3 years is the longest I have had a phone. The XS Max is currently at 85% battery health. The phone works great except for the battery isn’t as good now. Apple will give me $320 to upgrade. I’m considering it. Anyone else thinking of jumping from XS Max? I’m considering eating another year but I would probably need a battery.
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iPhone XS Max Upgrade to 13 Pro Max from XS Max
- Thread starter dmillar74
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If the problem is battery health, Apple will replace your battery for $69 (https://support.apple.com/iphone/repair/service/battery-power). This is no reason for changing the phone.
Now, if you need/want 5G, or a faster screen, or another feature of the new iPhones, go ahead.
I also have and still use a XS Max since the launch 3 years ago. I'm also thinking of upgrading just because its always fun to have a new phone especially after 3 years, but objectively when I look on my XS Max, it still works extremely well. Still very fast and snappy and I don't think I'll see a huge difference in performance between this and the 13 pro max in almost all situations. My battery heath is at 95% so another reason to just stick with this phone.
The only gripes I have with this phone is even with the battery have good health, the phone is more warmer than before and battery drain more easily by doing basic tasks. Its still last for the day, but I feel iOS is less optimized for this phone since iOS 14. Also, having more ram and a better display is always a plus. 4GB RAM is not enough in 2021 and apps don't stay long in the background like it was 2-3 years ago.
So I don't know what to do. I have the feeling next year iPhone will be a bigger upgrade and will worth it more than this year, so I'll probably listen my head and just stick with my XS Max until then. Like I said, its still a very capable phone and I'm using my iPad pro most of the time so its more about me wanting some change and have a new gadget to play than anything else. Its not like previous upgrade where I really needed a new phone because in the iPhone 6s and below era, phones performance and battery degraded quickly and after 1-2 years I was more frustrated with my phones than anything.
The only gripes I have with this phone is even with the battery have good health, the phone is more warmer than before and battery drain more easily by doing basic tasks. Its still last for the day, but I feel iOS is less optimized for this phone since iOS 14. Also, having more ram and a better display is always a plus. 4GB RAM is not enough in 2021 and apps don't stay long in the background like it was 2-3 years ago.
So I don't know what to do. I have the feeling next year iPhone will be a bigger upgrade and will worth it more than this year, so I'll probably listen my head and just stick with my XS Max until then. Like I said, its still a very capable phone and I'm using my iPad pro most of the time so its more about me wanting some change and have a new gadget to play than anything else. Its not like previous upgrade where I really needed a new phone because in the iPhone 6s and below era, phones performance and battery degraded quickly and after 1-2 years I was more frustrated with my phones than anything.
Worth it for me i will get 5G, better cameras, better screen, bigger screen 6.5 vs 6.7 inch 120hz, better battery life, lidar scanner, 6 meters in the water vs 2 meters etc. Im sure the next iphone 14 will be killer, ill skip it and get the better version a year later… iphone 15 or 14s whatever they end up calling it
I just posted in another thread about this. I forgot about the trade in value. I still have apple care on mine so I’m covered if something like the battery fails.
I can upgrade but I’m more of a money to value person and my xs max has been awesome. So I think I’m gonna put my hands on it at a store and see if I like it.
Objectively there's no reason to upgrade from an XS Max other than you just want a new phone. Between the XS Max and the 13 threre isn't a big gap. I'll probably won't notice a 0,2 inch screen difference as well. I know next iPhone will always be better but in this situation I think the 14 will be marginally better with a good chance of a redesign.
I'm upgrading from a launch day Xs Max to the 13 Pro Max. I use to upgrade every two years but didn't this time under the idea that I'd use it until it was just too old, however back in July my camera broke, it is now extremely shaky and blurry so for that reason it is time to upgrade for me. Hopefully this one last longer.
Same here. Launch day XS Max… first phone I’ve had for 3 years. Like you, id upgrade every two years. Mine is working fine except battery isn’t so great. I can get $320 for it now. Considering upgrading
Same here. I've had the XS Max for 3 years (longest I've ever had a phone model). If I'm being honest, its more of a "want" than a "need." My battery health is at 88%. But...hey, moving from a 2 lens to a 3 lens phone seems like a welcome upgrade to me 
Replacing the battery wont give you longer battery life if your battery is not damaged, it is what it is 3 years old phone -i replaced battery and have same battery life -should have listened to apple employee ......Same here. I've had the XS Max for 3 years (longest I've ever had a phone model). If I'm being honest, its more of a "want" than a "need." My battery health is at 88%. But...hey, moving from a 2 lens to a 3 lens phone seems like a welcome upgrade to me
I know someone who is upgrading from their XS Max to the 13PM. Main reason: dropped calls. After all this time, they still experience random call drops. They didn’t upgrade last year because they weren’t using their phone that much in 2020 and other priorities took precedence over a new iPhone. This year they can’t wait to be rid of it and didn’t hesitate with this year’s trade-in incentives.