iPhone 12 Pro Max

Camera Review

Sample Images   Introduction   Specifications

Unboxing   Compared   User's Guide   Recommendations

iPhone 12 Pro Max

iPhone 12 Pro Max

I'd get my iPhone 12 Pro Max at Amazon. This all-content, junk-free website's biggest source of support is when you use that or any of these links to approved sources when you get anything, regardless of the country in which you live. Thanks for helping me help you! Ken.

 

June 2021   Better Pictures   Apple   Canon   Nikon   Sony   Fuji   LEICA   Hasselblad   All Reviews

Old iPhone 11 Pro Max

How to Use Ultrawide Lenses

iPhone vs LEICA vs Canon vs Fuji Shootout

iPhone vs Full-Frame Bokeh

 

Sample Images       top

Sample Images   Introduction   Specifications

Unboxing   Compared   User's Guide   Recommendations

All images were downloaded with Apple's Image Capture to my Mac Pro as JPGs; there's no need for raw to do this with the iPhone 12 Pro Max.

Under the Cayucos Pier, Cayucos California

Under the Cayucos Pier, Cayucos, California, 6:11 P.M., 03 June 2021. Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max, 1.5mm ultra-ultrawide camera (13mm equivalent on 24×24mm square-crop full-frame or 30mm equivalent on 6×6 cm Hasselblad) at f/2.4 handheld at 1/122 at Auto ISO 80 (LV 9.8), Snapseed, Perfectly Clear, horizontal perspective correction in Photoshop CS6. bigger.

 

COLOR!

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

Backlit Surfer at Sunset, Black's Beach, California, 4:59 PM, Saturday, 16 January, 2021. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, 5.1mm (1× or 26mm-equivalent) main camera at f/1.6 at 1/1,057 at Auto ISO 32 (LV 13.0), slight rotation in Snapseed on iPhone and Perfectly Clear on Mac Pro. bigger or camera-original © JPG.

The iPhone is brilliant! I don't recall this day being that brilliantly colorful, while these images have a perfect warm tone. Bravo!

 

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

Black's Beach, California, 4:09 PM, Saturday, 16 January, 2021. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, 5.1mm (1× or 26mm-equivalent) main camera at f/1.6 at 1/3,788 at Auto ISO 32 (LV 14.9), color optimization in Snapseed on iPhone, Photoshop CS6 and Perfectly Clear on Mac Pro. bigger, full-resolution or camera-original © JPG.

 

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

Lifeguard Tower, Black's Beach, California, 5:11 PM, Saturday, 16 January, 2021. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, 5.1mm (1× or 26mm-equivalent) main camera at f/1.6 at 1/308 at Auto ISO 32 (LV 11.3), slight rotation and perspective correction in Snapseed on iPhone and in Photoshop CS6 on Mac Pro. bigger.

 

Ryan and Luna the Macaw

Stairway to Heaven, Carlsbad, California, 11:08 AM, 20 January 2021. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, 5.1mm (1× or 26mm-equivalent) main camera at f/1.6 at 1/2,083 at Auto ISO 32 (LV 14.0), Snapseed on phone and Perfectly Clear on Mac Pro. bigger.

 

Under the Pismo Beach Pier

Under the Pismo Beach Pier, 8:25 P.M., 01 June 2021. Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max, 7.5mm telephoto camera (65mm equivalent) at f/2.2 at 1/27 at Auto ISO 1,600 (LV 3.0), split-toned print. bigger.

This is 12 minutes after sunset under a pier in fog — and my iPhone 12 Pro Max works great hand-held!

 

Giuseppe's Restaurant, San Luis Obispo, California

Dancing Oak Party, Elfin Forest, Los Osos, California, 3:25 P.M., 02 June 2021. Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max panoramic mode, cropped from a 270º sweep down to about a 210º sweep with the 5.1mm standard camera at f/1.6 at 1/397 at Auto ISO 125 (LV 9⅔), Perfectly Clear, split-toned print. bigger (original file is a 60 megapixel, 48 MB JPG.)

 

Paella Del Mar, San Luis Obispo, California

Paella Del Mar, San Luis Obispo, California, 6:39 P.M., 02 June 2021. Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max, 5.1mm standard camera (26mm equivalent) at f/1.6 at 1/121 at Auto ISO 32 (LV 9.9), Perfectly Clear, made warmer in Photoshop CS6. bigger.

 

Old Truck Sealed-Beam Headlight and Sign, Harmony, California

Old Truck Sealed-Beam Headlight and Sign, Harmony, California, 5:34 P.M., 03 June 2021. Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max, 1.5mm ultra-ultrawide camera (13mm equivalent) at f/2.4 at 1/232 at Auto ISO 25 (LV 12.4), Snapseed and Perfectly Clear. bigger.

 

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

North Pole / Le Pôle Nord, Canada, 5:24 PM, 15 November 2020. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, 5.1mm (1× or 26mm-equivalent) main camera at f/1.6 at 1/30 at Auto ISO 500 (LV 3.9), perspective correction in Photoshop CS6, Perfectly Clear. bigger or full-resolution.

I shot this hand-held, and my iPhone 12 Pro Max just grabbed a photo that looked exactly as it did to my eye. Film would never have caught all the highlights and shadows, and on Velvia 50 with a $1,800 24mm f/1.4 lens on my Nikon or on my Canon I'd have to expose for 1/4 of a second at f/1.4. No 24/1.4 lens is stabilized, so 1/4 is pushing it, and on full-frame I'd not have the huge depth-of-field I enjoy on iPhone.

