Compare iPhone 13 Pro Max vs iPhone 11 Pro Max

iPhone 13 Pro Max vs IPhone 11 Pro Max

This is a full review to compare the technical specifications of the Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max and the iPhone 11 Pro Max that is two years old.

Most users would think the most significant difference between the two models would be the new 5G capabilities on smartphones that started rolling out last year. Our review shows that the differences are much more than just the 5G, but also several improvements that could make the new iPhone 13 Pro Max rather attractive.

Form Factor[tie_index]Form Factor[/tie_index]

Tech SpecsiPhone 13 Pro Max (5G)iPhone 11 Pro Max
Release Date14-Sep-2120-Sep-19
Form Factor
Size160.8 x 78.1 x 7.65mm
6.3 x 3.1 x 0.3 in
158 x 77.8 x 8.1mm
6.2 x 3.1 x 0.3 in
Weight238 g (8.4 oz)226 g (7.97 oz)
IP RatingIP68 (6m for 30mins)
IEC standard 60529
IP68 (4m for 30mins)
IEC standard 60529
MaterialFront: Ceramic shield, crack, and scratch-resistant
Back: Textured matt glass
Stainless steel frame.
Front: Scratch-resistant glass.
Back: Scratch-resistant glass.
Stainless steel design.
ColoursGraphite, gold, silver, sierra blueGraphite, space grey, silver, midnight green

As you see above, iPhone 13 Pro Max offers several significant upgrades over the iPhone 11 Pro Max. Other than thinner in size, the IP68 rating is now improved to 6m for 30mins, which is on par with other products with the same rating. We have also discussed the impressive crack and scratch-resistant of the new Apple Ceramic Shield, as compared to the Corning Gorilla Glass Victus.

A correction from our earlier post is that the iPhone 13 Pro Max is in fact heavier by about 12g or 5%, but the difference is not quite significant.

Display[tie_index]Display[/tie_index]

Tech SpecsiPhone 13 Pro Max (5G)iPhone 11 Pro Max
Screen TypeSuper Retina XDR OLED
with ProMotion
Super Retina XDR OLED display
Screen Size6.7″6.5″
Resolution2778×1284 pixels, 19.5:9 ratio,
458 ppi
2688×1242 pixels, 19.5:9 ratio,
458 ppi
Brightness Max1000 nits max brightness (typical);
1,200 nits max brightness (HDR)
800 nits max brightness (typical);
1,000 nits max brightness (HDR)
Refresh Rate120 Hz, adaptive60 Hz
Screen-to-body87.4%83.7%
Contrast Ratio2,000,000:12,000,000:1
Colours10 bit, or > 1 billion colours10 bit, or > 1 billion colours
Colour GamutWide Color (P3)Wide Color (P3)
FeaturesTrue Tone
HDR display
Haptic Touch
Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating
Support for display of multiple languages and characters simultaneously
True Tone
HDR display
Haptic Touch
Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating
Support for display of multiple languages and characters simultaneously

The display is slightly larger with a better screen-to-body ratio, resolution, and brightness. Normally this may mean an increase in battery consumption, however, this is offset by a new processor with better energy efficiency.

iPhone 13 series’ XDR OLED display has a new feature called ProMotion, which refers to the same 120 Hz adaptive display that was first introduced with the iPad Pro. The higher frequency enables smoother scrolling and faster interaction while being adaptive helps to saves battery life. In the case of iPad Pro, the adaptive frequency also reduces Apple pencil latency of 20ms by half.

Apart from the above, there is not much difference in the display, and the iPhone 11 Pro Max screen is still good and far from being outdated. The improved display alone is not enough to justify an upgrade to iPhone 13 Pro Max.

Hardware and Sensors[tie_index]Hardware and Sensors[/tie_index]

Tech SpecsiPhone 13 Pro Max (5G)iPhone 11 Pro Max
OSApple iOS 15Apple iOS 13 – 14.7
ChipsetA15 Bionic chip (5nm)
New 16‑core Neural Engine
A13 Bionic chip (7nm)
3rd Gen Neural Engine
ProcessorNew 6‑core CPU with 2 performance and 4 efficiency coresHexa-core
2×2.65 GHz Lightning
4×1.8 GHz Thunder
GPUApple GPU (5 cores)Apple GPU (4 cores)
RAM/Storage6GB/128GB, 6GB/256GB,
6GB/512GB, 6GB/1TB
(NVMe)
4GB/64GB, 4GB/256GB, 4GB/512GB
(NVMe)
SIM CardSingle Nano SIM +  eSIM
Dual eSIM support
Single Nano SIM +  eSIM
Dual eSIM support
SpeakerTwo, StereoTwo, Stereo
SecurityFace IDFace ID
Stylus SupportNoNo
SensorsFace ID
Accelerometer
LiDAR Scanner
Three-axis gyro
Digital compass
Ambient Light Sensor
Proximity Sensor
Barometer
Face ID
Accelerometer
Three-axis gyro
Digital compass
Ambient Light Sensor
Proximity Sensor
Barometer

