
The Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max remains a solid choice, offering a premium user experience nearly identical to the newer model but at a more accessible price point. It features a stunning 6.9-inch OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and delivers great overall battery life, making it well-suited for daily use.
While its performance is slightly outmatched by the latest chipset and its charging is slower, its camera system still offers competitive telephoto performance and similar selfie quality. For users seeking excellent value and a familiar high-end iPhone experience, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is a compelling option.
“The iPhone 16 Pro Max brings the traditional design language if you prefer that. The phone has louder speakers and overall it can provide nearly the same user experience as the new model at a lower price.”
“But the iPhone 16 Pro Max is still quite a solid choice that you might even prefer and it can save you a bit of cash.”
The reviewer expressed surprise at the positive results of the iPhone 16 Pro Max, particularly in the camera category. Despite having a lower native zoom (25x), after enhancing photos with Google Gemini AI, the iPhone offered better quality than competing models, while preserving original details like logos.
Furthermore, the iPhone 16 Pro Max maintains an advantage in video recording quality over the latest Pixels. The reviewer did not notice significant differences in displays between this model and the Pixel 10 Pro XL, while also noting that Android phones are currently just as expensive as iPhones.
“I assumed there would be a huge difference in favor of the Pixel, but here's a surprise. The iPhone wins without having a hundred times zoom, which makes no sense.”
“the logo was not changed. So, in summary, it's not perfect, but in my opinion, when you look at the picture from the iPhone improved by Gemini and the picture from the Pixel also improved by the same AI, then the iPhone is better.”
“videos made with these latest Pixels still come out worse than videos made with iPhones.”
“I'm not going to use this anymore. I can't. It's too hot.”
“I can't do that with the iPhone. I can't do it with the current version of iOS. I don't really think I'm I'm going to be able to do it with iOS 26 because it's so confusing and weird. And again, it's not finished.”
“the iPhone technically has the smallest battery. And so, in terms of per what performance or, you know, per what longevity of the phone, you know, the iPhone generally comes first. And I think that is what we're going to see again here.”
“repeatedly in my tests, the iPhone just outlasts the Samsung.”
“repeatedly in my tests, the iPhone just outlasts the Samsung.”
The Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max is a clear flagship, excelling with an advanced multi-lens camera system, a powerful A18 Pro chip for demanding performance, and a smooth ProMotion OLED display. It offers high-end features like 5x optical zoom and faster data speeds, making it technically impressive.
However, the reviewer ultimately found its massive size to be a significant inconvenience for daily use, leading to a switch to a smaller phone. Furthermore, the device is criticized for being "way too expensive," with features such as ProMotion and the ultrawide camera packaged as premium "Pro" offerings rather than standard inclusions.
While its technical capabilities are strong, practical usability and perceived value emerge as notable drawbacks, especially given its real-world battery life is outpaced by a cheaper model.
“the iPhone 16 Pro Max, yes, it's clearly a flagship. [...] it's massive. It's huge and it is a real problem for your trousers.”
“there's two things that I miss from this big phone. Prootion and the camera system. That's it.”
The Caviar Trump x Bitcoin iPhone 16 Pro Max presents an extremely robust and substantial device, featuring premium materials like titanium and 24-karat gold. It notably includes a power brick and braided USB-C cable, which are not standard Apple inclusions.
However, its $10,000 price point for the 256GB model is exceptionally high. The reviewer also raises concerns about its long-term value, as it is based on regularly updated iPhone technology, suggesting that maintaining currency with new models would incur continuous significant costs.
“a handmade piece that fits onto the phone where you would typically have your back plate. And then same on the front. And it like it almost looks like there's like a a really thick presumably sapphire screen protector on there. So the whole thing ends up feeling extremely robust.”
“the tough part with these devices is like they're built on top of existing technology. In this case, an iPhone 16 and then like what happens when the 17 comes out and anybody with this kind of money is going to want that. So, my goodness, they're having to spend quite a few bucks to stay up todate.”