In other words, the longer you've been shooting, the more you can appreciate how great the iPhone shoots!

 

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

The La Valencia Hotel, La Jolla, California, 10:47 AM, Saturday, 26 December 2020. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, 7.5mm (2.5× or 65mm-equivalent) tele camera at f/2.2 at 1/5,000 at Auto ISO 25 (LV 16.6), exactly as shot. bigger or camera-original © JPG.

Wow! The colors are perfect. It's usually very difficult to capture the pale pink of the La Valencia Hotel accurately, but with my iPhone, I just point and shoot. Bravo!

 

Night Mode!       (How to Use Night Mode)

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

Moonrise at Seven Palms Oasis, 6:33 PM, Monday, 30 November 2020. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, automatic Night Mode, 5.1mm (1× or 26mm-equivalent) main camera at f/1.6 at 1 second at Auto ISO 1,250 (LV -2.0), Perfectly Clear. bigger or full-resolution.

Point and shoot — under moonlight!

 

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

Moonlit Clouds, 9:56 PM, Thursday, 24 December 2020. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, automatic Night Mode, 5.1mm (1× or 26mm-equivalent) main camera hand-held at f/1.6 at 1/2 second at Auto ISO 1,250 (LV -1.0), Perfectly Clear. bigger.

 

Ryan by LIDAR

Ryan next to the Christmas tree as seen by LIDAR with the iPhone 12 Pro Max and the LIDAR & Infrared Night Vision app, 24 December 2020. bigger.

 

U  l  t  r  a  —  W  i  d  e  !       (How to Use Ultrawide Lenses)

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

The Trapezoid, La Jolla, California, 10:26 AM, Saturday, 26 December 2020. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, 1.5mm (0.5× or 13mm-equivalent) ultra-wide camera at f/2.4 at 1/872 at Auto ISO 25 (LV 14.3), minor tilt correction in Photoshop CS6, Perfectly Clear. bigger, full-resolution or camera-original © JPG.

No distortion correction needed!

 

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

Pelicans Landing at The Children's Pool, La Jolla, California, 10:56 AM, Saturday, 26 December 2020. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, 7.5mm (2.5× or 65mm-equivalent) tele camera at f/2.2 at 1/1,623 at Auto ISO 20 (LV 15.3), minor perspective correction in Photoshop CS6, Perfectly Clear. bigger or camera-original © JPG.

 

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

Crop from above. Who needs a $13,000 800mm lens?

 

Portrait Mode!

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

Zoey the Christmas Dog, 10:49 AM, Sunday, 27 December 2020. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, Portrait mode, 7.5mm (2.5× or 65mm-equivalent) tele camera at f/2.2 at 1/121 at Auto ISO 100 (LV 9.2), Perfectly Clear. bigger.

 

Ryan and Luna the Macaw

Stormy Sunset with 27 MPH headwinds, Torrey Pines, California, 5:08 PM, 25 January 2021. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, 5.1mm (1× or 26mm-equivalent) main camera at f/1.6 at 1/994 at Auto ISO 32 (LV 14.0), Perfectly Clear. bigger.

 

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

Crazy Clouds, 4:24 PM, Thursday, 28 January 2021. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, 1.5mm (0.5× or 13mm-equivalent) ultra-wide camera at f/2.4 at 1/841 at Auto ISO 25 (LV 14.2), Perfectly Clear. bigger.

Point-and-shoot, and the iPhone just nails it — no fiddling or looking at a playback required!

 

Ryan and Luna the Macaw

Ryan and Luna the Macaw, Orange County, California, 2:27 PM, 30 January 2021. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, 5.1mm (1× or 26mm-equivalent) main camera at f/1.6 at 1/60 at Auto ISO 80 (LV 7.6), Snapseed on phone and Perfectly Clear on Mac Pro. bigger or full-resolution.

My iPhone focused instantly on Ryan and I got the shot. Easy!

 

NEW: Night Mode with the Ultrawide Camera!       (How to Use Night Mode)

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

Moonrise, Seven Palms Oasis, 6:48 PM, Monday, 30 November 2020. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, automatic Night Mode, 1.5mm (0.5× or 13mm-equivalent) ultra-wide camera at f/2.4 for 1.3 seconds at Auto ISO 2,000 (LV -2.2), Perfectly Clear. bigger or full-resolution.

 

Who Needs a Hasselblad?

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

Rocks, Black's Beach, California, Thursday, 04 February 2021. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, 7.5mm (2.5× or 65mm-equivalent) tele camera at f/2.2 at 1/501 at Auto ISO 20 (LV 13.6), split-toned print. bigger.

Ansel Adams would have loved his iPhone, and Black's Beach is a heck of a lot warmer and sunnier than Point Lobos!

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The iPhone 12 Pro Max camera does the best job I've ever seen of any camera at capturing things exactly as they looked to my eyes.

From daylight to indoor light to moonlight, from soft light to harsh contrasty light, the iPhone 12 Pro Max is astonishing at how it captures things as they looked. No other camera, not from Nikon, not from Canon, not from Sony, not from Fuji and certainly not from LEICA just captures highlight, shadow, tone and color the way it looked to my eyes on the first shot. All the other "real" cameras require too much fiddling as light conditions change to get what I want, while my iPhone just nails it every time.

