iPhone 15 Pro reviews: Max’s exclusive camera, disappointing Action Button, new Titanium finish

Published Sep 19th, 2023 9:16AM EDT

With the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max releasing this Friday, the embargo for the new iPhones is now over. BGR gathered some of the most interesting reviews and what journalists and influencers had to say about these new devices, with a focus on the Max exclusive camera, the Action Button, the new titanium finish, and the USB-C port.

For XDA Developers, the publication mentions how it expected more from the Action Button:

I was initially very excited about the new “Action Button,” because I love being able to quickly launch an app or a specific app action with a shortcut. But Apple’s implementation is not ideal for me. First, it’s too high up on the Pro Max model for easy finger reach (…) On top of that, you can only assign the Action Button to do one task right now, which is triggered with a long-press. Why not give us at least one more action, like double press? The things you can do with the Action Button is also a bit limiting by my (admittedly high) standards.

The Irish Independent focused on how the iPhone 15 Pro feels in hand. While the stainless steel models were fingerprint magnets, this doesn’t happen with the new ones.

The titanium feels nice to the touch and, because it’s a brushed finish, has none of the smudgy fingerprint attraction of the steel predecessors. To be clear, it’s only on the side framing and the buttons that you’ll really feel it — and that’s if you don’t put a case on it — as the back of the device is now toughened glass that’s pleasingly matte to the touch.

The Wall Street Journal‘s Jonna Stern mentions the 15 Pro Max exclusive periscope lens, although she thinks the 5x optical zoom isn’t as crispy as it should have been:

What I do see myself using is the 5X telephoto lens on the Pro Max. The smaller 15 Pro only has a 3X zoom. With the big phone, I snapped a shot of my son 30 yards away in a splash park, and didn’t get a drop of water on me! (And the Parent of the Year award goes to…!) My biggest gripe? The 5X shot isn’t as crisp as I’d like. 

The Verge compares the iPhone 15 Pro cameras with the Galaxy S23 Ultra and Pixel 7 Pro, with the iPhone doing great against these other flagship phones, but not necessarily being the best option available:

Overall, Apple seems to be staying the course relative to Samsung and Google. The Pixel 7 Pro does a little better in night mode where the 15 Pro and Galaxy S23 Ultra are a little more prone to the watercolor effect. The iPhone’s jump to a 24-megapixel image means there’s more detail there for the taking straight from the default JPEG, but normalized to the same viewing size, I see about the same level of detail across the three cameras.

Among the three, the iPhone doesn’t win every category — special shoutout to the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra’s excellent portrait mode — but in a week of shooting with it in a lot of different conditions, the 15 Pro is the one most likely to deliver the color I was looking for consistently. It’s the familiar iPhone camera experience, now with a bit more flexibility in your composition options. 

Engadget talks about how good it is to have a USB-C port. In addition, the publication mentions the impressive battery life of 15 Pro Max, which can even charge a few other Apple devices:

Apple was also able to add support for USB Power Delivery (USB PD), which allows the iPhone to charge up other devices. You can use a USB-C to Lightning cable to power up an AirPods case, for example, or even another iPhone. That’s a pretty handy feature, especially considering how much battery life the iPhone 15 Pro Max has. It usually lasted about two days on a charge, which is slightly longer than other handsets of this size (…) When it’s time to recharge your iPhone, you can expect similar charging speeds to older models in that you should get up to 50 percent in about 30 minutes. Fast charge is supported with compatible power units, capped at 27 watts, which is basically the same as before.

iPhone 15 Pro reviews in video

Besides the written reviews, you can watch hands-on, first impressions, and review videos of the new iPhones below. BGR will let you know once we review these products and what we think about them.

José is a Tech News Reporter at BGR. He has previously covered Apple and iPhone news for 9to5Mac, and was a producer and web editor for Latin America broadcaster TV Globo. He is based out of Brazil.