Apple's iPhone 13 Pro Max is easily among the best smartphones in the world right now – especially if you don't want an Android.
With the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra hot on its tail, the iPhone 13 Pro Max has a lot of high-end competition to deal with and will eventually be replaced by the iPhone 14.
Everything good about the iPhone – how smooth iOS is, a beautiful display, amazing cameras, and the overall feeling of quality – is present and correct, as you would expect.
While the smaller iPhone SE, or cheaper iPhone 12, might be the choice for some people, others prefer having the best of the best and that's where the 13 Pro Max comes in.
Here I've decided to run down the top 3 things I wish I'd known before picking up the iPhone 13 Pro Max when it came out.
1. It's a very heavy smartphone
As you might expect from a 6.7-inch smartphone, the iPhone 13 Pro Max is heavy. I was coming from the (legendary) iPhone XR, which is fairly heavy, but the Pro Max is on another level.
Apple says it weighs in at 240 grams, compared to 204g for the iPhone 13 Pro, 174g for the iPhone 13, and 141g for the iPhone 13 mini. (The iPhone 12 Pro Max weighs 228g, so it's even heavier than that.)
The added weight is the first thing you notice out the box but over time I've come to accept it; the added features that contribute to the weight make up for it. But if you have small pockets or don't want a heavy device, pick another model.
2. You can feel how premium it is
The iPhone 13 Pro Max is a pretty breath-taking device.
Everything has been considered and considered again to make it absolutely perfect. I went for the new blue colour (called Sierra Blue) and it's stunning, a real upgrade on the 12 Pro Max's Pacific Blue.
You can tell that Apple recognised how expensive this device is – starting at £1,049 for 128GB and going up to £1,549 for 1TB – and worked really hard to justify that price with high quality materials and care.
It certainly paid off: you'll most likely spend the first few days with the iPhone 13 Pro Max marvelling at how nice it feels.
3. You just have to protect it with a case
That is, of course, until you do the sensible thing and protect the Pro Max from scratches and scapes with a case.
Apple has a nice (and quite expensive) series of cases but we recommend heading over to Etsy, where you can find loads of nice designs that fit your specific style.
While it's sad to encase all of Apple's hard work, you'd have to be crazy to risk damaging the device itself, especially if you bought it outright. (We also recommend some hefty smartphone insurance.)
The other thing about protecting your iPhone 13 Pro Max is that they have the absolute best trade-in value of any phone on the market, and Apple's own trade-in program is excellent. Yes, you lose some of the phone's aesthetic beauty, but by avoiding those scrapes and scratches you can make upgrading to iPhone 14 Pro Max significantly cheaper.
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