Is it “old wine in a new bottle”?

iPhone 17 Pro Max after 2 months scores points thanks to its strong battery and vapor chamber heat dissipation, aluminum frame design creates a comfortable feeling

More than two months have passed since Apple officially introduced the iPhone 17 Pro Max. During this time, I used the device as my main phone, along with experiencing the iPhone Air to get the most objective view.

After the initial “honeymoon” period, it’s now time to delve into the actual values ​​of battery life, durability, performance and camera to answer the question: Is Apple’s latest flagship really worthy of expectations?

“Hands down” now if you have “secretly loved” this flagship for a long time:

Battery life: Stable but depends on usage habits

The first and most important factor that affects daily experience is the battery. Through testing in the settings after 13 charging cycles, the device’s battery health remains at 100%. Although this is not a very large number to evaluate long-term durability, the frequency of having to plug in the charger during the day has been significantly reduced compared to previous generations.

Under harsh testing conditions with Beta updates and complex settings, an average of 4 hours of screen-on time with heavy tasks consumes about 75% of the battery. However, when consulting data from other users, the results are much more impressive: the device can achieve nearly 8 hours of Screen-on time and nearly 2 hours of screen standby with only 64% battery consumption.

Camera: Minimalism brings maximum efficiency

The ability to take photos is always the strongest “weapon” of the Pro Max series. In fact, the entire recording process for this review was done directly on the iPhone 17 Pro Max. Surprisingly, the recording quality from the built-in microphone is so good that I’m considering eliminating the external microphone for simple recording sets.

Instead of following professional standards like Log recording or ProRes, which consume huge amounts of space and require complicated post-production processes, I find that the regular H.265 standard is more than enough for today’s content creation needs. Images are sharp, natural in color and easy to edit.

Unless you work in a professional film production environment that requires multi-camera sync, keeping things simple on your iPhone will provide the most comfortable and efficient shooting experience.

Design and materials: Controversial change

The design of the iPhone 17 Pro Max with a flat camera cluster (camera plateau) and a two-tone back initially created many mixed opinions. However, after two months of handling and using, this design gradually creates sympathy thanks to its familiar feeling and high level of perfection.

The biggest change lies in Apple’s switch from Titanium frame (on iPhone 16 Pro) to aluminum frame. This helps reduce the weight of the device significantly, providing a more comfortable grip for long periods of time.

However, the trade-off is that the colors on the aluminum frame are somewhat less vibrant and lack the premium “cold” look of precious metals. This year’s color options such as Cosmic Orange, Blue and Silver all bring their own personality. Although Orange can be quite picky about users, it is the “best seller” of this line.

Actual durability: Aluminum frame and scratches

In theory, aluminum is softer than Titanium or stainless steel, so impact resistance will be less. In an incident of falling from a height of about 1 meter onto a rock surface, the device had a slight dent on the frame and small scratches on the corner of the screen.

However, with daily wear and tear, the device exhibits excellent durability. After two months of regularly placing it on hard surfaces such as marble or quartz tables or keeping it in my pocket, the screen, the glass back and the sapphire layer protecting the camera all show no signs of scratches.

A small note is that users should be careful when cleaning the machine, avoid using solutions containing high concentrations of isopropyl alcohol to protect the surface coating.

Performance and display: Cool thanks to the new cooling system

The screen on the iPhone 17 Pro Max can be claimed to be the best panel Apple has ever produced, with a brilliance and vividness that far surpasses the previous generation.

The brightest point this year is the new vapor chamber cooling system. Even when recording video at maximum brightness or using it in hot sunlight at 35°C, the device still maintains stable brightness, without dimming or overheating like previous generations.

The A19 Pro chip continues to affirm its power with a Geekbench score exceeding the 10,000 mark, handling games smoothly and coolly.

Conclusion

After two months of experience, it can be affirmed that iPhone 17 Pro Max is a solid step forward in display technology, heat dissipation and battery life. The switch to an aluminum frame brings comfort when used but reduces a bit of luxury compared to Titanium.

If you are using models from iPhone 15 Pro Max or earlier, this is a very worthwhile upgrade. On the contrary, if you are satisfied with the iPhone 16 Pro Max and love the Titanium material, you can completely wait patiently for the next generation. iPhone 17 Pro Max is not a revolutionary game changer, but a necessary improvement for the most core experiences.