Well, the rumours were right all along about the new 'mini' iPhone. Apple on Tuesday (October 13) unveiled the generic iPhone 12 model in two sizes.
The new iPhone 12 and the 12 mini comes in 6.1-inch (2532x1170p) and 5.4-inch (2340x1080p) screens. They feature OLED-based Super Retina XDR screen, True Tone display, Haptic Touch and a maximum brightness of 1200 nits.
They also boast an all-new sleek flat edge design with curved corners and -grade aluminium enclosure. On the front, they offer an immersive edge-to-edge display with Ceramic Shield. The latter is custom Apple-Corning built protection for the screen. The sturdy glass shield has undergone high-temperature crystallisation step that grows nano-ceramic crystals within the glass matrix, increases drop performance by four times compared to the iPhone 11 series.
Also, it comes with IP68 certification, meaning the iPhone 12 and the 12 mini can survive a maximum depth of 6 metres (around 19 feet) for up to 30 minutes underwater.
Inside, they come with 5nm class Apple A14 Bionic chipset, which is touted to be the most powerful processor in the mobile industry.
It said to have the fastest CPU and GPU by up to 50 percent compared to the rival smartphone chips (read Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 Plus). It promises console-quality gaming experiences, powerful computational photography, and more while delivering great battery life. The A14 Bionic is paired with a 16-core Neural Engine, which according to Apple, offers an 80 percent increase in performance and is capable of completing 11 trillion operations per second, enabling improved performance on even the most intense ML models.
As far as photography is concerned, it has improved the dual 12MP camera system - Ultra Wide(ƒ/2.4 aperture) and Wide(ƒ/1.6 aperture lens. They support 2x optical zoom out, digital zoom up to 5x, Night Mode, Deep Fusion, Optical image stabilisation, Brighter True Tone flash with Slow Sync, Portrait mode with advanced bokeh and Depth Control, Portrait Lighting with six effects (Natural, Studio, Contour, Stage, Stage Mono, High‑Key Mono), Smart HDR 3 for photos.
As far as the video recording is concerned, they support 4K video recording at 24 fps, 30 fps or 60 fps, 1080p HD video recording at 30 fps or 60 fps, HDR video recording with Dolby Vision up to 30 fps, Extended dynamic range for video up to 60 fps, Optical image stabilisation for video, 2x optical zoom out, Digital zoom up to 3x, Audio zoom, QuickTake video, Slow-motion video support for 1080p at 120 fps or 240 fps, Night mode Time-lapse, Time-lapse video with stabilisation, and Stereo recording.
On the front, the iPhone 12 and the 12 mini come with 12MP TrueDepth camera, ƒ/2.2 aperture, support FaceID, Deep Fusion, Smart HDR 3 for photos, Retina Flash, Portrait mode with advanced bokeh and Depth Control, Portrait Lighting with six effects (Natural, Studio, Contour, Stage, Stage Mono, High-Key Mono), Extended dynamic range for video at 30 fps, Cinematic video stabilisation (4K, 1080p and 720p), Slow-motion video support for 1080p at 120 fps, Cinematic video stabilisation (4K, 1080p and 720p), Night mode, QuickTake video, Animoji and Memoji and more.
Also, the iPhone 12 and the 12 mini will offer all-day battery life and play up to 11 hours and 10 hours of video streaming Wi-Fi with full charge. Both support 20W adapter or higher (sold separately) and fast charge up to 50% charge in 30 minutes.
For the first time, Apple is introducing MagSafe technology. It is said to improve the wireless charging for a better, more efficient experience, and also bring a new ecosystem of easy-to-attach accessories to complement iPhone 12 models.
"MagSafe delivers a unique experience to the iPhone, featuring an array of magnets around the wireless charging coil, optimised for alignment and efficiency, that perfectly connects to the iPhone every time. MagSafe chargers efficiently provide up to 15W of power, while still accommodating existing Qi-enabled devices. Charging solutions include the MagSafe Charger and MagSafe Duo Charger for use with iPhone and Apple Watch, as well as new silicone, leather, and clear cases that easily snap onto the back of the iPhone, and a leather wallet. Customers can also expect innovative MagSafe accessories from third-party manufacturers," said Apple.
Another first coming in the iPhone 12 series is 5G support and it will be able to support up to 200mbps download speed in select markets. "Featuring the most 5G bands on any smartphone, iPhone 12 models offer the broadest 5G coverage worldwide." the company said.
Also, the company announced to cut down on the carbon footprint in the iPhone 12 series retail packaging and in that order, has decided to ditch 70-percent of the contents compared to the previous generation model. So, this means there will be no power adapter and EarPods. But, there will be a Type-C USB-to-Lightning cable.
The new iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini will be available in blue, green, black, white, and PRODUCT(RED) colours from apple.com and through Apple Authorised Resellers.
The iPhone 12 will be available for purchase in India from October 30 onwards for Rs 79,900 (64GB), Rs 84,900 (128GB) and Rs 94,900 (256GB), respectively.
The iPhone 12 mini can be pre-booked on November 6 for Rs 69,900 (64GB), Rs 74,900 (128GB) and Rs 84,900 (256GB), respectively.
Whereas the MagSafe Charger, Leather Wallet with MagSafe, and iPhone 12 Silicone Case and Clear Case will be from October 16 onwards. The iPhone 12 Leather Case will be available beginning from November 6. MagSafe Duo Charger and Leather Sleeve will be available at a later date.
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