The iPhone 12 line of phone represents the 14th family of iPhones, but it is not the 14th iPhone. In fact, to date there have been 25 different iPhones, across 14 different processor families, introduced prior to this fall's crop of iPhones.
Early in the life of the iPhone, the improvements that one would see from year to year were more significant than they have been lately. However, that is it not to say that any year's iPhone is a dud. There is a segment of users who do upgrade every year, like myself. We are not the norm, and the differences that we see are less pronounced, compared to most iPhone users.
Most people when they get a phone, they will use that phone for multiple years, and sometimes the iPhone that they are using is one that has been used by someone else, prior to them receiving the iPhone. The typical upgrade cycle for most users is around three years. If you were upgrading to one of the iPhone 12 line, your last phone would have possibly been an iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, or even an iPhone X.
This review is going to cover a few different areas and some accessories. These will include, the form-factor, the cameras, 5G, the Silicone Case with MagSafe, and the MagSafe Charger. Let us turn to something a bit more practical, the form-factor of the iPhone 12 Pro Max.
Form Factor
The iPhone has seen a significant change to the way each phone looks. The original iPhone had its own distinct shape, replete with rounded corners and the 3.5-inch screen.
The iPhone 3G and iPhone 3Gs improved upon the original iPhone's design with a more tapered shape. With the release of the iPhone 4 though a whole new design was undertaken, one with squared edges and glass on both the front and back of the phone. The iPhone 4s had the same form factor as the iPhone 4.
The iPhone 5 and iPhone 5s took their cues from the iPhone 4, but instead of a glass back, there was a metal back, but the square corners remained. Furthermore, the iPhone 5 was a slightly taller screen, which was the first change in screen size.
The phones released in 2014 changed everything and was the biggest change to the iPhone. No longer were the older iPhones. The 3.5-inch and 4-inch screen sizes were no more. Now, there were two new sizes, 4.7-inches and 5.5-inches. Along with this screen size differences, the square edges were also gone in favor of rounded edges.
The form-factor of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus remained the same for both the iPhone 7 and iPhone 8. The next big change came along with the iPhone 8 with a brand new form factor on a whole new phone, the iPhone X.
The iPhone X introduced a slew of new features, like the removal of the home button and the inclusion of Face ID, in place of Touch ID, and a rounded screen. The rounded screen allowed a whole new interaction mechanism with the home bar at the bottom of the screen and using gestures for navigation instead of relying on the home button.
The entire screen of the iPhone X, through the iPhone 11, had the edges of screen wrap around into the case of the phone. This provided a smooth transition from the screen onto the other portions of the screen. This was particularly useful when you were attempting to use the home bar and sliding up from the bottom of the screen.
The iPhone 12 Pro Max does not follow the same form factor as the other Face ID-enabled devices, insomuch as the outer case is no longer rounded. Instead, it more closely mimics the iPhone 4, iPhone 4s, iPhone 5, and iPhone 5s by using squared edges.
The square edges of the iPhone 12 Pro Max provides a bit more bulk to the iPhone, despite it being 0.7mm or 0.29 inches smaller. The item that adds the bulk is the square corners. This is because with the previous five phones have all had rounded corners.
There is one last item to cover regarding the iPhone 12 Pro Max, The screen size.
Screen Size
I have been fortunate enough to be able to get a new iPhone every year that there has been a new one. At first this was made possible because AT&T was subsidizing the price. I made the decision to no longer be held into a contract and instead starting paying for the phone at its full price. This started with the iPhone 5s.
Having owned an iPhone every year, I have seen a significant number of changes to the iPhone, in particular, the screen size. The first of these was subtle. This was with the iPhone 5, when the screen size went from 3.5-inches to 4-inches. While only a change in the vertical dimension, it was still a noticeable change.
