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Smartphone expert Mark delivers his iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max review after testing Apple’s latest-gen, Pro-level devices both in our benchmarks and anecdotal scenarios. In this video, he breaks down the pros and cons of these phones, comparing the iPhone 17 Pro Max vs. Galaxy S25 Ultra in terms of performance, camera quality, battery life and more. Expect a closer look at the aluminium design, upgraded zoom, Center Stage selfie lens, brighter display, vapor chamber cooling and faster charging, too.
Mark also talks about what Apple didn’t nail this year, like the extra weight and lack of “wow” AI features. So if you’re wondering whether to upgrade or just hold onto your current phone, this video should have your answer.
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0:00
The iPhone 17 Pro and the Pro Max are not subtle smartphones
0:03
Apple slapped a giant camera bar, sorry, plateau, across the back and painted it cosmic orange
0:09
It's basically screaming, look at me, I'm new. But I guess that's kind of the point
0:13
But beyond the bold look, the Pro Max is packing some real upgrades
0:17
We're going to hash those all out in this episode of Buy or Skip for my full review of the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max
0:25
All right, before I get into the upgrades, let's set the stage with the iPhone 17 Pro
0:29
and the Pro Max prices because it's actually good news. Despite these rumors and concerns over
0:34
tariffs and inflation driving up the cost of Apple devices, that didn't happen. The iPhone 17 Pro
0:40
starts at $1099, and this is technically a $100 increase over the iPhone 16 Pro's starting price
0:45
but with a higher starting 256 gigs of storage. The 17 Pro actually is the same cost as a 256 gig
0:53
16 Pro. Then we got the iPhone 17 Pro Max starting at $1,199, exactly the same price as the iPhone 16
1:00
Pro Max. It goes up to a record $19.99, but that's for the two terabyte configuration, and it's the
1:06
first iPhone you can buy with that much storage. Now let's look at this design. Apple took a risk
1:11
with the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, and I actually think it pays off. I prefer the wide camera bar to
1:15
the previous patch, and the two-tone look is refreshing. Sure, some people are going to hate it
1:20
But overall, this is what Apple had to do to not let the iPhone Air kind of totally steal the show
1:25
And I'll talk about that more later in this video. The iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max are made tougher too with a ceramic shield 2 front
1:32
that's three times more scratch resistant and a ceramic shield back that protects better against cracks
1:37
Apple raised a lot of eyebrows when it revealed the iPhone 17 Pro would ditch titanium
1:42
and go back to an aluminum unibody. But this was actually a really smart move
1:46
If you have an iPhone 16 Pro or even the iPhone 15 Pro, have you noticed that your phone gets like really hot
1:52
Compared to titanium, aluminum is more thermally conductive and feels cooler in your hand
1:57
Pair that with a vapor chamber cooling system that is designed to minimize heat, and you wind up with a phone with better sustained performance, which we're going to get into
2:05
Speaking of performance, this is something I've been really excited about during the review period
2:10
It no secret that performance has been a little bit of a sore spot for iPhones at least looking at some flagship competitors but the new A19 Pro chip powering these phones is a game changer In my test the iPhone 17 Pro Max crushed through
2:22
demanding games like Destiny Rising without breaking a sweat. On Geekbench and 3DMark
2:26
it beats the Galaxy S25 Ultra. And we did a separate graphic stress test where we run it for
2:32
20 minutes. And then at the end, we measured the temperature as well as the sustained performance
2:36
and overall the 17 Pro Max reliability score was 15 points higher than the Galaxy S25 Ultra
2:43
If you do want to see the whole breakdown of the test results including the graphics test, I'll put a link to the full written review in the description but overall we're seeing really
2:50
impressive numbers and I think the iPhone 17 Pro Max and Pro should make Samsung worried
2:56
Is that also the case for the cameras? Well this year Apple has been listening to all of our
3:00
complaints and is going all in on Zoom. The new 48 megapixel telephoto which is one of three 48
3:05
megapixel sensors on this redesigned camera plateau gives you up to 8x optical quality zoom
3:11
Against the Galaxy S25 Ultra, the 7T Pro holds its own up to about 10x, though yes
3:17
Samsung still wins at 40x and the crazy 100x ranges. What impressed me most was low light
3:23
The iPhone blew away Samsung in a skull and books test shot where you could actually read the text
3:28
on the iPhone's photo. The new 18 megapixel center stage front camera is also extremely clever
3:33
It automatically widens to landscape when more people jump in the frame. It's perfect for group selfies, and it makes my job as photographer on family vacations a lot easier
3:42
As a videographer, it's the front camera again that's the standout. The new native dual capture feature lets you record using front and rear cameras at the same time
3:51
and it's a great way to show your reaction to whatever you're filming. I found the stabilization and moving shots, like when I'm running, for example
3:58
to work very well versus the S25 Ultra. I did take a lot of photo and video comparisons beyond just what you're seeing here, so you can find all of those at the same review link in the description
