Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max review
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- Jstone86
- CGd
- 25 Sep 2025
jiyen235, 25 Sep 2025if they do all the upgrades now, what'll they sell 5 y... more😂😂😂😂😂This quoted reminds me something an ex vice president of Ghana said last year and I quote "If I did everything now, what will I do when I am president
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- NB
- n$E
- 25 Sep 2025
Looking at the cpu stress test, it says iphone 18,1. I thought that this is the code for 17 pro. Could there be a mistake and they showed the 17 pro result? Tbh the gpu stress test seems off also. Most other reviews 17 pro max show higher stability.
- jiyen235
- XNA
- 25 Sep 2025
umiama, 25 Sep 2025so the only practical improvements are improved battery lif... moreif they do all the upgrades now, what'll they sell 5 years later?
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- Anonymous
- BvD
- 25 Sep 2025
RaviSS, 25 Sep 2025"Though the telephoto performance is shockingly mid co... more2. Wrong. The new tele camera captures more light! 16% more light per exposure time from an object and 56% more light per exposure time per image.
3. I think that's wrong, too. When you write 25.5%, I think you are comparing the number of pixels per object with analog binning (for example the number of pixels at 120mm). When the 17 Pro uses analog binning (which leads to a Bayer array), then you get 25.5% fewer pixels per object. But it seems that the 17 Pro doesn't use analog binning at 8x. And a 48 megapixel Quad Bayer sensor doesn't have the same color resolution as a 12 megapixel Bayer sensor! A common misunderstanding. You get four times as many blue pixels, four times as many red pixels, four times as many green pixels. And for example the average distance between a red pixel and a green pixel is lower, too. So, the color resolution is not the same, a 48 megapixel Quad Bayer sensor has a higher color resolution than a 12 megapixel Bayer sensor.
4. That's wrong. At f/2.8, you need a pixel size smaller than 0.56 micrometer, maybe even 0.28 micrometer in order to be completely diffraction limited. At a pixel size of 1.5 micrometer, diffraction would only start(!) to reduce the sharpness by a tiny, tiny bit that is not even perceivable. Planetary astrophotographers know that pixel size [in micrometer] / f-number must be 0.2 in order to be nearly completely diffraction limited when you use a monochrome sensor. For a Bayer sensor it is even less than 0.2, for a Quad Bayer sensor maybe even less than for a Bayer sensor.
Recently, I took photos with a camera that had a pixel size [in micrometer] / f-number ratio of 0.2 and a Bayer sensor and I was still able to get small demosaicing artifacts! So even a ratio of 0.2 is not sufficient for a Bayer sensor in order to sample everything what the lens resolves.
Furthermore, the 17 Pro Max has an 8% larger effective diameter than the 16 Pro. This improves the angular resolution (regarding diffraction) by a tiny bit.
"The only real benefit is the improvement in quality at zoom levels between 103.5mm and 120mm."
Not true. It tried it in a store. The results at high zoom factors are much, much more natural than on previous iPhones. It really surprised me. It seems that due to the higher resolution, Apple has mostly turned off AI upscaling for the 17 Pro. In contrast to previous iPhones, it doesn't make distant text look like hieroglyphics anymore.
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- Anonymous
- pY1
- 25 Sep 2025
Good phone but not the pick of the range.
I think the new design and colours make it look cheap and plasticky.
I wish apple would not try and tie people into getting their peripherals by choosing not widely available or proprietary standards ..
Will sell loads, mainly because it has the 3 camera iPhone look, unlike the better 17 with two. People dont want others to know they have cheaped out, even though the cheaper option is better bang per buck.
- jiyen235
- XNA
- 25 Sep 2025
RaviSS, 25 Sep 2025"Though the telephoto performance is shockingly mid co... more1/3.06 to 1/2.55 is a MASSIVE upgrade, at least imo. I dont particularly remember where i saw it but it was the jn1 compared to some 1/3.06 telephoto in some chinese phones and they were significantly better.
And anecdotally, my s22 ultra's 1/3.52" 3x and 1/2.55" UW cam are worlds apart. Size uplift + better aperture.
Anyways, what's annoying is that Apple didnt up the aperture, if they did then the hardware upgrade would've been truly big. Just size differences dont matter much anymore. f/2.4 or something would've made this great.
Whatever the case, either the sensor is lower quality than advertised or Apple just hasnt touched the processing properly, just like they did with the 14 pro's main cam. The 16 Pro's UW cam was pretty hit or miss (mostly a miss) as well.
NEVER buy anything that's a first gen, especially if it's from Apple. Another example can be seen in M1 vs M2 and the rate at which software was optimised for the SoC as opposed to x86, allowing "seamless" switching.
