Test of the iPhone 12 Pro Max: a giant, by its size, its power, its autonomy … and its photo offer

Photo taken indoors with mixed lighting on the main camera. The white balance seems a little distorted

Iphone 12 pro max test: not just the biggest, the best

The iPhone 12 Pro Max follows the traces of 7 Plus and benefits from a camera that no other iPhone 12 model has. Like all models in the range, Pro Max takes up a design with flat edges that recalls the iPhone 5 and iPad Pro. It is 5G compatible, its OLED screen supports HDR and it is protected by a ceramic glass. He also has the A14 Bionic processor in common, the Magsafe wireless charging technology. It can be immersed at a depth of 6 meters for 30 minutes.

But with an attack price at 1.€ 259, do the extras of the photo part justify such an expense ? The answer is yes, and not only because of the device. If you want the largest screen never seen on an iPhone, the 12 pro max is worth it. If you want to have the longest autonomy of all iPhone 12, the 12 Pro Max is an obvious choice. And if you want to get the best possible image quality for your photos and videos, again, the iPhone 12 Pro Max is the necessary choice.

The longest telephoto lens in all iPhone

The four phones have the same ultra-angle and selfie cameras with an opening F1.6 on the main camera. But the big angle of 12 pro max is different, we will come back. The 12 pro and the 12 pro Max are also equipped with a Lidar, which plays an eminent role in automatic focus in the event of low light for photos, videos and slow motion, as well as for augmented reality applications. Finally, they both have a third rear sensor with a telephoto lens, but that of the 12 pro max is longer than that of the 12 pro. Equivalent to a 65 mm, it uses a 2.5x optical zoom. The 12 pro has a telephoto objective equivalent to a 52 millimeters with 2x optical zoom. And this additional 0.5x is very useful.

The photos in low light are generally the Achille heel of any camera. And the smaller the sensor (like those of a phone), the more this weakness is amplified. The cameras of the iPhone 12 Pro Max seem to be thought of to respond to this challenge to take exceptional photos and videos in low and medium light situations.

Apple has solved this problem by endowing the large angle camera with a larger sensor. Combined with a goal F1.6, it offers an improvement of 87 % of the capacity in the event of low light, according to Apple. On paper, it’s impressive. In addition, the optical image stabilization system is located on the sensor and not on the lens as is the case on the 12, the 12 mini and the 12 pro. By stabilizing the sensor, Apple claims that you get the equivalent of a stop of light, which, on paper, is impressive.

These claims seem to be essential for the. The pro max takes superb photos in low light, but compared to the photos of the 12 pro, the differences do not jump into your eyes right away. And it is less an attack on the 12 pro max than an indication of the quality of the cameras of the 12 pro.

The 2.5x optical zoom creates a superb natural background blur of the natural appearance

The following three photos were taken with one of the rear cameras of the 12 pro max. This was taken with the main high angle camera

Photo taken with the 2.5x optical zoom of the 12 pro telephoto lens

The same scene taken with the ultra-large-angle camera

Night mode is now available on the Grand Angle, Ultra-Large and Front Apparatus. This is a selfie

Photo taken with the main high angle camera of the phone

With the 2.5x zoom

Photo taken in night mode with 12 pro max

Photo taken indoors with mixed lighting on the main camera. The white balance seems a little distorted

Photo taken at sunset was taken with the 5x digital zoom

We used the 2.5x optical zoom to take a backlit photo of this cacti. We like the way the light has brought out the needles

Photo taken with the Grand Angle of 12 Pro Max

If you hesitate between 12 pro and 12 pro max, ask yourself if the maximum size and weight of the maximum are worth the advantages that you will draw in photography. This is probably not the case for most users, largely because the 12 pro also has an excellent versatile camera. But for all those who want to get the best possible image quality from a photo or video taken on a phone, so the 12 Pro Max is essential. One of the characteristics that packs us up is the new Apple Proraw file format, which offers the flexibility of a raw photo file but with the advantages of digital photography. Unfortunately, this feature will not be released before the end of the year.

