iPhone 15 Pro Max Review

Aug 21, 2025 • Onoja • Phones

iPhone 15 Pro Max Review

The iPhone 15 Pro Max is the top model of the iPhone 15 lineup, and personally, it is one of my absolute favorites.

After using the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra and the Google Pixel 9 Pro, the iPhone 15 Pro Max tends to tick a lot on my list; personally, it's one of the best iPhones that has ever been produced. From its display to its battery, camera, and processor, the iPhone 15 Pro Max outperforms many of its competitors.

In this review, we'll be examining the iPhone 15 Pro Max in-depth after a prolonged period of use.

So, for starters, we're looking at the body of the iPhone 15 Pro Max.

When it comes to the body of the iPhone 15 Pro Max, one of the major things that Apple used to capture me is the titanium body frame. The fact that this phone is very resistant to scratches is quite impressive. I used this phone for a while; trust me, even without using the pouch or, let's say, an Apple case, the phone still withstands scratches, falls, and drops, which is crucial for someone like me who is clumsy with their phones.

The iPhone 15 Pro Max saved me a lot with its aluminum frame, which is a departure from the previous model, the iPhone 14 lineup. The iPhone 15 Pro Max proved to be a standout, particularly in terms of basic design, although I used the white titanium model. I never really liked or admired the natural titanium on the iPhone 15; I was more of a fan of the white titanium and also the black titanium. Another thing that caught my eye was the pronounced curve of the iPhone 15 Pro Max's edges. As I mentioned, its predecessor has a more boxy shape, and I must admit, I wasn't a fan of that.

So next is the weight of the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Naturally, the titanium design is significantly lighter than the aluminum design, which caught my attention, and to be honest, it was a real upgrade from the iPhone 14 Pro Max. The titanium tends to make the phone a little bit lighter, whereas with your phone case or pouch, it was significantly lighter, which made more sense to me, considering that more phones were becoming more bulky and heavier in hand.

The iPhone 15 Pro Max felt like a premium quality device. Now let's move to the other body components of the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Another new introduction to the iPhone lineup is the action button. As you guys know, A big upgrade from the silent and ring volume button on the previous iPhones, like the 14 lineup, the iPhone 15 lineup got a new upgrade which is called the action button, This is a customizable button on the 15 lineup at which you can customize actions like silent, take screenshots, and a lot more. The action button was highly anticipated, as it was one of my most eagerly awaited features in the iPhone 15 lineup, and trust me, this one delivers.

Another notable feature is that Apple has changed its charging setup from Lightning ports to Type-C ports. Trust me, this is long overdue, as you guys know for a fact that most phones usually come with the Type-C charging port. The fact that someone has to switch between different cords just makes the iPhone a little cheeky, and it disorganizes your room and setup. So, yeah, that was a much-anticipated change, and I like it.

Display

When it comes to the display of the iPhone 15 Pro Max, I'm actually very impressed with it, considering that I do short-term photography on the side and also do a lot of videography and color grading.

The display of the iPhone 15 Pro Max is, in my opinion, a very impressive upgrade. The colors are more accurate, whether it's dark or not. In the afternoon, or at night, the colors tend to pop a lot, and trust me, this is a concern of mine when it comes to getting iPhones or any phone in general.

And that's where the Google Pixel ticks it for me. I like how the Google Pixel translates its colors, and trust me, it's a good comparison to the iPhone, although I was not really satisfied with the protection that is the ceramic shield of the iPhone 15 Pro Max, because I tend not to use screen protectors a lot, and I noticed a lot of scratches. For instance, the iPhone 15 Pro Max is prone to scratches quite easily, which is a significant concern. However, anyone purchasing the iPhone 15 Pro Max should keep in mind that they will need to use a screen protector.

However, if scratches are not a concern for you, you can opt for the iPhone 15 Pro Max with or without a screen protector. Nevertheless, it's essential to be mindful of scratches on the screen of your iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Next is the 128 Hz refresh rate of the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Trust me, this tends to really smooth out compared to its predecessors. I actually fell in love with the refresh rate of the iPhone 15 Max, especially when it comes to gaming, as I tend to play games like Call of Duty a lot now. The screen actually did its job and is outperforming other models, such as the iPhone 14 Pro Max and the iPhone 14 Pro. The 6.9-inch screen tends to come into play frequently, as it offers a wider gaming experience and a more immersive one.