Unlike traditional cameras which are still making single exposures much the same as we did 175 years ago, the iPhone is capturing images continuously at several levels of exposure as you're looking at the live image on your screen. When you press the shutter button all it's doing is using all of Apple's multi-billion dollar magic and HDR to craft and save a perfect image from whatever frames it's already captured so it looks exactly as it did to your eye.

The iPhone shoots still image action sequences at 10 FPS all day long, shoots 4K at 60 FPS with S-t-e-r-e-O sound, shoots slo-mo and time-lapse video - and makes it all easy.

Its autofocus is instantaneous. It uses invisible picosecond LASER RADAR (LIDAR) to measure distance and focus even in total darkness. The specifications say every pixel is also an autofocus pixel. It works far better than my Nikon Z5. Long exposures just work, with none of the framing or focus or white balance problems of a Z5 or other "real" camera.

Night Mode automatically accumulates exposures from multiple auto-aligned frames, making it child's play to shoot under moonlight, handheld.

I get better video from my iPhone in real-world shooting than from any interchangeable-lens camera. My iPhone has extraordinary image stabilization that lets me shoot movies hand-held, and they are so stable they look like they were shot from a dolly running on rails. Bravo! Likewise, magic HDR on both stills and especially on movies gives me superior results. Sure, in Hollywood where we have three trucks of generators, grips and lighting and two days to set up we can get good video with any camera, but with my iPhone in real-world available light, it prevents the blown highlights I get from other video cameras and give superior results, just by pulling it out of my pocket. It's sad how much time, money and effort people put into trying to shoot video with Nikon, Canon, Sony, Fuji or even LEICA, and never try their iPhone to see the superior results it gives. Everything at KenRockwell.TV is shot on iPhone.

Its OLED screen is the biggest, best, brightest, sharpest and most color-accurate display I've ever seen on any camera. It even automatically adjusts its colors to match ambient lighting!

It's easy to edit and share everything directly from the iPhone; I edit in Snapseed and I'm done.

People keep asking me what's the best travel, pocket or vacation camera, and you're looking at it: iPhone. Just look at my first snaps just made around the neighborhood; it looks great!

The iPhone 12 Pro Max has four cameras for photos and video: three on the back and one on the front for self-portraits. It has even more sensors for things like Face ID and LASER RADAR (LIDAR) depth mapping.

Most people refer to the iPhone's three "lenses," while in fact it has three completely separate cameras on the back; each camera with a separate lens and sensor. It has a 1.54mm f/2.4 ultra-wide (0.5× or 13mm equivalent), 5.1mm f/1.6 wide (1× or 26mm equivalent) and 7.5mm f/2.2 (2.5× or 65mm equivalent). The crop factors are different for each because each uses a different-sized sensor.

iPhone 12 Pro Max

Gold iPhone 12 Pro Max in Apple Kumquat orange silicon case. bigger. The iPhone 11 Pro Max had no LIDAR.

 

I'd get my iPhone 12 Pro Max at Amazon.

 

New since iPhone 11 Pro Max       intro       top

Basics

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com LIDAR depth-map LASER RADAR scanning.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com Slightly larger screen. While similar in outer dimensions, a thinner bezel means there's more screen than the iPhone 11 Pro Max.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com Front screen uses a tougher "Ceramic Shield" glass for "four times better" drop resistance than iPhone 11 Pro Max. (The rear glass cover is the same as iPhone 11 Pro Max.)

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com Rated IP68 water resistant (6 meters depth static pressure for up to 30 minutes in a lab when brand new), but "Liquid damage not covered under warranty." Be careful.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com Optional MagSafe wireless charging cord attaches magnetically. It snaps on by itself with no need to align it.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com 20 bands of 5G data and 32 bands of LTE - the most of any phone.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com 5G is smart enough to use 5G only when you need it, so the battery life isn't affected. (My battery lasts forever.)

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com 5 nanometer chip technology with 11.8 billion transistors. 5nm is 1/100 the size of a wavelength of light!!!

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com Smallest capacity is now 128 GB, up from 64 GB in the old iPhone 11 Pro Max, for the same price.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com 256 GB and 512 GB models now cost $50 less than the same versions of the old iPhone 11 Pro Max.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com Audio playback now supports FLAC, as well as the usual Apple Lossless, AAC, AC-3, E-AC-3, Atmos, MP3, LPCM and Audible formats.