The bigger change came two years later, with the release of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. I purchased the iPhone 6 Plus and it was a huge jump going from a 4-inch screen to a 5.5-inch screen. This change required a different method of holding the iPhone. The additional screen real estate also allowed for a split view when held in landscape, as well as a new "reachability" feature that would slide the entire screen down so you could reach an element in the upper corner.
Even if you did not get the iPhone 6 Plus, and instead opted for the iPhone 6, you would still get a phone with a 4.7-inch screen. This alone was still a 17.5% increase in diagonal screen size. Still a significant difference.
As mentioned earlier, the next big change came in 2017, with the release of the iPhone X. This was the biggest change with the removal of the home button and Touch ID, the inclusion of Face ID, and the most significant change, edge to edge screen. With the screen going edge-to-edge, the physical size of the screen increased to a 5.8-inch screen. Even though the actual difference is only 5.4% different, the entire iPhone being screen does make the screen feel significantly larger than it actually might be.
In 2018, Apple took the iPhone X, introduced just a year earlier, and added a larger version. This larger model created the largest screen for any iPhone, to that point, with a 6.5-inch screen on the iPhone XS Pro Max. The successor to the iPhone XS Max, the iPhone 11 Pro Max, retained this same screen size.
The iPhone 12 Pro Max has now usurped the iPhone XS Max and iPhone 11 Pro Max as the largest iPhone, to date, with a 6.7-inch screen. The screen is now 3% larger. Even though this is the smallest jump from the previous model, it is still a noticeable change.
As has been the case with all of the previous changes in screen size, after a couple of days, picking up the iPhone 11 Pro Max, it now seems a bit small. I am pretty sure that if I had to go back to the smaller phone, I would be able to do so after a few days.
If you are going to go for the iPhone 12 Pro Max, and you have not had a "Max" phone, be prepared for a whole different experience. The larger phone does mean that your thumbs will need to reach even further than before in order to interact with an element on the screen.
Now that we have covered the screen, let us look at an aspect to the phone that is entirely superficial.
Let us start with something that makes no difference in the function of the phone, but is a change, for me anyway.
Pacific Blue
I have purchased an iPhone every year since 2007. While I have not always gotten the phone with the highest amount of storage, I have traditionally gotten the phone which was either space gray, black, or graphite. For the first three iPhones, the original iPhone, iPhone 3G, and iPhone 3GS, the color would not have mattered, as the front glass was black.
Starting with the iPhone 4, through the iPhone 7 Plus, the only way to get the front plate to be a dark color was to get the Space Gray/Black/Graphite iPhone. So, this is what I did. However, since 2017 and the introduction of the iPhone X, there have been no bezels on the front of the phone, so in reality the color would not matter. However, the iPhone X and iPhone XS Max only came in three colors; Gold, Silver, and Space Gray. If I would have ended up with a Silver iPhone X or iPhone XS Max, it probably would not have mattered to me, in the long run. However, I do not like gold, so that would have been a non-starter.
Last year with the iPhone 11 Pro Max, Apple did offer a Midnight Green color. I was tempted to get this color, but I was not sure that the color would be what I wanted. Instead, I went with the Graphite iPhone 11 Pro Max.
This year I did something different. I went with the Pacific Blue iPhone 12 Pro Max. I opted for this color for two reasons. The first is that it is likely that I will only have the phone for a year, so if I did not like the color, I would not have to have it that long. The second reason I went with the Pacific Blue is that the person who is likely to be getting the phone next year indicated that they like the Pacific Blue. Therefore, I opted to go with the Pacific Blue model.
Having had a Space Gray/Black/Graphite phone for so long, I never even really noticed the color on the phones, most of the time. I did notice that the shade of gray was different, but after looking at it it initially, I would not think about it.
Overall, I like the color. The color is diffused on the back, due to the glass that covers it. The stainless steel edges of the iPhone are a different shade of Pacific Blue. The edges match the Apple logo on the back of the phone, which is a nice touch.
The next topic is something that was initially introduced in 2017 with the iPhone X, iPhone 8, and iPhone 8 Plus. That feature is wireless charging.