Magsafe, iOS 14 and the Apple Pencil stylus

Like the rest of the iPhone 12 family, Pro Max is compatible with the charging system and Magsafe accessories. Apple offers the Magsafe double charger charger at 149 euros which allows you to recharge a phone and an Apple watch at the same time. It falls back into a practical travel format.

But why stop at accessories and chargers ? And if you could connect an Apple Pencil to an iPhone 12 Pro Max ? Technically, thanks to Magsafe magnets, it is possible. But sticking it at the back of the phone is not very interest since the 12 pro max, like all the iPhone, does not support the Apple stylus. But if there is an iPhone on which we can use an Apple Pencil, it is this.

We would have liked that Apple benefits more from the 6.7 -inch screen, by offering some of the iPados functions such as the viewed view of the 12 pro max, the possibility of using the stylus. A special version of iOS which would take full advantage of the size of the pro max would be another advantage to distinguish it from other iPhone.

A marathonal autonomy

Apple does not communicate on the capacity of its batteries, but during the week we tested the phone, it held a day without problem. During the weekend, it lasted all day on Friday and Saturday afternoon at 1:30 p.m., he still had 40% of autonomy left.

We have practiced an endurance test with a loop video with the activated airplane mode. Apple indicates that the 12 pro max should last 20 hours under these conditions. With our test, it lasted 19 hours and 52 minutes.

Under the hood, the largest of the iPhone 12 uses an A14 Bionic SOC which makes it swift and responsive. On our test benches, the 12 pro max is at the same level as the iPhone 12, 12 mini and 12 pro. And for good reason, they have in common this A14 Bionic chip which is one of the most powerful processors of the phones that we have ever tested.

iPhone 12 compared to iPhone 12 Mini, iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max

Apple iPhone 12	Apple iPhone 12 Mini	Apple iPhone 12 Pro	Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max
Screen size and definition	6.1-pouces OLED; 2.532 × 1.170 pixels	5.4-Pouces Oled; 2.340 × 1.080 pixels	6.1-pouces OLED; 2.532 × 1.170 pixels	6.7-Pouces Oled; 2.778 × 1.284 pixels
Display density	460ppp	476ppp	460ppp	458ppp
Dimensions	146.7 × 71.5 × 7.4mm	131.5 × 64.2 × 7.4mm	146.7 × 71.5 × 7.4mm	160.8 × 78.1 × 7.4mm
Weight	164g	135g	189g	228g
BONE	iOS 14	iOS 14	iOS 14	iOS 14
Camera	12-Mégapixels (Grand-Angle), 12-Mégapixels (ultra grand angle)	12-Mégapixels (Grand-Angle), 12-Mégapixels (ultra grand angle)	12-Mégapixels (Grand-Angle), 12-Mégapixels (Ultra Grand-Angle), 12-Mégapixels (telephoto)	12-Mégapixels (Grand-Angle), 12-Mégapixels (Ultra Grand-Angle), 12-Mégapixels (telephoto)
Front camera	12-Mégapixels	12-Mégapixels	12-Mégapixels	12-Mégapixels
Video	4K	4K	4K	4K
Processor	Apple A14 Bionic	Apple A14 Bionic	Apple A14 Bionic	Apple A14 Bionic
Storage	64GB, 128GB, 256GB	64GB, 128GB, 256GB	128GB, 256GB, 512GB	128GB, 256GB, 512GB
Ram	unspecified	unspecified	unspecified	unspecified
Extensible storage	No	No	No	No
Battery	Unspecified ; Apple Announcement 15 hours of video reading	Unspecified ; Apple Announcement 15 hours of video reading	Unspecified ; Apple ad video of video playback	Unspecified ; Apple ad video of video playback
Fingerprint	No (face id)	No (face id)	No (face id)	No (face id)
Connection	Lightning	Lightning	Lightning	Lightning
Helmet	No	No	No	No
Special functions	5g; Magsafe; Waterproof (IP68); wireless load; Double SIM (nano-sim and E-Sim)	5g; Magsafe; Waterproof (IP68); wireless load; Double SIM (nano-sim and E-Sim)	Lidar 5G; Magsafe; Waterproof (IP68); wireless load; Double SIM (nano-sim and E-Sim)	Lidar 5G; Magsafe; Waterproof (IP68); wireless load; Double SIM (nano-sim and E-Sim)
Price	from 909 €	from 809 €	from 1.159 €	from 1.259 €

