The time Maya takes to software render a scene is directly proportional to the resolution: the larger the resolution, the more time it takes.
If you want to get a feel for the final rendered look quickly, you can render of a still image or single frame of an animation. Typically, a resolution half to a quarter of the size lets you get a good feel for the software rendered look.
To ensure the best quality display of your rendered image, select the 1:1 (the real size) option in Render View before you render.
To test render a still image
Maya renders the scene and displays the image as it renders in Render View.