Differences
Surprisingly, there are a number of key differences between the screens of the iPhone 18 Pro Max and the iPhone 14 Pro Max.
The iPhone 14 Pro Max had a 6.7-inch Liquid Retina XDR display with ProMotion, while the iPhone 18 Pro Max boasts a 6.9-inch Liquid Retina XDR display with ProMotion. The iPhone 14 Pro Max peaked at around 2,000 nits of maximum brightness, while the iPhone 18 Pro Max pushes to 3,000 nits.
|
|
|
| Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max | Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max |
| Size | |
|---|---|
| 6.9-inch | 6.7-inch |
| Type | |
| OLED, Variable 1-120Hz | OLED, Variable 1-120Hz |
See the full
Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max specs comparison
or compare them to other phones using our
Phone Comparison tool
Both phones rely on Face ID for biometrics, but as we mentioned, the Dynamic Island on the newer device would be much more compact. We are talking about roughly 20.76 mm wide on the iPhone 14 Pro Max Pro versus 13.49 mm on the iPhone 18 Pro Маx, which lets you git up to three Live Activities up there.
Performance and Software
Major differences
Not two ways about it: the iPhone 18 Pro Max will easily beat the iPhone 14 Pro Max in terms of raw performance. That's just the reality of it.
Apple's next era-defining chipset was unveiled alongside the iPhone 18 range, the 2 nm Apple A20 Pro. From our historical experiences with performance for Apple devices, we can expect both improved prowess in synthetic benchmarks as well as enhanced efficiency, which is certainly the more important upgrade. The gap with the Apple A16 is massive.
What's even more striking is the scarce amount of RAM on board the iPhone 14 Pro Max—just 6 GB. That's far too little to support Apple Intelligence. The iPhone 18 Pro Max will have double the amount and, of course, support all of Apple's Apple Intelligence bells and whistles.
|
|
|
| Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max | Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max |
| System chip | |
|---|---|
| Apple A20 Pro (2 nm) | Apple 16 Bionic (4 nm) |
| Memory | |
| 12GB (LPDDR5X)/256GB 12GB/512GB 12GB/1TB 12GB/2TB |
6GB (LPDDR5)/128GB (NVMe) 6GB/256GB 6GB/512GB 6GB/1024GB |
| OS | |
| iOS (27.x) | iOS (18.x, 17.x, 16.x) |
See the full
Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max specs comparison
or compare them to other phones using our
Phone Comparison tool
Storage-wise, the base iPhone 14 Pro Max was available in 128 GB, 256 GB, 512 GB, and 1 TB. The iPhone 18 Pro Max is available in 256 GB, 512 GB, 1 TB, and a 2 TB version, too.
Camera
Apples and oranges, maybe?
The iPhone 18 Pro Max comes with the same triple 48 MP camera setup as the iPhone 17 Pro Max, though the sensor behind the main camera has been switched for an IMX905 and has also scored a nifty six-blade aperture that automatically switches between f/1.48-f/4.0 apertures.
Such a variable aperture would allow the camera to intelligently switch to a wider aperture in lower-light conditions or when the need for a shallow depth of field arises (most often when taking portraits). Conversely, the opposite narrow end of the variable aperture will boost the focus, sharpness, and detail in standard light conditions.
Not only that, but the iPhone 18 Pro Max also supports manual camera controls for the first time, giving you more creative control over your photography.
|
|
|
| Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max | Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max |
| Main camera | |
|---|---|
| 48 MP (ToF 3D depth sensing, Sensor-shift OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Sony IMX905 Aperture size: F1.5/F4.0 Focal length: 24 mm Sensor size: 1/1.28" Pixel size: 1.22 μm |
48 MP (Sensor-shift OIS, PDAF) Aperture size: F1.8 Focal length: 24 mm Sensor size: 1/1.28" Pixel size: 2.44 μm |
| Second camera | |
| 48 MP (Ultra-wide, Sensor-shift OIS) Sensor name: Sony IMX972 Aperture size: F2.2 Focal Length: 13 mm Sensor size: 1/2.55" Pixel size: 0.7 μm |
12 MP (Telephoto, OIS, PDAF) Optical zoom: 3.0x Aperture size: F2.8 Focal Length: 77 mm Sensor size: 1/3.5" Pixel size: 1.0 μm |
| Third camera | |
| 48 MP (Telephoto, Periscope, OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Sony IMX973 Optical zoom: 4.0x Aperture size: F2.8 Focal Length: 100 mm Sensor size: 1/2.55" Pixel size: 0.7 μm |
12 MP (Ultra-wide, PDAF) Aperture size: F2.2 Focal Length: 13 mm Pixel size: 1.4 μm |
| Front | |
| 18 MP (Time-of-Flight (ToF), Autofocus, HDR) | 12 MP (Time-of-Flight (ToF), Autofocus, HDR) |
See the full
Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max specs comparison
or compare them to other phones using our
Phone Comparison tool
The iPhone 14 Pro Max was the first iPhone to feature a 48 MP main camera, while the ultrawide and the shorter 3X telephoto were 12 MP ones. More than a decent camera in its heyday, but not nearly as impressive in mid-2026, not by any modern margin.
