Apple in September released the iPhone 14 models, so it's been three months since launch. MacRumors videographer Dan Barbera has been using the iPhone 14 Pro Max as his main phone since it came out, and he has some long term usage thoughts to share with those still undecided about upgrading.
In terms of durability, the iPhone 14 Pro Max is holding up well, even through several drops. There is a deep scratch on the display, but that tends to happen with no case. The stainless steel coating in black is prone to scratching, but it seems to be more durable than the coating on the 13 Pro Max.
Always on display and the Dynamic Island are nice features to have, especially with iOS 16.2 updates that let you hide wallpaper. Dynamic Island isn't being taken advantage of well as of yet, but Live Activities are still new and haven't been widely adopted by third-party apps.
The 48-megapixel upgrade to the Main camera on the iPhone 14 Pro models makes a major difference in quality, but it's not something that's for day to day use because of the file sizes. The sensor upgrade does bring improvements to all photos, and the new 4K 24fps option for Cinematic Mode results in great videos.
If you're still unsure about upgrading, it's well worth the purchase if you're coming from an iPhone 11 or older, but it's not really worth going for one of the standard 14 models over the Pro models just because of the huge number of features Apple made exclusive to the 14 Pro and Pro Max. To see all of Dan's thoughts on Apple's latest flagship, make sure to watch the video up above.