The iPhone 13 Pro Max uses the latest Apple iOS 15, and hardware upgrades such as the A15 Bionic chip, 5-Core GPU, and 6GB RAM. These upgrades not only appeal to gamers but also normal users who use less resource-intensive apps, such as social media, messaging, sharing news, images, and videos.

The most significant upgrade to make you think about upgrading is the storage size of 1TB. As a non-gamer, I would also appreciate the 6GB RAM upgrade as it could mean that apps will open faster.

Some users may value the LiDAR (stands for Light Detection and Ranging) scanner introduced since iPhone 12 Pro, which is said to measure the distance to surrounding objects up to 5 meters away, works both indoors and outdoors, and operates at the photon level at nano-second speeds. The use of Apple LiDAR is AR (Augmented Reality) purposes, but can also be used to measure distances, height and perform 3D scanning.

Battery Life[tie_index]Battery Life[/tie_index]

Tech SpecsiPhone 13 Pro Max (5G)iPhone 11 Pro Max
Capacity4,400 mAH. Non-removable.
(16.75 Wh)
3969 mAH. Non-removable.
(15.04 Wh)
TypeLithium-IonLithium-Ion
Wired ChargingFast charging 20W
50% in 30 min
Fast charging 18W
50% in 30 min
Wireless ChargingMagSafe charging up to 15W
Qi charging up to 7.5W
Qi wireless charging up to 7.5W
Charging TechnologyPD 2.0PD 2.0

On paper, there is not much improvement in the iPhone 13 Pro battery charging speed, which uses up to 18W for fast charging and an outdated PD 2.0. They do have faster wireless charging using the Magsafe which can charge up to 15W.

Another advantage is that the iPhone 13 Pro Max does come with a larger battery and Apple touted the battery life is about twice that of the iPhone 11 Pro Max. This could be due to the more energy-efficient A15 chip.

A drawback for iPhone 13 Pro Max is that it does not come with any charger, which users will need to purchase separately or use their existing 18W PD 2.0 charger.

Rear Camera[tie_index]Rear Camera[/tie_index]

Tech SpecsiPhone 13 Pro Max (5G)iPhone 11 Pro Max
Rear Camera
Resolution12 MP, f/1.5 (wide)
12 MP, f/2.8 (telephoto)
12 MP, f/1.8, 120˚ (ultrawide)
TOF 3D LiDAR scanner (depth)
12 MP, f/1.8 (wide)
12 MP, f/2.0 (telephoto)
12 MP, f/2.4, 120˚ (ultrawide)
Video recording4K: 24/25/30/60fps
1080p: 25/30/60fps
720p: 30fps
ProRes 4K: 1080p@30fps
Cinematic Mode: 1080p@30fps
4K: 24/30/60fps
1080p: 30/60fps
720p: 30fps
Features: Dual optical image stabilization for video (Telephoto and Wide)
Sensor‑shift optical image stabilization for video (Wide)
3x optical zoom in, 2x optical zoom out; 6x optical zoom range
Digital zoom up to 9x
– Audio zoom
True Tone flash
– QuickTake video
Slo‑mo video support for 1080p at 120 fps or 240 fps
– Time‑lapse video with stabilization
Night mode Time‑lapse
– Cinematic video stabilization (4K, 1080p, and 720p)
– Continuous autofocus video
– Take 8MP still photos while recording 4K video
– Playback zoom
– Video formats recorded: HEVC and H.264
– Stereo recording
– Extended dynamic range for video up to 60 fps
– Optical image stabilization for video (Wide and Telephoto)
– 2x optical zoom in, 2x optical zoom out; digital zoom up to 6x
– Audio zoom
– Brighter True Tone flash
– QuıckTake video with subject tracking
– Slo‑mo video support for 1080p at 120 fps or 240 fps
– Time‑lapse video with stabilization
– Cinematic video stabilization (4K, 1080p, and 720p)
– Continuous autofocus video
– Take 8MP still photos while recording 4K video
– Playback zoom
– Video formats recorded: HEVC and H.264
– Stereo recording

There are several improvements to the iPhone 13 Pro Max rear camera summarized below.

