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

Apple iPhone XS vs Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max

52 out 100
Apple iPhone XS
VS
n/a out 100
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
Apple iPhone XS
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max

Compared 2 smartphones : Apple iPhone XS Manufactured in September, 2018, with display 5.8 with chipsetApple A12 Bionic, vs Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max, Manufactured in September, 2025 with 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 XS
  • Lighter design: 177g vs 221g
Reasons to choose Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
  • Larger display: 6.9in
  • Higher refresh rate: 120Hz
  • Higher battery capacity: 4729mAh vs 2658mAh
  • Newer Bluetooth version: 5.4 vs 5
  • Supports newer USB: 3.2 vs 2
  • Supports DisplayPort

Versions

Available versions and configurations
Memory Options - 4/64 GB
- 4/256 GB
- 4/512 GB		 - 12/256 GB
- 12/512 GB
- 12/1024 GB

Review

Key Specs Apple iPhone XS 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 XS
vs
iPhone 17 Pro Max

Display

Display quality comparison
Type OLED OLED
Size 5.8 in 6.9 in
Resolution 1125x2436 pixels 1320x2868 pixels
Aspect ratio 19.5:9 19.5:9
Pixel density 458 ppi 458 ppi
Refresh rate 60 Hz 120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No Yes (1-120 Hz)
Max brightness 625 nits n/a
HDR support Yes Dolby Vision Yes Dolby Vision
Touch Sampling Rate 120 Hz n/a
Screen-to-body ratio 81.1 % 92.6 %
Features DCI-P3 - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
Display test
Peak brightness (auto)
Apple iPhone XS
635 nits
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
n/a
sRGB gamut98.8 %n/a
PWM (Flicker)240 Hzn/a
Response time4.4 msn/a
Contrast∞ Infiniten/a
Sources: NotebookCheck [Apple iPhone XS]

Design & Build

Design and ergonomics comparison
Height 143.6 mm (5.65 in) 163 mm (6.42 in)
Width 70.9 mm (2.79 in) 77.4 mm (3.05 in)
Thickness 7.7 mm (0.3 in) 8.2 mm (0.32 in)
Weight 177 g (6.24 oz) 221 g (7.8 oz)
Water resistance IP68 IP68
Back panel Glass Glass
Frame Metal Metal
Colors - Silver
- Gold
- Gray		 - White
- Black
- Silver
Fingerprint sensor No No
Screen-to-body ratio
Apple iPhone XS
81.1 %
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
92.6 %

Performance

Testing Apple iPhone XS and Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max In benchmarks
Processor
Chipset Apple A12 Bionic Apple A19 Pro
Max Frequency 2490 MHz 4300 MHz
CPU Cores 6 (2 + 4) n/a
Architecture - 4/1.6 (Tempest)
- 2/2.49 (Vortex)		 n/a
Process TSMC n/a
Transistor Size 7 nm n/a
Neural Processor Neural Engine n/a
Graphics Apple A12 GPU n/a
GPU Cores 256 n/a
GPU Frequency 1100 MHz n/a
FLOPS 576 GFLOPS n/a
GeekBench v6
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Apple iPhone XS
1307
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
3780
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Apple iPhone XS
3447
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
10772
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)13073780
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)344710772
AnTuTu 10
AnTuTu 10
Apple iPhone XS
733639
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
2112459
CPU202576510033
GPU217548791934
Memory146853367847
UX166662442645
NanoReview Score7336392112459
3DMark Wild Life
3DMark Wild Life
Apple iPhone XS
5698
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
n/a
Max Surface Temp.44.8 °Cn/a
Stability63 %n/a
Graphics Test34 fpsn/a
Graphics Score5698n/a
Sources: 3DMark [Apple iPhone XS]

Memory

RAM
RAM Size 4 GB 12 GB
Memory Type LPDDR4X LPDDR5X
Memory Frequency 2133 MHz n/a
Channels 2 4
Storage
Storage Capacity- 64 GB
- 256 GB
- 512 GB		256 GB
Storage TypeNVMeNVMe
Memory CardNoNo