Image: Patrick Holland/Cnet

Read the full test

• Writing note

Test of the iPhone 12 Pro Max: a giant, by its size, its power, its autonomy … and its photo offer

The largest of iPhone 12 is also the most complete. It overflows with power, holds hours and puts the most complete photographic offer on the table. But what is it big !

01net’s opinion.com

Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max

• + Quality and screen size
• + A14 performance
• + Software and hardware improvements in photo
• + The potential of 5G
• + Autonomy

• – The size of the case
• – What an impact will have 5G ?

Writing note

Note published on 18/11/2020

Technical sheet

Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max

System	iOS 14
Processor	Apple A14 Bionic
Size (diagonal)	6.7 “
Screen resolution	458 ppi

See the full file

It is the fourth iPhone in the 2020 range, the one we keep for the good mouth, the most expensive, the largest, the most impressive, the best equipped in photos, the most inclined to adorn yourself with all the superlatives. With the iPhone 12 Pro Max, Apple offers an antithesis to its iPhone 12 Mini. A smartphone that small or medium hands will not be too many to tame it, which is designed to put the full view ..

An incredible slab

Apple has a 6.7 -inch slab for the first time. Like all those of this generation, it is superb: OLED, HDR, Super Retina XDR, very bright (845 CD/M2), infinitely contrasting, True Tone, P3 and capable of displaying an improbable Delta E2000 of 0.56.

As a reminder, the closer the figure is close to zero, the more the difference between the true value of a color and its rendering is low. In this case, Apple comes, according to our test history, to define a new record in the matter. The first six places in this very specific ranking are also occupied by iPhone. Apple has a master in the art of the faithful slabs in real colors.

On the other hand, this exceptional slab is not compatible with a 120 Hz refresh rate, which is becoming more and more the standard in devices of this level of price. Perhaps Apple did not want to take the risk of accumulating two new hearths of significant energy consumption, the second being 5G. Because, the iPhone 12 Pro Max is obviously compatible with this new mobile connection standard, like the other iPhone 12. The problem is that for the moment, these new mobile networks are not yet available in France.

Tall, too large ?

The “new” design of iPhone 12, inspired by that of iPad Pro and iPhone 4 and following, perfectly suits the iPhone 12 Pro Max. Its vertical slices, asserted, better delimit the front and rear facades, underline the presence of the screen, more edge to board than ever. Because the largest of the iPhone is the one that offers the best ratio between the size of the front panel and the surface covered by the screen. It obtains no less than 87.1%. It is not as well as what the Galaxy Note 20 offers, for example, but it is a good progress.

It is even in a way vital progress, because the iPhone 12 pro Max always flirts with the “too big”. When you see your screen, you forget everything, but as soon as you have to slip it into a pocket or hold it in hand, you see how bulky it is. Not much more than the iPhone 11 Pro Max that we used on a daily basis for a year, but the few tenths of centimeters Deci beyond, especially in width, play a lot. Fortunately, Apple did it a little thicker, which allows it to be better in hand.

It is interesting to note that if the iPhone 12 Pro Max is among the finest and least “high” high -end smartphones, it is also one of the widest: it displays 0.29 cm more in width that note 20, for example, which is not a small model. Or even 0.36 cm more than the Oppo Find X2 Pro. Knowing that these two Android smartphones benefit from a 6.7 -inch slab too.
Just to force the line and show that Apple still has a little margin to refine the edges of its iPhone and reduce its congestion in the future, let’s take the last example of the OnePlus 8 Pro. While displaying a 6.78 inch screen diagonal (so larger than that of the iPhone), it is 0.35 cm wider, but much higher. What we gain in comfort from holding in hand, we do not lose in elongation of the thumb to cover the whole screen.

