Apple

What do you mean the bending gate? I didn’t know other iPhones besides the 6 had bending issues. If you are referring to the back cracking on the pros then it’s a non issue and will only happen if you apply deliberate force wanting a cracked back. Unless of course you have it in your back pocket, which you shouldn’t do with any large phone as they all will bend/break depending on how you sit.

For what phone to get, it’s what you want out of it. If you want a bigger screen, bigger battery, better camera and are willing to pay the extra price then go for the pro max (check out the comparison table here https://www.macrumors.com/guide/iphone-15-pro-vs-15-pro-max/)

I personally have the 15 pro max, and have always opted for the pro max every year prior it was available because I like the bigger screen and bigger battery.