  • The wide and ultra-wide camera has a larger aperture than iPhone 11 Pro Max, which allows more light to the sensor.
  • A comparison of the rear lenses size shows that the sensor for the iPhone 13 Pro Max could be larger. A larger sensor will help to capture more light and hence produce a better photograph. Currently, we do not have any specifications of the sensor used in the iPhone 13 Pro Max.
  • There are also several new features for the rear camera as highlighted in blue, which will greatly enhance the photos and videos taken.

One of the most significant features that are advertised is the new cinematic mode, which is also featured in Xiaomi’s smartphone. This will be a good feature for those who like to take videos for social media posting. Everyone can become a professional videographer.

Front Camera[tie_index]Front Camera[/tie_index]

Tech SpecsiPhone 13 Pro Max (5G)iPhone 11 Pro Max
Front Camera
Resolution12 MP, f/2.212 MP, f/2.2
Video capture:4K: 24/25/30/60fps
1080p: 25/30/60fps
4K: 24/30/60fps
1080p: 30/60fps
Features:– Portrait mode with advanced bokeh and Depth Control
– Portrait Lighting with six effects (Natural, Studio, Contour, Stage, Stage Mono, High‑Key Mono)
– Animoji and Memoji
– Night mode
– Deep Fusion
– Smart HDR 4
– Photographic Styles
– Apple ProRAW
– Cinematic mode for recording videos with shallow depth of field (1080p at 30 fps)
– HDR video recording with Dolby Vision up to 4K at 60 fps
– ProRes video recording up to 4K at 30 fps (1080p at 30 fps for 128GB storage)*
– Slo‑mo video support for 1080p at 120 fps
– Time‑lapse video with stabilization
Night mode Time‑lapse
– Cinematic video stabilization (4K, 1080p, and 720p)
QuickTake video
– Wide color capture for photos and Live Photos
– Lens correction
– Retina Flash
– Auto image stabilization
– Burst mode
– Portrait mode with advanced bokeh and Depth Control
– Portrait Lighting with six effects (Natural, Studio, Contour, Stage, Stage Mono, High‑Key Mono)
– Animoji and Memoji
– Next-generation Smart HDR
– Slo‑mo video support for 1080p at 120 fps
– Cinematic video stabilization (4K, 1080p, and 720p)
– Wide color capture for photos and Live Photos
– Retina Flash
– Auto image stabilization
– Burst mode

The key specifications of the front camera hardware did not change much but Apple added a lot of features for the Selfie camera. The number of new features shows the emphasis on the front camera as one of the most popular components of the smartphone. Among the new features that are noteworthy include the smart HDR mode, time-lapse, and night mode.

The new night mode for selfies is used to capture better photos when the camera automatically detects a low-light environment.

Another neat feature is the “QuickTake video” which allows video capturing by pressing the shutter button longer when taking a photo. This is a new feature of the selfie camera but it was already used for the rear camera in the previous iPhone X or later.

Connectivity and Environment

Tech SpecsiPhone 13 Pro Max (5G)iPhone 11 Pro Max
Bluetooth Ver5.0, A2DP, LE5.0, A2DP, LE
Wi-Fi VerWi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax, dual-band, hotspot.Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax, dual-band, hotspot.
ConnectorLightningLightning
GPSBuilt‑in GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS and BeiDouBuilt‑in GPS, GLONASS, Galileo
NFCYes with reader modeYes with reader mode
Infra-Red PortNoNo
Network5G, 4G LTE, HSPA, GSM4G LTE, HSPA, GSM
Operating Temp.32° to 95° F
(0° to 35° C)
32° to 95° F
(0° to 35° C)
Non-Operating Temp.−4° to 113° F
(−20° to 45° C)
−4° to 113° F
(−20° to 45° C)
Operating altitude10,000 feet
(3000 m)
10,000 feet
(3000 m)
Relative Humidity5% to 95%
Non-condensing
5% to 95%
Non-condensing

There are not many differences between the connectivity and environmental specs. The iPhone 11 Pro Max was already quite an advanced phone 2 years back as it comes with Bluetooth 5.0 and Wi-Fi 6.

After all, the iPhone 11 Pro Max was the flagship in 2019, and even though it has been overtaken by iPhone 13, the older phone still has very strong specifications that are far from being outdated.

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