Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 15 Plus

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Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max vs iPhone 15 Plus

94 out of 100
Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max
VS
84 out of 100
Apple iPhone 15 Plus

Here we compared two flagship smartphones: the 6.9-inch Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max (with Apple A18 Pro) that was released on September 9, 2024, against the Apple iPhone 15 Plus, which is powered by Apple A16 Bionic and came out 1 year before. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.

Key differences

An overview of the main advantages of each smartphone
Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max
  • The rear camera has a 5x optical zoom
  • Higher display refresh rate – 120 Hz
  • Shows 17% longer battery life (35:01 vs 29:51 hours)
  • Better camera quality (According to DxOMark rating)
  • Comes with 302 mAh larger battery capacity: 4685 vs 4383 mAh
  • 34% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (1839K versus 1369K)
  • The phone is 1 year newer
  • Compatible with the latest Wi-Fi 7 wireless networks
  • Delivers 9% higher peak brightness (1807 against 1656 nits)
  • Has 33% more RAM: 8GB versus 6GB
  • Supports higher wattage charging (30W versus 20W)
Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone 15 Plus
  • Weighs 26 grams less

Review

Evaluation of Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max and iPhone 15 Plus crucial features
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
NanoReview Score
Final comparison evaluation
Choose the importance of each parameter to more accurately identify the smartphone that best meets your particular needs.

Tests and specifications

Comparison table of technical specifications and tests

Display

TypeOLEDOLED
Size6.9 inches6.7 inches
Resolution1320 x 2868 pixels1290 x 2796 pixels
Aspect ratio19.5:919.5:9
PPI458 ppi460 ppi
Refresh rate120 Hz60 Hz
Adaptive refresh rateYes (1-120 Hz)No
Max rated brightness2000 nits2000 nits
Max rated brightness in HDR1600 nits1600 nits
HDR supportYes, Dolby VisionYes, Dolby Vision
Screen protectionCeramic ShieldCeramic Shield
Screen-to-body ratio92.3%88%
Display features - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
- DCI-P3
Display tests
RGB color space99.6%99.5%
PWM240 Hz60 Hz
Response time1 ms3 ms
Contrast∞ Infinity∞ Infinity
Peak brightness test (auto)
1807 nits

Design and build

Height163 mm (6.42 inches)160.9 mm (6.33 inches)
Width77.6 mm (3.06 inches)77.8 mm (3.06 inches)
Thickness8.25 mm (0.32 inches)7.8 mm (0.31 inches)
Weight227 g (8.01 oz)201 g (7.09 oz)
WaterproofIP68IP68
Rear materialGlassGlass
Frame materialMetalMetal
ColorsWhite, Black, Silver, GoldBlack, Blue, Green, Pink, Yellow
Fingerprint scannerNoNo
Screen-to-body ratio

Performance

Tests of Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max and Apple iPhone 15 Plus in the benchmarks
SoC
ChipsetApple A18 ProApple A16 Bionic
Max clock4040 MHz3460 MHz
CPU cores6 (2 + 4)6 (2 + 4)
Architecture- 4 cores at 2.42 GHz: Sawtooth
- 2 cores at 4.05 GHz: Everest
- 4 cores at 2.02 GHz: Sawtooth
- 2 cores at 3.46 GHz: Everest
ManufacturingTSMCTSMC
Lithography process3 nanometers4 nanometers
Neural processor (NPU)Neural EngineApple Neural Engine
GraphicsApple A18 Pro GPUApple A16 GPU
GPU shading units768640
GPU clock1490 MHz1398 MHz
FLOPS~2289 GFLOPS~1789.4 GFLOPS

Benchmarks

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
AnTuTu Benchmark 10
CPU475293378908
GPU719585436307
Memory259838231161
UX385136322651
Total score18398521369027
Samples[6 tests][8 tests]
3DMark Wild Life Performance
Max surface temperature42.9 °C41.6 °C
Stability - 80%
Graphics test - 59 FPS
Graphics score - 9703

Memory

RAM
RAM size8 GB6 GB
Memory typeLPDDR5XLPDDR5
Memory clock - 3200 MHz
Channels44
Storage
Storage size256, 512, 1024 GB128, 256, 512 GB
Storage typeNVMeNVMe
Memory cardNoNo

