As expect , Apple unveiled its latest iPhone generation at the oddly named ‘ Hi , upper ’ event tonight , 13 October . passably much all the details of the launch leaked in advance of time , but the company still managed to put on an impressive and persuasive show : we ’re all specially activated about the newiPhone 12 mini .
Here ’s everything you need to make out about the iPhone 12 launch , include release date , design changes , new feature , price for the full range & tech specs .
Apple also announced thatLeague of Legends : Wild Riftwill be free for the iPhone 12 afterwards this twelvemonth .
say ouriPhone 12 reviewand ourreview of the iPhone 12 Pro Max .
iPhone history
This iPhone has been replaced with a newer manakin . Find links below to our reviews of all iPhone models , including the latest generation.iPhone 16is expect to set in motion in September 2024 ( seewhen is the proficient prison term to buy a Modern iPhone ) , whileiPhone SE ( 4th generation)andiPhone 17are probable to appear in 2025 . notice out aboutApple ’s September event detailsandhow to watch the Apple September event live stream ; or for other Apple products , learn more about all thenew Apple product coming this yearandwhen is the next Apple issue . You might also like ouriPhone purchasing guide , best iPhone dealsandcomparison of every iPhone that is available to bribe today .
What’s the new iPhone called?
No surprises here – the only dubiousness was whether Apple would go for the ‘ mini ’ stigmatization on the small-scale model , and it has . There are four models :
Price & availability
All four model were announced tonight , but Apple is splitting them into two groups for the actual launch .
The two ‘ medium ’ 6.1 in phones , the 12 and 12 Pro , will be available for pre - order on 16 October and go on sale on 23 October . Here ’s where to pre - order the iPhone 12with elaborate pricing data .
The iPhone 12 miniskirt and theiPhone 12 Pro Max , meanwhile , will be delayed until next month . They will be available for pre - order of magnitude on 6 November and go on sale on 13 November .
Update : As of 20 October the delivery dates are aleady slipping . Read more here : UK delivery prison term fall away to 23 - 30 days for iPhone 12 Pro , 16 - 23 days for iPhone 12
Here ’s the starting prices for the four modeling :
you’re able to find full pricingon Apple ’s internet site . EE has also announced it will be stocking the Modern phones from 16 October ( 12 and 12 Pro ) and 6 November ( 12 miniskirt and 12 Pro Max ) ; you may register your intereston EE ’s website .
It ’s actually gently pleasing for us here in the UK that there ’s no additional ‘ Apple taxation ’ on the lb price – UK tech buyers are so regularly stiffed on conversion rate that it ’s really pleasing to see phones that cost the same in dollars as pounds . ( Okay , it ’s still a pretty shameful version of the conversion charge per unit . Just slenderly less ridiculous than we ’ve grown used to . )
At the same time , Appleslashed pricesacross the rest period of the range .
Update January 2020 : According to a new study from Counterpoint , the iPhone 12 cost significantly more to manufacture than iPhone 11 . Read more here : iPhone 12 cost more to manufacture than iPhone 11 .
Design changes
Apple has run for a restoration to the flatter , squarer - edge innovation of the iPhone 4 and its progeny ( and the current iPad Pro model ) , rather than the curved - edge style we ’ve grown used to in late geezerhood .
Whether that ’s good news will depend on your personal tastes . I think the squared - off designlooksbetter , but devices in that style are harder to pluck up and feel less pleasant in the hand .
So much for shape . But there are two other important changes to the plan ; one is extremely practical , and the other is totally ornamental . Let ’s do the virtual one first .
you may experiment with the iPhone 12 intention and accessories onApple ’s iPhone 12 website .
For more information about what ’s inside , iFixit hastaken apart the iPhone 12 mini , theiPhone 12 and 12 Proand theiPhone 12 Pro Max .
Ceramic Shield
Apple has frequently talked up iPhone screen strength in the past . To a grade that ’s fair , thanks to the inclusion of Corning ’s Gorilla Glass , but no iPhone I ’ve ever tested has been completely scratch - cogent evidence .
Corning was specifically namechecked in the iPhone 12 presentation because it ’s supply a new fabric for these French telephone called Ceramic Shield . This is obviously “ infuse with nano - ceramic crystals ” to “ dramatically improve stamina ” , offers 4x better drop protection than the previous generation , and is “ tougher than any smartphone glass ” . I ’m using lots of quote stain because there ’s no way of have intercourse if the iPhone 12 can walk the walk until we test it , but it sounds good .
For more entropy read : pearl test results : How durable is the screenland on iPhone 12
Colour finishes
There are some great new colours to pick out from . ( Call me superficial if you like . I do n’t care . )
The iPhone 12 and 12 mini come in white , dark , blue , green and ( Cartesian product ) Red , of which blue and dark-green are new . Green is surprisingly pale and looks decent ; the blue is rich and sour ( albeit not ostensibly as dark as the blueApple Watch Series 6 , although I ’ll have to compare them in the flesh ) and search superb .
The 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max , meanwhile , come in flatware , gold , Graphite ( possibly a rebranding of Space Grey / Black , although again I ’d wish to see if it await different up close ) and the totally new Pacific Blue . Pacific Blue is a bit greyer than the blueness of the iPhone 12 , perhaps aimed at a more sombre market , but my initial preference is for the cheaper model ’s resonance .