4:09
I got to spend a lot of daytime hours with the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, so I can confidently say it's built for bright, sunny environments
4:16
The 6.9-inch OLED hits 3,000 nits of peak brightness. That's up from 2000 last year, though some of that is also thanks to a new anti-glare layer
4:24
If brightness is your concern when smartphone shopping I will say the Pixel 10 Pro XL is the absolute winner in this category That phone is basically a portable spotlight Battery life on the other hand is a big reason to get the iPhone 17 Pro Max or Pro
4:39
over the standard iPhone 17 or the new Air. How long the iPhone 17 Pro Max lasts is genuinely
4:46
impressive. In our proprietary web surfing test, it ran for 17 hours, 54 minutes, and 32 seconds
4:53
That's the longest lasting iPhone we've ever tested. Out of curiosity, we re-ran the same test
4:58
on a fully healthy iPhone 16 Pro Max, which lasted just over 14 hours. That's roughly a three-hour
5:04
improvement with the 17 Pro Max. We were still retesting the smaller iPhone 17 Pro at the time
5:09
of filming, so the final results will be in the full review linked in the description. But early
5:14
numbers point to a very positive story for battery life across the new lineup. Apple also finally
5:19
gave us faster charging, 50% in 20 minutes with the new 40-watt brick, sold separately of course
5:24
and link down below if you want to pick one up. For context, in my testing, I got up to 64% in
5:30
half an hour with the 17 Pro Max, better than the 55% on the iPhone 16 Pro Max. So yeah
5:37
it makes a difference. Everything I've been saying so far paints a pretty positive picture
5:42
of the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, but it's not all good. It really bugs me the iPhone 17 Pro Max
5:47
is heavier and thicker than the iPhone 16 Pro Max. But where you're really going to feel and
5:52
see the differences versus the iPhone Air. At the same time we're getting this super thin
5:56
almost impossibly light iPhone, we're getting a chunkier Pro. But if I had to pick one complaint
6:01
with the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, it's how underwhelming the AI experience truly is
6:06
Apple intelligence sounds good on paper, but it doesn't match Google or Samsung. Features like
6:10
visual intelligence and smarter shortcuts are nice, but compared to Google's Gemini Live
6:14
which can yze your screen in real time, Apple feels behind. With iPhone, you actually have to
6:19
screenshot first, and Siri still won't give you spoken answers back. Now, iOS 26 itself looks great
6:25
The new liquid glass design gives everything a sleek, modern vibe, and there are genuinely useful
6:30
upgrades like call screening and hold assist. You can even customize messages with polls and
6:34
backgrounds, which is fun, but none of that changes the fact that Apple's AI story isn't as strong
6:39
To say there's a lot riding on the new Siri rollout, which is delayed, is an understatement
6:44
The stakes when it comes to AI are only getting higher and if you do want to hear more where Apple stands on that be sure to check out my interview with Craig and Jaws from WWDC here on the channel Now I know this video is about the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro
6:56
Max, but I can't not talk about the iPhone Air, especially because it has the same A19 Pro chip
7:02
I've been able to spend some time with the iPhone Air, and it's totally living up to the promise of
7:06
being slim, light, and easier to slip into a pocket compared to the chunkier Pro Max. If you care most
7:12
about comfort and minimal bulk, the Air is the one you'll actually want to carry around every day
7:16
but it just can't keep up in terms of power and features with the Pro and Pro Max
7:20
They give you a full triple camera system with true 8x telephoto zoom
7:25
macro shots from the ultra-wide, and better sustained performance. The iPhone Air has a single camera and no vapor chamber cooling
7:31
And battery life? After a five-hour video rundown test on YouTube over Wi-Fi
7:35
the iPhone Air was down to 81%, which is pretty good, but the Pro Max was at 88%
7:40
In the same web surfing test I showed the chart for earlier, maybe you caught that the iPhone Air lasted just over 12 hours
7:46
That's nearly a six-hour difference in battery life versus the iPhone 17 Pro Max to take into consideration
7:52
So the Pro Max is still king when it comes to endurance. So, buy or skip
7:58
If you're on an iPhone 15 or 16 Pro or Pro Max, I'd say it's okay to skip
8:03
For me, though, this is the sweet spot to upgrade if you're on an iPhone 14 Pro or later
8:08
It is also worth the buy if you want the iPhone with Apple's best features to offer right now
8:12
Yes, it's heavy. Yes, the AI is behind. But between the tougher build, the better cameras, brighter display, and cooler sustained performance, this is the Pro and Pro Max that earns its name
8:22
Besides, the kind of Apple intelligence improvements I'm hoping for should be able to run very well on these phones via a software update. At least that better be the case
8:31
But I'm curious, what do you think of the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max? I really want to know if anyone got the iPhone Air instead. So whichever way you want to go, tell me why
8:39
If you found this review interesting or helpful, consider hitting that subscribe button and turning on notifications
8:45
Thanks for watching. For Tom's Guide, this is Mark Spudauer
#Computers & Electronics