iPhone 13 Pro Max first impression: An iPhone 12s and a little more

With the iPhone 13, Apple disinherits the iPhone 12. There was a lot of speculation around the globe before the release. But now the iPhone 13 Pro Max has arrived on the market and in my hands and we have tested it.

Every year, speculation about the design and innovations of the iPhones is heated up anew, but it usually turns out that the water is lukewarm. I'll share my experiences since the release of the iPhone 13 Pro Max with you in this article.

Between speculation and reality

Anyone who has followed social media such as Twitter or YouTube kept pulling their toenails out of excitement because they kept hearing news that were too good to be true - no notch, all iPhone 13s with 120 Hertz and much more. In truth, Apple changed the appearance of the devices only marginally. Something here that changes the camera module, as the arrangement of the camera lenses is installed offset and ultimately reduces the notch. Still, the iPhone 13 remained an iPhone as we know it.

The changes that differ only slightly from the predecessor

Anyone who knows Apple knows that the Californians only improve or change their design every few years. So it happened this year too, and here and there we tweaked the optics and updated the hardware.

Last year, Apple made the difference between all 4 models so small that many people were very reluctant to switch. This has changed for the better this year. The iPhone 13 Pro Max differs not only in size from its sibling models, but also under the hood. For the first time, there is exclusively more computing power, a 120-hertz display, a larger camera and a significantly stronger battery, as well as the rearrangement of the earpiece, without Apple raising the price.

Active use in everyday life

If you are already used to an iPhone 12 Pro Max, you will not notice any changes in everyday life. You can either charge the device with an old power adapter or use a MagSafe charger. You will definitely notice that the notch has become smaller, but you will quickly get used to it, so it is not a noticeable change.

For the first time, the iPhone 13 Pro Max is coming onto the market with an adaptive 120 Hertz display. And the experience, as many Android users have known for years, is a rocket. The refresh rate is adaptively adjusted in the interval between 10 Hertz and 120 Hertz, which can be very useful. 120 Hertz can be displayed for mobile gaming and just 10 Hertz is enough for a leisurely evening reading an e-book. This is noticeable in usage behavior, as you use significantly less battery compared to using it with a continuous 60 Hertz. However, not every user recognizes the difference between 60 and 120 Hertz. As a tech nerd and blogger, I was of course excited about my iPhone 13 Pro Max.

If you were hoping to be able to charge your iPhone 13 Pro Max at Oppo speed, I'm afraid I have to disappoint you, because it still charges like its predecessor. And that can take time - so it's better to plug it in in the evening and use it again the next morning. If you spend a relatively short amount of time on your iPhone 13 Pro Max, the battery can last a good two days. As a heavy user, I pushed the iPhone to the limit after around 10 hours of reading books, watching YouTube and surfing the web, and charged my iPhone to around 30 percent on my MagSafe charger.

iPhone 13 Pro Max: Photos à la Influencer

Apple has pimped up the cameras and installed a much larger image sensor that can capture significantly more light on all three lenses. Thanks to the new A15 Bionic processor, which does its job in the iPhone 13 Pro Max, images are calculated in real time as soon as the shutter is released and give a great end result without having to do any post-processing. Yes, it is much more fun to take pictures of an environment or an object in the dark.

Even with an iPhone 13 Pro Max, you can take great handheld photos in really dim lighting conditions. (Image: Kevin Özgün/TechnikNews)

Many of you know proprofessional films or videos, the blurred background when objects are brought into focus. Apple is now making this feature possible for the first time as a so-called "cinema mode". In my eyes, this still feels like a beta, since the software still has many unsightly bugs. Many objects are currently not reliably recognized, so that, for example, an ear is blurred, which should actually look clear.

The macro mode

One feature that Apple has implemented in the camera is macro mode. You can focus almost 2 centimeters on an object such as a flower and capture truly breathtaking images. The pictures are really high quality and detailed. It's really great fun for hobby clippers!

Currently, all you have to do is move the camera close enough to an object so that the iPhone 13 Pro Max can focus on it precisely. Try it out for yourself!

Does the iPhone 13 Pro Max deserve its name?

A 20 percent smaller notch, a larger camera, a larger battery and 120 Hertz. Apple has incorporated these "achievements" into its latest flagship, the iPhone 13 Pro Max. Apple has dared to usher in a new generation of iPhones - but to be honest, for me it is more evolution than revolution. To be honest, Apple should not have marketed it as an iPhone 13 Pro Max, but as an iPhone 12s.