Your issues with the iPhone 13 Pro Max's UI aren't specific to the iPhone 13, but with Apple's Max iPhone category in general.
Nope! But I couldn’t tell you what it was. It was a weed growing in my strawberry bed. It was like 3 feet tall, definitely not a dandelion.
I think Apple has struggled with large devices. It keeps thinks simple and makes things universal. The iPhone 13 Pro Max is an amazing phone, but I want Apple to do more with it.
I find it weird that one of your main complaints is they were unable to finish many of the features that are to be included with this model, yet you also want them to do more.
Not weird at all; it’s actually the same complaint - the software is incompletely developed and doesn’t match the device’s potential.
It’s actually the same with the iPads, particularly the pro models. They’ve developed the hardware beyond the capabilities of the OS
IIRC, the iPhone 6 Plus supported a landscape orientation for the home screen and had a 3-section layout for Mail in landscape mode. I found it very useful.
I think a landscape mode would work very well on the Pro Max line.
That’s been an odd oversight of iOS in general since version 1. Most of the native apps automatically rotate to support landscape or portrait mode, but the Home Screen stubbornly stays in portrait mode.
all cell phones "underwhelm" unless you need them or want them...then they don't.
The max is the max simply because there is an audience out there that wants a larger screen and are willing to absorb the cost difference to get that. And you get some additional perks like battery life, video/camera enhancements as well. Not underwhelming.
...and if you are in the apple upgrade program, there's no real reason to not get the max.
...and not sure Apple really wants to create and maintain another fork in its iPhone iOS software development - max v non-max.
Please, stop spreading the Apple nonsense talking about “optical zoom”.
NO iPhone EVER HAD THAT.
The iPhone 13 Pro has three FIXED focal length camera modules. There’s a factor of 2 respectively 3 between the focal lengths. And then there software interpolation between these focal lengths. NOT optical zoom.
Zoom is defined by having a VARIABLE FOCAL LENGTH lens. Apple EMULATES this in software by combining the pixels of one or more camera modules and doing computational interpolation. This is exactly the opposite of “optical zoom”, this is software zoom, computational zoom, or whatever snazzy marketing term they want to call it, but NOT optical zoom.
I’m actually horrified by the incompetence of Apple’s legal team letting this slide, because this is a class action lawsuit waiting to happen.
IIRC, the iPhone 6 Plus supported a landscape orientation for the home screen and had a 3-section layout for Mail in landscape mode. I found it very useful.
I think a landscape mode would work very well on the Pro Max line.
That’s been an odd oversight of iOS in general since version 1. Most of the native apps automatically rotate to support landscape or portrait mode, but the Home Screen stubbornly stays in portrait mode.
Even the home screens DID rotate on older versions of iOS, they stopped doing that when the obnoxious Home Screen widgets were introduced, as the non-square widgets can’t be rotated in place.
Apple should have restricted Home Screen widgets to square formats of varying sizes, then Home Screen rotation would still be possible.
The lack of Home Screen rotation is particularly obnoxious when using the phone with a BT keyboard to enter/edit text, watch videos, etc. It’s a constant pick up, rotate, put back, pick up, rotate, etc. game. REALLY ANNOYING.
When the color is #1 on the list of "Pros", it suggests something is wrong with the culture.
Actually, for a Pro model that’s emphasizing photography, any color but matte black is a failure, ESPECIALLY given that there’s now a macro mode: light, worse color tinted light, reflecting off the photo gear onto the subject is an utter and total NO GO for anything that pretends to be “Pro”.
Older models (until XS max) still had a black camera bump, so no matter what the color of the phone, a matte black leather case would fix any photographic issues. These days the bump has bright device colors, so not even a dark case can fix the matter.
With the iPhone 12, one could get away with the Pacific Blue as it’s very dark, and low light situations generally have warm light temperatures rendering that blue essentially black.
With the iPhone 13, if you take photography seriously and particularly if you plan on using the macro photography functionality, you have exactly one suitable choice: midnight black
IIRC, the iPhone 6 Plus supported a landscape orientation for the home screen and had a 3-section layout for Mail in landscape mode. I found it very useful.
I think a landscape mode would work very well on the Pro Max line.
That’s been an odd oversight of iOS in general since version 1. Most of the native apps automatically rotate to support landscape or portrait mode, but the Home Screen stubbornly stays in portrait mode.
Agreed. Even if they are worried about making it too much like an iPad Mini, at least let the home screen rotate.
