The iPhone 15 Pro Max is finally official, as Apple announced its latest and best iPhone at the "Wonderlust" event that took place on September 12. The largest and most advanced iPhone so far is quite the monumental overhaul on so many levels, especially when compared with previous Pro Max devices.

Scoring a brand-new titanium design, dropping the Lightning port for a much faster USB Type-C port, and scoring a much longer 5X optical zoom periscope camera, as well as the world's first mobile chipset based on a 3nm manufacturing node, the iPhone 15 Pro Max is the true flagship of the iPhone 15 series.

Here are the most important iPhone 15 Pro Max features that you need to know about:

  • The iPhone 15 Pro Max gets a new USB Type-C port instead of Lightning, capable of USB 3.0 speeds (up to 10Gb/s).
  • Refreshed design with contoured edges, featuring aerospace-grade titanium, making the iPhone 15 Pro Max robust but lightweight.
  • A 3nm Apple A17 Pro Bionic chipset, the first 3nm chipset on a smartphone.
  • The classic mute switch is substituted for a customizable Action Button, similar to the one on the Apple Watch Ultra.
  • The new 5.0x periscope camera is an exclusive feature of the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
  • New colors: Natural Titanium, Blue Titanium, White Titanium, and Black Titanium

iPhone 15 Pro Max release date

  • Announcement: September 12
  • Pre-orders start: September 15
  • Release date: September 22

The iPhone 15 Pro Max was announced on September 12 at the "Wonderlust" event. The device will be officially released on Friday, September 22. Pre-orders kick off on Friday, September 15.

This schedule is in line with Apple's tradition of unveiling its new iPhones at a dedicated hardware-centric keynote that normally takes place in early September each year, usually on the second Tuesday of the month. Subsequently, the newly-announced devices hit the market roughly ten days later, on a Friday, one of the most important opening weekends for an Apple device.


iPhone 15 Pro Max price

The dreaded iPhone price hike didn't take place: the iPhone 15 Pro Max starts at $1,199 for the entry-level 256GB version, which is the same pricing as last year's iPhone 14 Pro Max enjoyed. Ergo, the 512GB version starts at $1399, while the range-topping 1TB variation of the phone can be yours for $1599. Notable is the omission of a 128GB version of the device, which cost $1099 on the iPhone 14 Pro Max last year.

It's worth noting that rumors about a price hike have always circulated prior to the official release of a new iPhone family, with Apple eventually shushing our all rumors by revealing the same unchanged pricing as the previous year. This has happened before, and obviously, has happened in 2023 as well.


iPhone 15 Pro Max camera

  • Exclusive: Tetraprism periscope camera, 5.0x zoom (120mm equivalent)
  • Most advanced optical image stabilization on a smartphone
  • Three new main camera focal lengths: 24mm, 28mm, 35mm
  • New 24MP default shooting mode
  • ProRES video at up to 4K@60fps

The iPhone 15 Pro Max is packing the "equivalent of seven pro lenses" delivered by the improved triple-camera system.

Starting with the main camera, which remains a 48MP one but now employs a new high-resolution 24MP default shooting mode. It now also allows users to switch between three distinct different shooting focal lengths, usable for photographers: 24mm, 28mm, and 35mm. Users can choose a new default focal length, giving way more flexibility when it comes to taking regular photos. The main camera now also supports 48MP ProRAW HEIF image capture with four times the resolution.

New and exclusive on the iPhone 15 Pro Max is the new 5.0x periscope camera, which features a tetraprism internal design and delivers the optical equivalent of a 120mm focal length. This gives you a much bigger versatility when shooting distant objects, like extreme portraits, wildlife, and so on.

The iPhone 15 Pro Max now also features automatic portrait taking: you will no longer have to manually switch to portrait mode. The iPhone will automatically capture depth information when it detects a person, dog, or a cat in the frame, allowing you to transform a regular photo to a portrait later in the Photos app. Focus adjustment is also possible with this improved portraiture feature.

The iPhone 15 Pro now has Apple's most advanced image stabilization system, with an autofocusing 3D sensor-shift module that auto-adjusts extremely quickly.

Night mode has been improved and now captures sharper details as well as more vivid colors thanks to the latest version of Apple's Photonic Engine. The latter now allows for Night mode portraits, which are powered by the LiDAR scanner. Smart HDR has also been improved thanks to the Photonic Engine improvements, and now allows for truer skin tones, brighter highlights, great midtones, and excellent shadows.

When it comes to video, the iPhone 15 Pro Max scores ProRES video capture at up to 60fps in 4K resolution, which was previously limited to 30fps. This would give videographers better chance to play around with the footage in post and achieve their artistic vision.

iPhone 15 Pro Max storage

The iPhone 15 Pro Max drops the entry-level 128GB storage version and now starts at 256GB. The phone is also available in 512GB and 1TB. Prices are unchanged in comparison with last year's identical iPhone 14 Pro Max storage variations.

iPhone 15 Pro Max storage versions:

  • 256 GB
  • 512 GB
  • 1TB

iPhone 15 Pro Max design

  • Refreshed design with titanium and a new Action Button instead of a mute switch
  • Slimmer bezels
  • Four titanium-inspired color options

In terms of design, the iPhone 15 Pro Max has scored a new space-grade titanium chassis which enhances rigidity while keeping the weight down. In fact, the iPhone 15 Pro Max weighs just 7.81 oz, or 221 grams, a stunning 0.66 oz/19-gram difference with last year's iPhone 14 Pro Max.

On the inside, however, the iPhone 15 Pro Max employs an aluminum frame that is bonded to the titanium outer frame by solid-state diffusion. The inner aluminum frame helps heep the weight down, helps with heat dissipation, and also allows for easier repairs, like changing the back glass, for example.

