When comparing the iPhone 11 Pro Max to the newest iPhone 13 Pro Max, what are the key differences?
There have been significant improvements made to the iPhone 13 Pro Max since its predecessor, the iPhone 11 Pro Max, was introduced two years ago. The 13 Pro Max has several improvements, but the ProMotion screen, which allows for more fluid scrolling, and the extended battery life are the most significant. You also get certain “Pro” capabilities like ProRaw picture capture and ProRes video recording, as well as the enhanced cameras and bigger sensors you’d anticipate.
Comparison between iPhone 13 Pro Max with iPhone 11 Pro Max, in brief :
- This year’s iPhone 13 Pro Max has a brand-new design with rounded corners.
- The 13-inch iPhone Pro Max is much heavier than the standard iPhone.
- Screen size increased from 6.5″ to 6.7″
- The latest model has improved brightness, HDR compatibility, and 120 Hz ProMotion.
- Apple A15 vs. Apple A13
- Initial Capacity of 128GB (vs 64GB on 11 Pro Max)
- Both include a triple camera setup, but the 13 Pro Max has upgraded sensors that provide better results.
- Only the latest model supports the ProRaw and ProRes formats.
- Enhanced battery capacity, accelerated charging, and MagSafe compatibility
Available in a wider range of hues

The iPhone 13 Pro Max is much larger, heavier, and chunkier compared to the iPhone 11 Pro Max. In a departure from the 11 Pro Max’s rounded design, the 13 Pro Max has a squarer, flatter profile. The newest phone’s flat edges are aesthetically pleasing, but they make it more difficult to hold, particularly if you have little hands; we prefer the 11 Pro Max’s rounded corners.
Display-wise, the iPhone 13 Pro Max has a little bigger screen than the 11 Pro Max (6.7 inches versus 6.5 inches), but both employ the same OLED technology for vivid colors and around the same resolution, so they appear equally good. The notch on the current model is smaller as well (around 20% smaller, if we must be specific), which is a big improvement.
The iPhone 13 Pro Max’s peak brightness of 1,000 nits is much greater than that of the iPhone 11 Pro Max’s 800 nits, making it more suitable for usage in bright environments. A major improvement is included in the latest model as well: With ProMotion’s 120 fps, scrolling is a breeze. Since Apple has improved iOS, the refresh rate of the screen adjusts automatically from 10Hz while viewing static content to 120Hz when using apps that need rapid page turns. Here are some specs on the screens of both phones:
Finally, we have different colors on the 13 Pro Max: the fancy new one is called Sierra Blue and is a light shade of blue, plus you also have Graphite, Silver, and Gold, while the older 11 Pro Max comes in Midnight Green, Silver, Space Gray and Gold. Both phones come with frosted glass on the back, which are better than glossy glass at resisting fingerprints.
Will this be the biggest upgrade to iPhone battery life?

Coming from an iPhone 11 Pro Max, you are probably already used to great battery life. When it launched, the
iPhone 11 Pro Max wowed us with a big battery and long battery life, but the iPhone 13 Pro Max takes things further. A lot further.
The iPhone 13 Pro Max features a 4,352mAh battery cell vs the 3,969mAh cell in the iPhone 11 Pro Max. That’s a difference of nearly 10% in favor of the newer model.

