iPhone 17 Pro Max vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: Time to upgrade

Colors include Silver, Cosmic Orange and Deep Blue

In terms of colors, the 17 Pro Max comes in just three variants — Cosmic Orange, Deep Blue and Silver. The 14 Pro Max was available in Space Black, Silver, Gold, and Deep Purple.

Display Differences

The screen can now hit 3,000 nits of peak brightness

With the iPhone 17 Pro Max, we’re getting a 6.9-inch Liquid Retina XDR OLED display. It’s a slightly bigger screen compared to the 6.7-inch display on the 14 Pro Max, but both have ProMotion.

Leaks suggest that the 17 Pro Max uses Samsung’s new M14 OLED panel that not only boosts the energy efficiency of the device, but also allows for a much higher peak brightness of 3,000 nits. Compare this to a peak brightness of 2,000 nits on the 14 Pro Max.

One other exciting change is a new seven-layer anti-reflective coating on the 17 Pro Max. This is not quite Galaxy Ultra level of anti-reflectivity, but Apple says it achieves 33% less reflections compared to its previous displays, so it is noticeable.

Anti-reflective coating on iPhone 17 vs iPhone 16

The 17 Pro Max also goes down to a minimum brightness of just 1 nit, making it easier on the eyes at night, while the 14 Pro Max does not quite get as low.

Performance and Software

A major leap in performance

Much better sustained performance and neural accelerators in each GPU core

One thing is certain: the performance difference between the iPhone 17 Pro Max and the 14 Pro Max is substantial, given the generational difference between the two chips. The newer model features the A19 Pro chipset, Apple’s third-generation 3nm chip. 

In contrast, the iPhone 14 Pro Max came with the Apple A16 Bionic, Cupertino’s last 4nm mobile chip used on a Pro iPhone.

Does this mean the iPhone 14 Pro Max is terribly outdated? No, of course not. It’s still fairly capable and delivers a decent amount of performance in standard everyday usage scenarios, but if you want fast photo and video editing or heavy-duty performance, the 17 Pro Max makes a strong case with up 40% faster CPU performance.

Also, don’t forget that the iPhone 14 Pro Max does NOT support Apple Intelligence, while the 17 Pro Max does and it has more memory and neural accelerators in each GPU core, making on-device AI processing much faster.

Storage-wise, the iPhone 14 Pro Max was the last Pro iPhone to boast a 128GB version along with 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB ones. The 17 Pro Max starts from 256GB for the base tier, but also at a higher price.

Both models run on iOS 26, Apple’s latest operating system, so the software is the same.

iOS 26 is the biggest visual overhaul of Apple’s mobile OS in the last decade, and it comes with a new Liquid Glass design. This can either be (relatively) subtle if you stick with the default look of the system, or it can be very “in your face” if you go for the new “Clear Look” that makes everything glassy and transparent. Windows Vista called; it wants its glass back.

iOS 26 with Liquid Glass

Apart from the design change, you get a number of cool and useful features in iOS 26.

The cool ones include a new dynamic wallpaper where the clock fluidly adapts to the available space on the wallpaper, and the whole wallpaper also moves and adapts for better visibility when you receive notifications. There is also new animated album art that you can see when you tap on the Now Playing menu.

The useful features include a new simplified Camera design, which hides all modes except photo and video (no worries here, a swipe left and right will reveal them).

Oh yeah, and Apple also fixes the Photos app mess from the previous iOS version withn easy access to your albums.

But the really useful stuff is in the Phone and Messages app. You get new Call Screening features that let you fend off telemarketers (Pixel phones had this much earlier). This will also work in Messages, filtering out spammy messages.

Messages is getting improved with typing indicators, custom backgrounds for chats, and the ability to add polls in your group chats.

Camera

Not all triple cameras are equal

A big upgrade to the telephoto camera

Sure, both the 17 Pro Max and 14 Pro Max use a triple-camera array at the back, but they are quite different. 

With the iPhone 17 Pro Max, we are getting 48MP sensors on all cameras, and the tetraprism telephoto camera is getting a big upgrade.

This new zoom camera features a larger physical sensor and a new 4X native zoom level. With sensor cropping, you can get lossless quality at 8X too, and the maximum digital zoom level is now 40X.

The 14 Pro Max has a regular (non-tetraprism) telephoto camera with 3X zoom level, so it’s not quite as good with long-range zooming.

Another change is found up front, where a new 18MP Center Stage camera not only brings a higher resolution and more detail, but it also uses a square sensor like action cameras. This allows for Action Mode-like stabilization on it, and a very cool new ability to shoot landscape photos while you still hold the phone vertically.

Front Camera Detail

It is not just the reduced noise, however, as there is just more detail all around.

We also like the new Dual Capture mode in video where you can simultaneously record using the rear cameras and overlay the front camera on top of that. With the new Center Stage camera, the front camera feed is more stable and you are always in frame.

When it comes to video recording, the 17 Pro Max gets ProRes RAW video recording where you can squeeze the highest dynamic range (but the files will also be gigantic). The other signature new feature is GenLock, which allows you to sync videos across multiple devices on a larger production. While nice and dandy, these features will probably only interest the 1% that are into serious video making and not your average user.

Battery Life and Charging

A bigger battery and more efficient chip tip the scales in favor of the newer device

It can last longer and charge faster

While exact battery sizes are among the last specs to be unveiled, we now have the battery life numbers and they suggest a notable boost in battery life.

The caveat here is that battery sizes on the iPhone 17 Pro Max are different depending on whether you get the eSIM model (all iPhones in the US are eSIM) or not (European models have a physical SIM card). The eSIM models have a slightly bigger battery, making use of the extra space not occupied by the plastic SIM card.

Here are the official battery life estimates by Apple:

And below, you can see the battery and charging specs:

Charging-wise, the 17 Pro Max gets a big upgrade. After years of limiting iPhones to slower charging, Apple is finally allowing for 40W charging. The 14 Pro Max can charge up to 25W only.

In practical terms, that means that you can reach a 50% charge in just 20 minutes on the 17 Pro Max, while it takes more than 30 minutes to get there on the 14 Pro Max.

MagSafe is available on both, but the 17 Pro Max supprots the faster 25W charging speeds compared to 15W on the 14 Pro Max.

There is no reverse wireless charging on either of these models.

Specs Comparison

Here’s how the iPhone 17 Pro Max compares against the iPhone 14 Pro Max:

Summary

A lot has changed in three years.

The iPhone 17 Pro Max looks bolder and different, it has much better battery life and faster charging, it no longer uses a Lightning port and it has a new Camera Control and Action buttons.

It is also faster with a new chip and ready for Apple Intelligence (even if that takes an extra beat to arrive).

The changes in the camera are not massive, but with better quality telephoto camera and new front camera tricks, they are noticeable. 

We also like the smaller touches like a brighter screen during the day, dimmer at night and the new anti-reflectivity coating and better scratch protection.

If your iPhone 14 Pro Max is starting to feel a bit old, you surely won’t regret updating to the 17 Pro Max.