At the front, the display is protected by Apple's Ceramic Shield that keeps the screen scratch-free.

The iPhone 15 Pro Max features a new refined brush texture with contoured edges, which are not as edgy as previous iPhone Pro Max devices. The thinnest bezels on an iPhone are also part of the iPhone 15 Pro Max's stunning feature list.


The iPhone 15 Pro Max also ditches the signature mute switch for a customizable Action Button. Aside from switching between silent and ring modes, as well as switch between focus modes, you can also map different functions and shortcuts to the new button. You can also toggle the flashlight, Voice Memos, Translate, Magnifier, Shortcuts, and so much more. The button will not only give out visual cues in the Dynamic Island, but also provide you with fine-tuned haptics.

When it comes to iPhone 15 Pro Max colors, the device is now available in four new colors:

  • Natural Titanium
  • Black Titanium
  • Blue Titanium
  • White Titanium

The iPhone 15 Pro Max also comes with a USB Type-C port, capable of achieving USB 3.0 speeds of up to 10Gb/s with a compatible USB cable. Data throughput speeds with the included USB Type-C cable in the box are likely much lower.

iPhone 15 Pro Max display

  • No changes (6.7" Super Retina XDR ProMotion OLED HDR screen)

Aside from the thinner bezels, the iPhone 15 Pro Max display doesn't differ from its predecessor. It's still a 6.7-inch XDR ProMotion OLED HDR screen with a variable refresh rate that's capable of hitting up to 120Hz of refresh rate for a much smoother experience. Display resolution is still 2796x1290 pixels and as a result screen sharpness remains at 460ppi.

The Dynamic Island punch-hole, which marked one of the bigger design changes for an iPhone display with the iPhone 14 Pro/Max, is now a staple across the iPhone 15 lineup, with all iPhone 15 devices featuring the wide punch-hole solution.

iPhone 15 Pro Max battery and charging

While the official battery size of the iPhone 15 Pro Max still eludes, Apple's official battery life expectations reveal that we shouldn't expect an improvement or a downgrade in terms of battery life. The iPhone 15 Pro Max's battery likely resides in the 4,300mAh range, and it pretty much delivers the same battery life as Apple's previous iPhone 14 Pro Max.

Apple cites up to 29 hours of battery life in video playbacк, up to 25 hours in streamed video playback, and up to 95 hours of audio playback. Those battery life expectations are pretty much similar to the ones on the iPhone 14 Pro Max, so no changes are expected here.

20W wired charging, MagSafe, and Qi wireless charging are supported. Apple says that up to 50% in 35 minutes should be expected when it comes to wired charging, and that's the same as the iPhone 14 Pro Max's charging speeds.

iPhone 15 Pro Max features and software

iOS 17 will be powering the upcoming iPhone 15 Pro Max, with the software update scheduled for September 18. The upcoming piece of software was officially announced at the WWDC'23 opening keynote during which we also saw the exciting new Apple Vision Pro virtual reality headset.

iOS 17 is shaping up to be an evolutionary update that will improve certain core iOS apps and experiences. Remember the boring contact cards of old? Poof, gone through the window. New Contact Posters that can be customized the same way your iOS lockscreen will be the norm going forward. The Messages app is also getting streamlined and also scores Live Stickers that can be lifted straight from your Live Photos.

Trying to call someone on FaceTime but they are unavailable? Leave a FaceTime voice (video?) mail. Speaking of voicemail, iOS scores a text-to-speech Live Voicemail that will show you the contents of a voicemail as it's being recorded.

Siri is also streamlined. You will no longer have to say "Hey, Siri" to interact with the smart assistant, just a "Siri" would suffice. There's also a new diary-like Journal app, as well as easy contact sharing between devices with the new NameDrop feature.

If you also have the habit of charging your iPhone on a MagSafe stand, you will be able to utilize the new StandBy mode, which turns it into a smart display of sorts. You will be able to see the time, your widgets, your photos, and other types of info while in this view.

iPhone 15 Pro Max hardware and specs

The Apple A17 Pro is the exclusive chip of choice for the iPhone 15 Pro Max and the iPhone 15 Pro, and it's actually the first 3nm chipset. It delivers around 10% better performance thanks to the microarchitectural and design improvements, as Apple says.

In terms of graphics, Apple has redesigned the chip's graphics unit from the ground up. The new unit is now a 6-core one, an improvement over the iPhone 14 Pro Max's 5-core GPU, and is therefore around 20% faster, especially in 3D ray-traced graphics. That's right, the Apple A17 Pro now supports hardware-powered ray-tracing, which is seemingly four times faster than software-emulated ray-tracing.

The iPhone 15 Pro Max also comes with a new AV1 decoder, which allows it to output 4K@60fps HDR video. The phone also comes with a Qualcomm-made 5G modem despite the rumors that Apple will be making its own 5G solution.

Should I wait for the iPhone 15 Pro Max?

  • You should wait for the iPhone 15 Pro Max if you haven't upgraded your iPhone in a while and want to experience the best of Apple in 2023. With so many highly anticipated features for the iPhone, like USB Type-C, a folded periscope lens that will finally bring long zoom, and the coveted jump to 3nm that will inevitably deliver much better performance and potentially big energy savings, it's hard to not get excited for the upcoming iPhone 15 Pro Max.
  • You should not wait for iPhone 15 Pro Max if you've recently got the iPhone 14 Pro Max or you are generally satisfied with your existing phone. While quite the overhaul for the iPhone world, the iPhone 15 Pro Max might not be such a big quantum leap over the iPhone 14 Pro Max, so it is advisable to see how the upcoming phone would fare against its predecessor before jumping the gun. With so many changes and improvements, there's a high chance that something could go awry.