I’d always had my eye on the iPhone 12 Pro max and was planning that I’d get that if I was ever changing a new device. But a few months ago, I needed a new device because my iPhone 11 Pro Max’s battery life had degraded significantly and I had been engaged in something that required my phone stayed on longer. Interestingly, the iPhone 12 Pro Max I originally wanted just wasn’t looking as attractive anymore because now I had my eyes set on the iPhone 14 Pro Max and for a couple of good reasons.
This is my iPhone 11 Pro Max. Looked pretty clean even after 4 years of use!
As a photography enthusiast, the first thing I was always consider when getting a new phone is the camera. Since I especially like macrophotography, the 14 Pro Max’s Macrophoto feature made it a no brainer. Aside that, the 48MP main camera just felt more exciting cos that meant better photos in general, and spatial scenes is a pretty slick feature too, might I add.
I have to admit though my excitement about cinematic mode was met with disappointment because I shot my very first train ride on it (I’ll make a separate post for that but the picture below is from that ride) and I don’t seem to see much of a difference between that and the regular video mode. But I’m still playing around with it, so maybe I shouldn’t be too hasty at my conclusions?
The 14 Pro Max was also the better performer. The newer A16 Bionic chip means faster processing but more importantly, better battery management and hence life. I did notice significantly better battery life when I just switched over, but I’m not sure if I’ve just grown used to it or whether the battery life has degraded too quickly because although my phone doesn’t die as fast, it doesn’t last as long as I seem to recall it did at the start. And the difference is significant (dies maybe 2 hours sooner), which is how I’m noticing.
Good to note that I have my hotspot and bluetooth on almost the entire day because I work on my PC most of the day, so that could be contributing to the battery performance issue. I plan on getting a router soon when I have some money to spare to give my battery a break.
Something I find weird is how my battery health went from 86% in May when I got it to 82% currently. Losing 4% battery health in just 3 months doesn’t sound very normal if you ask me, so if someone understands what might’ve happened better, please educate me.
My logic here was that after the iPhone 18 comes out, apple would likely discontinue update support to the iPhone 11 series which would put the 12 series next in line for discontinued updates, and I really didn’t want to have to worry about getting a new device any time soon, so I just figured getting a more recent device would solve that. This point was the basis on which I decided the 12 Pro Max wasn’t a great buy, but the next point was why I decided to get the 14 Pro Max specifically.
The 14 Pro Max is the second phone to get apple’s dynamic island, and let’s just say it’s a sign of status around here right now. Not for me, but you’ll understand why this is important because it connects to…
screenshot from my phone. Using this as an opportunity to put you onto good music. Lol
You see, because the 14 Pro Max is the second iPhone to get dynamic island, that places it around the cheapest price to get an iPhone with an in-demand feature, so that means that it’s resale value is good and sale time will be fast. If you’re wondering why I didn’t just get the 14 Pro - which is actually the first phone to get dynamic island - for cheaper, it’s because of its size and battery life. I’ve grown accustomed to Pro Max-sized phones, so the 14 Pro felt smaller in my hand.
So it was really a consideration of a bunch of rejection and acceptance criteria which was majorly about the phone’s ability to deliver what I need and what it’s resale value and time.
I don’t have a picture of just my 14 Pro max, but here’s a picture of me with it. My skin has gotten progressively worse since I moved to Accra and looks roughed up in recent photos, but that’s a post for another day.
All photos are mine, and screenshot is from my current phone.
