Home Phone comparison Apple iPhone 16 and Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max - Which is better?

Apple iPhone 16 vs Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max

86 out 100
Apple iPhone 16
VS
n/a out 100
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
Apple iPhone 16
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max

Compared 2 smartphones : Apple iPhone 16 Manufactured in September, 2024, with display 6.1 with chipsetApple A18, vs Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max, Manufactured in September, 2025with chipsetApple A19 Pro. Below are specs, tests, pros and cons for each device

  1. Differences
  2. Review
  3. Specs
  4. Benchmarks
  5. Battery Life
  6. Cameras
  7. Comments (0)

Key Differences

Device key advantages
Reasons to choose Apple iPhone 16
  • Higher pixel density: 460ppi
  • Lighter design: 170g vs 221g
Reasons to choose Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
  • Larger display: 6.9in
  • Higher refresh rate: 120Hz
  • Higher battery capacity: 4729mAh vs 3561mAh
  • Newer Bluetooth version: 5.4 vs 5.3
  • Supports newer USB: 3.2 vs 2

Versions

Available versions and configurations
Memory Options - 8/128 GB
- 8/256 GB
- 8/512 GB		 - 12/256 GB
- 12/512 GB
- 12/1024 GB

Review

Key Specs Apple iPhone 16 and Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
Display
Color accuracy, sharpness & brightness
Camera
Main & front camera tests
Performance
App & system performance
Games
3D gaming performance
Battery
Battery life, charging speed & type
Connectivity
Connectivity features
NanoReview Score
Overall score by NanoReview
Adjust each parameter’s importance to find the best match for you.
Customize your score
Function
Importance (Weight)
Display:
Camera:
Performance:
Gaming:
Battery:
Connectivity:
Higher weight means greater impact on NanoReview score.

Tests & specs

Specs & test comparison
Smartphones:
Apple iPhone 16
vs
iPhone 17 Pro Max

Display

Display quality comparison
Type OLED OLED
Size 6.1 in 6.9 in
Resolution 1179x2556 pixels 1320x2868 pixels
Aspect ratio 19.5:9 19.5:9
Pixel density 460 ppi 458 ppi
Refresh rate 60 Hz 120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No Yes (1-120 Hz)
Max brightness 2000 nits n/a
HDR support Yes Dolby Vision Yes Dolby Vision
Screen-to-body ratio 86.4 % 92.6 %
Features DCI-P3 - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
Display test
Peak brightness (auto)
Apple iPhone 16
1719 nits
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
n/a
sRGB gamut99.7 %n/a
PWM (Flicker)60 Hzn/a
Response time3 msn/a
Contrast∞ Infiniten/a
Sources: NotebookCheck [Apple iPhone 16]

Design & Build

Design and ergonomics comparison
Height 147.6 mm (5.81 in) 163 mm (6.42 in)
Width 71.6 mm (2.82 in) 77.4 mm (3.05 in)
Thickness 7.8 mm (0.31 in) 8.2 mm (0.32 in)
Weight 170 g (6 oz) 221 g (7.8 oz)
Water resistance IP68 IP68
Back panel Glass Glass
Frame Metal Metal
Colors - White
- Black
- Blue
- Green
- Pink		 - White
- Black
- Silver
Fingerprint sensor No No
Screen-to-body ratio
Apple iPhone 16
86.4 %
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
92.6 %

Performance

Testing Apple iPhone 16 and Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max In benchmarks
Processor
Chipset Apple A18 Apple A19 Pro
Max Frequency 4040 MHz 4300 MHz
CPU Cores 6 (2 + 4) n/a
Architecture - 4/2.42 (Sawtooth)
- 2/4.05 (Everest)		 n/a
Process TSMC n/a
Transistor Size 3 nm n/a
Neural Processor Neural Engine n/a
Graphics Apple A18 GPU n/a
GPU Cores 640 n/a
GPU Frequency 1490 MHz n/a
FLOPS 1907 GFLOPS n/a
GeekBench v6
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Apple iPhone 16
3283
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
3780
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Apple iPhone 16
8094
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
10772
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)32833780
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)809410772
Geekbench Compute (GPU)28055n/a
Sources: Geekbench v6 [Apple iPhone 16]
AnTuTu 10
AnTuTu 10
Apple iPhone 16
1580390
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
2112459
CPU439113510033
GPU611111791934
Memory181791367847
UX348375442645
NanoReview Score15803902112459
3DMark Wild Life
Sources: 3DMark [Apple iPhone 16]

Memory

RAM
RAM Size 8 GB 12 GB
Memory Type LPDDR5X LPDDR5X
Channels 4 4
Storage
Storage Capacity128 GB256 GB
Storage TypeNVMeNVMe
Memory CardNoNo