Software

OS iOS 12 (Upgradeable to iOS 18.3.2) iOS 26
OS Size 11.8 GB n/a

Battery

Volume 2658 mAh 4729 mAh
Max Charging Power 15 W 30 W
Battery Type Li-ion Li-ion
Removable No No
Wireless Charging Yes Qi (10 W) Yes (15 W)
Reverse Charging No Yes
Fast Charging Yes (50% in 60 min) Yes
Full Charge Time 2:40 h n/a
Battery Life Test
Battery Life
Apple iPhone XS
16:06
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
n/a
Web Browsing05:44 hn/a
Video Playback09:44 hn/a
Games03:54 hn/a
Standby Mode84 hn/a

Main camera

Matrix 12 MP 48 MP
Photo resolution 4032x3024 pixels 8064x6048 pixels
Zoom Optical, 2x Optical, 5x
Flash Quad 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 n/a 120 °
Lenses count Standard: 12 MP
Telephoto: 12 MP		 Standard: 48 MP
Telephoto: 48 MP
Ultra-wide: 48 MP
Depth
Features - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- RAW support		 - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- RAW support
Main lens
Matrix12 MP48 MP
Aperturef/1.8f/1.6
Focal length26 mmn/a
SensorApple iSight Xn/a
Sensor size1/2.551/1.28
Pixel size1.4 μm1.22 μm
AutofocusPhase autofocus (Dual Pixel)Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel)
StabilizationOpticalOptical
Telephoto
Matrix12 MP48 MP
Aperturef/2.4f/2.8
Focal length52 mm120 mm
Sensor size1/3.4n/a
Pixel size1 μmn/a
StabilizationOpticalOptical
Ultra-wide lens
Matrixn/a48 MP
Aperturen/af/2.2
Focal lengthn/a13 mm
Pixel sizen/a0.7 μm
Stabilizationn/aDigital

Front camera

Matrix 7 MP 24 MP
Photo resolution 3088x2316 pixels n/a
Aperture f/2.2 f/1.9
Focal length 32 mm n/a
Sensor CMOS n/a
Pixel size 1.12 μm 1.12 μm
Autofocus Phase autofocus Phase autofocus
Stabilization Digital Optical
Video resolution 1080p (Full HD) at 30 fps 2160p (4K) at 60 fps
TOF 3D sensor No Yes

Connectivity

Wi-Fi version Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) 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 5.4
Bluetooth features SPP, PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, LE, HSP, HID, HFP, HDP, GAP, GAVDP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP LE
USB type No USB Type-C
USB version 2 3.2
USB features - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG		 - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG
DisplayPort n/a Yes
GPS - GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo		 - GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo
- QZSS
- NAVIC
NFC* Yes Yes
Infrared Port No No
Connectivity
SIM Count*1n/a
SIM TypeNanoeSIM
eSIM Support *YesYes
Hybrid SlotNoNo
2G BandsGSM 850, GSM 900, GSM 1800, GSM 1900n/a
3G BandsHSDPA 850, HSDPA 900, HSDPA 1900, HSDPA 2100n/a
LTE Bands*LTE (B700/B800/B850/B900/B1700/B1800/B1900/B2100/B2600)n/a
LTE category16n/a
5G SupportNoYes

Sound

Speakers Stereo n/a
3.5 mm Jack No No
FM Radio No No
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Speaker Test
Max Volume
Apple iPhone XS
87.3 dB
Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
n/a

Other

Class Flagship Flagship
Announced September, 2018 yr September, 2025 yr
Release Date September, 2018 yr September, 2025 yr
Launch Price ($) 1000 n/a
MSRP ($) n/a 1199
Sensors - Barometer
- Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Face Sensor		 - Barometer
- Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Face Sensor
Charger Included n/a No
* Attention! Config, frequencies, NFC, and other specs may vary by region.

Results

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

Survey

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1 (100%)
0 (0%)
Total Votes: 1

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