 

Camera

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com The new LIDAR depth scanner speeds-up autofocus immensely, especially in the dark. Apple says up to 6 times faster — and I never found any flaws with the iPhone 11 Pro Max' autofocus speed. My iPhone 12 Pro Max seems to autofocus instantly in any light; I've never seen it out of focus.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com Larger sensor in the main (1×, wide or 26mm equivalent) camera for cleaner images at every light level and ISO. To retain the same 26mm-equivalent angle-of-view with the larger sensor, the iPhone 12 Pro Max now uses a 5.1mm standard lens rather than the 4.25mm lens in the old iPhone 11 Pro Max.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com Slightly faster f/1.6 lens in the main (wide, 1× or 26mm equivalent) camera. Old iPhone 11 Pro Max was f/1.8.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com Wide (1× or 26mm equivalent) main camera lens now has 7 elements, compared to 6 in the old iPhone 11 Pro Max.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com Longer 7.5mm (2.5× or 65mm equivalent) f/2 telephoto lens replaces the 6mm (2× or 52mm equivalent) lens in the old iPhone 11 Pro Max.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com The 7.5mm (2.5× or 65mm equivalent) telephoto camera now focuses as close as about 18" (47 cm) before the iPhone 12 Pro Max swaps to the 1x camera and crops to fake telephoto close-ups; the old iPhone 11 Pro Max only got as close as 32" (80cm) before it cheated and swapped to the regular camera. Of course as a user you'd never notice; it still focuses down to about 5" (12cm) in either of the 1× or 2.5× modes.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com Insane 13mm-equivalent ultra-wide camera is now much sharper and less distorted than in the old iPhone 11 Pro Max.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com Night Mode now works for the ultra-wide and selfie cameras as well as the standard wide camera. "Night" mode lets us hand-hold long time exposures in the dark. (When shooting Night Mode with the 2.5× or 65mm equivalent setting the iPhone 12 still cheats and uses the standard camera, with its faster lens, and crops.)

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com Apple ProRAW file format allows you to choose how much - or how little - of Apple's magic HDR 3, Deep Fusion, Night Modes and more you want to use when converting RAW data files into images - or not. You can choose exactly how raw you want it when editing later.

blue ball icon © KenRockwell.com Shoots video directly in Dolby Vision HDR — the world's first camera at any price which can do this!

All this significantly expands what I can do with my iPhone 12 Pro Max compared to my iPhone 11 Pro Max. This is critical to me as a photographic artist. My iPhone 12 Pro Max does more over a wider range of conditions, so I get better pictures of more interesting things. As you've seen, iPhones take the same - and often better - pictures than old‑fashioned "real" cameras today. It's not 2007 anymore.

 

More Good Things       intro       top

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com $50 less expensive than the old iPhone 11 Pro Max for the same amount of storage.

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com Seemingly unlimited battery life. If you can run it down in a day, you're spending way too much time looking at your phone. Even with 5G, the iPhone 12 is smart enough only to use 5G if and when you need it. Battery life depends on how much you use it and how close you are to cell towers. Personally I go to bed each night usually with more than 50% of my charge left. In fact, in Low Power mode, I can go two or three days before having to charge. Your results will vary.

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com Ultra-high quality photos under all real-world lighting conditions.

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com Image Stabilization.

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com It charges with the same lightning cords and docks we've used since the iPhone 5 of 2012. Even with all the new ways to charge like the Mag Safe charging cord, my old third-party Lighting cords and wireless chargers all work just fine. I'm still using the $15 wireless charging stand I bought over two years ago for my iPhone Xs Max!

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com Museum-quality stainless steel and hardened glass design and construction.

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com Ultra pure styling devoid of any writing; doesn't even say "iPhone" anyplace! The only thing on this stark beauty is a faint Apple logo, and that's it.

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com Integrated into the Apple ecosystem: control your Mac, music, Apple Watch, movies, TV, photos and everything from this phone.

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com Up to 512 GB internal storage; enough to hold my entire music library, all my photos and manuals and documents and all my home movies of my kids for the past fifteen years or more, with no need for cloud storage — a huge benefit for when I'm in deep the field away from Wi-Fi and cellular data.

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com Ultra-color-accurate OLED display that adjusts itself to the color of ambient light.

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com OLED display is super-bright in daylight.

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com OLED display looks great from every angle.

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com OLED display doesn't flicker in lower light.

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com OLED display has fantastic auto brightness control; it looks perfect in any light.

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com Records video with S-t-e-r-e-O sound.

green ball icon © KenRockwell.com S-t-e-r-e-O speakers built in.

 

Bad       intro       top

red ball icon © KenRockwell.com Nothing, other than not being free. The iPhone 12 Pro Max seen here sells for $1,099 (128 GB), $1,199 (256 GB) or $1,399 (512 GB) — and that's $50 less than the iPhone 11 Pro Max was with the same memory.

 

Missing       intro       top

gray ball icon © KenRockwell.com No more power adapter or EarPods included, just a USB-C to Lighting charging cord. Apple figures, correctly, that we all own plenty of USB chargers and adapters and EarPods and headphones, so no need to push these to everyone who gets a new iPhone — and Apple also was able to drop the price by $50 from the equivalent iPhone 11 Pro Max by not making everyone have to buy these again.

gray ball icon © KenRockwell.com No more Phone Favorites lock screen widget; now we have to unlock out phone, get to the Phone app and find Favorites. (Not that the iPhone 12 itself lost this; it's gone as of iOS 14 for all iPhones.)

gray ball icon © KenRockwell.com No more Find My Friends lock screen widget; now we have to unlock our phone and use the new Find app which combines the two older Find my iPhone and Find My Friends apps. (Not that the iPhone 12 itself lost this; it's gone as of iOS 14 for all iPhones.)

gray ball icon © KenRockwell.com No headphone jack, and no included 3.5mm adapter. You'll have to buy your own adapter for $7.99.

gray ball icon © KenRockwell.com Still no 105mm-equivalent true optical telephoto camera. (You can zoom digitally to 312mm equivalent.)