Not sure where AppleInsider's head is now ... there's been a small paradigm shift in Apple products and it's just something we have to get used to.
The iPhone Mini and iPhone are the same phone except for display size and battery life - same with the iPhone Pro and Pro Max (so I'm not sure how one impresses and the other is disappointing).
Get ready for it: it's gonna be the same for the 14" and 16" M1x MacBook Pros too - same capabilities, different form factor.
Of course the marketing price points offered may differ - such as a lower spec 14" as base - but the essentials will probably be the same.
I'm quite happy to spring for the extra $100 for the larger screen and battery - and I'm quite happy with the iPhone 13 Pro Max (outside of the iOS bugs which are common to all).
A great, very comprehensive review. I might quibble about dinging the Pro Max a full star but your critique was fair—Apple has done nothing useful with the extra screen real estate. I also “downgraded” from a Max to a regular Pro this cycle and I’m happy about it. With cameras now the same and the bigger battery no longer “essential” given the improvements in battery performance, it’s hard to justify carrying the bigger, heavier phone.
The pros are not in order of importance. A lot of people like when Apple comes out with new exclusive colors on the new devices. Design is important and color choice is part of that. It is one of many pros.
Any chance you could have chat to the design team responsible for AirPods?
When the color is #1 on the list of "Pros", it suggests something is wrong with the culture.
Actually, for a Pro model that’s emphasizing photography, any color but matte black is a failure, ESPECIALLY given that there’s now a macro mode: light, worse color tinted light, reflecting off the photo gear onto the subject is an utter and total NO GO for anything that pretends to be “Pro”.
Older models (until XS max) still had a black camera bump, so no matter what the color of the phone, a matte black leather case would fix any photographic issues. These days the bump has bright device colors, so not even a dark case can fix the matter.
With the iPhone 12, one could get away with the Pacific Blue as it’s very dark, and low light situations generally have warm light temperatures rendering that blue essentially black.
With the iPhone 13, if you take photography seriously and particularly if you plan on using the macro photography functionality, you have exactly one suitable choice: midnight black
If you take photography seriously, you won't be swinging an iPhone ffs.
A great, very comprehensive review. I might quibble about dinging the Pro Max a full star but your critique was fair—Apple has done nothing useful with the extra screen real estate. I also “downgraded” from a Max to a regular Pro this cycle and I’m happy about it. With cameras now the same and the bigger battery no longer “essential” given the improvements in battery performance, it’s hard to justify carrying the bigger, heavier phone.
I’m a pro max fan but, for about a minute, this got me considering the pro. But nope, I’m anxiously looking forward to the 13 pro max. I could care less about widgets and what else Apple would do with the extra real estate…. I set my Home Screen up with what I use. I read, view and sometimes edit docs, watch videos, take and edit photos, oh, and make phone calls with my iphone. Taking a point off of the Max is personal to the reviewer. To tell you the truth, I’m more upset (seriously upset) that Apple doesn’t have enough 13’s and we have to wait a month to get it. Ridiculous Ridiculous Ridiculous. I have to stop talking now… my blood is starting to boil, the hives are coming again…
To tell you the truth, I’m more upset (seriously upset) that Apple doesn’t have enough 13’s and we have to wait a month to get it. Ridiculous Ridiculous Ridiculous. I have to stop talking now… my blood is starting to boil, the hives are coming again…
Read the news much? Not only is there nothing "ridiculousx3" about it, it's a minor miracle that Apple was able to deliver iPhone 13 on schedule at all. Any industry that relies on chips for their products has had their production schedules destroyed over the past year by the chip shortage and this will continue into 2022. Apple, by virtue of twisting whatever arms it had to twist to get chips, is in the best shape of any of the major phone makers.
As for the Pro Max... I totally get the appeal of a bigger screen, and that alone can justify the purchase for some buyers. For me, it was always a combination of the bigger screen and the bigger battery that pushed me towards the Max and made the extra size and weight worth it. (And with the 12 series, the Pro Max camera system was at a whole other level vs. the Pro.) But now that Pro camera systems are equal again, and the 13 Pro has roughly the battery life of my 12 Pro Max, I don't need a bigger battery beyond that capacity. So it's down to "just" the bigger screen for me, and I'd rather give up a bit of screen for the smaller size and lighter weight of the 13 Pro. It even handles better as a camera for me because of the size/weight difference, and that's a plus I hadn't anticipated.
