Apple is expected to announce its iPhone 12 lineup later this month. The company has had to delay the launch of the iPhone 12 this year by a few weeks due to the ongoing pandemic, but that does not mean the phones are not going to be impressive though. If the leaks are anything to go by, the upcoming iPhones are going to be very impressive. Ahead of Apple’s announcement, here’s a roundup of what the leaks indicate the iPhone 12 will be like.
Just like every year, leaks tell us a lot about the upcoming iPhones. This year too, leaks and reports have detailed almost everything about the iPhone 12 lineup, though this time around, we have not seen detailed CAD renders of the devices leak that would reveal their design in full. Nonetheless, below are the confirmed features of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro lineup as per leaks and rumors.
Confirmed iPhone 12 Features
Smaller iPhone 12 mini, Bigger iPhone 12 Pro Max
This time around, Apple will be launching four new iPhone models instead of three. It will be launching the devices in varying screen sizes to meet the different tastes of consumers. This will include a 5.4-inch iPhone 12 mini that will please a lot of existing iPhone 7 and iPhone 8 owners who want a more powerful device in a compact form factor. Apart from this, there will be a 6.1-inch iPhone 12 that will replace the existing iPhone 11.
Then there will also be a Pro lineup of the iPhone 12 that will include a 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Pro and 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max. The former will replace the existing 5.8-inch iPhone 11 Pro and the latter will replace the 6.5-inch iPhone 11 Pro Max. The larger screen of the iPhone 12 Pro Max will again tempt a lot of customers who have wanted an iPhone with an even bigger display.
The naming scheme of the lineup — iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max — has also been pretty much confirmed by various leaks.
New iPad Pro-like Design
Apple is expected to debut a new iPad Pro-like design for the entire iPhone 12 lineup this year. Instead of the rounded edges that we have seen for the last few years, the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro will feature a squarish chassis design similar to the new iPad Pro and a reminiscent of the iPhone 5s era. The design of the device itself is not going to change much as the notch is going to remain the same and the rear glass panel is also going to look the same. However, the new chassis design should greatly change the in-hand feel of the upcoming iPhones.
Just like the last few years, the more expensive iPhone 12 Pro models will feature a stainless steel chassis while the cheaper iPhone 12 models will feature aluminum edges.
New Display Sizes
Since Apple is planning to launch four new iPhone 12 models this time around, it is differentiating them based on display sizes as well. The regular iPhone 12 lineup will consist of the 5.4-inch iPhone 12 mini and 6.1-inch iPhone 12. As for the Pro lineup, it will start with the 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Pro and end with the top-end 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max.
For comparison, Apple currently offers the iPhone 11/Pro lineup in 5.8-inch, 6.1-inch, and 6.5-inch display sizes. So, with the iPhone 12 lineup, the company intends to not only launch a more compact and premium iPhone than the iPhone SE (2020) but also one with a bigger display. The new 5.4-inch iPhone 12 will tempt a lot of existing iPhone 7 and iPhone 8 owners who are looking for a more compact device with updated internals and improved cameras. The bigger 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max should also attract a lot of potential customers, with one report even saying that most Apple engineers found the bigger display a bigger change than the addition of 5G in their testing.
Sadly, there’s not going to be 120Hz ProMotion displays on the iPhone 12 or the iPhone 12 Pro lineup contrary to previous rumors. Recent reports have all but confirmed that this is not going to happen this year.
A14 Bionic
Apple tends to debut a new A-series chipset with new iPhones every year. This year though, the company has already debuted the A14 Bionic inside the iPad Air that’s slated to go on sale later this month.
The same chip is also going to make its way inside the iPhone 12 lineup as well. Apple says the A14 Bionic features 11.8 billion transistors and it is based on a 5nm fabrication process. The 6-core CPU of the chip offers a 40 percent boost in performance while the 4-core GPU brings about a 30 percent performance jump. The Neural Engine has also gotten a major boost and now boasts of 16 cores making it twice as fast as before. Lastly, the second-generation ML boosts machine learning calculations by 10 times.