 

Specifications       top

Sample Images   Introduction   Specifications

Unboxing   Compared   User's Guide   Recommendations

 

I'd get my iPhone 12 Pro Max at Amazon.

 

iPhone 12 Pro Max

iPhone 12 Pro Max, gold. bigger.

 

iPhone 12 Pro Max

iPhone 12 Pro Max, gold. bigger.

 

Cameras       specifications       top

iPhone 12 Pro Max

Gold iPhone 12 Pro Max in Apple Kumquat orange silicon case. bigger.

 

The four photo cameras are:

 
0.5×
2.5×*
Front (Selfie)
Apple's Designation
Ultra-Wide
Wide
Telephoto
TrueDepth
Resolution

12 MP

4,032 × 3,024

12 MP

4,032 × 3,024

12 MP

4,032 × 3,024

12 MP

4,032 × 3,024

Equivalent Focal Length (on 35mm full-frame)
13mm
26mm
65mm
 
Maximum Aperture
f/2.4
f/1.6
f/2.2
f/2.2
Actual Focal Length
1.54mm
5.1mm
7.5mm
2.71mm
Lens Elements
5
7
6
 
Autofocus Range
Fixed hyperfocal
5½" (14 cm) ~ ∞
18" (47 cm) ~ ∞
 
Digital Lens Optimizer
Yes
not needed
not needed
Yes
Diagonal Angle of View
120º
     
Crop Factor**
8⅔×
5.1×
8⅔×
 
Auto ISO Range (observed, with native Camera app. May go higher.)
ISO 25 ~ 8,000
ISO 32 ~ 10,000
ISO 20 ~ 1,600
ISO 25 ~ 12,500
Auto Shutter Speed Range (observed, with native Camera app. Probably goes faster and slower)
1/72,000 ~ 1.3s (30s accumulation time)
1/24,000 ~ 3s (30s accumulation time)
1/32,000 ~ 1/20
1/17,000 ~ 1.1s (10s accumulation time)
Protective Lens Cover
Sapphire crystal 
Sapphire crystal 
Sapphire crystal 
Front glass
Image Stabilization
Optical
Optical & Sensor-shift
Optical
Auto
Night Mode
Yes
Yes
No; but you won't notice it because it simply uses the Wide 1× camera and crops.
Yes
Portrait Mode
no
Yes
Yes
Yes
"Deep Fusion"
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes

* The regularly-sized iPhone 12 Pro (non-Max) has a 2× (52mm equivalent) telephoto camera.

** The crop factors are different for each because each uses a different-sized sensor.

 

Video       specifications       top

4K at 60, 30, 25 or 24 FPS.

1,080 at 60, 30 or 25 FPS.

720 at 30 FPS.

1,080 slo-mo at 240 or 120 FPS (only to 120 FPS with Selfie camera).

Extraordinary stabilization.

Time-lapse with stabilization.

Night Mode Time Lapse.

Dolby Vision.

HDR at up to 60 FPS.

Effortlessly grabs 8MP stills while rolling.

HEVC and H.264.

S-t-e-r-e-O sound.

 

Audio       specifications       top

Stereo Speakers.

Bluetooth 5.0.

There's no headphone jack; use Apple's Lightning to 3.5mm headphone adapter and voilà, you've got a headphone jack.

For use with pro headphones with 1/4" plugs, I use that adapter with Grado's 3.5mm to 1/4" adapter and it works great!

 

More Sensors       specifications       top

S-t-e-r-e-O microphones.

Face ID.

LIDAR depth scanner.

Barometer.

Three-axis gyroscope.

Accelerometers.

Proximity sensor to turn off the screen when held to your head.

Ambient light sensor for auto brightness control and color matching.

 

Screen       specifications       top

2,778 × 1,284 pixels Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED).

458 PPI

6.07 × 2.80 inches; 6.68 inches diagonal if you forget that the corners are rounded and imagine the corners of an imaginary rectangle.

HDR.

True Tone (adopts colors to ambient light conditions).

P3 wide color space.

Rated 2,000,000:1 contrast.

800 nits maximum; 1,200 nits HDR.

Oleophobic coating to resist fingerprints.

Automatic brightness control.

 

Communications

5G (sub‑6 GHz and millimeter wave)

CDMA

GSM/EDGE

WYSIWG

Gigabit LTE with 4×4 MIMO and LAA

Wi‑Fi 6 (802.11ax) with 2×2 MIMO

Bluetooth 5.0

Ultra Wideband chip for spatial awareness (what?)

NFC with reader mode

Express Cards with power reserve (what?)

 

Power & Battery       specifications       top

All ratings "up to:"

80 hours audio playback.

20 hours video playback, or 12 hours streamed.

MagSafe charging at up to 15 watts.

Qi wireless charging at up to 7.5 watts.

Charges to 50% in 30 minutes with 20W adapter over USB-C.

 

Size       specifications       top

6.33 × 3.07 × 0.29 inches (160.8 × 78.1 × 7.4mm) HWD.

 

Weight       specifications       top

8.025 oz (227.6g) actual measured weight, no case.

Rated 8.03 oz. (228g).

(iPhone 11 Pro Max measured 7.884 oz (223.5g), or 0.141 oz. (4g) less.)

 

Announced       specifications       top

Tuesday, 13 October 2020.