Wireless Charging
When Apple announced the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X in 2017, it introduced a new feature, wireless charging. All three of the phones used the standard known as Qi. Any new iPhone that Apple has released since 2017 have all had the ability to charge wirelessly. The iPhone 12 Pro Max is no different. If you have an existing Qi Charger, it will work just as it would with any other Qi-enabled phone.
At the same event where Apple introduced the iPhone X, they also announced another device called AirPower. AirPower was designed to allow you to place your iPhone or Apple Watch anywhere on the AirPower mat and have your device charge. Unfortunately, the product itself was never released. But the idea of charging without wires did not go away.
Even though AirPower never made it to market, you can still use Qi Chargers, however there is a new line of products from Apple called MagSafe.
MagSafe
From time to time Apple has been known to repurpose names of previous products for new products. Sometime the old product and the new product do not have any correlation, as is the case with the original iBook being a laptop, but the name being repurposed for an e-book format, called iBooks.
Apple has done the same thing again, however in this case it is actually a much closer repurposing. At its keynote at MacWorld Expo in January 2006, Apple introduced a new product, the first MacBook Pro with an Intel Processor, specifically the Core Duo. Besides being the first Mac notebook with an Intel processor, it also had a new feature, the MagSafe power connector.
The MagSafe power adapter allowed power to go from a power brick into the MacBook Pro, but the connection was magnetic. This had a significant advantage, if you tripped over the power cord, the power cord would not drag the laptop with the power cord, instead it would separate. This was possible through the magnetic connection between the power cord and the MacBook Pro itself. With the introduction of the MacBook Pro in 2016, the MagSafe power connector was replaced with USB-C connections. This left the ability for Apple to use MagSafe for another product.
Apple has done just that with a new line of accessories, specifically for the iPhone 12. The MagSafe line of accessories is more than just power, but it still uses magnets to connect the accessories to the iPhone.
MagSafe Charger
The line of accessories includes cases, wallets, sleeves, and power adapters. The one that will likely be used by a majority of people is the case, let us look at the Apple Silicone case with MagSafe. One of these is a power adapter specifically designed for cases and sleeves. The MagSafe power adapter takes its cues from its older brethren and uses magnets to secure a connection to case or sleeve and will provide power to the iPhone.
The MagSafe Charger has the MagSafe Charging pad on one end and a USB-C connection on the other. You can use any USB-C power adapter, however, you may not get the fastest charging possible. In order to get this, you will need to use Apple's 20-watt USB-C charger. To provide a way to gauge the size of the MageSafe Charging Pad, here is a comparison of the Mophie Wireless Charging Base, the MagSafe Charging Pad, and the Apple Watch charger.
According to Macworld's testing, when you use the Apple 20-watt charger you will get up to 17 watts of power to charge the phone. During my testing I was never able to get more than 14 watts of charging for my iPhone 12 Pro Max. It is possible that the reporting of my Eve smart switch was not reporting the proper usage.
For most users this is not necessarily a problem, unless you really need to charge quickly. Even when I plugged in directly to the iPhone I only got 18 watts of power to the iPhone. So, that is actually more than Macworld got in their tests.
I also tried using the 18-watt charger. When I used this I only got 14 watts of power, This is approximately 77.7% of the 18-watts that I got with the 20-watt power brick. So this is still quite acceptable.
Just to complete the testing, I also used a 29-watt USB-C charging brick that I have purchased for use with my iPad Pro. The highest it ever got was actually 10-watts, which is most surprising given that it can provide more power.
While the power rating that I saw is less, it makes sense because Apple cannot guarantee the power capabilities of the USB power brick that you use, therefore Apple is capping the amount of power allowed to be pushed to the iPhone. This is designed as a safety measure.
While you may be annoyed that you are not getting the highest throughput, in day to day usage it is not a problem. Any USB-C power adapter that you use will work perfectly well, just at lower speeds. Give that most users charge their phones overnight, this really is not an issue.