Software

OS iOS 18 (Upgradeable to iOS 18.5) iOS 26
OS Size 16 GB n/a

Battery

Volume 3561 mAh 4729 mAh
Max Charging Power 30 W 30 W
Battery Type Li-ion Li-ion
Removable No No
Wireless Charging Yes (15 W) Yes (15 W)
Reverse Charging Yes Yes
Fast Charging Yes (59% in 30 min) Yes
Full Charge Time 1:42 h n/a
Battery Life Test
Battery Life
Apple iPhone 16
29:45
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
n/a
Web Browsing13:44 hn/a
Video Playback18:09 hn/a
Games05:56 hn/a
Standby Mode130 hn/a

Main camera

Matrix 48 MP 48 MP
Photo resolution 8064x6048 pixels 8064x6048 pixels
Zoom 116 Optical, 5x
Flash Dual LED Dual LED
Stabilization Optical Optical
8K Recording No No
4K Recording Yes (Up to 60 fps) Yes (Up to 120 fps)
1080p Recording Yes (Up to 60 fps) Yes (Up to 120 fps)
Slow Motion 240 fps (1080p) 240 fps (1080p)
Wide-angle lens 120 ° 120 °
Lenses count Standard: 48 MP
Ultra-wide: 12 MP		 Standard: 48 MP
Telephoto: 48 MP
Ultra-wide: 48 MP
Depth
Features - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode		 - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- RAW support
Main lens
Matrix48 MP48 MP
Aperturef/1.6f/1.6
Focal length26 mmn/a
Sensor size1/1.561/1.28
Pixel size1 μm1.22 μm
AutofocusPhase autofocus (Dual Pixel)Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel)
StabilizationOpticalOptical
Telephoto
Matrixn/a48 MP
Aperturen/af/2.8
Focal lengthn/a120 mm
Stabilizationn/aOptical
Ultra-wide lens
Matrix12 MP48 MP
Aperturef/2.2f/2.2
Focal length13 mm13 mm
Pixel size0.7 μm0.7 μm
StabilizationDigitalDigital
Main camera DxOMark results
Photo quality
Apple iPhone 16
149
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
n/a
Video quality
Apple iPhone 16
154
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
n/a
Overall camera score
Apple iPhone 16
147
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
n/a
Bokeh80n/a
Preview84n/a
Sources: DxOMark [Apple iPhone 16]

Front camera

Matrix 12 MP 24 MP
Photo resolution 4032x3024 pixels n/a
Aperture f/1.9 f/1.9
Focal length 23 mm n/a
Sensor CMOS n/a
Sensor size 1/3.6 n/a
Pixel size 1.12 μm 1.12 μm
Autofocus Phase autofocus Phase autofocus
Stabilization Digital Optical
Video resolution 2160p (4K) at 60 fps 2160p (4K) at 60 fps
TOF 3D sensor Yes Yes

Connectivity

Wi-Fi version Wi-Fi 7 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be) Wi-Fi 7 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be)
Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display		 - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version 5.3 5.4
Bluetooth features LE LE
USB type USB Type-C USB Type-C
USB version 2 3.2
USB features - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG		 - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG
DisplayPort Yes Yes
GPS - GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo
- QZSS		 - GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo
- QZSS
- NAVIC
NFC* Yes Yes
Infrared Port No No
Connectivity
SIM TypeNanoeSIM
eSIM Support *YesYes
Hybrid SlotNoNo
2G BandsGSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)n/a
3G BandsUMTS/HSPA+/DC‑HSDPA (850, 900, 1700/2100, 1900, 2100 MHz)n/a
LTE Bands*LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B13/B14/B17/B18/B19/B20/B25/B26/B28/B29/B30/B32/B34/B38/B39/B40/B41/B42/B48/B53/B66/B71)n/a
5G SupportYesYes

Sound

3.5 mm Jack No No
FM Radio No No
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Speaker Test
Max Volume
Apple iPhone 16
90.4 dB
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
n/a

Other

Class Flagship Flagship
Announced September, 2024 yr September, 2025 yr
Release Date September, 2024 yr September, 2025 yr
MSRP ($) 799 1199
Sensors - Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Face Sensor		 - Barometer
- Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Face Sensor
Charger Included No No

Note

Apple iPhone 16:

The US model is eSIM-only, while the international version offers both a physical SIM slot and eSIM support.

* Attention! Config, frequencies, NFC, and other specs may vary by region.

Results

After analyzing the data, we consider Apple iPhone 16 the clear winner in this comparison.

Survey

Which smartphone would you pick?
1 (50%)
1 (50%)
Total Votes: 2

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