Software

Operating systemiOS 18 (Can be upgraded to iOS 18.2)iOS 17 (Can be upgraded to iOS 18.2)
OS size18 GB18 GB

Battery

Capacity4685 mAh4383 mAh
Max charge power30 W20 W
Battery typeLi-IonLi-Ion
ReplaceableNoNo
Wireless chargingYes (15 W)Yes (7.5 W)
Reverse chargingYesYes
Fast chargingYes (46% in 30 min)Yes (53% in 30 min)
Full charging time1:57 hr1:34 hr
Battery life tests
Web browsing14:34 hr13:13 hr
Watching video22:01 hr20:21 hr
Gaming07:12 hr07:01 hr
Standby163 hr122 hr
General battery life

Main camera

Matrix48 megapixels48 megapixels
Image resolution8000 x 60008000 x 6000
ZoomOptical, 5xDigital
FlashDual LEDDual LED
StabilizationOpticalOptical
8K video recordingNoNo
4K video recordingUp to 120FPSUp to 60FPS
1080p video recordingUp to 120FPSUp to 60FPS
Slow motion240 FPS (1080p)240 FPS (1080p)
Angle of widest lens120°120°
Lenses1) Standard: 48 MP
2) Telephoto: 12 MP
3) Ultrawide: 48 MP
4) Depth
1) Standard: 48 MP
2) Ultrawide: 12 MP
Camera features - Bokeh mode
- Pro mode
- RAW support
- Bokeh mode
- Pro mode
Standard lens
Image resolution48 MP48 MP
Aperturef/1.8f/1.6
Focal length24 mm26 mm
SensorSony IMX803Sony IMX904
Sensor size1/1.28"1/1.56"
Pixel size1.22 micron1 micron
AutofocusPhase autofocus (Dual Pixel)Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel)
StabilizationOpticalOptical
Telephoto lens
Image resolution12 MP -
Aperturef/2.8 -
Focal length120 mm -
SensorSony IMX913 -
Sensor size1/3.06" -
Pixel size1.12 micron -
StabilizationOptical -
Ultra-wide lens
Image resolution48 MP12 MP
Aperturef/2.2f/2.4
Focal length13 mm13 mm
SensorSony IMX972Sony IMX633
Sensor size1/2.55"1/2.55"
Pixel size0.7 micron1.4 micron
StabilizationDigitalDigital

DxOMark main camera tests

Photo quality
Video quality
Generic main camera score
Bokeh8080
Preview9384
Zoom142114
SamplesPhoto samples of Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max from DxOMarkPhoto samples of Apple iPhone 15 Plus from DxOMark

Selfie camera

Megapixels12 megapixels12 megapixels
Image resolution4032 x 30244032 x 3024
Aperturef/1.9f/1.9
Focal length23 mm23 mm
SensorSony IMX714Sony IMX714
Sensor size1/3.6"1/3.6"
Pixel size1.12 micron1.12 micron
AutofocusPhase autofocusPhase autofocus
StabilizationOpticalDigital
Video resolution2160p (4K) at 60 FPS2160p (4K) at 60 FPS
Depth sensor (TOF 3D)YesYes

Connectivity

Wi-Fi standardWi-Fi 7 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be)Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 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 version5.35.3
Bluetooth featuresLELE
USB typeUSB Type-CUSB Type-C
USB version3.22
USB features - Charging
- USB-Storage mode
- OTG
- Charging
- USB-Storage mode
- OTG
DisplayPortYesYes
GPSGPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS, NAVICGPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS
NFC*YesYes
Infrared portNoNo
Network
Type of SIM cardeSIMeSIM
eSIM support*YesYes
Hybrid slotNoNo
LTE Cat* - 18
5G supportYesYes

Sound

SpeakersStereoStereo
Headphone audio jackNoNo
FM radioNoNo
Dolby AtmosYesYes
Speakers test
Max loudness

Other

CategoryFlagshipFlagship
AnnouncedSeptember 2024September 2023
Release dateSeptember 2024September 2023
Launch price$1199$899
SAR (head)1.22 W/kg0.98 W/kg
SAR (body)1.45 W/kg0.98 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 chargerNot includedNot included
Further details
Notes on iPhone 16 Pro Max:
    - The US version of the smartphone exclusively supports eSIM, while the international model features both a physical SIM slot and eSIM capability. In China, the device is available with dual physical SIM card slots only.
*Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.
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