The 2020 iPhone 12 Lineup – An iPhone For Everyone
Apple CEO Tim Cook welcomed us to Apple Park for the globally anticipated October 2020 event. It was another pre-recorded tech release, with no audience to gasp, laugh, clap, cheer, or see all the releases live—unlike the Apple events of yesteryears. Cook promised huge announcements right from the start—which in hindsight is funny because of the mini devices that would subsequently be unveiled.
Before the iPhone announcements came the HomePod Mini smart speaker—a smaller version of the HomePod for $99. There were some interesting tidbits in its description, but it was only the opening act for the real stars of the Apple show, the new iPhone 12 lineup.
As the iPhones were revealed, one thing became clear; there were a lot of similarities and shared features across the entire lineup. This makes sense as they are all essentially different variants of this year’s iPhone, but it makes choosing which version to go for all the more interesting.
iPhone 12 – Features That Cut Across
- 5G Connectivity
This year’s iPhones all come with 5G connectivity. In true Apple fashion, 5G was announced to be coming to the iPhones quite some time after Android phones first got it, but you would think it was a novel addition to the smartphone world. Granted, Apple does not jump onto new technologies until they have perfected it, and this seems to be the case here.
Arun Mathias, VP of Wireless Technologies and Ecosystems, talked of Apple approach to 5G that differed from any other manufacturer. As pertains hardware, hardware Apple designed custom 5G antennas and radio while including the most 5g bands in a single phone to work on 5G in more places than any other smartphone.
From a software standpoint, Apple optimized iOS frameworks so that apps can get the benefit of 5g without using more power. Apple also include a smart data mode for when the iPhone doesn’t need 5g speeds. In such scenarios, it automatically uses LTE to save battery. Apple have collaborated closely with certain carriers to ensure that the iPhone has great throughput coverage, call quality, and battery life. MmWave, the high frequency version of 5G, is supported in the US.
- Design
2020 iPhones have the beloved flat-edge design that was leaked, much to the delight of pretty much everyone. The glass and aluminum stay flush giving off the premium feel that iPhone is known for. The notch remains the same as in previous iPhones, but that was to be expected.
The iPhone 12 has slimmer bezels, allowing them to occupy a smaller footprint for similar screen sizes, and come in 5 colors right off the bat, black, white, product red, green, and blue for the non-pro models. The Pro models come in silver, graphite, gold, and pacific blue.
- Display
The iPhone lineup has Apple’s Super Retina XDR display. This is a huge improvement from last year, with the OLED display found on all 4 iPhones being amazing in all aspects. It has a higher resolution, with Apple claiming that it has twice the number of pixels as the iPhone 11 and a peak brightness of 1200 nits for HDR content. The display supports Dolby Vision, HDR10 and HLG.
For display protection, Apple has introduced their Ceramic Shield technology that is said to make the display way tougher than any smartphone glass. Apple claimed 4 times better drop performance, though that is more likely to mean shatter-proof than scratch-resistant.
- MagSafe
MagSafe is back, but on the iPhone. It allows you to snap attachments and the wireless charger to the back of the iPhone. It is much more reassuring than other wireless charger, because with MagSafe, you do not keep second-guessing whether you properly placed the phone on the charging pad.
There’s bound to be numerous MagSafe accessories, including a wallet showcased by Apple. We’ll have to wait and see all the innovative ways third-parties will make use of this feature.
- Processor
The A14 Bionic was unveiled in the 2020 iPad Air. It is built on the 5nm technology, allowing it to be as powerful as it is power-efficient and is found on all 4 2020 iPhones. It bumps up CPU, GPU, and Neural Engine (Machine Learning) performance, making it the most powerful iPhone processor yet.
- Packaging
On their journey to being completely carbon neutral, Apple chose to forego adding charging bricks and earphones in their packaging, resulting in a much slimmer box. Arguments have been made for and against the move, and Apple did not make it easier by deciding to add a USB-C to lightning cable instead of a USB-A to lightning, with most people having charging bricks that can be used with the latter.
- Cameras
All the 2020 iPhones have the same 12MP (f/2.2) TrueDepth front-facing camera, and the same 12MP wide (f/1.6) and 12MP ultra-wide f/2.4) cameras. Having the same internals means that the camera performance on those three lenses at least should be identical across the board,
Introducing the iPhone 12 Lineup
Similarities aside, there still are 4 different phones to choose from, all coming in at different price points.
iPhone 12 Mini | $699
At 5.4 inches, the iPhone 12 mini truly lives up (down?) to its moniker. It is the smallest iPhone in the lineup by some distance, and is the smallest 5G-capable smartphone in existence. This model was made solely for those who missed small form-factor phones in a world where phone screens are getting bigger, iPhone included.
iPhone 12 | $799
The base iPhone 12 is the sweet spot for most people. It is identical to the iPhone 12 mini is every aspect except size, and its 6.1 inch screen is not as unwieldy as other sizes. At $799, it is more expensive than last year’s base iPhone 11, but there are significant improvement that more than justify the bump up in price. Now more than ever, the base iPhone seemingly offers more value than the Pro models, but that will be down to personal preference.
iPhone 12 Pro | $999
Apart from the extra telephoto camera, the bigger 128GB base storage, and the different color options, there is not much to separate the base iPhone 12 from the 12 Pro. With a $200 difference between the two models, the Pro is definitely less appealing to the buyer.
iPhone 12 Pro Max | $1,099
It is the biggest iPhone ever at 6.7 inches. Like the Pro, it has an extra 12MP telephoto camera, except that the Pro Max’s is (f/2.2) as compared to the Pro’s (f/2.0). This enables it to have 2.5x optical, 12x digital zoom, besting the Pro’s 2x optical, 10x digital. Like the pro, storage options start at 128GB and top out at 512GB.
Making A Case for an iPhone Case
You have a tough choice on your hands – which iPhone to go for? One thing is for sure though, you will love whichever one you pick. What’s more is that your iPhone 12 will love you back for whichever TechArmor case you pick! Get one here.