Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max ZDNET's key takeaways The new flagship iPhone brings two big photography upgrades, in the zoom camera and the front-facing camera
The new A19 Pro processor, the N1 chip, and the thermal upgrades combine to rev up performance
For the author, this year's upgrade choice boils down to overcoming a flaw in the past two Pro Max models View now at Amazon View now at Best Buy View now at T-Mobile more buying choices
As far as annual upgrades go, we got a lot in the iPhone 17 Pro Max -- a redesign, a change of materials, new colors, a battery upgrade, a processor made even more intentionally for AI, two big camera refinements, and a fix for last year's biggest flaw.
But how does it fit together in one package, what's it like to use, and is it worth the upgrade? We're here to discuss these questions, as we do every year.
As far as iPhone reviews go, I've combined my iPhone Pro and Pro Max reviews into one story for the last several years, because the two have been so similar. They are more similar than ever this year, with the only differences being the larger screen and larger battery in the Pro Max.
Also: Best iPhone 2025: I compared the top models and found the best options for you
So this year, I'm just going to make my review all about the iPhone 17 Pro Max. You can safely assume virtually all of this applies to the Pro model as well, if the smaller Pro is your jam.
I have upgraded iPhones every year since the first iPhone in 2007, and the Pro Max has been the iPhone model I've upgraded to every year since the first one arrived with the iPhone 11 Pro Max in 2019. I also had the iPhone XS Max the year before, if you think of that one as the first Max.
And, of course, I'm not alone. The Pro Max has been the best-selling iPhone model since the iPhone 14 Pro Max, which began a reign of making the largest, most expensive iPhone the best-selling phone model in the world, according to Omdia research.
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