The iPhone XS Max was Apple’s ‘pro’ user iPhone since last year. Now that the iPhone 11 Pro Max is out, it is taking over that crown. How good is the iPhone 11 Pro Max when compared to the iPhone XS Max? What are the differences between the two phones? Should you even upgrade to the iPhone 11 Pro Max if you already own the iPhone XS Max? Find out in this comparison.

The iPhone 11 Pro Max is a major step up in a lot of areas when compared to the iPhone XS Max, but in a lot of other areas, these two phones are virtually the same. If you care about refinements or are just not satisfied with your iPhone XS Max, you can probably consider upgrading to the iPhone 11 Pro Max. Below is a detailed look at the differences between the iPhone XS Max and iPhone 11 Pro.

What’s Different between iPhone 11 Pro Max and iPhone XS Max?

Display

• iPhone 11 Pro Max – 6.5-inch True Tone OLED, 2688 x 1242 pixels (458 ppi), 82.9 percent screen-to-body ratio, HDR10, Dolby Vision, Haptic Touch, Retina Display XDR
• iPhone XS Max – 6.5-inch True Tone OLED, 2688 x 1242 pixels (458 ppi), 3D Touch, HDR10, Dolby Vision, 3D Touch, Super Retina HD

The iPhone 11 Pro Max features the same display size as the iPhone XS Max but it is brighter, has better contrast ratio, viewing angles, and more. It is so good in fact that Apple is calling it the Retina Display XDR instead of Super Retina HD. As if these improvements were not enough, the new OLED panel is also 15% more power-efficient.

It does lack 3D Touch and instead features Haptic Touch which might be a major bummer for few.

Design

• iPhone 11 Pro Max – 158 x 77.8 x 8.1 mm, 226g, IP68 certified
• iPhone XS Max – 157.5 x 77.4 x 7.7 mm and 208g, IP68 certified

The iPhone 11 Pro Max virtually has the same dimensions as the iPhone XS Max, but it is notably heavier than it. While both phones feature IP68 certification, the iPhone 11 Pro Max can withstand being submerged in up to 4m depth of water vs 2m for the iPhone XS Max.

The iPhone 11 Pro Max also has a matte finish which gives it a very different look and feel compared to the iPhone XS Max. Plus, it is also available in a new Midnight Green color which is not available on the iPhone XS Max.

The stereo speaker setup on the iPhone 11 Pro Max has also improved and offers spatial audio for an immersive surround sound experience. There’s also Dolby Atmos support that’s missing on the iPhone XS Max.

The Face ID experience on the iPhone 11 Pro Max is also better since it now works over a wider field of view.

Processor

• iPhone 11 Pro Max – A13 Bionic, 7nm+ EUV, Third-generation Neural engine
• iPhone XS Max – A12 Bionic, 7nm chip, Second-generation Neural engine

The A13 Bionic is up to 20% more powerful than the A12 Bionic while also being more power-efficient than it. The GPU is also up to 30% faster and Apple claims up to 40% reduction in power consumption. There are a number of power efficiency-related improvements in the A13 Bionic chip which helps the iPhone 11 Pro Max last longer than the iPhone XS Max. The new Machine Learning Accelerators in A13 Bionic ensure that combined with the CPU, the chip is capable of delivering over 1 trillion operations per second.

Storage

• iPhone 11 Pro Max – 64GB, 256GB, 512GB
• iPhone XS Max – 64GB, 256GB, 512GB

This is an area where the iPhone 11 Pro Max does not offer any kind of upgrade over the iPhone XS Max. It ships with the same 64GB of base storage and tops out at 512GB — the same as the iPhone XS Max.

Camera

• iPhone 11 Pro Max  – Triple 12MP camera setup f/1.8, f/2.0, and f/2.4 aperture, OIS for Primary and Telephoto sensor, 100% Focus Pixels for primary camera, Improved Smart HDR, Portrait mode with advanced bokeh and Depth control, Brighter True Tone Flash
• iPhone XS Max – Dual 12MP camera setup with OIS, f/1.8 and f/2.4 aperture, 1.4um pixels, Smart HDR, Focus Pixels, Portrait mode with advanced bokeh and Depth control

The triple-camera system on the iPhone 11 Pro Max is a major revamp of the iPhone’s camera system. Apple has not just updated the hardware but the software as well to deliver an improved imaging experience, especially in low-light scenarios. The new iPhones feature an updated camera app to better take advantage of their powerful camera system.

