Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max review: the world's best smartphone with the worst name

If anything remains truly stable in the modern world, it is the reaction to iPhone announcements. Every time armchair analysts bury the company, accusing it of being secondary (sometimes also of copying itself), of lagging behind the market, and at the same time of other mortal sins. And the further course of things remains just as stable - new iPhones are being sold like hotcakes. In Moscow, according to rumors, this year there were no queues on the day sales began, but this rather suggests that Apple is placing increasing emphasis on online sales, and the problem with the shortage of devices at first is gradually being resolved. This is just a very good sign, and not the other way around.

iPhone 11 Pro Max, official portrait

This year the company introduced three iPhone models. The most affordable will be the iPhone 11 - this is the default option for most people, an ideological successor to last year's iPhone Xr and simply a well-balanced device. More expensive options are the 5.8-inch iPhone 11 Pro and 6.5-inch iPhone 11 Pro Max. We are accustomed to the word Pro in the names of laptops, iPad Pro is also a completely meaningful phenomenon, but where does the iPhone go? A smartphone for professionals? Seriously?

⇡#Technical characteristics, equipment

The most unexpected thing in the case of the iPhone 11 Pro Max was the inclusion of an adapter for fast charging. We never tired of criticizing Apple for “saving money on matches” a year or two ago, but now everything is in order. What's more, the included Lightning cable has a USB-C connector at the other end, meaning the new iPhone can be charged from the new MacBook without purchasing additional accessories. In general, Apple is not looking like itself this year. But no, it’s just very similar, because there is no adapter from Lightning to mini-jack included - the time has finally and irrevocably come to use wireless headphones. So buy yourself, for example, AirPods.

Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max specifications, review, reviews, comparisons, release date

Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max smartphone released in 2022.
It measures 158 x 77.8 x 8.1 and weighs 226 g. It is equipped with a 6.5″ OLED display. The resolution is 1242 x 2688 pixels, pixel density 458 ppi. For selfies and video calls, the Dual front camera with 12 MP is responsible. For basic photos and videos, a 12 MP triple rear camera is available. The processor has Hexa-core (2×2.65 GHz Lightning + 4×1.8 GHz Thunder) and memory 64GB 4GB RAM, 256GB 4GB RAM, 512GB 4GB RAM. Battery capacity 3969 mAh. Read the details below.. Here you will find everything about the Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max

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Specifications

⇡#Design and ergonomics

The most important news (good for some, bad for others) is that the face of the iPhone has not changed at all. Specifically, the iPhone 11 Pro Max is very similar to the iPhone Xs Max. He still has a “bang”, aka a “unibrow”, aka a cutout for the front camera, speaker and Face ID facial recognition system. And although this is clearly not Apple's most successful solution, it performs one important function: the iPhone cannot be confused with anything, despite the huge number of imitators and obvious clones. When the back of the case is mostly covered by a case, and the front is almost entirely occupied by the screen, maintaining recognition can be very difficult. Now the iPhone has another very characteristic element - a square block with three large cameras on the back panel. It is he who greets visitors to the official Apple website, and it is he who has become the most controversial element of Apple's design since the abandonment of Touch ID.

Although, if you remember, Huawei Mate 20 Pro had something very similar in terms of camera last year. Then everyone took it as normal, and jokes and numerous memes about an ugly camera started popping up only now. This once again brings us back to the understanding that the iPhone is not just a smartphone, but quite a cultural phenomenon. No matter how loud it may sound.

Since today we are talking about the iPhone 11 Pro Max, we will compare it with last year’s analogue - the iPhone Xs Max. And the first thing you notice is the noticeably greater weight. Last year's Apple flagship was, to put it mildly, not light - it weighed 208 grams, but now we have as much as 226. So, it is not recommended to carry it in a shirt pocket, and the convenience of carrying it in the front pocket of jeans, as well as the inside pocket of a jacket or jacket is already at its best. edges.

There are at least two reasons for this weight gain. Firstly, the back surface of the case is covered with a solid and rather thick piece of glass. If you look closely at the protruding square area for the built-in cameras, you will notice that this is not an overlay at all - everything is cut out of a single piece of glass. With this approach, the iPhone should be better protected from falls, but we didn’t test it in a battle with freshly laid Moscow tiles, who knows what. Apple has a long history of using Corning Gorilla Glass in iPhones, iPads and Watches - without ever mentioning it in the specs - and is even investing in new research and development from Corning. In theory, each subsequent Apple smartphone becomes stronger than the previous one, but the Internet is already full of photos of broken iPhone 11 Pro. By the way, the back glass has a rough matte texture, the body itself is not as slippery as before, so the iPhone 11 Pro is not so scary to use without a case.