I would remiss to not mention that the Apple MagSafe Charger is a standard Qi-compatible charger. This means that you can use it for anything that is compatible with Qi-charging. This includes the AirPods with Wireless Charging Case, any iPhone introduced after 2017, as well as any other Qi-compatible device. This means that even if you do not have an iPhone 12, the MagSafe charger may be a worthwhile investment. Next, let us cover one of the new accessories that works with the MagSafe charger, the silicone case.
Apple Silicone Case with MagSafe
While it likely Apple's intent that people do not use a case on their phones, the fact that a new iPhone is at minimum a few hundred dollars, there are many, myself included, who do not feel comfortable using their iPhone without some sort of case on it.
The success of the iPhone has created a market for third-party cases. It would not surprise anyone if the third-party market for cases vastly outsold Apple's own cases. There are a couple of reasons that this may be the case that come to mind. The first reason being options available. Apple has traditionally only provided a few different types of cases. Typically these have been silicone and leather. There have been Apple cases for each of the iPhone models and sizes.
The second reason that many choose third-party cases is due to price. Apple has not been a company that is afraid of charging a premium for their products, accessories like cases included. Apple has been selling its own cases for almost as long as the iPhone has been around.
I have used a case with each and every iPhone that I have owned. This includes the original, the iPhone 3G, and the iPhone 3GS, which all could have handled not having a case on them. Having spent so much money on them, I wanted to protect them.
Typically Apple releases two different types of cases, leather cases and their silicone cases. Apple has added additional cases over time. Some of these include clear cases, leather folios, and even smart battery cases. Apple has charged $35 or $39 for silicone cases. Meanwhile, they have charged either $45 or $49 for the leather cases.
This year's set of Silicone and Leather cases include a MagSafe charger, therefore the price that Apple is charging has increased. For the silicone cases the new price is $49 and for the leather cases, it is $59.
The case I have purchased has been the official Apple Silicone case, in the same shade as the phone. As mentioned earlier, I have always, until this year, gotten the Space Gray/Black/Graphite case that has gone with the phone. This year Apple has not made a case that exactly matches the color of the Pacific Blue iPhone. Therefore, I got the closest one that I could, and I opted for the Deep Navy Apple Silicone Case with MagSafe. I would have preferred one that matches exactly, but that is not the approach Apple is going with this year. Apple does release new cases quarterly, so maybe they will release one that does match the Pacific Blue color. If they do, I am not sure I would end up buying it, but you never know.
One of the features of the previous iPhone cases, not all of them, but those introduced since the iPhone 6/iPhone 6 Plus, and in particular iPhones with Face ID, is that the Apple cases have not had is a bottom lip on the case. This has been the form-factor on all of Apple's Silicone and Leather cases since they were introduced.
With the iPhone 12 the official Apple Cases have a lip at the bottom. For those who have become acclimated to not having any barrier when swiping up from the bottom of the phone will need to adjust. It is likely that there will be third-party cases which do not have a lip around the entire screen.
I have found that it is strange to have to deal with the lip on the bottom of the case. While it does not affect the functionality, it is a different experience after using cases without the lip.
There are two reasons that I can think of why Apple would make this change. The first is symmetry for the entire case. The second reason may be that having a case cover the entire iPhone will allow the cases to last a bit longer. These are merely speculations, as Apple has not provided a reason for the change.
The Apple Silicone case with MagSafe has, as the name implies, a MageSafe magnet embedded in the case. The MagSafe magnet provides two functions simultaneously. The MagSafe within the case provides a passthrough for charging either via the MagSafe charger or via any Qi-compatible charger.
If you have used any Qi-enabled iPhone at all, undoubtedly you have placed your phone on the charger at night and then when you went to look at it in the morning realized that it had not charged because it was misaligned.
