iPhone 18 Pro Max review: Apple’s biggest and longest-lasting smartphone
Apple’s iPhone 18 Pro Max combines a 6.9-inch display, the A20 Pro chip and the company’s largest iPhone battery. It lasted almost three days in light use, but weighs 249g and is difficult to operate one-handed.
Image: theguardian.com · Author: https://www.theguardian.com/profile/samuel-gibbs · source articleEditorial excerpt for news reporting
The iPhone 18 Pro Max is Apple’s largest model, with a 6.9-inch OLED display, the A20 Pro chip and an overhauled cooling system. Prices start at £1,299 (€1,599/$1,299/A$2,299).
The battery lasted almost three days under light use, including about seven hours of active screen time. That is roughly four hours longer than its predecessor and almost a day longer than the iPhone 18 Pro.
The phone weighs 249g, 38g more than the smaller model. Extended use caused hand discomfort during testing, making a strap or grip useful for some owners.
Display, performance and connectivity
The Super Retina XDR display has 460ppi, a 120Hz refresh rate and an anti-glare coating. Connectivity includes 5G, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, NFC, USB-C, satellite, UWB and GNSS, while the body carries an IP68 rating.
The A20 Pro chip delivers high performance, including during extended gaming sessions. The phone runs iOS 27, which speeds up app launches, refines the Liquid Glass design and expands Apple’s artificial-intelligence tools.
Cameras and Siri
The rear camera system consists of three 48MP cameras: main, ultra-wide and telephoto, with 4x optical zoom. The main camera adds a variable aperture that can open wider in low light or narrow to preserve depth of field.
Other additions include AI-powered focus tracking, updated Photographic Styles, a digital negative feature and automatic cinematic video mode. The new Siri understands requests better, can inspect the screen or camera view and stores previous conversations, but mainly relies on Mail and Messages rather than third-party apps.
Repairs and pricing
The battery is rated for more than 1,000 full charge cycles while retaining at least 80% of its original capacity. Replacement costs £119 and an out-of-warranty screen repair costs £389; iFixit gave the phone a repairability score of seven out of 10.
More than 40% of the device uses recycled material. Apple also offers trade-in and free recycling programmes.
Overall, the iPhone 18 Pro Max stands out for its display, battery life, cameras and performance, but remains very heavy and expensive. Compared with the iPhone 17 Pro Max, the upgrade is largely incremental, while the review says Apple’s AI tools still trail the strongest competitors.
What we know
- The iPhone 18 Pro Max lasted almost three days in light use.
- The phone weighs 249g and is difficult to use one-handed.
- A variable main-camera aperture adds new photography options.
- Prices start at £1,299.
- Battery replacement costs £119.
Trust: Single source
- The story relies on one publisher. A second independent confirmation has not been established from the cited sources.
- Sources: The Guardian Technology.
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