I’ve Been Using the iPhone 16 Pro Max For A Month: Is It The Upgrade You Need?

BY MUFARO MHARIWA
Jan 9
8 min read

Updated: Jan 15

We spent a month with the iPhone 16 after receiving it from iStore. Keep reading for our full product review.

Editors Note: At MOG, we understand that investing in the latest tech is no small decision. That’s why our team takes the time to rigorously test the newest gadgets, providing you with honest, in-depth reviews that go beyond the surface. From performance and design to usability and value, we evaluate every detail to help you make informed choices. This review is part of our commitment to delivering trusted insights on the technology shaping our lives today—and tomorrow.

Smartphones have reached a point where innovation feels stagnant. Most high-end devices today are so polished that choosing between them often comes down to aesthetics or brand loyalty, rather than groundbreaking features. Apple, with its dominant market share and tightly integrated ecosystem, has mastered this game.

Despite arriving late to trends like high refresh rate displays and USB-C charging, Apple has maintained unwavering loyalty among its users, who continue to invest in devices that emphasise refinement over reinvention. Yet, since the iPhone 13 Pro Max, the changes have not been incremental—Dynamic Island, a titanium body, slightly improved cameras and battery life, reduced bezels, and a USB-C port. The so-called innovations, like AI features and the new Action Button, feel more like filler than transformative updates.

Moving from the iPhone 13 Pro Max to the 16 Pro Max, I didn’t expect much, but I did hope for meaningful improvements that justified the three-year gap. Here’s what I found:

Build and Design: Lightweight Luxury

Apple said goodbye to the shiny stainless steel sides when they unveiled the 15 Pro line with its brushed titanium sides. They also announced that the shape had slightly changed to make the corners more rounded. At first, I thought, what a silly thing to say, but how silly I was to say that. These new changes make the in-hand experience very different; the 16 Pro Max is so much lighter compared to the heavier stainless steel that also used to smudge very easily.

The rounded corners address a long-standing issue that many consumers accepted as the ‘feel of premium.’ On the iPhone 13 Pro Max, the sharp edges dig into your hands, causing discomfort during extended use, especially without a case. The 16 Pro Max eliminates this problem, combining its rounded corners and lightweight titanium to create a far more light, comfortable grip. This improvement is particularly impressive, given that the 16 Pro Max boasts a larger 6.9-inch display compared to the 6.7-inch screen of the 13 Pro Max.

While the 16 Pro Max is undoubtedly more comfortable to handle, it doesn’t come without its quirks. The larger size has led to the buttons being repositioned slightly higher, making it a bit of a stretch to reach the volume controls or the new Action Button. Replacing the traditional Ring/Silent switch, the Action Button offers more functionality, allowing users to configure it for tasks like opening apps, recording quick voice memos, or toggling focus modes.

Despite these tweaks, the overall design of the 16 Pro Max hasn’t strayed far from its predecessors. It retains the familiar three-camera layout, making it nearly indistinguishable from the 13 Pro Max at first glance.

Display: Brighter and Better

Smartphone displays have been excellent for years, and at this point, there’s not much that can be done to improve them. To upgrade a phone’s display, Apple has had to make it dimmer. The 16 Pro Max can get as dim as 1 nit, which is useful by the bedside when you're about to fall asleep. It gets brighter too. It has an HDR peak brightness of 1600 nits, compared to the 1200 nits on the 13 Pro Max. Outdoors, it can even reach 2000 nits. Geeky numbers aside, this difference is noticeable. The 16 Pro Max is more visible in peak sunlight.

The 16 Pro Max features the Dynamic Island, a feature I was initially very excited to try but later realised doesn’t significantly change how I use my phone. Apple unveiled it as something that would make life easier by allowing you to interact with apps directly from your home screen or lock screen. While this is true to some extent, I find that not many apps have fully taken advantage of it. Many native apps, like Apple Music, Clock, and Safari, as well as some third-party apps like sports apps, Uber, and Maps, have adopted the Dynamic Island. It’s a nice feature to use, but it doesn’t feel as revolutionary or transformative as Apple claimed it would be.

16 Pro Max Bazel vs 13 Pro Max Bazel

One thing I didn’t expect to notice or care about was the smaller bezels. As mentioned, the 16 Pro Max is larger than the 13 Pro Max, but the difference is hardly noticeable. This is because Apple made the screen bigger by reducing the bezels rather than enlarging the phone's body, as many might assume. The thinner bezels are especially noticeable on white screens and when watching content.

Another upgrade the 16 Pro Max has over the 13 Pro Max is the Always-On Display. This is one of those features that Apple introduced long after Android, and while it’s nice to have, I could easily go without it. To its credit, the feature doesn’t affect battery life as much as I thought it would, and it’s quite intuitive. The phone smartly turns off the Always-On Display when it’s in your pocket or left in a room, then switches back on when you return—so that’s pretty cool.

Camera: Still Best in Class

The average person might not notice, but the 16 Pro Max has larger cameras compared to its predecessors, thanks to its larger sensors.