The second function, and the one that is probably most welcome by users, is the fact that the magnets within the case allow you to easily line up the MagSafe Charger with the the case. This will allow optimized charging, which is a common problem when using any Qi-enabled iPhone with a Qi charger.
Given that the third-party case market is a thriving one, Apple is not limiting MagSafe to their own products. Instead, third parties will be able to offer not only their own MagSafe cases, but also their own MagSafe accessories. Companies like Belkin, Otterbox, and Pitaka have already made MagSafe accessories, like cases and chargers. It is only a matter of time before additional companies begin making accessories that will work with MagSafe.
If you plan on using any of the MagSafe accessories by Apple, or third-parties, you will likely want a MagSafe case and while the Apple case does have some tradeoffs, like the increased price and full lip at the bottom of the case, it seems like a pretty good case for use with the iPhone 12 Pro Max. Time will tell if the case holds up or not.
There is another aspect to the MagSafe Charger and Silicone Case that needs to be highlighted. Those items are related to some animations. When you put the iPhone 12 Pro Max into a Silicon MagSafe case, you will see an animation with the color of the case that you have. Similarly, if you place an iPhone 12 Pro Max on a MagSafe charger, you will see an animation of the current battery power, in a circle, that looks a lot the MagSafe charger. While neither of these animations is necessary, it is a nice touch to see both of them work on the iPhone 12 Pro Max.
There is one more thing to mention about the case, but that can be done in the next section, which will be about the Camera.
Cameras
One of the major reasons for anyone to upgrade their iPhone, particularly if they are on an every two or three year upgrade cycle, is the improvements that are made to the camera system. Normally, if you upgrade every year the changes in the camera are not that great. They are undoubtedly better cameras, but they may not be noticeable to most people. That is not necessarily the experience if you were to go from the iPhone 11 Pro Max to the iPhone 12 Pro Max, as I have.
The first thing you will notice you the cameras is how large they are. One easy way to compare the increase in size is by putting the iPhone 11 Pro Max into the case of the iPhone 12 Pro Max. You can clearly see the difference in the sizes of the entire camera module.
The size difference brings the last change about the Silicone case to mention. The Apple Silicone case for the iPhone 12 Pro Max has a hard plastic bumper around the cutout of the iPhone 12 Pro Max camera system. The reason for this is likely to protect the lenses when the iPhone is moved around as well as to prevent scratching should someone place the iPhone on its back.
The iPhone 12 Pro Max has a new feature, a LiDAR sensor, although it is not the first device with this sensor. The 4th generation 12.9-inch iPad Pro, and 2nd Generation 11-inch iPad Pro, both introduced earlier in 2020 received this sensor first.
The LiDAR sensor has a few different applications. The first is that the iPhone 12 Pro Max can be used for augmented reality applications. This could be apps like Wizards Unite or Pokemon Go, or even room mapping applications.
While some augmented reality apps are popular, the second application for the LiDAR sensor is one that users will likely encounter more often, taking photos in low-light environments. The LiDAR sensor will allow objects, specifically people and faces, to be more easily recognized when the amount of light might be limited.
One the topic of low-light, let us look at the changes in the actual lenses. The iPhone 12 Pro Max still has three lenses, a wide angle lens, an ultra-wide lens, and a telephoto lens.
The iPhone Pro Max ultra-wide lens is still a 0.5x zoom lens, while the wide angle lens is still 1x, however the zoom lens is a slightly different than previous models. With the iPhone 11 Pro Max, it was a 2x lens. Now, however, it is a 2.5x zoom. It should be mentioned that all of these are optical zoom, meaning that the lenses themselves will be able to have those particular zoom levels.
With the new optical zoom of 2.5, this means that the maximum digital zoom has been increased from 10x to 12x. While this does not sound like a big jump in actual numbers, you have to realize it is a 20% increase in optical zoom. This should allow you to take even better pictures when you zoom in.
Here is a good comparison between what the iPhone 11 Pro Max vs the iPhone 12 Pro Max. These were taken in low light.