Size is just one factor, however. The weird part is that Apple is providing us with official battery estimations. The iPhone 13 Pro Max, according to Apple, has double the endurance of the iPhone 11 Pro Max when it comes to video streaming, at 25 hours compared to 12 hours. There isn’t a huge difference between the two devices when it comes to playing films; the 13 Pro Max can do it for 28 hours, while the 11 Pro Max can only manage 20. Yet even so, those are some big enhancements, and we couldn’t wait to put them to the test for ourselves. So why not check out some of the work we’ve put into
Several major changes have occurred! The iPhone 13 Pro Max lasts approximately 19 hours in our browser test, whereas the iPhone 11 Pro Max lasts just around 13 hours—a near 50% increase! The difference was rather tiny while streaming videos from YouTube, but it was much larger when playing games, with the newer Pro Max lasting for 10 hours and 50 minutes compared to the older Pro Max lasting for 7 hours and 40 minutes.
The iPhone 13 Pro Max has an impressively long battery life for a smartphone, lasting for a full 2 days even with moderate usage.
Users of the iPhone 11 Pro Max will be disappointed to learn that a charger is no longer included in the package. You’ll want to set aside an extra $20 for an Apple quick charger. It’s unfortunate that the fastest this “rapid charger” can charge at is only 20W, which isn’t very fast by today’s standards.
We tried the 13 Pro Max with a quicker charger to see whether the idea held true (we had a 45W Samsung fast charger lying around). We found that it accepts greater speeds, up to roughly 27W, without raising a peep of protest. Our tests showed that a full charge using the quicker charger took 1 hour and 40 minutes, compared to almost 2 hours using the standard 20W charger.
Although both phones enable wireless charging, the 13 Pro Max also has MagSafe, allowing you to magnetically attach the phone to the charger for a faster 15W charge. MagSafe is not compatible with the iPhone 11 Pro Max.
Cameras
Still three cameras on the back, but upgraded

New camera capabilities like Night Mode debuted on the iPhone 11 Pro Max, and the iPhone 13 Pro Max improves upon those advancements with larger sensors and quicker apertures.
You’ll still find a primary, ultra-wide, and telephoto lens on the rear (3X zoom on iPhone 13 Pro Max vs 2X zoom on iPhone 11 Pro Max).
The various camera hardware options are as follows:
- The pixel size of the 13 Pro Max’s wide-angle camera is 1.9 micrometers, whereas that of the 11 Pro Max’s is 1.4 micrometers. The focal length of the camera is 26 millimeters.
- Compare and contrast the ultra-wide f/1.8 aperture of the ultra-wide 0.5X 13mm f/2.4 aperture camera.
- Telephoto camera with f/2.8 aperture and f/2.8 zoom on the 13 Pro Max and f/2.0 aperture and 2X zoom on the 11 Pro Max .
The 13 Pro Max is able to catch much more light because to its larger aperture on the primary camera and other upgraded optics.
Example of a Low-Light Photographic Test:
The 13 Pro Max usually only needed 1 second to record a night shot, compared to 3 seconds on the 11 Pro Max, and the resulting image is a little darker with a more real, “night” feel, so it’s fascinating that Apple has altered the processing with Night Mode to activate for shorter periods of time. We like the more unified appearance, and if you look closely you’ll see the increased clarity and expanded tonal range, too.
The 11 Pro Max does not support night mode for that lens, whereas the more recent 13 Pro Max does, creating a huge gap in low-light performance between the ultrawide cameras. What a difference it makes; the shot taken with the older phone will be thrown away, but the one taken with the 13 Pro Max, despite the very low lighting, looks rather good.
Other than that, the 13 series has a whole new camera function they’re calling
Approaches to Photography and Their Varieties. This is essentially a supercharged version of conventional picture editing software since it allows for instantaneous, on-the-spot adjustments that may be previewed in the camera’s viewfinder. Choose a bolder or subtler aesthetic, and the iPhone will apply that setting universally to all of your future images taken in that mode.
With the 13 Pro Max’s macro mode, you can take stunning close-ups from as little as 2 centimeters away. Video cameras also have the ability to capture macro footage.
Using Cinematic Mode, you can easily concentrate on the action and blur the backdrop, lock and track focus, and even have the camera focus on a specific object when it detects that it is about to be eclipsed.
A LiDAR scanner is included in the iPhone 13 Pro Max but not the 11 Pro Max. It’s not the most often utilized camera function, but it’s useful for augmented reality and nighttime portraits.
Performance: Apple A15 vs A13