Let’s cut to the chase: the 16 Pro Max takes undeniably better pictures than the 13 Pro Max, particularly in low-light conditions. This improvement is due to the Photonic Engine, the larger sensors and the fact that the 16 Pro Max captures 48MP photos, compared to the 12MP photos taken by the 13 Pro Max. Below are the geeky numbers that highlight the differences on paper.

And below is the real-life performance

16 Pro Max Object at Night vs 13 Pro Max Object at Night | The 16 Pro Max is better at picking out objects in low-light conditions

The 16 Pro Max also edges out the 13 Pro Max in video capabilities, thanks to features like Action Mode, which automatically stabilises videos even when the phone isn’t stable. The differences become even more apparent when you start editing your images and videos. The 16 Pro Max can capture videos in 4K at 120fps, enabling frame-by-frame editing, such as creating slow-motion effects. It also includes Audio Mix, a feature that lets you fine-tune sound in your videos. For example, you can isolate the subject’s voice while dampening background noise or amplify someone’s voice in the background instead of the subject’s. There are also additional Photographic Styles on the 16 Pro Max.

Another notable improvement is in zoom capabilities. The 16 Pro Max offers up to 25x zoom, compared to 15x on the 13 Pro Max, and 5x optical zoom, compared to the 13’s 3x optical zoom. This makes a significant difference for those who enjoy taking detailed or long-range photos. The 16 Pro Max also supports ProRes Log, a format designed for capturing the highest-quality video, which can then be extensively edited in post-production.

While the differences do stack up on paper, the 13 Pro Max and even the 11 Pro Max still have excellent cameras that are more than capable for everyday use. However, the 16 Pro Max’s camera is an essential tool for editors, especially with features like ProRes Log and Audio Mix.

Camera Control

Apple unveiled the 16 line this year with Camera Control as one of its headline features. It’s essentially a button (though Apple would never call it that) that allows you to open the camera and take photos in a jiffy. Once you’re in the camera, you can use the button to change zoom controls, portrait depth, photographic styles, and switch between cameras.

This hasn’t been received well with consumers, and rightly so. Many had been using the Action Button to open the Camera if they so wanted, so this came as a redundant feature. Also, the Camera Control does not do anything new that you can’t already do on the screen.

In fact, I found it to be a nuisance. Using it to take pictures makes taking pictures irritating and even reduces the quality at times. Pressing the button to capture a photo means that most of the time you move the phone as it captures, so the images may come out blurry.

The placement of the button also isn’t ideal. It is not close enough to the corners as many capture buttons are placed on regular cameras, so you end up having to stretch your fingers. It’s even more of a nuisance in portrait mode.

On the bright side, the Camera Control button can be used with Apple Intelligence with a feature called Visual Intelligence. This allows you to quickly point your camera at a plant or animal to get information about it.

Battery & Charging

Apple typically measures battery life in video playback hours. The 16 Pro Max is rated for 33 hours, compared to 28 hours on the 13 Pro Max. In practical terms, both phones can easily last a full day of use with some power to spare. During my testing, the 16 Pro Max consistently ended the day with around 40–50% battery remaining, while the 13 Pro Max averaged about 30–40%.

There are also differences in charging. The 16 Pro Max features a USB-C port, replacing the Lightning connector. Both models support MagSafe charging, but the 16 Pro Max offers faster speeds, charging at 25W compared to the 15W on the 13 Pro Max.

Performance & Software

Apple is known for keeping its older models up to date for years, and it’s no different here. Both phones have been running on the latest iOS 18.2. The software runs smoothly on both, and there aren’t any noticeable differences in speed or lagging, even though the 16 Pro Max has 8GB of RAM compared to the 6GB in the 13 Pro Max. So, I guess that’s that on the topic of software....Or is it? That was the case until a couple of days ago, when Apple introduced incremental features under the umbrella of Apple Intelligence. The 16 Pro Max is Apple Intelligence-enabled, while the 13 Pro Max isn’t.

Pricing: Your Wallet Won’t Thank You

So, here we are – flagship phones now comfortably sit above the $1000 (around R18,900) mark. Are they really worth it? Honestly, not really. But let’s be real, you can buy a $1000 phone from pretty much any big brand and still be happy with what you’re getting. If you’re eyeing the iPhone 16 Pro Max, you can grab the 256GB model at the iStore for R31,799, or go all out with the 1TB version for R42,499. Sure, no phone is truly worth its price tag, but with this one, you’ll definitely be good for the long run.

Final Verdict: You Can’t Go Wrong

Having lived with the 16 Pro Max for a month, I can confidently say that you can’t go wrong with this phone. In fact, it might even be a bit overkill for most users. The camera is excellent, the battery life goes above and beyond, the software is reliable, and it looks fantastic, especially in the Desert Titanium colour.

If you use AI tools like ChatGPT in your daily work or rely on Siri regularly, then this phone is definitely for you. With improvements already made to Siri and more on the way, you’ll likely appreciate the changes.

However, if AI isn't part of your routine, I wouldn’t recommend upgrading—especially for those coming from models such as the 13 Pro Max or later, particularly the 15 Pro Max. The 16 Pro Max and the 15 Pro Max are essentially twins, with only minor differences, such as the 16 Pro Max being slightly taller.