If the junior iPhone 11, which replaces last year's iPhone Xr, is available in a variety of bright colors, then the flagship iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max are available in a more familiar color scheme: a choice of dark (Space Gray), light (Silver), gold (Gold) and a new dark green (Midnight Green).

The latter will definitely be the most popular. Firstly, it looks very fresh and unusual for Apple, and secondly, only with this color you can immediately understand that you are holding a new iPhone in your hands, and not some Xs or X.

All controls remained in place. Two volume buttons and a silent mode switch are on the left, the Lightning connector is on the bottom, the power button and SIM card tray are on the right. The Home button and Touch ID sensor are in the dustbin of history. There will be no painful adjustment when switching from iPhone X or iPhone Xs: I transferred the data, put the new iPhone in my pocket and went - nothing has changed in this regard for years. And this factor largely holds people back from switching to Android. However, the point here is not only in the hardware, but also in the software. I'll tell you more about this a little later.

In the meantime, it’s worth mentioning the improved body protection. Formally, the iPhone 11 Pro Max complies with the same protection class as the iPhone Xs Max - IP68, but now Apple claims that it will remain operational when immersed to a depth of 4 meters for half an hour.

⇡#Interface and features of iOS 13

New iPhones are initially released with a new version of the operating system, although it is also becoming available for previous iPhone models. So, iOS 13 has a lot of new features that significantly change the user experience. The most important thing - and the saddest thing for me personally - is the lack of 3D Touch. Now, instead of pressing hard, a long hold is used again. For example, if you want to change the order of icons on the desktop, you first need to open the context menu by long pressing on any icon, and then select the appropriate item in it. That is, one additional action appears, and this is not the only example.

The menu that allowed you to share pictures has changed - it has become more complex and confusing. It seems that many of the interface changes are aimed at further enticing users to use iMessage. There is nothing wrong with this; after all, every manufacturer is interested in promoting their own applications and services. But in a world where people love Telegram, and also communicate with owners of other smartphones with other operating systems, all this complicates life rather than simplifies it.

The most anticipated new feature in iOS 13 was definitely the dark screen theme. I'm not a big fan of light fonts on a dark background when reading, but I was very excited about the night mode, in which the display takes on a yellowish tint and does not put so much pressure on the eyes in the dark. So, the night mode in combination with the minimum screen brightness is still the best option for me for reading at night. The dark theme doesn't make me particularly excited, but the fact that Apple gives you the ability to set it to turn on automatically (from dusk to dawn based on your current location or when specifying an exact time period) is definitely nice. The same thing can still be done with the night mode, as well as the do not disturb mode, which turns off all sounds and notifications. In theory, an OLED screen should consume less power with a dark theme, but in practice the difference may only be noticeable if you keep the dark theme active at all times. And even in this case it will be small.

The new photo editing interface seemed very unusual - I often had to use the function of cropping, changing orientation and leveling the horizon; in the standard gallery this was implemented more conveniently than in Instagram. In iOS 13, the location of the icons for familiar actions has changed, but overall the process remains convenient. By the way, a similar logic of changes can be seen in the camera application interface. Apple is in no hurry to transfer all camera settings to the application (the choice of resolution, recording format and other important things are still in the main menu), but now you can change the aspect ratio and turn on or off the night mode, and the corresponding icon appears only when when you are shooting in conditions of obvious lack of lighting.

Apple's focus right now is on subscription services, first Apple Music, then Apple Arcade and Apple TV+, so the new operating system doesn't really allow you to bypass them. I have a long-standing dislike of the subscription model, but games on Apple Arcade look like what games should look like in an ideal world. Without strictly imposed in-app purchases and other modern vices - just play and have fun. And now Google is launching a similar service, it will be called Google Play Pass. So you don’t have to worry about the future of mobile gaming: it won’t just be match-three games and won’t just be all microtransactions.

I will note two more small, but extremely important things. The first is the volume indicator, which no longer covers half the screen, but is displayed as a narrow strip on the side or top, depending on the context. It's hard to believe that it took Apple so many years to comprehend such an obvious thing. And the second is the ability to log into third-party sites and services using your Apple ID account. Previously, to do this, I had to keep the Facebook application on my smartphone - heavy, clumsy and updated indecently often. The only thing it was needed for was logins to third-party services, it was clearly more convenient than through a browser. But now I'll happily tear it down and use a similar feature from Apple itself. True, you will have to wait a while until everyone attaches it to the login forms on their sites and services.