The reason that iPhone 12 Pro Max is able to take even better low-light photos is due to the bigger aperture in the lens. When it comes to low-light pictures, the more light that you can let in, the better the image can be. The iPhone 11 Pro Max improved low light photos by leaps and bounds. Still, the iPhone 12 Pro Max improves upon this.
Here is another comparison of some clouds taken with each phone. If you look carefully, you can see that the iPhone 12 Pro Max represents the colors more accurately than the iPhone 11 Pro Max.
One of the major reasons that I waited for the iPhone 12 Pro Max is the cameras. I use the iPhone as my exclusive camera. It is always with me, or at least not very far. From what I have seen so far, the improved cameras were worth waiting for. Next, let us look at a feature that is new to the iPhone 12 Pro Max, and that is improved cellular connectivity.
5G
One of the most touted features of the iPhone 12 Pro Max, and the other iPhone 12s, is the inclusion of 5G connectivity on the device. I use AT&T for my service, and I have since before the introduction of the iPhone in 2007.
When the original iPhone was introduced I bought one on the second day and immediately signed up for the unlimited plan. I continued to use the same plan since then. AT&T stopped offering unlimited plans in 2010. However, if you had an existing plan you could continue to use it. I, of course, kept using my unlimited data plan.
Over time AT&T had increased the price of the unlimited plan from $30 to $35 in 2015, and then to $40 in 2017, and to $45 in 2018. I continued to dutifully pay the increase prices. I was on a family plan, so switching to either another carrier or to a different plan was not as simple as you might expect.
I called AT&T about changing my plan and they informed me that it would cost me $15 more to switch two phone lines, even though one of them was a flip phone. I was able to move the second line off of my account and then I was able to switch to one of AT&T's newer unlimited plans. I wanted to make the switch in anticipation of getting an iPhone 12 Pro Max, with 5G. And the older AT&T plan that I had would not have provided me with 5G, nor did it allow me to use the hotspot functionality that has been available on AT&T plans for a while, but those latter two are a different story.
Prior to getting my iPhone 12 Pro Max I did look at the AT&T 5G coverage map to see if I would be able to get 5G in my area, and I am able to get 5G coverage. Here are three different comparisons that I did with the iPhone 12 Pro Max using the SpeedTest app. These compare AT&T's LTE, which they label as "5Ge" (do not get me started on that), and true 5G. These results are in Megabit per second, or Mbps.
| |
LTE Download |
LTE Upload |
| Server 1 |
35.50 |
1.81 |
| Server 2 |
5.60 |
0.44 |
| Server 3 |
12.50 |
3.67 |
| |
5G Download |
5G Upload |
| Server 1 |
30.90 |
4.57 |
| Server 2 |
42.50 |
2.95 |
| Server 3 |
36.90 |
6.50 |
These tests were all done about the same time. Each of the servers used for each test are the same. Servers 1 and 3 are located in Chicago, while Server 2 was a local server. As you can see in some cases 5G was significantly faster, but in others, LTE was faster. The biggest difference is the difference in upload speed.
One thing mentioned in the iPhone 12 keynote was that macOS Big Sur has a bit more optimized when connecting to a hotspot on an iPhone. I did some testing to see if this was true.
| |
LTE Download |
LTE Upload |
| Server 1 |
3.79 |
0.44 |
| Server 2 |
7.06 |
0.43 |
| Server 3 |
19.50 |
0.27 |
| |
5G Download |
5G Upload |
| Server 1 |
40.00 |
3.35 |
| Server 2 |
25.30 |
3.95 |
| Server 3 |
38.0 |
4.47 |
When tethered wirelessly to LTE and 5G, the same general outcome is shown, where 5G was faster, but particularly so with upload speeds. Your experience with 5G is definitely dependent on many things, including current congestion, usage, number of devices on the same cellular tower, the servers you are using, and many more factors.