In short, if the iPhone mini is the one we use with one hand, with a single thumb, the 12 pro max requires two hands, if you want it.

The A14 makes it a monster of power

Obviously, like all the iPhone 12, the 12 Pro Max enjoys the power brought by the A14 chip, and as in the iPhone 12 Pro, the Apple SoC is supported by 6 GB of RAM of RAM.

On a daily basis, this manifests itself by an always incredibly fluid interface, by applications that get started and smoothly, by gourmet programs that display polygons and shovel effects, or complex renderings without even thinking about it.

If we refer to a test tool like Geekbench 5, we see that the iPhone 12 Pro Max is in line with his brothers. It is equal to them, or in any case does not really stand out. Apple did not try to distinguish its models by a difference in power, variations and differences in their respective configurations are linked to technical needs, to ensure a unit of performance precisely and no longer create advantages to one or other.

On the other hand, the iPhone 12 Pro Max happily dominates its high -end competitors under Android, such as the Galaxy Note 20, Galaxy S20+, OnePlus 8 Pro or the Oppo Find X2 Pro, whether they embark an exynos 990 or the flagship of Qualcomm, the Snapdragon 865.

It is not just a question of quantity outing and shifted in the year, it has been several generations now that the chips of Apple hold high sugared almonds with competitors. This may change this year, in any case, for the moment, the A14 is above the fray, and it is all the more appreciable since it is no longer lagging behind on a Another critical point: that of autonomy.

The most enduring iPhone

Last year, the iPhone switched to a new dimension that Android smartphones have been working for a while. A world where it is not compulsory to recharge your smartphone during the day to reach evening.

The iPhone 11 pro and 11 pro Max had progressed so much, thanks to the A13 Bionic and a more substantial battery, which they even managed to do better than their direct Android competitors in two of the three autonomy tests that we carry out within of our laboratory.

Unlike the iPhone 12 Pro, according to our statements, the iPhone 12 Pro Max takes full part of its size (to embark a substantial battery), and the engraving of its chip in 5 nm, to progress or maintain its effort this year.

Thus, in versatile autonomy, which simulates and continues everyday uses, such as surfing on the web, or even video reading, the giant iPhone of 2020 flirts with the 20h. It’s 41 minutes better than the 11 pro max, 8:19 am better than the Galaxy S20+ or ​​6:46 more than the Find X2 Pro.

In video autonomy, where the smartphone will strengthen a film until no more battery, the iPhone 12 Pro Max is in line with what its elder offered with 12 minutes less, a not dramatic decline, which,, which, which, which, Again, the place well above its high-end competitors on Android.

Last year, our communication autonomy tests (an endless call until the smartphone hangs up for lack of energy-a bit like you when you call your great-aunt Getrude) made progress for iPhone But still left the advantage to many of the Android smartphones. It must be said that among the medium autonomies offered until then the iPhone, those in communication were the least good.
This year, the iPhone 12 Pro Max displays a 47 -minute progression compared to the iPhone 11 Pro Max and dominates its competitors fairly largely, with the notable exception of Find X2 Pro.

If you want to spend almost a non-stop day to talk on the phone with someone, you know who to turn.

By far, the best in photos

Finally, before providing you with an in -depth test and dedicated to the photography of the iPhone 12 Pro Max, let us quickly approach this ultimate strong point (and differentiation). It always offers three cameras modules: an ultra-angle, a great angle and a telephoto lens. But if the iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max offered the same performance in this field, the iPhone 12 Pro Max has decided to go rider alone.

