iPhone 18 Pro Max vs iPhone 16 Pro Max: All the differences
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The iPhone 18 Pro Max is a vastly different beast than the iPhone 16 Pro Max. | Image by PhoneArena
The new Apple CEO, John Ternus, has just announced the iPhone 18 Pro Max along with the foldable iPhone Duo. The latter is the talk of the town, while the iPhone 18 Pro Max has taken a step back to not interfere with its thunder.
Of course, it has also scored several important upgrades, including a faster chip, larger battery, and a camera with a neat party trick.
How would the iPhone 18 Pro Max compare against the iPhone 16 Pro Max, the last candy bar Apple iPhone made of titanium?
Although now nearly two years old, it's still a flagship iPhone that is up there in terms of camera image quality and overall performance, not to mention that it has the classic and very charming pre-camera plateau design language. What else do you expect, it's a flagship iPhone, so it will be good for a couple of years more!
Although now nearly two years old, it's still a flagship iPhone that is up there in terms of camera image quality and overall performance, not to mention that it has the classic and very charming pre-camera plateau design language. What else do you expect, it's a flagship iPhone, so it will be good for a couple of years more!
iPhone 18 Pro Max vs iPhone 16 Pro Max differences:
| iPhone 18 Pro Max | iPhone 16 Pro Max |
|---|---|
| Aluminum design language with an expansive camera plateau in the back | The last titanium iPhone Pro Max with a smaller-sized camera island |
| Narrower second-gen Dynamic Island at the front (35% smaller) | The standard first-gen Dynamic Island |
| 2 nm Apple A20 Pro chip | 3 nm Apple A18 Pro chipset |
| Apple C2 modem, offering improved efficiency | Qualcomm Snapdragon modem |
| Up to 2 TB of storage | A maximum of 1 TB of storage |
| Variable aperture on main camera (f/1.4-f/4.0) | Standard 48MP F1.8 Fusion camera |
| 48 MP F2.8 IMX973 periscope with 4x optical zoom | 12 MP F2.8 IMX913 telephoto camera with 5x optical zoom |
| Larger 5,567 mAh battery (5.391 mAh in the physical SIM model) | A 4,685 mAh battery |
| Faster 60 W wired charging, 25W MagSafe 2/Qi2 wireless charging | 27 W wired charging, 25W MagSafe wireless charging |
| Pricier $1,299 starting price for the entry-level 256 GB model | A $1,199 starting price for the base model at launch |
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Design and Size
A clash of new and… neither new nor old
The iPhone 18 Pro Max inherits the iPhone 17 Pro Max's general design and comes with the same aluminum build with Ceramic Shield glass in the rear. The highlight will once again be the expansive camera plateau in the back, which houses the triple camera, the flash, and the LiDAR scanner.
This design change notably faced some criticism due to the not-so-impressive durability of the edges of the aluminum camera plateau, which easily chipped and dented, leading to a not-so-premium experience. It seems like the same could happen with the iPhone 18 Pro Max, but I definitely hope not.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max, on the other hand, was the last iPhone to boast a premium titanium design and have the standard camera island at the back, which did not protrude side to side. Sure, it had a less exciting selection of colors but had an undeniable charm to it.
One big change can be found at the front, where the iPhone 18 Pro Max has a smaller Dynamic Island notch. Apple has shrunk the size by roughly 35% by putting some Face ID elements underneath the screen to deliver a more impressive experience.
Size-wise, the iPhone 18 Pro Max remains identical to the iPhone 17 Pro Max at 8.75 mm thick, whereas the iPhone 16 Pro Max was more compact at 8.25 mm. In terms of length and width, both are very comparable.
This design change notably faced some criticism due to the not-so-impressive durability of the edges of the aluminum camera plateau, which easily chipped and dented, leading to a not-so-premium experience. It seems like the same could happen with the iPhone 18 Pro Max, but I definitely hope not.
One big change can be found at the front, where the iPhone 18 Pro Max has a smaller Dynamic Island notch. Apple has shrunk the size by roughly 35% by putting some Face ID elements underneath the screen to deliver a more impressive experience.
|
|
| Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max | Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max |
| Dimensions | |
|---|---|
| 163.4 x 78.0 x 8.75 mm (~13.49 mm with camera bump) | 163.0 x 77.6 x 8.25 mm (~12.25 mm with camera bump) |
| Weight | |
| 249.0 g | 227.0 g |
See the full
Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max specs comparison
or compare them to other phones using our
Phone Comparison tool
Size-wise, the iPhone 18 Pro Max remains identical to the iPhone 17 Pro Max at 8.75 mm thick, whereas the iPhone 16 Pro Max was more compact at 8.25 mm. In terms of length and width, both are very comparable.
Sadly, the iPhone 18 Pro Max now pushes to 249 grams of weight, which isn't ideal especially when compared with the svelte 227 grams of the iPhone 16 Pro Max.
