Buzz
After 6 years of maintaining the 'notch' design since the iPhone X, Apple officially overhauled the screen design of the iPhone 14 Pro Max to 'make a difference' with the new Dynamic Island. But this isn't the only new aspect of the iPhone 14 Pro Max compared to the iPhone 13 Pro Max.
Let's explore 5 things that set apart the 2022 Apple flagship from its 2021 counterpart:
1. Dynamic Island replacing the 'notch'
The front camera cluster and sensors serving the Face ID feature have been a distinctive feature of iPhones from the iPhone X to the iPhone 13 series, as well as the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus. However, this has also been a point of contention, often deemed the 'ugliest' aspect of the iPhone, as it occupies a large area, compromising screen perfection and affecting user space. Compared to the camera design embedded within the screen of Android phones, the iPhone's 'notch' is aesthetically inferior and takes up more space.
With the iPhone 14 Pro Max generation, Apple introduces the Dynamic Island design - the camera cluster and Face ID sensors now have a shape like an independent pill positioned away from the top edge (like an island separated from the shore), and the area of this 'mobile island' is also 30% smaller than the notch on the iPhone 13 series (although the Face ID area of the iPhone 13 Pro Max was already much smaller than previous generations).
Alongside iOS 16, the Dynamic Island cluster on the iPhone 14 Pro Max exists in various forms:
- Static form: When the device is in normal mode (no notifications, or no background apps running), or when the device is in camera mode, recording video. In this form, Dynamic Island is the most compact in size and occupies the least screen space.
- Dynamic form: when the device is set to an alarm, call duration notification... then Dynamic Island will be an elongated 'pill' from left to right, displaying certain essential information.
- Bubble form: When the device is running third-party apps such as music playback, Messenger calls... depending on the app, the interface of Dynamic Island will change to provide better interaction capabilities for users.
Overall, Dynamic Island is a distinctive design of the iPhone 14 Pro Max compared to the iPhone 13 Pro Max, although in the smartphone market in general, 3-4 years ago many phones already used a pill-shaped front camera design.
2. Satellite Connectivity Feature
The launch event for the iPhone 14 series themed FAR OUT hinted at an exclusive feature now on the iPhone 14 series including the iPhone 14 Pro Max: the satellite connectivity feature.
With a unique adjustment on the iPhone 14 series, users can send their GPS location, or send messages (either composed or from preset templates in case you can't text due to health reasons) via satellite connectivity. And in just 15 seconds if you're under an open sky, or a few minutes if you're standing under a canopy of trees, your emergency information will be transmitted to pre-registered phone numbers, or emergency services.
If you've ever been lost and felt helpless because your phone couldn't make contact due to lack of signal, then you'll surely understand how important this new feature on the iPhone 14 Pro Max is.
Unfortunately, this feature is currently only available in Canada and the U.S., and users will need to pay for this service (after the first 2 years of free use).
3. Accident Detection Feature
With the collision detection sensor system, the new speed sensor on the iPhone 14 Pro Max can detect emergencies such as accidents, falls,... thereby activating emergency mode where users can press to choose to call emergency numbers, or send emergency messages (pre-composed)... thereby helping to quickly receive assistance, increasing survival rates after unexpected accidents.
Emergency phone numbers, emergency messages, quick activation of emergency mode operations... users can customize these in the device settings.
4. Powerful A16 Bionic Chip
Apple brings to the iPhone 14 Pro Max the A16 Bionic chip - a completely new generation chip manufactured on a 4nm process, with a total of 16 billion transistors (the A15 chip on the iPhone 13 Pro Max has 15 billion transistors), not only providing faster processing speeds but also saving up to 40% energy compared to the iPhone 13 Pro Max.
Additionally, the iPhone 14 Pro Max also features a 5-core GPU, providing graphics processing bandwidth speeds 50% better than its predecessor. Of course, the device is also equipped with a 5G modem, 6GB LPDDR5 RAM for extremely impressive multitasking capabilities.
5. First 48MP Camera
After many years of loyalty to the 12MP camera despite sensor upgrades, in 2022, Apple for the first time brings a 48MP sensor to its smartphone, and the iPhone 14 Pro Max is the first iPhone to feature a 48MP sensor.
The 48MP sensor on the iPhone 14 Pro Max also employs pixel binning technology similar to the 48MP, 64MP, 108MP, or 200MP sensors on Android phones. This allows photos taken from the iPhone 14 Pro Max to have extremely high-resolution RAW images, supporting users' photography capabilities.