5G
Now we ’re into the new features – and the headline feature film for this multiplication is bread and butter for 5 G , which Apple calls “ the most exciting stair yet ” . The company really could n’t have played this any bigger , with the presenters at various points standing in front of a vast ( albeit presumably virtual ) 5 thou logotype covering the total stage .
Apple made a lot of jactitation about how well 5 gram is going to work , but of course of study it ’s the carriers that will have to do the heavy lifting . Apple had a representative from Verizon on stage , who begin promisingly by promulgate “ With iPhone , the hold is over . 5 G just got real ” but then – intelligibly – spent most of his clip talking about how great Verizon ’s 5 G mesh is and before long will be , the stadiums and airdrome it will cover and the capacity and response time it will offer .
unhappily for those us here in the UK , he also focalize on the cities and areas that will be wrap up in the US ( 60 cities by year end , he said ) rather than elsewhere .
The general welfare of 5 gram are obvious : you get faster internet access when away from nursing home Wi - Fi , perhaps as much as 4Gbps under perfectly optimum condition , Verizon reckons . But the actual specific amphetamine will vary hugely depending on meter and ( above all ) positioning .
The iPhone 12 reach support the most 5 universal gravitational constant bands of any smartphone , Apple said , and volunteer a Smart Data Mode whereby , when 5 G does n’t propose any benefits , the phone will switch to LTE to make unnecessary onbattery . They support the especially eminent - speed mmWave version of 5G.
observe : Apple has posit in a papers share with earpiece networks that if the iPhone 12 is used with dual SIMs 5 G will not work . More here : If you use dual SIM wag in iPhone 12 you wo n’t get 5G.
There are specific theme suggesting thatSome iPhones 12 models have battery problem . It ’s thought these could be have by 5G.
MagSafe
Yes , you read that rightfield . The iPhone 12 launch experience the rejoinder ofMagSafe , a darling characteristic on MacBook power go that Apple began phasing out in 2016 .
MagSafe here intend a system of magnet design to hold a wireless charging pad in the correct place to charge the iPhone . That ’s handy , for sure : many iPhone proprietor will have intercourse the pain in the neck of putting their twist on a charging domiciliation rakishly and unwrap eight hours later that it was n’t on the sweet spot and could n’t draw and quarter any power . ( Always take heed out for the little ping ! )
On the MacBook , of course , MagSafe was n’t just about holding the power overseas telegram in place : it also allowed it to part from the gimmick if yanked ( when someone blundered into the wire , commonly ) rather than send off the MacBook crashing to the flooring . I would say the 2nd part of that was the most important , and to be reliable ca n’t really see how it utilize to the new version of MagSafe Apple is launching for the iPhone . Still , it expect and voice convenient , if not quite as potentially cataclysm - averting as the sometime version .
There is no world power arranger included with the iPhone 12 – or the XR , 11 or SE from now on . Here are detail onwhich power adapter plug you postulate for the iPhone .
Also , say about why MagSafe rather than USB - C is the future of the iPhone here : Why we will never see an iPhone with USB - C
hear more about MagSafe here : What is MagSafe ?
Cameras
We do n’t get any more conventional lens system this year – Apple has n’t done a Gillette and pushed to four lenses on the rearward – nor have the principal cameras specs deepen . But apart from its obvious AR capabilities , the summation of a newLiDARscanner open up new photographic possibilities : faster autofocus in low luminousness , and a unexampled feature of speech : Night Mode portrait .
talk of which , Apple has also added Night Mode time - lapse photography , and an updated version of its Smart HDR lineament for combining multiple exposure to tackle complex kindling status : Smart HDR 3 . This farm some fantastic - looking mixed - condition shots in the demo ( Apple essentially said the new version apply more adjustments than the former generation ) , but we ’ll have to try it out before we can give our verdict .
Support for HDR video formats is Modern this yr , too .
We look at the camera features specific to the Pro range in a separate article : Major improvements in iPhone 12 Pro television camera . We also have acomparison of the iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Maxthat might matter to you .
Screen
In two cases the covert are great than in the past times . By squeezing down the bezel size Apple has kept the chassis size approximately the same but encounter projection screen sizes of 6.1in/5.8in/6.5 in ( 11/11 Pro/11 Pro Max ) to 6.1in/6.1in/6.7 in ( 12/12 Pro/12 Pro Max ) . The iPhone 12 mini is a new screen size of it at 5.4 in .
In several causa the screen are sharper too : all four of the unexampled models have a pixel density of at least 458ppi ( pixels per column inch ) , whereas the iPhone 11 contemporaries were separate between 458ppi ( the Pros ) and 326ppi ( the standard iPhone 11 ) . In fact the iPhone 12 mini has the highest pixel tightness of any iPhone , at 476ppi .
Tech specs
We ’ve only strike the surface of the updates and Modern features in the iPhone 12 range . Here ’s the full spectacles list .
( observe that the comprehension of an OLED screen on the standard as well as Pro fashion model this yr , while excellent from a picture - quality head of view , meansrepair cost have go up . )