For the Dynamic Island of the iPhone 15 Pro Max, you tend to fall in love with the Dynamic Island after it was released on the iPhone 14 lineup, and the Dynamic Island tends to give the iPhone a more refined look and unique shape, which just makes it stand out against its competitors and predecessors. The Dynamic Island on the iPhone 15 Pro Max is a truly impressive sight to behold, and trust me, it's very nice indeed.

The next thing to examine is the camera.

The camera of the iPhone 15 Pro Max is very impressive, and considering the fact that the cameras of each phone are actually the major focus for most users' priorities, as there is a current boom in content creation and mobile photography,

The iPhone 15 Pro Max 10 ticks a lot of boxes for me, most especially when it comes to shooting at night. Its 48-megapixel quad-pixel sensor camera tends to perform outstandingly during the night. I personally tested this feature during the night, as I took many pictures while out at night.

It's also quite impressive when it comes to daytime shooting, as you have an option to choose from its focal length of 13 mm, 24 mm, 28 mm, 35 mm, 48 mm, 77 mm, or 128 mm.

For an average user, this might not come quite as handy, but for a user who is into mobile photography or videography in general, this is a very useful option, as it enhances the capabilities of the iPhone 15 Pro Max camera.

Another impressive feature is that you can shoot ProRes and log footage on this device. This is actually a step up for mobile videographers, but there's a catch to it: if you get, let's say, the 256 GB variant of this iPhone, you'll actually experience a space issue, as log footage tends to be much larger than normal videos, so if you are, let's say, a mobile videographer, I'll actually advise that you get a higher variant, like the 512 GB or possibly the 1 terabyte version of the iPhone 15 Pro Max, as all the cameras of the iPhone 15 Pro Max are actually very, very nice.

Next, we will examine the battery life.

The battery life of the iPhone 15 Pro Max was quite good when I first received it, but after prolonged use, it became less impressive.

Let's just put, for instance, when I got the iPhone 15 Pro Max after a full charge, I can get a complete day of usage, but over time it started to drop to around, let's say, 3:00 p.m., then we got to 2:00 p.m., and it just went down to, let's say, around 1:00 p.m.

This doesn't really make sense to me, considering that I'm actually very observant about the battery life of my iPhone, although I am a heavy user (emphasis on 'heavy user'). I tend to use my iPhone a lot because I actually run a business, and trust me, you tend to use your iPhone a lot when you run a business.

So, Apple actually claims 29 hours of usage, which to me feels false at this point, considering that my battery health has dropped from around 100% to around 92% in just three months of usage.

The iPhone 15 Pro Max did not impress me in terms of battery life. I had to carry a power bank around or charge my phone in my car at every instance, making me actually reconsider getting the newer versions, which are part of the 16 lineup.

But one thing that also specifically impressed me was how fast the charging on the iPhone 15 Pro Max was; it actually gets around, let's say, 18 to 20 watts of charging because I actually use a cable that shows you how many watts it's charging at a specific time, so I actually got 18 to 21 W of charging, which was quite impressive.

The only thing that I was not impressed by was how quickly the battery drained. However, let's not forget that this is a Pro Max model, so the battery is much larger, but usage is also much heavier. However, if you are considering the battery, it is, to put it mildly, average.

The next thing we will examine is its overall performance.

The iPhone 15 Pro Max's performance is quite impressive, particularly in terms of daily usage, gaming, and a wide range of other applications.

I play Call of Duty on the iPhone 15 Pro Max, and trust me, it was a smooth experience. Combined with the 120 Hz refresh rate of the display, the a17 pro chip tends to perform well, but there was a little loophole that I discovered when using the iPhone 15 Pro Max, which was the fact that whenever I played game and the battery was quite low, the phone tends to overheat and also lags a lot, but I'll just attribute that to the fact that the battery was at an optimized rate when low.

Aside from that, every other function was actually superb, from scrolling online to typing, answering calls, and basically general use; the performance of the iPhone 15 Pro Max was very, very good compared to its predecessors.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the iPhone 15 Pro Max remains a great buy in 2025. Considering that the iPhone 16 lineup has already been released and is making a buzz, the iPhone 15 Pro Max still stands out as a standout.