 

Available Since       specifications       top

Friday, 13 November 2020.

 

Unboxing       top

Sample Images   Introduction   Specifications

Unboxing   Compared   User's Guide   Recommendations

 

I'd get my iPhone 12 Pro Max at Amazon.

 

Subscribe for more videos.

 

Compared       top

Sample Images   Introduction   Specifications

Unboxing   Compared   User's Guide   Recommendations

 

I'd get my iPhone 12 Pro Max at Amazon.

 

Versus the iPhone 12 Pro (non-Max)

Besides a smaller case, battery and screen, the longest tele lens is only 2×, rather than 2.5×.

Otherwise they're the same, with about 12% less battery life in the non-Max version due to the smaller battery.

 

Versus the regular iPhone 12 (non-Pro)

The non-Pro versions have much simpler cameras, not having the tele camera and having no Apple ProRAW support.

Besides smaller cases, batteries and screens, these have fewer features overall and the memory options are only half (64, 128 or 256 GB).

 

Versus the iPhone 11 Pro Max

Obviously I've been comparing to the old iPhone 11 Pro Max throughout this review, see What's New for the gist of it.

 

Versus other iPhones

See my other Apple Reviews.

 

Versus Lesser Brands

People are always asking me to compare against Samsung, Google, Android and whatever other copies are out there.

Even if any of those had a camera system as good (which I doubt), their screens aren't ultra-calibrated for careful use as are the iPhone screens. It's sickening to see other brand OLED screens which are designed to stand out as snappy, bright and colorful to impress the innocent, but they do this by exaggerating saturation (especially reds), and they flicker as they are dimmed because the pulse-width modulators that control brightness work at lower frequencies. Overall it's a lesser experience.

Most importantly, my iPhone is but one element of the complete Apple ecosystem. I can control my TV and my Mac and even my vacuum-tube classic Hi-Fi from my iPhone. I have access to all my media (all my movie and music files) across everything I own: my Apple TVs all over my home and movie theatre, my Apple Watch, my Mac Pro, my stereo room, AirPlay, my my iPods and everything just synchronizes magically. While some of these features probably could be made to work in other brands, it would take days to get it sorted out, while with Apple, it all just goes.

Heck, when guests visit, it's trivial for them to stream their music and movies direct from their iPhones or iPads to anything in my home. It all just works.

 

User's Guide       top

Sample Images   Introduction   Specifications

Unboxing   Compared   User's Guide   Recommendations

 

I'd get my iPhone 12 Pro Max at Amazon.

 

Charging

Charging is easy. It charges with all the same USB-A to lightning cables and docks we've used since the iPhone 5 of 2012. I usually use the same $15 wireless charging stand I've used since my iPhone Xs Max of 2019. I love this wireless charging stand because my phone is up and easy to grab or see from my night stand or desk all day or night — and I never have to fiddle with cables or alignment, even in pitch dark.

The MagSafe wireless charging cord is optional. It snaps on by itself magnetically with no need to align it, and charges super fast, much faster than my $15 wireless charging stand — but this doesn't matter when it's there all night.

With a 60W USB-C source, I measured up to 23W charging power.

The iPhone 12 Pro Max comes with a USB-C to lightning cord to charge from any USB-C source. Use at least an Apple 20W adapter with that and it charges fast, rated 0 to 50% in 30 minutes, and even with only the 18W adapter that came with my old iPhone 11 Pro Max it charges from 0 to 82% in just one hour:

 

Charge Profile with last year's Apple 18W USB-C PD Charger and Apple USB-C to Lightning Cable

Charge Time H:MM
Charge Percentage
Charge power*
0:00
0%
17.5W**
0:02
4%
 
0:42
66%
15W
0:44
68%
 
0:52
77%
10W
1:00
82%
9W
1:37
95%
3W
1:43
96%
2.5W
2:01
97%
1W
2:30
100%
0.3W
3:22
100%
0.1W
6:43
100%
0.2W

* It charges at a high rate and then tapers off to a trickle as full charge is reached. This is the way it's supposed to charge, and exactly how we fill a bucket with gasoline: fast at first, but slow down as not to overfill.

** 9 volts at 1.94 amperes.

 

Calling up the Camera       user's guide       top

Wake up the iPhone to show the Lock Screen.

Either hold the camera icon a moment until you feel a click and release, or even faster, swipe from right to left to open the camera.

 

Zooming       user's guide       top

While you can set any intermediate level of "zoom," the iPhone cameras use four fixed prime lenses for optimum speed and sharpness. What it's doing is selecting the camera with 0.5×, 1× or 2.5× magnification (or the selfie camera), and if you select an intermediate "zoom" value, using the next-widest camera and cropping from it and resizing to 4,032 × 3,024 — with a lot of clever interpolation. Because of this I prefer only to use the direct 0.5×, 1× and 2.5× settings so I get direct pixel-to-pixel files I can crop later— but that's just me.

Art always trumps technology, but if perspective isn't important to you (it should be), the 1× camera has the highest technical quality due to its larger sensor and best image stabilization compared to the 0.5× and 2.5× cameras. The 1× camera also focuses the closest.

While the 1×, 2.5× and selfie cameras have autofocus, the 0.5× camera has such huge depth-of-field that it's focus is fixed, so it's always in focus — just don't get too close. No matter what you do with the 0.5× camera, it's all in focus from about a foot to infinity.

