Speaker 1: I just upgraded from an iPhone 11 to a 15 Pro Max, which is a big deal. One because it’s been a while since I got a new phone and two, because this is my first pro iPhone ever. But are all of the bells and whistles and the hefty price tag actually worth it or should I have just gotten a regular 15? You may recall how I was so sure I wanted an iPhone 15 that I told [00:00:30] you I was buying one before it even came out and I stuck to my word after a month with this thing. I can tell you that the camera is so good that I think it justifies the price and how heavy it is. By now you probably know that the 15 Pro Max has a five times optical zoom, which is a huge step up from no Zoom on the iPhone 11, and it’s what sold me on the 15 Pro Max. Speaker 1: The proof my friend is in the photos. I embraced my inner tourist and took some shots of the Golden Gate Bridge. Here’s one at five [00:01:00] times optical Zoom on the 15 Pro Max and another at five times Digital Zoom on the 11. My mind was blown when I saw these photos side by side, like the fact that the 15 Pro Max captured that little ladder on the bridge and even the windows on the Salesforce tower. Miles behind the bridge is just no words. Colors are also truer to life in the 15 Pro Max photo, that orangey red color that the Golden Gate Bridge is so famous for really comes through. Going to concerts is a personality trait of mine at this point [00:01:30] and I love taking videos to look back on and to post on TikTok. While my iPhone 11 videos were not too shoppy. Speaker 1: The 15 Pro Max takes them to the next level. I just saw Labyrinth and while I’m pretty close to the stage in this video, I’m not at the barricade, but at five times I might as well just tell everybody I was at the stage because they really wouldn’t know the difference. This camera feature alone was enough to make the upgrade worth it for me. But what about the other updates? The 15 Pros have a brand new action button that [00:02:00] I really wanted to love, but real talk. I’ve only used it like once or twice. Mine is set to the camera and I’m just not used to using it for that. So I’ll probably just switch it back to the mute function. These next two features aren’t exclusive to the 15 Pro Max, but while we’re on the subject of stuff I thought I’d use more than I actually do. Speaker 1: Let’s talk always on display and Dynamic island. I get very easily distracted by my phone, so seeing the screen even slightly lit makes me want to scroll. So I’ll probably turn off the always on display [00:02:30] and I’m exposing myself because I was really excited about the dynamic island. Say what you want about the dynamic island. That little shape shifting cutout at the top of the iPhone, but I think it’s pretty cool. Some of you tried to temper my expectations, but I didn’t listen and you were right. The dynamic island makes it hard to do things. I’m used to like tapping the top of the screen to scroll up and when I do try to use it to say change songs, I usually just end up accidentally closing it. But if you are a fan of the Dynamic Island, let me [00:03:00] know how you use it because I’m still open to giving it a try. Speaker 1: Titanium versus aluminum, does it matter? The titanium is really pretty, but I always use a case, so it’s honestly not life-changing for me. You may have also seen some 15 pro titanium durability tests online. I saw them right after I ordered my 15 Pro Max and they made me very nervous. Every time I take off my case. I’m kind of scared I’ll break my phone, but so far so good. The iPhone 15 lineup ditches, the lightning [00:03:30] port for USBC port, which is major because it’s the first time the charging port has been changed in over a decade. And USBC isn’t Apple made and so far I’m loving the change. It was a little annoying to have to switch out the OX cord and charger in my car, but because I already have so many USBC cords lying around the house, the transition has been so much easier than the one from 30 pin to lightning. It’s so nice to have one cord at my desk to charge my laptop and my phone. Speaker 1: [00:04:00] Aside from the always on display Dynamic Island and USBC, all of the features I just talked about are exclusive to the new 15 pros. But what about pro features from previous models? Apple claims the 14 and 15 Promax iPhones offer up to 29 hours of video playback. But let me tell you, the battery was not giving promax when I first got this phone. I’d unplug it at a hundred percent, around 10:00 AM and with normal use scrolling through TikTok, taking photos and videos, listening [00:04:30] to music, it would be at like 30% by around three 30. I really had to limit my screen time to have enough battery for the day, which is not something I’ve ever experienced with a new even non-Pro iPhone. So I went to the Genius Bar, which is something I only do if I’m really stressed. I originally transferred my old data by placing my iPhones next to each other, but Apple recommended I wipe the 15 Pro Max and transfer the old data from my computer. Speaker 1: And I was told that if this didn’t fix things, which it didn’t, a future update probably would. [00:05:00] iOS 17.0 0.3 did fix this problem after a little under two weeks, but after this experience, I probably won’t buy a new iPhone during launch week. Again. Also, you’re probably wondering how my battery’s doing now while my phone can make it through a full day without needing to be charged, but I do have to plug it in every night. And honestly, I was expecting a bit more from a Promax battery, but then my friend asked me how much time I’m actually spending on my phone every day and the results are so [00:05:30] embarrassing. I cannot believe I’m showing you this very classified information and it totally makes sense why I have to plug in my phone every night. Speaker 2: Go ahead. Speaker 1: Like that kind of, yes. Speaker 2: Oh my god, there’s a bug on it where Speaker 1: That’s my videographer salsa and I finding a bug in my pasta thanks to macro mode. As the saying goes, phone eats first while the iPhone 11 got pretty close to my lunch before losing the 15 Pro Max got even closer [00:06:00] and caught something th crawling. So shout out to macro mode because without it I would’ve eaten that bug. Night mode is on in both of these photos, but being able to combine it with portrait mode on the 15 Pro Max makes low light photos look just so fancy. I’ve also found that night mode photos taken on the 15 pro max are generally brighter and more detailed. For example, the knitting in a bra sweater is clearer in this portrait photo and in this one taken without portrait mode two. Finally, [00:06:30] let’s go for some features that aren’t limited to the pros but are not on my iPhone 11. I love that all of the iPhone fifteens let you enable portrait mode on photos of a person, cat or dog, and change which subject is in focus after a photo’s been taken, but it isn’t always seamless. Take this photo of myself a bra and our friend Speaker 3: In cnet, Speaker 1: Colleague Viva Tongue when I changed the focus to Veeva. It blurs the edges of her sunglasses a little bit, but generally works pretty well. But when I try to change the focus to a bra, [00:07:00] Veeva is still in focus too. So this feature definitely isn’t perfect, but it is fun to play around with and overall I do appreciate having it there. I’ve also been having so much fun with cinematic and action modes for video. That cinematic mode blurring effect just makes the 15 Pro Max video look so professional and action mode makes my shaky filming look nice and smooth. Now that we’ve gone over all the details, do I think it was worth it to get the 15 Pro Max? I already told you [00:07:30] the camera alone made it worthwhile, but apart from the five times optical Zoom, the biggest camera draw cards turned out to be things I could have gotten on the 15 pro like macro mode or even stuff I could have gotten on a regular 15 like cinematic mode. Speaker 1: So if you don’t care about five times optical zoom, I’d consider one of those models or even an older one. I was also surprised that the things I thought sounded so cool on paper like Dynamic Island and the action button weren’t game changers for me once I actually tried [00:08:00] them. I’m very interested to see how long this phone lasts because it cost a whopping $1,300. I splurged because I was excited about the camera and hopeful this phone would last longer than my previous ones. But I’d love to check back in a year and tell you if I still think it’s been worth it all in all, the iPhone 11 has been with me through a lot and I’m kind of sad to say goodbye, but it is also time for a new chapter. In fact, I’m going to go trade it in right now so I can get some credit to offset the new phone. Catch you later, and thank you so much for [00:08:30] watching.
