Apple
iPhone 17 Air
A19 · 6.6″ · 5.4 mm thin
92
/ 100
From $999
VS
iPhone 17 Pro Max wins by 6
Apple
iPhone 17 Pro Max
A19 Pro · 6.9″ LTPO · Titanium
98
/ 100
From $1,199
Specdex verdict
iPhone 17 Pro Max takes it — here’s why.
In our weighted Specdex score, iPhone 17 Air lands at 92 and iPhone 17 Pro Max at 98. That puts iPhone 17 Pro Max ahead by 6 points — a decisive margin driven mostly by its strengths in the categories below.
Pick iPhone 17 Air if…
- ✓Thinnest iPhone ever (5.4 mm)
- ✓Light in hand (165 g)
- ✓Still 120Hz ProMotion
Pick iPhone 17 Pro Max if…
- ✓Industry-leading A19 Pro silicon
- ✓New vapor-chamber cooling
- ✓Apple Intelligence Gen 2
Score breakdown
iPhone 17 Air
92 cpu 97
gpu 94
camera 86
battery 76
display 92
design 100
iPhone 17 Pro Max
98 cpu 100
gpu 98
camera 98
battery 90
display 95
design 96
Specs side-by-side
Spec
iPhone 17 Air
iPhone 17 Pro Max
Display
6.6″ LTPO OLED, 120Hz
6.9″ LTPO OLED, 120Hz, 2868×1320
Chipset
Apple A19 (3 nm)
Apple A19 Pro (3 nm)
RAM
8 GB
12 GB
Storage
256 / 512 GB / 1 TB
256 / 512 GB / 1 TB / 2 TB
Battery
3200 mAh
4800 mAh
OS
iOS 19
iOS 19
Weight
165 g
232 g
Rear camera
—
48 MP + 48 MP UW + 48 MP 6× tele
Charging
—
45W wired, 30W MagSafe
IP rating
—
IP68
iPhone 17 Air
Pros
- +Thinnest iPhone ever (5.4 mm)
- +Light in hand (165 g)
- +Still 120Hz ProMotion
Cons
- −Single rear camera
- −Battery smaller than Plus (3200 mAh)
- −No telephoto
iPhone 17 Pro Max
Pros
- +Industry-leading A19 Pro silicon
- +New vapor-chamber cooling
- +Apple Intelligence Gen 2
Cons
- −Premium price
- −Weight crept up with titanium chassis
- −Still 45 W charging ceiling
FAQ: iPhone 17 Air vs iPhone 17 Pro Max
Which is better, iPhone 17 Air or iPhone 17 Pro Max? +
iPhone 17 Pro Max scores 98 on our weighted rubric — ahead by 6. Your best pick depends on the sub-scores above.
Is iPhone 17 Air worth the price? +
At $999, iPhone 17 Air delivers a Specdex score of 92 — strongest in design.
Is iPhone 17 Pro Max worth the price? +
At $1,199, iPhone 17 Pro Max delivers a Specdex score of 98 — strongest in cpu.
Does iPhone 17 Air or iPhone 17 Pro Max last longer? +
Based on our long-term update and support ratings, both ship with multi-year support. Battery and reliability scores are visible in the breakdown above.