In terms of colors, the iPhone 18 Pro Max comes in Black, Glacier, Silver, and Burgundy, which is the hero color of the device. Meanwhile, the iPhone 16 Pro Max was available in Black Titanium, White Titanium, Natural Titanium, and Desert Titanium colors.
In terms of colors, the iPhone 18 Pro Max comes in Black, Glacier, Silver, and Burgundy, which is the hero color of the device. Meanwhile, the iPhone 16 Pro Max was available in Black Titanium, White Titanium, Natural Titanium, and Desert Titanium colors.
Display Differences
From a properties perspective, there aren't that many differences between the iPhone 18 Pro Max and the iPhone 16 Pro Max. That's because both share the nearly identical 6.9-inch ProMotion XDR OLED panel at the front, with a 1-120Hz refresh rate, high sharpness, and excellent minimum brightness.
The iPhone 18 Pro Max has a leg up in terms of the peak brightness which maxes out at 3,000 nits as opposed to around 2,000 on the iPhone 16 Pro Max. A small but undeniably important aspect of the specs sheet.
|
|
|
| Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max | Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max |
| Size | |
|---|---|
| 6.9-inch | 6.9-inch |
| Type | |
| OLED, Variable 1-120Hz | OLED, Variable 1-120Hz |
See the full
Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max specs comparison
or compare them to other phones using our
Phone Comparison tool
The biggest improvement with the screen of the iPhone 18 Pro Max is the smaller Dynamic Island at the front as Apple has successfully fit some Face ID elements underneath the screen. Thanks to this, the notch is now significantly smaller (20.76 mm wide on the iPhone 17 Pro versus 13.49 mm on the iPhone 18 Pro), massively improving the immersion. You can also now fit up to three Live Activities up there, an upgrade over the older iPhone 16 Pro Max.
Performance and Software
A major performance upgrade
It's the 2 nm Apple A20 Pro chipset that is powering the iPhone 18 Pro Max. This will certainly introduce major performance gains––as well as efficiency improvements that will deliver even better battery life.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max came with the 3 nm A18 Pro chip, which is still a high-end performer, but less impressive in terms of raw performance in comparison with the A19 Pro chip and surely the upcoming A20 Pro, too.
Apple has also finally brought its own modem to the iPhone range, the C2. Previously, all iPhones have had Snapdragon modems. Usually, this has little importance, but an Apple modem will help deliver even better integration and better efficiency.
The iPhone 18 Pro Max comes with 12 GB of memory, which is the same amount as the iPhone 17 Pro Max. The iPhone 16 Pro Max had 8 GB of RAM, which is the minimum for Apple Intelligence to work.
|
|
|
| Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max | Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max |
| System chip | |
|---|---|
| Apple A20 Pro (2 nm) | Apple A18 Pro (3 nm) |
| Memory | |
| 12GB (LPDDR5X)/256GB 12GB/512GB 12GB/1TB 12GB/2TB |
8GB (LPDDR5)/256GB (NVMe) 8GB/512GB 8GB/1024GB |
| OS | |
| iOS (27.x) | iOS (18.x) |
See the full
Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max specs comparison
or compare them to other phones using our
Phone Comparison tool
Storage-wise, the iPhone 18 Pro Max starts with 256 GB of storage and is also available with 512 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB of storage. The iPhone 16 Pro Max has the same storage tiers minus the 2 TB rumored version.
The iPhone 18 Pro Max will come with iOS 27 out of the box. The iPhone 16 Pro Max will be updated to iOS 27 this September.
Camera
Major differences, but will they matter?
The iPhone 18 Pro Max comes with a new 48 MP main camera using the Sony IMX905 sensor. The highlight here, however, is the six-blade aperture. The camera can now intelligently switch between f/1.48 and f/4.0 depending on ambient lighting and the user's own creative needs.
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 would boost the focus, sharpness, and detail in standard light conditions.
The iPhone 18 Pro Max now also supports manual controls for creative purposes and features improvements to Photographic Styles.
Other than that, the device boasts the same 48 MP sensors behind the rest of the cameras.
|
|
|
| Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max | Apple iPhone 16 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) Sensor name: Sony IMX903 Aperture size: F1.8 Focal length: 24 mm Sensor size: 1/1.28" Pixel size: 1.22 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 | 48 MP (Ultra-wide) Sensor name: Sony IMX972 Aperture size: F2.2 Focal Length: 13 mm Sensor size: 1/3.06" Pixel size: 0.7 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 (Telephoto, Periscope, Sensor-shift OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Sony IMX913 Optical zoom: 5.0x Aperture size: F2.8 Focal Length: 120 mm Sensor size: 1/3.06" Pixel size: 1.12 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 16 Pro Max specs comparison
or compare them to other phones using our
Phone Comparison tool
The iPhone 16 Pro Max, on the other hand, was equipped with a 48 MP main, a 48 MP ultrawide with a small-ish sensor, and a 12 MP telephoto with 5X optical zoom and a small sensor, too.
