Video Review: 72 Hours Using the iPhone 15 Pro Max

MacRumors videographer Dan Barbera picked up a new iPhone 15 Pro Max on launch day, and he spent the last four days using it non-stop to give MacRumors readers an idea of how the new iPhone experience is going and his first thoughts on the features Apple added this year.


There have been complaints about the new ‌iPhone 15‌ Pro models getting too hot, but other than a heat issue when using an uncertified USB-C cable to connect to CarPlay, Dan hasn't run into trouble and he hasn't seen overheating problems. The same is true for the rest of us at MacRumors - our iPhones appear to be functioning as intended and running cool following the initial setup and syncing period.

With the switch to titanium, Apple lowered the weight of the ‌iPhone 15‌ Pro models, plus added contoured edges that are much more comfortable to hold. Dan says that this is one of the most notable changes for him, and it makes picking up an ‌iPhone‌ 14 or ‌iPhone‌ 13 downright uncomfortable.

Battery life has been solid, but the Action Button is a work in progress and it can take some time to figure out what's most useful. We'll have a dedicated Action Button video coming sometime in the near future.

As for the camera, it's unsurprisingly pretty great. 24-megapixel photos make a difference, and the 5x Telephoto lens is an improvement over the prior 3x version. We're also planning an in-depth camera comparison, so stay tuned for that.

Make sure to watch Dan's full video, and if you have one of the new ‌iPhone 15‌ Pro models, let us know what you think in the comments below.

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching in Three Months With These 12 New Features

Saturday June 14, 2025 5:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of June 2025:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone X through iPhone 14 Pro have a...
apple watch ultra 2 new black

Apple Watch Ultra 3 Finally Coming After Two-Year Hiatus

Monday June 16, 2025 8:45 am PDT by
Apple will finally deliver the Apple Watch Ultra 3 sometime this year, according to analyst Jeff Pu of GF Securities Hong Kong (via @jukanlosreve). The analyst expects both the Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch Ultra 3 to arrive this year (likely alongside the new iPhone 17 lineup, if previous launches are anything to go by), according to his latest product roadmap shared with...
apple watch ultra snow

6 Features Coming to the Apple Watch Ultra 3

Tuesday February 25, 2025 9:00 am PST by
The Apple Watch Ultra 3 is expected to launch later this year, arriving two years after the previous model with a series of improvements. While no noticeable design changes are expected for the third generation since the company tends to stick with the same Apple Watch design through three generations before changing it, there are a series of internal upgrades on the way. By the time the ...
terminal macos tahoe

Apple's Terminal App Gets Colorful Redesign in macOS Tahoe

Monday June 16, 2025 4:12 am PDT by
Apple's Terminal app is getting a visual refresh in macOS Tahoe, and it's the first notable design update since the command-line tool debuted. The updated Terminal will support 24-bit color and Powerline fonts, according to Apple's State of the Platforms presentation at WWDC25. The app will also adopt the new Liquid Glass aesthetic with redesigned themes that align with macOS 26's broader...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

Apple Says iOS 26 Won't Be Available on These iPhone Models

Tuesday June 10, 2025 6:58 am PDT by
Apple this week revealed that iOS 26 is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and newer. That means that iOS 18 is the end of the road for the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR, which were all released in 2018. However, those devices will continue to receive security updates for at least a few more years. iOS 26 is compatible with the following iPhone models: iPhone 16e iPhone...
new iphone lockscreen ios 26

iOS 26: Five Changes Coming to Your iPhone Lock Screen

Tuesday June 17, 2025 8:46 am PDT by
With iOS 26, Apple has made some additions to the iPhone Lock Screen that aim to make it more customizable than ever. Of course, things can always change before the software makes its way to the general iPhone-owning public, but here are five new things iOS 26 can do on the Lock Screen as of the current developer beta. Widgets Top or Bottom In iOS 18, the row of widgets on your Lock...
AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Not Launching Until Next Year, Claims Analyst

Monday June 16, 2025 4:52 am PDT by
Apple may launch the AirPods Pro 3 in 2026, according to analyst Jeff Pu of GF Securities Hong Kong, contradicting earlier predictions of a much sooner release. Pu's Apple product timeline (via @jukanlosreve) comes as a bit of a surprise. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said in February that new AirPods with heart rate monitoring were "months away," suggesting a late 2025 launch at the earliest....

Top Rated Comments

arkitect Avatar
23 months ago
Well that made my old heart skip a beat or two!



But alas!
Carry on as before…

Attachment Image
Score: 29 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jbachandouris Avatar
23 months ago
I’ve had zero issues on my launch day Pro Max. Not sure why others do.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
roland.g Avatar
23 months ago
Seems like a lackluster endorsement at best.

"It doesn't really get hot."
"The camera really is better."
"It's lighter and more comfortable to hold."

Ok.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
HobeSoundDarryl Avatar
23 months ago
Based on the great wall of sentiment of "USB-C is a lint magnet" and "will quickly become wobbly and/or broken in use" BEFORE the launch, I thought the whole review would be about digging lint out, lint removal tips & tricks, and regularly repairing the USB-C port at "insanely expensive repair prices." What happened?

And wow! How lucky have I (and now Dan) been, using USB-C in the rest of Apple's product lineup for years now with nary a single lint incident, nor a wobble, nor broken port. I feel sorry for all you other Apple product owners who have scant time to enjoy the tech for having to deal with all of that "forced upon us" misery.

Maybe the heat is a feature??? Incinerating the lint as it accumulates? Only Apple can innovate lint incineration!

;)
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cocky jeremy Avatar
23 months ago

This seems a little too much like a press release from Apple's marketing department...
Or more likely, most people aren't having any issues with their phones. I know mine has been perfect so far.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DesignTime Avatar
23 months ago
This seems a little too much like a press release from Apple's marketing department...
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)