⇡#Display and sound

The iPhone 11 Pro Max has a 6.5-inch OLED display with a resolution of 2688 x 1242. In purely digital terms, this display is very similar to the one used in the iPhone Xs Max - the same resolution, the same physical size and the same dot density . However, Apple calls it a new name - Super Retina XDR display.

To be honest, I don’t remember a time when we had to somehow criticize Apple for setting up screens - color rendering and other parameters were always in perfect order. Naturally, the iPhone 11 Pro Max was no exception. The OLED matrix used displays an ideal picture from any angle and supports Dolby Vision and HDR10 technologies. The declared contrast is 2,000,000:1, but in the case of OLED this figure will be very arbitrary - attempts to measure contrast in laboratory conditions give infinity.

But the measured brightness corresponds to a good level for OLED - 487 cd/m2. Measurements were taken during daytime, but iPhone 11 Pro Max can further increase the maximum brightness level in bright sunlight. You will have to accept the fact that you do not have complete manual control over this component.

iPhone 11 Pro Max, gamma. The yellow line is the iPhone 11 Pro Max performance, the dotted line is the reference gamut, the green, red and blue lines are the curves for each of the primary colors in the iPhone 11 Pro Max

iPhone 11 Pro Max, color temperature. Blue line – iPhone 11 Pro Max performance, dotted line – reference temperature

iPhone 11 Pro Max, color gamut. Gray triangle – sRGB coverage, white triangle – iPhone 11 Pro Max coverage

All these results were obtained with True Tone mode disabled. By default, it is active, and its main task is to adjust the color temperature and a number of other color rendering parameters for the most comfortable perception in the current external lighting conditions.

The average gamma at default settings is 2.25 - this is an excellent figure, close to the reference. The color temperature is slightly higher than normal - it approximately corresponds to the value of 6700 K. However, in my memory there was no device in which the screen was much closer to the reference number 6500 K; the iPhone is completely out of competition here. The color gamut matches the sRGB space almost perfectly. Finally, the average deviation DeltaE for the extended Color Checker palette (shades of gray + a wide range of color shades) is 2.58, which is also very close to the optimal value - let me remind you that the spherical norm in a vacuum for working with color is considered to be 2.00, but the upper limit is 3.00.

Additionally, it is worth bringing the results of testing the screen with the True Tone mode active. But here it must be clarified that the results will be different depending on how the external lighting changes. In this case, it was a cloudy day, and the measurements were taken indoors without artificial lighting.

iPhone 11 Pro Max, gamma in True Tone mode. The yellow line is the iPhone 11 Pro Max performance, the dotted line is the reference gamma, the colored lines are gamma curves for each of the primary colors of the iPhone 11 Pro Max

iPhone 11 Pro Max, color temperature in True Tone mode. Blue line – iPhone 11 Pro Max performance, dotted line – reference temperature

iPhone 11 Pro Max, color gamut in True Tone mode. Gray triangle – sRGB coverage, white triangle – iPhone 11 Pro Max coverage

This is only necessary to demonstrate the effect of the True Tone mode on the picture. We do not use them to evaluate display quality.

The iPhone 11 Pro Max does not fail in terms of sound either. It has stereo speakers that are directed towards the user. One of the speakers is a conversational speaker; it sounds a little quieter than the system one, but the sound is tuned in such a way that you don’t feel it at all. Well, plus everything, Apple now announces support for Dolby Atmos. There is still no mini-jack, and a wired headset connects directly to the Lightning port. However, if you wish, you can purchase other wired headphones with this connector, or finally switch to wireless ones.

⇡#Hardware and performance

Once again, Apple releases the most powerful smartphone on the market. Here we have the new Apple A13 Bionic processor with six cores, the new Apple GPU graphics accelerator and 4 GB of RAM. In terms of megahertz and gigabytes, the iPhone is always noticeably inferior to the current flagships on Android, but the perfect optimization of all subsystems and software works wonders - from year to year, iPhones demonstrate excellent results in tests. However, this time not all test packages were ready for the new hardware and iOS 13. We are gradually changing the testing methodology, which will include a number of new tests in the future. In the meantime, we have to admit the fact that in the case of the iPhone 11 Pro Max there are some surprises.

If everything agrees in AnTuTu Benchmark, then the browser-based WebXPRT showed a result at least half as low as it should have been. Attempts to test in different browsers did not change the situation - the results remained approximately the same, adjusted for testing errors.

The superiority of the iPhone 11 Pro Max is especially evident in graphics tests. It scores excellent in GFXBenchmark as well as the legacy 3DMark IceStorm Unlimited. But in the more modern 3DMark Sling Shot, the results are no less impressive.