At the front, the situation will be pretty different, too. The 18 MP Center Stage camera makes a return to the iPhone 18 Pro Max, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max had to rely on a 12 MP FaceTime camera. The Center Stage camera gives much better flexibility in how selfies are captured and also makes video calls that much better as it intelligently keeps you in the frame.
Overall, the iPhone 18 Pro Max will undoubtedly deliver a better camera experience.
Battery Life and Charging
A major difference
Unlike Samsung, which hasn't really given us a battery capacity upgrade for its most interesting Galaxy S Ultra phones in this decade, Apple isn't afraid to deliver annual battery size upgrades. This has been the case for years, and the iPhone 18 Pro Max will reiterate that by coming with a pretty serious battery upgrade.
Apple has outfitted the eSIM-only US version of the iPhone 18 Pro Max with a massive 5,567 mAh battery. This is the largest battery ever fitted on an iPhone by far!
iPhone 18 Pro Max models in other regions that still retain a physical nano-SIM slot will reportedly feature a slightly smaller 5,391 mAh battery. Nevertheless, even that one is significantly larger than the 4,685 mAh battery that the eSIM iPhone 16 Pro Max carried, so it's all but natural to expect massively better battery life.
Don't get me wrong, an iPhone 16 Pro Max with a 4,685 mAh battery is definitely no slouch in terms of battery endurance, but it most certainly wouldn't be able to match the efficiency of the latest model.
|
|
|
| Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max | Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max |
| Type | |
|---|---|
| 5567 mAh | 4685 mAh |
| Charge speed | |
| Wired: 60.0W Wireless: 25.0W | Wired: 27.0W Wireless: 25.0W |
See the full
Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max specs comparison
or compare them to other phones using our
Phone Comparison tool
Charging-wise, the iPhone 18 Pro Max now charges at 60 W, while the older iPhone 16 Pro Max peaked at less than 30 W. This means significantly shorter charging times––up to 50% in 15 minutes.
Both phones share the same MagSafe 2.0 charging speeds of up to 25 W.
Specs Comparison
Here's a complete breakdown of the iPhone 18 Pro Max specs in comparison with the iPhone 16 Pro Max specs.
|
|
|
| Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max | Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max |
| Dimensions | |
|---|---|
| 163.4 x 78.0 x 8.75 mm (~13.49 mm with camera bump) | 163.0 x 77.6 x 8.25 mm (~12.25 mm with camera bump) |
| Weight | |
| 249.0 g | 227.0 g |
| Size | |
|---|---|
| 6.9-inch | 6.9-inch |
| Type | |
| OLED, Variable 1-120Hz | OLED, Variable 1-120Hz |
| System chip | |
|---|---|
| Apple A20 Pro (2 nm) | Apple A18 Pro (3 nm) |
| Memory | |
| 12GB (LPDDR5X)/256GB 12GB/512GB 12GB/1TB 12GB/2TB |
8GB (LPDDR5)/256GB (NVMe) 8GB/512GB 8GB/1024GB |
| OS | |
| iOS (27.x) | iOS (18.x) |
| Type | |
|---|---|
| 5567 mAh | 4685 mAh |
| Charge speed | |
| Wired: 60.0W Wireless: 25.0W | Wired: 27.0W Wireless: 25.0W |
| 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) Sensor name: Sony IMX903 Aperture size: F1.8 Focal length: 24 mm Sensor size: 1/1.28" Pixel size: 1.22 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 | 48 MP (Ultra-wide) Sensor name: Sony IMX972 Aperture size: F2.2 Focal Length: 13 mm Sensor size: 1/3.06" Pixel size: 0.7 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 (Telephoto, Periscope, Sensor-shift OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Sony IMX913 Optical zoom: 5.0x Aperture size: F2.8 Focal Length: 120 mm Sensor size: 1/3.06" Pixel size: 1.12 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 16 Pro Max specs comparison
or compare them to other phones using our
Phone Comparison tool
Summary
The iPhone 18 Pro Max and the iPhone 16 Pro Max are the perfect examples of Apple's slow but steady evolution.
At first glance, there seem to be just a couple of visual differences between the two, and frankly said, the overall experience with the iPhone 16 Pro Max would definitely be nearly 90% identical.
However, once you take a deep dive and listen to what the rumor mill has to say, you will realize that nearly every aspect of the phone has been improved in the past two years. Performance, display quality, battery efficiency, and camera performance have all gotten some massive improvements that make the iPhone 18 Pro Max the leader of the pack.
Depends. The iPhone 16 Pro Max is still a very contemporary phone that doesn't feel outdated. However, the cumulative two-year niceties make the iPhone 18 Pro Max a much better device in most key aspects.
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