 

Macro       user's guide       top

While setting the zoom to 2.5× definitely seems to get closer, in fact the 2.5× camera can't focus closer than about 18" or 47cm, so the iPhone cleverly swaps to the 1× camera and crops and resizes at very close distances to just get the job done and not get in the way of a great close-up. The 2.5× setting doesn't use the 2.5× camera if the 1× camera will do a better job.

This is as close as you can get at the 2.5× setting, which is closer than almost any other camera other than with a dedicated macro lens:

iPhone 12 Pro Max Macro Performance

Casio G-Shock Solar Atomic Watch at 5½" (14 cm) at 2.5× setting. bigger or camera-original © file.

If you investigate the camera-original © file you'll see that it was shot with the regular 5.1mm 1× camera, cropped and resized to 4,032 × 3,024 — but I doubt you'd ever notice.

Here's how it looks shot at 1× for comparison:

iPhone 12 Pro Max Macro Performance

Casio G-Shock Solar Atomic Watch at 5½" (14 cm) at 1× setting. bigger or camera-original © file.

If you poke around this camera-original © file you'll see that you can crop and resize it yourself for about the same results as shooting at 2.5×.

 

Distortion       user's guide       top

There's no problem with distortion, however for more critical scientific use, use these corrections in Photoshop's lens correction filter to JPG images:

Camera
0.5× (1.5mm)
+1.00*
1.0× (5.1mm)
+1.00*
2.5× (7.5mm)
-2.00

* Slight waviness remains after this correction.

 

Remote Control & Shutter Releases       user's guide       top

Clicking either of the Volume Up or Volume Down buttons works as a shutter release, as well as the obvious button on the screen.

Even better, with wired EarPods or other wired headphones, tapping the Volume Up or Volume Down buttons on the cord, with the camera active, also takes pictures! This is a favorite with private investigators and undercover journalists. I haven't seen this work over Bluetooth; it only works with corded headphones and earbuds.

The most fun is to use the Camera app on your Apple Watch. Now you can see what the camera is seeing on your watch face, and shoot with the shutter button shown on the screen of your Apple Watch! I use this when I poke my arm into places where I can't see my iPhone screen so I can compose.

Also I use the Apple Watch's Camera app's 3 second self timer for posed self- and group portraits. Try it, you like it: see the composition on your watch, start the timer, put your arm down and smile.

 

Movies & Burst Modes       user's guide       top

A new way of shooting movies is simply to hold down the shutter button until the movie starts, no need to find and select the movie mode.

This used to trigger the Burst mode that shot at 10 still frames per second on older iPhones. Now the Burst mode is triggered by holding the shutter and immediately swiping left.

If you set "Use Volume Up for Burst" at Settings > Camera:

iPhone Camera Settings

Now Volume Up takes a photo if you tap it, and shoots still images continuously at 10 frames per second if you hold it down.

Volume Down takes a photo if you tap it, and shots 4:3 HD (1,920 x 1,440 pixel) video at about 24 or 30 FPS with mono sound if you hold it down.

 

Time Lapse       user's guide       top

To make a time lapse, go to the Camera app, swipe to the right near the shutter button where it says PHOTO until you get to the TIME LAPSE option, then press the shutter and walk away. Press the shutter again when you're done, and that's it! This works best with the camera on some sort of support or tripod mount; I used the XUMA MTA-300B Tripod Mount Adapter.

 

Night Mode       user's guide       top

Just shoot. The iPhone 12 Pro Max just does whatever it has to automatically:

The Milky Way as photographed with the iPhone 11 Max Pro

The Milky Way as Seen from Bridgeport, California's Eastern Sierra, 7:34 P.M, 20 October 2019. iPhone 11 Pro Max tripod-mounted with XUMA MTA-300B Tripod Adapter, 4.25mm (26mm equivalent) ultra-wide camera at f/1.8 at 1 second (30 second composite time exposure mode) at Auto ISO 12,500 (LV -5.4). bigger.

While the rest of our group frantically fiddled with mirrorless and DSLR settings in the cold and pitch-black night, all I did was shoot this in the time exposure mode of my iPhone, lighten it a bit later in Photoshop CS6, and voilà, the iPhone 11 Pro Max eats another segment of what phones didn't used to be able to do. Better than the time exposures on the "real" cameras, the iPhone even compensated for the rotation of the earth that leads to blurred stars in the other shots. (see also How to Shoot the Milky Way with old cameras.) I got results almost as good hand-holding; the Tripod mount let me set 30 seconds of accumulation rather than just 10 seconds.

The lines at the left and right bottom are airplanes in motion.

Hint: the iPhone 12 Pro Max is so smart that it magically optimizes exposure times and ISOs for hand-held or tripod shooting. While you can shoot the Milky Way handheld, if you use a tripod mount the iPhone's accelerometers magically sense the lack of motion, lowers its ISO and makes longer exposures for even sharper images.

 

Exposure       user's guide       top

The iPhone does the best job of any camera getting the best exposure under any and all lighting conditions.