Every so often, these first-world pro problem stories come across as ADHD people that need their next 15-minute attention fix. "Underwhelmed"? Whatever.
These are stellar phones, best in their class and the Android crowd doesn't come close.
I just placed my order for a Sierra-blue Pro Max to replace my IPX. Very much looking forward to it.
Apple throughout their lineup is offering form factor preferences unlike any other time in their history: Buy the iPhone 13 or the iPhone 13 Mini, or the iPhone 13 Pro or the iPhone 13 Pro Max. Same capabilities, but you now have a preference as to form factor.
Same with the 14" MacBook Pro and the 16" MacBook Pro - pay a little more, get a bigger device with more screen real estate and better battery life. It's a preference.
Instead we hear how the Pro is great but the Pro Max disappoints - how the 14" is great but the 16" is too heavy and bulky.
It's a preference guys - I like the Pro Max and 16" because I find them more capable and comfortable to use.
These reviewers need to start realizing this and stop interjecting their own preferences as the one true way.
Comments
The max is the max simply because there is an audience out there that wants a larger screen and are willing to absorb the cost difference to get that. And you get some additional perks like battery life, video/camera enhancements as well. Not underwhelming.
...and if you are in the apple upgrade program, there's no real reason to not get the max.
...and not sure Apple really wants to create and maintain another fork in its iPhone iOS software development - max v non-max.
NO iPhone EVER HAD THAT.
The iPhone 13 Pro has three FIXED focal length camera modules. There’s a factor of 2 respectively 3 between the focal lengths. And then there software interpolation between these focal lengths. NOT optical zoom.
I’m actually horrified by the incompetence of Apple’s legal team letting this slide, because this is a class action lawsuit waiting to happen.
Apple should have restricted Home Screen widgets to square formats of varying sizes, then Home Screen rotation would still be possible.
The lack of Home Screen rotation is particularly obnoxious when using the phone with a BT keyboard to enter/edit text, watch videos, etc. It’s a constant pick up, rotate, put back, pick up, rotate, etc. game. REALLY ANNOYING.
Older models (until XS max) still had a black camera bump, so no matter what the color of the phone, a matte black leather case would fix any photographic issues. These days the bump has bright device colors, so not even a dark case can fix the matter.
With the iPhone 12, one could get away with the Pacific Blue as it’s very dark, and low light situations generally have warm light temperatures rendering that blue essentially black.
With the iPhone 13, if you take photography seriously and particularly if you plan on using the macro photography functionality, you have exactly one suitable choice: midnight black
The iPhone Mini and iPhone are the same phone except for display size and battery life - same with the iPhone Pro and Pro Max (so I'm not sure how one impresses and the other is disappointing).
Get ready for it: it's gonna be the same for the 14" and 16" M1x MacBook Pros too - same capabilities, different form factor.
Of course the marketing price points offered may differ - such as a lower spec 14" as base - but the essentials will probably be the same.
I'm quite happy to spring for the extra $100 for the larger screen and battery - and I'm quite happy with the iPhone 13 Pro Max (outside of the iOS bugs which are common to all).
Ditto when it's also #1 on the list of cons.
As for the Pro Max... I totally get the appeal of a bigger screen, and that alone can justify the purchase for some buyers. For me, it was always a combination of the bigger screen and the bigger battery that pushed me towards the Max and made the extra size and weight worth it. (And with the 12 series, the Pro Max camera system was at a whole other level vs. the Pro.) But now that Pro camera systems are equal again, and the 13 Pro has roughly the battery life of my 12 Pro Max, I don't need a bigger battery beyond that capacity. So it's down to "just" the bigger screen for me, and I'd rather give up a bit of screen for the smaller size and lighter weight of the 13 Pro. It even handles better as a camera for me because of the size/weight difference, and that's a plus I hadn't anticipated.
Apple throughout their lineup is offering form factor preferences unlike any other time in their history: Buy the iPhone 13 or the iPhone 13 Mini, or the iPhone 13 Pro or the iPhone 13 Pro Max. Same capabilities, but you now have a preference as to form factor.
Same with the 14" MacBook Pro and the 16" MacBook Pro - pay a little more, get a bigger device with more screen real estate and better battery life. It's a preference.
Instead we hear how the Pro is great but the Pro Max disappoints - how the 14" is great but the 16" is too heavy and bulky.
It's a preference guys - I like the Pro Max and 16" because I find them more capable and comfortable to use.
These reviewers need to start realizing this and stop interjecting their own preferences as the one true way.