Apple iPhone XS Max vs iPhone 14 Plus
Here we compared two flagship smartphones: the 6.5-inch Apple iPhone XS Max (with Apple A12 Bionic) that was released on September 12, 2018, against the Apple iPhone 14 Plus, which is powered by Apple A15 Bionic and came out 48 months after. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.
Key differences
Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone XS Max
- The rear camera has a 2x optical zoom
Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone 14 Plus
- 2x better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (1340K versus 665K)
- Shows 62% longer battery life (41:06 vs 25:23 hours)
- Comes with 1151 mAh larger battery capacity: 4325 vs 3174 mAh
- Better camera quality (According to DxOMark rating)
- Newer Bluetooth version (v5.3)
- The phone is 4-years newer
- Compatible with Wi-Fi 6 wireless networks
- Has 50% more RAM: 6GB versus 4GB
- Delivers 22% higher peak brightness (806 against 663 nits)
- Has an ultra-wide angle camera lens
- The front-facing camera can record video at 4K
Review
Display
Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness
Camera
Photo and video recording quality
Performance
CPU and memory performance (apps, system)
Gaming
Capabilities for playing modern games
Battery
Battery life, charging type and speed
Connectivity
Networks, ports, data transmission
Value for money
Tests and specifications
Comparison table of technical specifications and testsDisplay
| Type | OLED | OLED |
| Size | 6.5 inches | 6.7 inches |
| Resolution | 1242 x 2688 pixels | 1284 x 2778 pixels |
| Aspect ratio | 19.4:9 | 19.5:9 |
| PPI | 456 ppi | 458 ppi |
| Refresh rate | 60 Hz | 60 Hz |
| Adaptive refresh rate | No | No |
| Max rated brightness | 625 nits | 800 nits |
| Max rated brightness in HDR | - | 1200 nits |
| HDR support | Yes, Dolby Vision | Yes, Dolby Vision |
| Screen protection | Tempered glass | Ceramic Shield |
| Screen-to-body ratio | 85.41% | 87.4% |
| Display features | - DCI-P3 | - DCI-P3 |
| RGB color space | 98.8% | 99.7% |
| PWM | 240 Hz | 59 Hz |
| Response time | 11.2 ms | 5 ms |
| Contrast | ∞ Infinity | ∞ Infinity |
Peak brightness test (auto)
Design and build
| Height | 157.5 mm (6.2 inches) | 160.8 mm (6.33 inches) |
| Width | 77.4 mm (3.05 inches) | 78.1 mm (3.07 inches) |
| Thickness | 7.7 mm (0.3 inches) | 7.8 mm (0.31 inches) |
| Weight | 208 g (7.34 oz) | 203 g (7.16 oz) |
| Waterproof | IP68 | IP68 |
| Rear material | Glass | Glass |
| Frame material | Metal | Metal |
| Colors | Silver, Gold, Gray | Black, Blue, Red, Purple, Yellow |
| Fingerprint scanner | No | No |
Screen-to-body ratio
Performance
| Chipset | Apple A12 Bionic | Apple A15 Bionic |
| Max clock | 2490 MHz | 3230 MHz |
| CPU cores | 6 (2 + 4) | 6 (2 + 4) |
| Architecture |
- 4 cores at 1.6 GHz: Tempest
- 2 cores at 2.49 GHz: Vortex |
- 4 cores at 2.02 GHz: Blizzard
- 2 cores at 3.23 GHz: Avalanche |
| Lithography process | 7 nanometers | 5 nanometers |
| Graphics | Apple A12 GPU | Apple A15 GPU |
| GPU shading units | 256 | 640 |
| GPU clock | 1100 MHz | 1338 MHz |
| FLOPS | ~576 GFLOPS | ~1712.6 GFLOPS |
Benchmarks
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
AnTuTu Benchmark 10
| CPU | 167833 | 319002 |
| GPU | 157230 | 432256 |
| Memory | 121395 | 203391 |
| UX | 215799 | 378102 |
| Total score | 665855 | 1340615 |
3DMark Wild Life Performance
| Max surface temperature | 45.2 °C | 44 °C |
| Stability | 66% | 83% |
| Graphics test | 34 FPS | 56 FPS |
| Graphics score | 5704 | 9420 |
Memory
| RAM size | 4 GB | 6 GB |
| Memory type | LPDDR4X | LPDDR4X |
| Channels | 2 | 2 |
| Storage size | 64, 256, 512 GB | 128, 256, 512 GB |
| Storage type | NVMe | NVMe |
| Memory card | No | No |
Software
| Operating system | iOS 12 (Can be upgraded to iOS 17) | iOS 16 (Can be upgraded to iOS 17) |
| OS size | 16 GB | 16 GB |
Battery