On rare occasions in harsh, contrasty light with bright colors you may want to reduce the exposure a little if the colors are becoming washed out. Do this by tapping the subject, which places a yellow box on it to set the exposure based on that point. If it's still too bright, touch and slide a finger down to reduce the exposure until it looks perfect. I rarely have to do this; usually it comes out perfect like this all by itself:

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

Red Plant, Saturday, 06 February 2021. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, 7.5mm (2.5× or 65mm-equivalent) tele camera at f/2.2 at 1/142 at Auto ISO 20 (LV 11¾), slightly cropped and otherwise exactly as shot. bigger or camera-original © file.

 

Ghosts       user's guide       top

Like all iPhones, there can sometimes be a small green ghost opposite the sun or a brilliant source of light in the image. This is a reflection from the sensor and then back from the protective cover glass or sapphire crystal.

No worries, if you get one and don't like it, I spot it out easily with the healing tool in Snapseed.

There are some ghosts in the sky near the palm trees in this photo of Santa's Village, which are from the brilliant lights on the poles by Santa's Igloo at the bottom. I could have spotted them out in a moment, but left them in. They are minor:

iPhone 12 Pro Max Sample Image File

North Pole / Le Pôle Nord, Canada, 5:24 PM, 15 November 2020. iPhone 12 Pro Max native Camera app, 5.1mm (1× or 26mm-equivalent) main camera at f/1.6 at 1/30 at Auto ISO 500 (LV 3.9),perspective correction in Photoshop CS6, Perfectly Clear. bigger or full-resolution.

 

Cases       user's guide       top

I always use a case. Today I use the Apple Kumquat orange silicon case because my usual Apple Leather case wasn't available when I ordered my iPhone 12 Pro Max.

I've accidentally dropped all of my iPhones on concrete or stone from a few feet up, including my new iPhone 12 Pro Max, and they've all survived without a scratch. Even a simple case like these do a great job of preventing screen cracks.

I've dropped my iPhone 12 Pro Max in its Apple Kumquat orange silicon case from three feet onto tile and from four feet onto tile, and it's just fine.

The silicon case seems to be more protective, but it's also more grippy, making it harder to slip in and out of a pocket.

The leather cases seem less protective, but feel so much nicer — to me.

Cases are very personal. Take your pick, but except when actors hold them in movies as props, everyone should use a case.

 

Still Image Formats & Compatibility       user's guide       top

The iPhone 12 Pro Max can store images using either the newest and most efficient coding algorithm (HEIC) which take less storage space for the same great quality, or store them the usual way (JPG) so that everyone can actually see and edit and view the images everywhere - but they take more storage space in the iPhone.

I prefer the newer formats for in-iPhone storage (Settings > Camera > Formats > High Efficiency), and when I download in my Mac's Image Capture app, it magically converts the images to JPG so I can edit them. Likewise when sharing photos, they always share as JPGs so people can see them. Only when I AirDrop photos in High Efficiency do they arrive as HEIC, which on a Mac I open in Preview and save-out as JPGs.

I don't shoot AppleRAW, but the iPhone 12 Pro Max can if you like.

 

HDR Video Compatibility & Editing       user's guide       top

The iPhone 12 Pro Max shoots all video in HDR by default.

This means that I can't edit that video on my Mac Pro in iMovie on Mojave because iMovie on Mac still can't read the HDR formats, at least as of the last time I tried. While the files show up, they look horribly washed-out and overexposed. Your friends may see them the same way depending on how you send them.

Therefore be sure you can use HDR files before you shoot them.

If you can't read HDR files, be sure either to:

1.) Set the video camera not to use HDR by selecting Settings > Camera > Record Video > and uncheck HDR Video.

2.) If you need to convert an HDR video to regular, open a new project in iMovie on the iPhone (which can read HDR), import your video, and deselect the HDR option as you export the project. This works fine, but involves more steps than I'd like. Heck, did you know you can edit all day in 4K in iMovie right on your iPhone, and it works great?

For all I know as you read this Apple may have iMovie on Mac updated, it's just a matter of time — but be sure you can use your files before you shoot any big projects. I shoot all my video at KenRockwell.TV on iPhone.

 

Closing Unused Apps

Don't bother.

Unlike desktop computers, iOS is smart enough to ignore all the apps you've opened if you're not using them.

It actually uses more power to close and then reopen apps than to just leave them "running." Only close an app if it's working funny and you want to restart it.

 

Recommendations       top

Sample Images   Introduction   Specifications

Unboxing   Compared   User's Guide   Recommendations

Is it worth it? Obviously I'm a photographer, and the iPhone 12 Pro Max is the best there is. It's definitely worth it to me.

Is it worth it to you? Read Is It Worth It, which explains that you have to ask yourself how much money you have, how much you'll enjoy the new features, and how often you'll enjoy them.

While it might seem crazy to spend $1,100 ~ $1,400 on a phone, ask yourself how much time you spend using it every day. Even the best of us uses our phone for one reason or another for hours every day. Because of this, your phone is a big part of your life, so while one could survive with a much lesser phone, it does make sense to have the phone you want, unless all you do is use it to make calls every few days.

For everyone else, we all deserve an iPhone 12 Max Pro.

I love the Pro Max size; I have big hands. My son Ryan prefers his regular iPhone 12 Pro which is a little smaller and $100 less; to each their own.

I'd get my iPhone 12 Pro Max at Amazon.

Enjoy!!!

 

© Ken Rockwell. All rights reserved. Tous droits réservés. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.

 

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07, 18 June 2021, 18 April 2021, 06-11, 20 February 2021