In short, the A14 Bionic is once again a monster of a chip and the iPhone 12 is going to set new records in the performance as well as the efficiency department. The faster Neural Engine and ML accelerator will give a big performance boost to apps that rely heavily on them for complex calculations. It will also open the gate for developers to create even more powerful apps for the platform.
Rumors point to the iPhone 12 continuing to come with 64GB of base storage, but Apple doubling the storage to 128GB on the iPhone 12 Pro lineup.
5G
iPhones have always lagged behind flagship Android smartphones when it comes to connectivity. With the iPhone 12 lineup, Apple does not want to repeat the same story as it will be adding 5G connectivity across all four models. The cheaper non-Pro iPhone 12 is rumored to only feature support for sub-6GHz connectivity, with the iPhone 12 Pro and the iPhone 12 Pro Max expected to feature support for both mmWave and sub-6GHz 5G.
Since mmWave 5G is not available in all regions, Apple is seemingly planning on launching the model in only selected markets where mmWave 5G networks are actually available. There are also rumors of Apple keeping mmWave 5G exclusive to only the iPhone 12 Pro Max since only this device has the required internal space to accommodate the antenna.
Camera
With the iPhone 11 lineup, Apple introduced a major jump in imaging performance that once again brought the iPhone’s camera performance in line with other Android flagships. Apple is again expected to bring major improvements to camera performance with the iPhone 12 lineup. There are rumors of the company using a bigger camera sensor on its upcoming iPhones that should lead to an improvement in dynamic range and low-light photos. Alleged screenshots from the iPhone 12 Pro also show the device offering 4K video recording at 120fps and an enhanced low-light mode.
What’s confirmed is that we are not going to see any telephoto camera on the iPhone 12 models this year. Nonetheless, the iPhone 12 lineup is expected to bring about a notable jump in imaging performance once again.
LiDAR Scanner
Taking a cue from the 2020 iPad Pro lineup, Apple is expected to include a LiDAR scanner on the upcoming iPhone 12 lineup as well. Going by rumors, Apple will keep the LiDAR scanner exclusive to the iPhone 12 Pro lineup, with the cheaper iPhone 12 models missing out on this 3D scanner. The LiDAR scanner will allow Apple to offer some advanced AR features on the iPhone 12 Pro lineup. Apple has been heavily investing in AR over the last few years and with the iPhone 12 Pro and its LiDAR scanner, we should finally see the end results of its work.
No Power Adapter and EarPods
Once every few years, an iPhone launch ends up bringing some controversy. When Apple ditched the headphone jack with the iPhone 7 in 2016, it managed to create a similar controversy. With the iPhone 12 lineup, Apple is rumored to remove the power adapter and the EarPods from the retail box of the iPhone 12 lineup. The removal of the Lightning EarPods might not bother most consumers, but the lack of a power adapter in the box is definitely going to anger a lot of consumers.
Apple has already removed the power adapter with the Apple Watch Series 6 and Apple Watch SE citing environmental reasons thereby confirming its intentions of doing the same with the iPhone 12 lineup. Reports also state that Apple is also removing these accessories from the box to reduce its BOM and maintain its profit margins that have been affected by the addition of various expensive 5G components.
There’s a possibility that Apple ends up removing the power adapter from only the cheaper iPhone 12 lineup, with the more expensive possibly coming with a 20W USB-C power adapter that the company is now bundling with the new iPad Air as well.
iPhone 12 Release Date
In a no-corona world, the iPhone 12 would have already hit the stores. However, due to the pandemic, the iPhone 12 development was affected which has led Apple to delay the launch of the lineup by a few weeks. Rumors indicate the iPhone 12 lineup will be announced by Apple on October 13, with the cheaper iPhone 12 lineup going up for pre-order on October 16 and hitting the stores a week later. As for the iPhone 12 Pro lineup, they are expected to launch in late October or in early November.
What do you think about the iPhone 12 based on all the leaks? Do you plan on buying one? If so, which variant?