Geeknench 4 has always shown the most accurate rating, but recently it experienced another major update and its rating scale has once again changed. Therefore, we cannot yet compare the performance of the new iPhone and Android flagships.

Conclusion

Based on the material described above, we can conclude that the iPhone 11 Pro Max is definitely worth the money and stands out from its competitors not only in the build quality and operating system, but also in its pleasant screen and decent cameras. We recommend a smartphone for a detailed and intimate acquaintance

Pros:

1. Realistic screen color rendition;
2. Aspect Ratio;
3. Powerful iron;
4. A thoroughly thought-out operating system;
5. High-quality assembly and the same assembly materials;
6. Excellent triple camera;
7. Brand awareness;
8. A large number of followers;

Minuses:

1. No SD card support;
2. Not the highest capacity;

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Maxim Fomochkin

The website https://reytingelektroniki.ru is a technology portal dedicated to smartphones, household appliances, and mobile gadgets. The site began its existence in 2015, and new reviews are published on it daily. We constantly focus on analytical reviews, comparisons with analogues on the market, and helping visitors choose gadgets to buy. The resource materials are unique, written by experts in the chosen field and are subject to mandatory checking and editing.

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⇡#Communications and wireless communications

Apple changed itself last year by releasing an iPhone with support for two SIM cards for the first time. True, then the model with two physical SIM cards was available only in China and Hong Kong, and all other markets received a smartphone with the ability to use one physical operator card and one e-SIM. This phenomenon is still not supported by all operators, but the approach itself is interesting - for example, in different countries Apple offered local tariffs that could be purchased directly on the device. In some cases, the prices were exorbitant, but in general this made it possible to do without purchasing local SIM cards, as well as universal solutions like Drimsim.

There is no 5G support in the iPhone 11 Pro Max, just as there is no support in other eleventh-generation iPhone models - let this be a reason for someone to opt for a smartphone from some Korean manufacturer. But in my opinion, Apple is acting very wisely - mass deployment of 5G is definitely not expected until next year, and today not all operators are able to get the most out of even LTE. So, from the point of view of working on the Web, the owner of the iPhone 11 Pro Max will definitely not feel deprived - the stated download speed is one and a half gigabits per second. In addition, all new iPhones boast support for Wi-Fi 6. There are no changes in terms of the NFC module - it can still only be used for contactless payment for purchases using Apple Pay.

Well, apparently, Apple did something with the antennas, since the iPhone 11 communicates noticeably better than the iPhone X or Xs. This was especially noticeable in hard-to-reach places and with a weak Wi-Fi signal, but now there are no noticeable problems, which is good news.

Curved glass is nicer

Seven years ago, the iPhone 6 introduced the fashion for so-called 2.5D glass with rounded edges. Gluing the film, of course, is not very convenient, but such devices look simply gorgeous. The glass smoothly flows into the body, the transition is almost not tactilely felt. Beauty, well!

And now the iPhone 12 Pro Max is bringing back flat, straight glass from oblivion. Yes, it fits well into the angular ensemble of the smartphone. In addition, it is convenient to glue all kinds of protection onto it. However, the sloping, pleasant edges were pointed to the door.

Fortunately, neither Samsung, nor Xiaomi, nor even Chinese vendors are in a hurry to follow the new trend from Apple. Everyone understands that straight glass is a relic of the past.

⇡#Cameras and shooting modes

The camera became the main point of the update program this year. Apple was criticized for the lack of a full night shooting mode (like the Pixel 3 and Huawei P30 Pro, for example), as well as for a noticeable lag in the quality of photos and videos. However, the iPhone 11 Pro Max cuts all these criticisms in the bud. So, now the smartphone has not two cameras, but three.

To the pair of a wide-angle lens with an equivalent focal length of 26 mm and a telephoto lens with a focal length equivalent to 52 mm, an ultra-wide-angle lens with an EGF of 13 mm was added. The viewing angle is very wide: Apple never tires of demonstrating this in its marketing materials - and every time it looks very powerful.

Comparison of viewing angles between ultra-wide-angle (13mm), wide-angle (26mm) and tele (52mm)

It is worth noting, however, that the ultra-wide-angle module does not have optical image stabilization, and there is also no autofocus. With such a wide viewing angle and such a large depth of field, this is not particularly necessary - the focus is fixed at infinity, but autofocus would allow even objects located close to the camera to be sharp.

In the daytime, the photographs come out absolutely gorgeous, and you can’t fault them at all. You can compare the detail in the light and dark areas of the frame with what Android flagships produce, but we will deal with this separately, but for now, look at examples of pictures in real conditions.