When it first came out, the iPhone 11 Pro Max was the quickest smartphone available, and Apple has continued to increase its dominance in terms of processor performance ever since. The iPhone 13 Pro Max has a brand new Apple A15 Bionic chip, which should increase the phone’s CPU, GPU, and AI capabilities, as well as the camera’s image signal processor.
Benchmarks comparing the 13 Pro Max’s A15 chip to those of the 11 Pro Max’s A13 CPU are provided below.
Performance Benchmarks
The A15 features 15 billion transistors, approximately twice as many as the 8.5 billion transistors found on the A13, and is constructed using 5nm technology rather than 7nm. In terms of benchmarks, the performance boosts are undeniable.
In order to get an idea of how well your system will perform in games, take a look at the results from the 3D Mark Wildlife Extreme Stress test, which you can see above. This test plays a visually complex 3D game for 20 minutes straight, simulating a more realistic situation than the short benchmarks often used to evaluate hardware. Two years have allowed for significant improvements in graphics capability, as seen by the fact that the newest iPhone can keep up with significantly more complex games at far higher frame rates.
The connection of the iPhone 13 Pro Max is much improved over that of the 11 Pro Max, since it supports 5G on a wide variety of bands while the 11 Pro Max only supports 4G LTE.
iPhone 13 Pro Max vs iPhone 11 Pro Max: Specs Comparison
And here is a detailed specs comparison between the iPhone 13 Pro Max and iPhone 11 Pro Max.
iPhone 13 Pro Max | iPhone 11 Pro Max | |
---|---|---|
Size and Weight | 160.8 x 78.1 x 7.65 mm, 240g | 160.84 x 78.09 x 7.39 mm, 228g (8oz) |
Display | 6.7″ OLED, 120Hz Pro Motion 1284 x 2778 pixels |
6.5″ OLED @60Hz 1242 x 2688 pixels |
Processor | Apple A15 Bionic | Apple A13 Bionic |
RAM | *6GB | *4GB |
Storage | 128G / 256G / 512GB / 1TB, non expandable | 64GB / 256G / 512GB, non expandable |
Cameras | 12MP wide camera, f/1.5, 1.9-micron pixels 12MP ultra-wide camera with faster, f/1.8 aperture 12MP 3X zoom camera |
12MP wide camera, f/1.8, 1.4-micron pixels 12MP ultra-wide camera, f/2.4 12MP 2X zoom camera |
Battery size | 4,352mAh 25 hours of video streaming |
3,969mAh 12 hours of video streaming |
Charging speeds | 20W wired, 15W MagSafe wireless | 18W wired, 7.5W wireless |
Prices | after iPhone 14 launch, iPhone 13 Pro Max is no longer available at Apple.com (but remains on sale at carriers) | after iPhone 14 launch, iPhone 11 Pro Max is no longer available at Apple.com (but remains on sale at carriers) |
Apple has kept the starting price of the 13 Pro Max at $1,100, the same as with prior models. While neither the iPhone 13 Pro Max nor the iPhone 11 Pro Max are now sold via Apple.com, they may still be purchased from carriers at steep discounts.
Does Apple do enough to entice iPhone 11 Pro Max customers to upgrade to the more powerful and more recent iPhone 13 Pro Max? What more could you want from an iPhone with a Pro Max screen? Comment below and tell us what you think!
Conclusion: Is it time to upgrade to the iPhone 13 Pro Max?
Obviously, your opinion will rely on how you feel about the characteristics and variations we’ve discussed. It’s totally OK if you’re still using your iPhone 11 Pro Max in 2022 and have no plans to upgrade. It’s not need to worry about software upgrades ceasing any time soon, and if your phone’s battery is still functioning properly three years from now, that’s excellent news.
Nonetheless, the iPhone 13 Pro Max’s updated cameras and camera capabilities, bigger display, quicker CPU, and faster charging times have to be considered if you’re searching for an excuse to upgrade. As we said, it also comes with twice as much primary storage as its predecessor, allowing you to store even more of your media files. And if you’re weary of the old curved-edge iPhone design, upgrading to the newer iPhone 13 Pro Max with the lovely flat-edge chassis is a great way to shake things up.