The iPhone 11 Pro Max’s primary 12MP camera has improved focusing speeds, dynamic range, and details, while the telephoto sensor has a wider f/2.0 aperture which should allow it to capture usable photos in low-light scenarios. The new 12MP f/2.4 120-degree ultra-wide angle camera will let iPhone users capture photos with an entirely different perspective. This is something which the iPhone XS Max lacks.

There’s a new Night mode in the camera app which automatically triggers itself in low-light scenarios to capture brighter photos.

The video recording capabilities of the iPhone 11 Pro Max is also a major step up from the iPhone XS. It features Audio Zoom in which the iPhone will automatically focus on the audio coming from the subject. The dynamic range and cinematic stabilization have also been improved on the iPhone 11 Pro.

There’s QuickTake video as well which allows one to seamlessly start recording videos on the iPhone 11 Pro Max by simply pressing and holding the shutter button.

Front Camera

• iPhone 11 – 12MP TrueDepth Camera, f/2.2 aperture, Retina Flash, Portrait mode with advanced bokeh and Depth control, Smart HDR
• iPhone XS Max – 7MP TrueDepth Camera, f/2.2 aperture, Retina Flash, Portrait mode with advanced bokeh and Depth control, Smart HDR

The TrueDepth camera system on the front of the iPhone 11 Pro Max has received a massive upgrade when compared to the iPhone XS Max. The sensor has a higher 12MP resolution and it features improved Smart HDR allowing it to capture more details and offer improved dynamic range. It can also record 4K videos at 60fps with cinematic video stabilization and with ‘slofies’ at 120fps.

Connectivity

• iPhone 11 – Dual SIM/eSIM, 1.6Gbps Gigabit LTE, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0, VoLTE, NFC with reader mode, Ultra Wideband chip
• iPhone XS Max – Dual SIM/eSIM, Gigabit LTE, Wi-Fi ac with MIMO, Bluetooth 5.0, VoLTE, NFC with reader mode

The iPhone 11 Pro Max represents a huge leap over the iPhone XS in terms of connectivity. It supports faster 1.6Gbps LTE download speeds along with support for newer Wi-Fi 6 standard. It also features Apple’s new U1 Ultra Wideband chip which will be useful once Apple Tags are launched later this year. It will allow for better indoor positioning, location tracking, and spatial awareness.

Battery Life and Charging

• iPhone 11 – Lasts up to 5 hours more than iPhone XS, 18W USB-C charging brick
• iPhone XS Max – Lasts up to 30 minutes longer than the iPhone X

The iPhone 11 Pro Max offers a massive leap over the iPhone XS Max in terms of battery life. Apple claims the iPhone 11 Pro can last up to five hours more than the iPhone XS Max which is really a lot. The improvement means that the iPhone 11 Pro Max will easily make it through a day of extremely heavy use while the iPhone XS Max might struggle.

What’s even better is that Apple is bundling an 18W USB-C adapter with the iPhone 11 Pro series this time around. This means the phone can charge from 0-50% in just 30 minutes. While the iPhone XS Max also supports fast charging, Apple only bundles a 5W charger with it. Both phones also support 7.5W wireless charging.

Price

The iPhone 11 Pro Max starts at the same price tag as the iPhone XS Max used to start: $1,099. It goes all the way up to $1,449 for the 512GB variant. There’s no denying the fact that the iPhone 11 Pro Max is an extremely expensive smartphone just like the iPhone XS Max was last year.

Sure, it does bring a number of new features to the table but if you already own the iPhone XS Max, you should not really consider upgrading to it.

What are your thoughts about the iPhone 11 Pro Max? Will you upgrade to it from your iPhone XS Max? If so, why? Drop a comment and let us know!