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- Anonymous
- 6Bu
- 25 Sep 2025
This review seems odd and extra nitpicky. I went from in iPhone 15 to an S24+. The camera was an immediate downgrade. Not only that, Samsung doesn't seem to be upgrading their hardware at all. Just adding horrible AI features. I will likely be trading in for the 17 pro. It just seems to be better in practically every way
- V
- Vibe
- Nu7
- 25 Sep 2025
Jagganatha, 25 Sep 2025 All we can do is hope fewer people buy what is a downgrad... moreWho’s this android fanboy that only cares about panoramas? You mock Apple but say other android companies need to ‘step up’ but Apple is better than them but you still chose to mock Apple instead of admitting it’s better and should ‘Step up’? Bro you left this in the bathroom 🧠
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- Anonymous
- at1
- 25 Sep 2025
Ss, 25 Sep 2025giving money to apple just so they can spend it on trump is... moreMost of Apple investment are in China and Twain they build Foxconn from scratches after nokia dead.
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- Anonymous
- at1
- 25 Sep 2025
Bl457Xor, 25 Sep 2025I'm not sure that switching to aluminium keeps weight ... more16 pro max frame pure titunum there's no aluminum and yeah uniobody anodized aluminum are lighter than glass.
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- Bl457Xor
- S67
- 25 Sep 2025
I'm not sure that switching to aluminium keeps weight in check.
Yes aluminium is less dense than titanium but it is more dense that glass.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max has a glass back and a mixed aluminium/titanium frame, switching to full aluminium for the 17 may have increased the weight.
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- Jagganatha
- 3ap
- 25 Sep 2025
All we can do is hope fewer people buy what is a downgraded machine with a surface that scratches on an aluminium body and the same dreadfully small sensors for everything but the main camera, with no improvement at all on the ultrawide lens or its pathetically small sensor.
Dont get me wrong, my 16 Pro makes the best ultrawide pans possible, but again, dont get me wrong, that is only because the competition dont even do ultrawide panoramas at all.
Xiaomi, Oppo, Huawei & Google really do need to step up to the mark and in doing so with a better lens AND a 1" sensor, they would all easily make iPhones actually obsolete- quite a thought. Why they have not already done so is an interesting question, as all could merely by implementing panorama software they use on their main cam on their ultrawide too.
I photograph with my 16 Pro and remark that RAW files using the main camera show up just how poor the ultrawide lens/sensor combination is. Yes, it does make great panoramas but by using the central area of the sensor where the lens is at its best except where you begin and end where the corner vignetting & resolution loss becomes apparent. It makes GREAT pans though, gallery quality, so I treasure it, but wait until they DO upgrade its lens & sensor to ever risk my money on an iPhone again.
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- Ss
- KGH
- 25 Sep 2025
Anonymous, 25 Sep 2025I agree that the iphones are overpriced in the EU but that ... moregiving money to apple just so they can spend it on trump is much worse though...
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- Anonymous
- JK@
- 25 Sep 2025
Great review
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- Anonymous
- Jyx
- 25 Sep 2025
Nenek Lampir, 25 Sep 2025in terms of material and design has decreased compared to t... moreHey, don't insult Poco!
Poco is cheap and is very good for the price, Apple is not cheap at all.
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- Anonymous
- at1
- 25 Sep 2025
Barry Egan, 25 Sep 2025the design is ugly, i mean the ugliest of all.nope
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- Anonymous
- at1
- 25 Sep 2025
Ottonis, 25 Sep 20251700 Euro for the 12GB/512 GB specification is ridiculously... moreDon't blame apple blame your tax.
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- Anonymous
- 3cH
- 25 Sep 2025
Ottonis, 25 Sep 20251700 Euro for the 12GB/512 GB specification is ridiculously... moreI agree that the iphones are overpriced in the EU but that doesn't make chinese phones an alternative.
If you like giving your money and data away I'd stick with the americans any day of the week.
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- Jh
- dZ8
- 25 Sep 2025
Flo, 25 Sep 2025Never read such a bad review. I’m not a fanboy, but the neg... moreIt wasn't about better heat management, 64 percent of CPU throttle means the lowest score is lower that 16pm lowest score (77 percent of it peak score) so better heat management or not, it's a worse sustained performance.
it's comparison to the old generation, like "main camera is a bit of a downgrade, the selfies could have been better" in x200 pro review.(If you ever read other brand reviews)
And if an Android skin of a x brand is bad, they should ignore it in a review because all x brand phones are gonna finally use the same skin? So software is not part of the review? They SHOULD include UI in their review (as they are doing so)
*I agree with your point on design