iPhone 12 Pro Max

Capture stunning stills and richly detailed HDR clips with this top-of-the–range device

- George Cairns

From £1,099 FROM Apple, apple.com/uk

FEATURES A14 Bionic, 128/256/512GB storage, 6.7–inch Super Retina XDR OLED display, Ceramic Shield front, Pro camera system with 12MP Ultra-Wide, Wide, and Telephoto, LiDAR scanner (rear), 12MP camera (front), Dolby Vision recording (60fps), 5G, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0

The first thing that might strike you when unboxing the iPhone 12 Pro Max, is its size and weight. The phone weighs in at just 226g. At 160.8x 78.1x7.4mm, anyone with relatively small hands might be a little concerned about being able to comfortably hold it one-handed, especially when using it to take photos. Fortunately, you can set the iPhone 12 Pro Max up to trigger the Camera app’s shutter when clicking the volume button, so you can compose photos and shoot single-handed.

There is an added bit of jeopardy though, thanks to the slippery smoothness of the matt glass back and stainless steel edge. Apple claim the iPhone 12 Pro Max has four times better drop performance than the iPhone 11 Pro, but nobody’s too keen to put that to the test. With an IP68 rating, the phone is also splash- and water-resistant.

The generous 6.7-inch display is Super Retina XDR with a 2778x1284-pixel resolution at 458 ppi. Inside, as per the other handsets in the iPhone 12 range, you get the A14 Bionic chip. And, again like the others, you get 5G capability, as well as Bluetooth 5.0 and Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) support. Like the rest of the iPhone 12 range, this is certainly a good future-proof purchase. But, at a starting price of £1,099, the iPhone 12 Pro Max has a hefty price tag, so apart from the larger display, what differentiates this handset, and is it worth spending the extra money?