I upgraded to the iPhone 17 Pro Max and solved every problem I had

The new features may seem small, but the iPhone 17 Pro Max smooths out a ton of flaws.

- BY MAHMOUD ITANI

It's no secret that the iPhone has matured, with dramatic innovations now arriving only every several years. The regular iPhone 17 (fave.co/49YHXVo) adopting past Pro exclusives is a clear admission that we're approaching the iPhone's final form. As such, Pro users on an annual upgrade cycle often find little to be impressed by—and this year appears to be no different.

While one could easily distinguish the iPhone 16 Pro Max from the 17 Pro Max visually, the actual upgrades this year are relatively limited. Beyond the overhauled chassis, casual users will likely notice the sharper telephoto and selfie cameras—and a few other obvious changes. Despite this, I decided to upgrade from last year’s flagship to the iPhone 17 Pro Max (fave.co/4qmlciP), and I don’t regret it one bit.

A WHOLE LOT OF MEGAPIXELS

Arguably, the iPhone 17 Pro Max's most notable functional upgrade is its new camera capabilities. With this release, Apple boosted the telephoto lens from 12MP to a whopping 48MP, putting it on par with the wide and ultrawide rear lenses. This unlocks higher optical and digital zoom levels, letting users capture from afar—while still maintaining details and clarity.

The iPhone 17 Pro Max's camera system is a bigger upgrade than it seems.