| Capacity | 3174 mAh | 4325 mAh |
| Max charge power | 18 W | 20 W |
| Battery type | Li-Ion | Li-Ion |
| Replaceable | No | No |
| Wireless charging | Yes, Qi (10 W) | Yes (7.5 W) |
| Reverse charging | No | No |
| Fast charging | Yes (50% in 30 min) | Yes (47% in 30 min) |
| Full charging time | 03:29 hr | 2:00 hr |
| Web browsing | 09:13 hr | 13:47 hr |
| Watching video | 10:50 hr | 17:29 hr |
| Gaming | 04:38 hr | 06:03 hr |
| Standby | 80 hr | 146 hr |
General battery life
Camera
| Matrix | 12 megapixels | 12 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 4032 x 3024 | 4032 x 3024 |
| Zoom | Optical, 2x | Digital |
| Flash | Quad LED | Dual LED |
| Stabilization | Optical | Optical |
| 8K video recording | No | No |
| 4K video recording | Up to 60FPS | Up to 60FPS |
| 1080p video recording | Up to 60FPS | Up to 60FPS |
| Slow motion | 240 FPS (1080p) | 240 FPS (1080p) |
| Angle of widest lens | - | 120° |
| Lenses | 2 (12 MP + 12 MP) | 2 (12 MP + 12 MP) |
| Wide (main) lens |
- 12 MP
- Aperture: f/1.8 - Focal length: 28 mm - Pixel size: 1.4 micron - Sensor: 1/2.5", Apple iSight X (CMOS) - Phase autofocus - Optical stabilization |
- 12 MP
- Aperture: f/1.5 - Focal length: 26 mm - Pixel size: 1.9 micron - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) - Optical stabilization |
| Telephoto lens |
- 12 MP
- Aperture: f/2.4 - Focal length: 52 mm - Pixel size: 1 micron - Sensor: 1/3.4" (CMOS) - Phase autofocus - Optical stabilization |
- |
| Ultra-wide lens | - |
- 12 MP
- Aperture: f/2.4 - Focal length: 13 mm |
| Camera features |
- Bokeh mode
- Pro mode - RAW support |
- Bokeh mode
- Pro mode |
| Samples | Photo samples of Apple iPhone XS Max from DxOMark | Photo samples of Apple iPhone 14 Plus from DxOMark |
| Megapixels | 7 megapixels | 12 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 3088 x 2316 | 4032 x 3024 |
| Aperture | f/2.2 | f/1.9 |
| Focal length | 32 mm | 23 mm |
| Sensor type | BSI CMOS | - |
| Sensor size | - | 1/3.6" |
| Video resolution | 1080p (Full HD) at 60 FPS | 2160p (4K) at 60 FPS |
DxOMark camera tests
Photo quality
Video quality
Generic camera score
Connectivity
| Wi-Fi standard | Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) | Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) |
| Wi-Fi features |
- Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display |
- Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display |
| Bluetooth version | 5 | 5.3 |
| Bluetooth features | SPP, PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, LE, HSP, HFP, HDP, GAP, GAVDP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP | LE |
| USB type | No | - |
| USB version | 2 | 2 |
| USB features |
- Charging
- USB-Storage mode - OTG |
- Charging
- USB-Storage mode - OTG |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS, Galileo | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS |
| NFC * | Yes | Yes |
| Infrared port | No | No |
| Number of SIM * | 1 | 1 |
| Type of SIM card | Nano | Nano |
| eSIM support * | Yes | Yes |
| Hybrid slot | No | No |
| LTE Cat * | 16 | 18 |
| 5G support | No | Yes |
Sound
| Speakers | Stereo | Stereo |
| Headphone audio jack | No | No |
| FM radio | No | No |
| Dolby Atmos | Yes | Yes |
Speakers test
Max loudness
Other
| Category | Flagship | Flagship |
| Announced | September 2018 | September 2022 |
| Release date | September 2018 | October 2022 |
| SAR (head) | 0.99 W/kg | - |
| SAR (body) | 0.99 W/kg | - |
| Sensors |
- Barometer
- Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Face recognition sensor |
- Barometer
- Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Face recognition sensor |
| Bundled charger | - | Not included |
*
Disclaimer!
NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.
Conclusion
After analyzing all the data, we think that the Apple iPhone 14 Plus is definitely a better buy.