The iPhone 15 Pro Max is likely to be Apple’s next top phone since the so-called iPhone Ultra might not come out until 2024. As the iPhone with the most features and the biggest screen, the iPhone 15 Pro Max could make a big splash on our list of the best phones and set a new standard for smartphones.
We don’t think the iPhone 14 Pro Max will be very different, but the upgrades that have been reported could make it a very good phone. We might see a powerful new A17 Bionic chip, a periscope lens with twice as much zooming power, a stronger titanium frame, and other improvements.
So read on to find out all the reports about the iPhone 15 Pro Max that we know so far.
iPhone 15 Pro Max Latest News
The iPhone 15 Pro Max’s 48MP main camera could get a new sensor.
A mold of the iPhone 15 Pro pretty much shows us what the next iPhone Pro models will look like.
A leaker says that the iPhone 15 Pro Max will be the only one with the periscope zoom lens(opens in new tab). So you could leave out the basic iPhone 15 Pro.
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman says that the iPhone 15 Pro line will not have solid-state buttons, and Cirrus Logic, which is thought to have helped make them, says the same thing.
iPhone 15 Pro Max Potential Release Date
As sure as night follows day, we can expect Apple to release the iPhone 15 line in the fall, most likely in September.
And the iPhone 15 Pro Max will probably be the best of the bunch, able to compete with the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra and probably the Google Pixel 8, which could come out in October.
iPhone 15 Pro Max Price
There are no strong reports about how much the iPhone 15 Pro Max will cost, but we think it will be about the same as the iPhone 14 Pro line. So, the base 128GB model will cost $1,099, £1,199, or AU$1,899, while the 1TB version will cost $1,599, £1,749, or AU$2,769.
One early report says that the price of the iPhone 15 Pro will go up by $100. But that could be just for the U.S. to make it the same price as the iPhone 14 models in the U.K. and other places where prices have gone up.
Analyst Jeff Pu is the latest to say that the price of the iPhone 15 Pro will go up. He says this because Apple is supposed to be making improvements to both the iPhone 15 Pro and the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
A different source says that it could cost up to 20% more for Apple to make the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Customers wouldn’t be able to handle such a big jump in price, so hopefully Apple will cover some of the higher production costs itself.
The iPhone 15 Pro Max won’t be cheap no matter what. But that’s what you’d expect from a top-of-the-line phone, and it’s likely to be priced around the same as the Galaxy S23 Ultra, which starts at $1,199 in the U.S. If costs go up, Apple will have to explain why the iPhone 15 Pro Max is worth more money.
iPhone 15 Pro Max Design and Display
The iPhone 15 Pro Max could get a new look with titanium sides, solid-state buttons, and a bigger shape. Even though the most recent report says that solid-state buttons might not be available until 2024. Such buttons would make the iPhone 15 Pro Max less likely to let dust and liquids get inside, and would also make it more durable overall.
The edges of the iPhone 15 Pro Max could be a bigger change. Some reports say that it will get rid of the iPhone 12’s flat edges and go back to having curved sides. The idea behind this is that the big iPhone could be easier to hold.
Leaked images of the front glass panels of the iPhone 15 range, which show how the sides of the screen could be gently curved, gave this theory more weight.
But alleged molds of the iPhone 15 Pro, which show the flat edges we’ve come to expect from recent versions of the main iPhone range, seem to disprove the story of curved sides.
These models are not official, so it’s hard to put a lot of faith in them. So Apple could still change the sides of the next-generation iPhone models.
We’ve also heard that the iPhone 15 Pro Max may have the smallest edges of any smartphone on the market. This is confirmed by 9to5Mac, which has posted images of the new iPhone 15 Pro Max that show it from every angle.
The site says the borders could be as small as 1.55mm. Ice Universe’s new renders of the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max match that size.
As only the Pro Max is expected to have a periscope zoom camera, it may have a smaller camera bump than the iPhone 15 Pro. The images also show that the Pro and Pro Max will now have solid-state buttons instead of mechanical ones and a new red color.
The frame of the iPhone 15 Pro Max could be made out of metal. This could lead to an iPhone Pro Max that is stronger and lighter at the same time. We think this would be a great change and a move away from the stainless steel edges, which are easy to chip in our experience.
iPhone 15 Pro Max USB-C
There have been rumors that the iPhone 15 Pro Max will replace the old Lightning port with a USB-C port. This seems likely since the European Union has said that all phones must use USB-C as the standard charging port by December 2024. Apple is likely to beat this deadline with the iPhone 15 range.
A story that Apple has put its own USB-C accessories into mass production before the iPhone 15 comes out in the fall makes that seem more likely than ever.
Adopting USB-C would definitely make charging and connecting devices easier. But it might be hard to connect older iPhone accessories without adapters and dongles. That’s the price of change.
But if Thunderbolt 3 speeds are as fast as they are said to be, it might be worth it. Thunderbolt also lets you output to a display, which could be fun in a lot of ways for iPhone fans.
One theory says that Apple might require Made for iPhone USB-C accessories. This could make it harder for third-party accessories that haven’t been approved to work with the next generation of iPhones. Now that analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says it’s going to happen, that story is becoming more likely to be true.
This could go against a rule from the European Union that says gadget makers must use a single standard for charging and connecting, in this case, USB-C. In fact, a member of the European Parliament says that such a policy would break EU rules and has asked Apple to explain its plans for USB-C.
A member of the European Commission, which is part of the European Parliament, has promised to stop selling the iPhone 15 if Apple puts in such restrictions.
iPhone 15 Pro Max Outlook
From what we know about the iPhone 15 Pro Max from reports and leaks, it looks like it will be a great phone. It may not be a huge improvement over the iPhone 14 Pro Max, but a lot of small changes could make it one of the best phones to buy.
And in 2023, it will almost certainly be the best iPhone you can buy. It’ll have to be good since the Galaxy S23 Ultra really pleased us and is probably now the phone to beat.