Gallery of pictures

The good news is that the iPhone 11 has the long-awaited night mode. In it, the camera takes several pictures with different exposures, and then combines them into one frame, in which all areas are well worked out, there are no obvious overexposures or gaps in the shadows. When shooting in the dark, a special icon appears on the screen, which indicates the maximum possible shutter speed - 1, 2 or 3 seconds, and during shooting, a countdown indicator appears near the shutter button. Apple has managed to do this in an amazingly visual way and in its signature minimalistic style - all in all, we have one of the best standard photography apps yet again. However, the main thing is the result, and it is impressive. It would be impossible to film this on an iPhone X or even Xs.

Speaking about the shooting application, I would like to endlessly point out various little things. For example, if you take a picture using a telephoto lens, then at this time the iPhone has a standard camera and the image from it is displayed outside the viewfinder window so that you can better see what is not included in the frame - in the case of a telephoto lens and its narrow viewing angle this is especially true.

Another advantage of three cameras is that you can instantly switch between them when shooting video. However, there is one nuance here - when shooting in 4K at 60 frames per second, you only have access to a standard camera with an equivalent focal length of 26 mm, and you can switch to others only if you shoot in 4K at 30 frames per second or in Full HD. The quality of video recording, as always, is very high - optical stabilization works excellently in standard and telephoto lenses, sound is recorded in stereo mode and sounds very good.

Example of Full HD video shot with the ultra-wide-angle camera of the iPhone 11 Pro Max

Example of 4K video shot with the iPhone 11 Pro Max's wide-angle camera

Well, I’ll also give examples of Time Lapse - videos shot using different cameras. The standard iPhone camera app handles this type of photography perfectly. True, there is no possibility of changing the interval for saving frames - for this you will have to use other applications.

Example of Time Lapse shot with the ultra-wide-angle camera of the iPhone 11 Pro Max

Example of Time Lapse shot with the wide-angle camera of the iPhone 11 Pro Max

The front camera has the ability to shoot slow-motion video, and Apple is positioning this as a new feature called Slofy, but this idea seemed too far-fetched to me. Maybe it's because I don't have long hair that I can wave in front of the camera and get interesting movement in the frame. However, the ability to shoot video at a high frame rate with the front camera itself can be useful.

Another interesting feature is that the viewing angle of the front camera changes slightly when the orientation of the smartphone changes. Vertically - a little narrower, horizontally - a little wider. This may be relevant for taking group selfies, but I like it when a little of the surrounding space gets into the frame - it looks somehow more natural, the face is not distorted so much.

⇡#Autonomous operation and charging

Apple traditionally does not like to talk about battery capacity in numbers, convincing us only that the new iPhone lasts longer than last year's. The company has never been caught falsifying data, but in absolute numbers, autonomy always looks more obvious than all these “works 5 hours longer than the iPhone Xs Max.” Let me remind you that our standard test involves playing a video in loop at maximum screen brightness with an active Wi-Fi connection. But there is one small problem with that video - it is quite dark in itself, so OLED screens get some advantage over IPS matrices. So now we are testing all smartphones twice - in the old way and in the new way. At first, this allows you to see a difference in results, sometimes significant.

In general, the iPhone 11 Pro Max played our old video for 14 hours, which is an absolutely excellent indicator, but in the case of the new one, its battery was completely discharged in just over 10 hours. If you thought that something similar would be observed when comparing a dark screen theme with a light one, then you are right, but only partly. The fact is that the content in the social network feed (pictures, videos) does not become dark - this only applies to some interface elements and text fields, so in this case the difference in operating time will not be so significant.

I have already mentioned that the package now includes a fast charging adapter; with it, the iPhone 11 Pro Max charges significantly faster. Perhaps we should say thank you to Apple. But here it is worth noting that the younger smartphone in the iPhone 11 line still comes with the old 5 W power adapter.

In the end, what smartphone do I use?

After another communication failure (I have very thick walls in my apartment), in a fit of anger I ran for the iPhone 12 Pro Max. I thought I'd had enough of these experiments! It's time to return to a normal smartphone.

However, as soon as I picked up the “twin” in my hands, its angular, uncomfortable body immediately sobered me up. It is inconvenient to use such a giant, angular device on a regular basis. Nothing compares to the ergonomics of the iPhone 11 Pro Max - it was the most comfortable smartphone in 2020, and remains so to this day. At least among Apple devices.

Apple iPhone 11 iPhone 11 Pro iPhone 11 Pro Max iPhone 12 iPhone 12 Pro iPhone 12 Pro Max