Battery Life and Charging
No contest
The iPhone 18 Pro Max arrives with a 5,567 mAh battery on the US, eSIM-only model. This makes it the iPhone with the largest battery so far (unless the iPhone Duo truly surprises us). The international model with a physical nano-SIM card will feature a slightly smaller 5,391 mAh battery.
How does that compare with the iPhone 14 Pro Max?
That one featured a much smaller 4,323 mAh battery. It wasn't particularly great back in its heyday, and these days, surviving units would have their battery health significantly reduced, so it wouldn't be able to match the battery life of the newer iPhone 18 Pro Max, not by a longshot.
The extra efficiency of the much more modern chipset that will make it inside the iPhone 18 Pro Max will significantly boost its battery endurance, that's for sure.
|
|
|
| Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max | Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max |
| Type | |
|---|---|
| 5567 mAh | 4323 mAh |
| Charge speed | |
| Wired: 60.0W Wireless: 25.0W |
Wired: 25.0W Wireless: 15.0W |
See the full
Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max specs comparison
or compare them to other phones using our
Phone Comparison tool
Charging-wise, the iPhone 18 Pro Max comes with 60 W of wired charging and 25 W MagSafe 2.0 wireless charging. The iPhone 14 Pro Max charged at up to 25 W. The older phone also came with the first-gen MagSafe iteration, which was slower at 15 W, while the iPhone 18 Pro Max has 25 W MagSafe 2.0.
Specs Comparison
Here's a brief summary of the iPhone 18 Pro Max specs in comparison with the current iPhone 14 Pro Max specs.
|
|
|
| Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max | Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max |
| Dimensions | |
|---|---|
| 163.4 x 78.0 x 8.75 mm (~13.49 mm with camera bump) | 160.7 x 77.6 x 7.85 mm (~12.03 mm with camera bump) |
| Weight | |
| 249.0 g | 240.0 g |
| Size | |
|---|---|
| 6.9-inch | 6.7-inch |
| Type | |
| OLED, Variable 1-120Hz | OLED, Variable 1-120Hz |
| System chip | |
|---|---|
| Apple A20 Pro (2 nm) | Apple 16 Bionic (4 nm) |
| Memory | |
| 12GB (LPDDR5X)/256GB 12GB/512GB 12GB/1TB 12GB/2TB |
6GB (LPDDR5)/128GB (NVMe) 6GB/256GB 6GB/512GB 6GB/1024GB |
| OS | |
| iOS (27.x) | iOS (18.x, 17.x, 16.x) |
| Type | |
|---|---|
| 5567 mAh | 4323 mAh |
| Charge speed | |
| Wired: 60.0W Wireless: 25.0W |
Wired: 25.0W Wireless: 15.0W |
| Main camera | |
|---|---|
| 48 MP (ToF 3D depth sensing, Sensor-shift OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Sony IMX905 Aperture size: F1.5/F4.0 Focal length: 24 mm Sensor size: 1/1.28" Pixel size: 1.22 μm |
48 MP (Sensor-shift OIS, PDAF) Aperture size: F1.8 Focal length: 24 mm Sensor size: 1/1.28" Pixel size: 2.44 μm |
| Second camera | |
| 48 MP (Ultra-wide, Sensor-shift OIS) Sensor name: Sony IMX972 Aperture size: F2.2 Focal Length: 13 mm Sensor size: 1/2.55" Pixel size: 0.7 μm |
12 MP (Telephoto, OIS, PDAF) Optical zoom: 3.0x Aperture size: F2.8 Focal Length: 77 mm Sensor size: 1/3.5" Pixel size: 1.0 μm |
| Third camera | |
| 48 MP (Telephoto, Periscope, OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Sony IMX973 Optical zoom: 4.0x Aperture size: F2.8 Focal Length: 100 mm Sensor size: 1/2.55" Pixel size: 0.7 μm |
12 MP (Ultra-wide, PDAF) Aperture size: F2.2 Focal Length: 13 mm Pixel size: 1.4 μm |
| Front | |
| 18 MP (Time-of-Flight (ToF), Autofocus, HDR) | 12 MP (Time-of-Flight (ToF), Autofocus, HDR) |
See the full
Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max specs comparison
or compare them to other phones using our
Phone Comparison tool
Summary
With the iPhone 18 Pro Max, Apple focuses on the basics. While it will be continuing to build on the new camera plateau design language, the hardware inside will be much more important.
A fast new 2 nm chip, 12 GB of RAM, a promising new camera system, and the largest battery ever fitted on an iPhone might make this one a smash-hit success in the higher ends of the premium phone market.
It also looks as if iPhone 14 Pro Max users should be keeping an ear close to the ground and upgrading if economically viable. Upgrading is officially greenlit!
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