In addition to benefiting from the progress shared by all the other iPhone 12, thanks to the A14 and its new image processor (ISP), it takes advantage of the arrival of the Lidar, like the 12 pro, but is also distinguished by two material improvements.

The first concerns the Grand-Angle module. It opens at f/1.6. (against f/1.8 previously) but above all benefits from wider photosites (1.7 micrometer, against 1.4 on other iPhone). To this improvement which brings more light, there is an optical stabilization by displacement of the sensor, which should compensate for micro-secrets or tremors of your hand. Stabilization, especially in video, was already a strong point of the iPhone 11, the 12 Pro Max takes advantage of its larger box to embark technologies that do not hold in the more compact models.

The second material improvement concerns telephoto lens, which now offers a focal length of 65 mm and more than 52mm. A gain which he must compensate by opening slightly less f/2.2 against f/2.0. In other words, you can, without moving more, make tighter portraits, for example. This change of focal length on the telephoto lens also allows the iPhone 12 Pro Max to display a maximum rear optical zoom of X5, against X4 for the iPhone 12 Pro and X2 for the 12 and 12 mini mini.

By the way, note that Apple has introduced a stripping function of optical correction of the deformation of the ultra-angle (and the front camera). The iPhone 11 had punctually this slight flaw, the iPhone 12 Pro seems to us to always have it, even if it may be less obvious. To speak, even if it is extremely useful, to take the full measure of a building in one cliché or to make original framing, the ultra grand angle always seems to us below other cameras modules of a point View of the Products Products.

With this hardware base, the iPhone 12 Pro Max is largely distinguished from the iPhone 11 Pro/Pro Max and the iPhone 12 Pro. The presence of the Lidar coupled with a more “tight” telephoto lens allows framing that highlights the faces, and create more proximity in the context of a portrait. Not to mention even the reinforced responsiveness of the device to make the development, which saves many shots when night falls. Always thanks to the Lidar, it is possible to use portrait mode in night mode on the great angle, this opens horizons.

Day and night, the products produced are pleasant to look at. But it is especially at night that the iPhone 12 Pro Max takes control of its little brother and on the iPhone 11 Pro Max. Of course, there is still digital noise (even if the iPhone 12 Pro Max manages much better the climb in ISO) and some flat when the light is too weak, but the night mode, carried by the new ISP, makes a very nice job. Deep Fusion technology allows you to recover a little bit of dive, while the third version of Apple’s techno smart HDR avoids blocked areas and ensure a good contrast and a good depth in the compositions, especially at night.

Especially since even under these conditions, we find the strong points of Apple, namely a homogeneous exhibition and a loyalty in the color rendering, which is very appreciable.

We will note, just, as on the other iPhone 12 that sometimes the heavens are a little too lightened, but it is as much a matter of taste as usual.

In video, the iPhone 12 Pro Max continues to wear the name of its ancestors at the top and maintains a uniqueness of exposure and color, regardless of the objective used. It also provides a fairly incredible stabilization which allows you to make extremely flexible videos even if you travel by running, descending the stairs or by bicycle.

For the most serious, recording videos in Dolby Vision/HDR by default will allow them to capture the fall colors more beautifully, for example. After all, it is one of the strengths of HDR in video, support more colors, and bring more light, hence the double floor announced by Apple for the brightness of the screens of its iPhone (800 and 1200 CD/ M2, the first for conventional content, the second to properly display the contents in Dolby Vision or HDR10).

And for those who are concerned about the problems of retrocompatibility of Dolby Vision products produced by the iPhone 12 Pro Max with non -HDR screens or not compatible Dolby Vision, Apple precise use a standard called HLG, which should make its readable files on “classic” screens. Phew.

Ultimately, the iPhone 12 Pro Max actually progresses a lot in photos. While keeping his technical choices, which promote 12 Mpixel sensors in particular, he improves his technical sheet a little to give more grain to grind to his chips and his approach to the computational photography. And this is only the beginning, the Apple Proraw format could bring nice fun potential to amateur photographers.