I have mixed thoughts on 5G for the iPhone 12. On one hand, it is great to see that 5G is available on the iPhone. At the same time, I do not think that most will notice the difference at this point in time. However, in a few years users may actually notice a difference. If you combine this with the fact that many users will hold onto their phones, it may be worthwhile having 5G in the iPhone 12. Furthermore, even after one person has upgraded, their old phone may go to another person and therefore having 5G would be a nice upgrade for them.
One of the benefits to using a standard like 5G is that should there be any improvements that can be made via software, the iPhone 12 Pro Max will get that benefit, through a firmware update. Should there be an improvement that can only be made with hardware, they will not get it, but the likelihood of a change requiring a hardware change is quite low. The last thing that we will tackle is just some benchmark comparisons for various devices.
Benchmarks
Would it really be a full review without some benchmarks? I do not know if it would be. So here are some benchmarks for comparison. These were all run using the Geekbench 5:
| Device |
Single Core |
Multi Core |
| iPod touch (7th Gen) |
553 |
1077 |
| Early 2015 13.3-inch MacBook Pro |
684 |
1400 |
| Late 2018 Mac mini |
992 |
4442 |
| Mid-2017 27-inch iMac |
1068 |
4377 |
| 12.9-inch iPad Pro (3rd Gen) |
1124 |
4680 |
| Late 2019 16-inch MacBook Pro |
1170 |
5391 |
| iPhone 11 Pro Max |
1328 |
3252 |
| iPhone 12 Pro Max |
1604 |
4297 |
While the iPhone 12 Pro is not the fastest when it comes to Multi-Core performance, it is the fastest when it comes Single Core performance, at least of the devices that I own at this point. The iPhone 12 Pro Max out performs the iPhone 11 Pro Max, quite easily. Benchmarks are only one aspect to overall performance, but they can be useful to give you a comparison to how a particular device might perform, compared to other devices.
Closing Thoughts
The iPhone 12 Pro Max is a large phone. A very large phone. The increased screen size, which is only 0.2 inches or 5.08mm, is still quite noticeable. The width and height have also increased slightly, which accounts for the larger screen. The squared off edges are a nice touch that harkens back to the old iPhone 4, 4s, 5, and 5s form factors. It is good to see the old form factor come back in a new revision of the iPhone.
The Pacific Blue color is a nice color and the fact that stainless steel edges match the Apple Logo on the back is a nice touch. Although, to be honest I probably will not be seeing much of the back or the sides, because I will have a case on the phone. The new Apple Silicone Case with MagSafe is a pretty good case, albeit with an increase in price. The increase in price does include the new MagSafe charging feature.
The MagSafe charger can be used with any Qi-compatible charger, not just the MagSafe Charging pad. However, if you opt to use a standard Qi-compatible charger, you will not get the full fast-charging capabilities that come with the MagSafe charger, but that may be worth the tradeoff. I know for me, I almost always charge overnight, so I do not need the fastest charging possible. Even so, the magnetic aspect of the MagSafe Charging case, and the iPhone 12 Pro Max in general, means that if you do use the MagSafe Charger, you will always have a charged phone. You will no longer need to worry about a misaligned charger and therefore a phone that did not charge overnight.
The addition of 5G, may not make a meaningful difference right now. In the future depending on what applications and use cases arise with having 5G, it may become an absolute necessity at that point. For now though, if you do not have 5G in your area, it is not necessarily a deterrent for not upgrading to the iPhone 12 Pro Max.
As has been the case with previous years. If you have an iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone XS Max, then upgrading to the iPhone 12 Pro Max may not make sense. However, if you have an iPhone X, iPhone 8 Plus, or older phone, then upgrading to any of the iPhone 12 Pro Max may be a worthwhile upgrade, but be prepared for a significant jump in physical size and screen size. The larger screen real-estate, combined with the improved cameras may make it an easy choice for some users.
Here are a few more examples of some photos taken with the iPhone 12 Pro Max.\
