After months of anticipation, exiting rumors, and frustrating delays, Apple has finally held its iPhone 12 event. The hardware event was just as the rumors suggested. Apple used the event to promote the 5G technology in the new iPhones, unveil a new and improved HomePod Mini, and the biggest announcement of them all; the iPhone 12.
Yes, it’s finally here. The iPhone 12 arrives in four models with 5G capabilities and the latest A14 bionic chip (Hi, Speed).
Here is all you need to know about it and the HomePod Mini.
HomePod Mini
Apple kicked off the event by unveiling its latest device for the home- the HomePod Mini. The HomePod might not be the highlight of the event, but it is better than you expected. The smart speaker has a compact and elegant design with a backlit touch surface (glows when you invoke Siri) housing the volume and pause/play controls.
Apple then explained the features that make the HomePod mini a smart speaker you want to own. It has incredible sound capabilities due to features like acoustic waveguide for 360 degrees sound and computational audio thanks to the S5 chip on board.
The smart speaker also got more intelligent. Placing two HomePod Minis in a room instantly gives you a stereo pair. The handoff feature gives you visual and haptic effects every time your iPhone is nearby. Siri in the HomePod Mini comes with loads of new features to integrate the speaker with the rest of your smart devices for a more convenient smart home experience.
In Apple’s words, the HomePod Mini was built with four critical qualities
- Amazing sound experiences.
- A world-class Intelligent assistant
- To serve as the brain of your smart home.
- Your privacy and security at the forefront.
The HomePod Mini is available in White and Space Grey, starting at $149 here in Australia and in the US only US$99. Orders begin on November 6th and shipping on November 16th.
The iPhone 12 Series
Of course, these are the devices that the over 2.5 million watchers on YouTube turned up to see unveiled. The iPhone 12, just like in the rumors, comes in four models; iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, and iPhone 12 Pro Max.
This is the first iPhone series to ship with 5G technology, and Apple made sure that everyone understood that. Labeling it as the most exciting step yet, invited Hans Vestberg, CEO and chairman of Verizon, on stage to discuss everything 5G.
· Introducing the iPhone 12
The iPhone 12 is the Apple device we have been waiting for all year. Every time Apple does something, it often involves quite several “the best in the world” features, and this device did not disappoint.
It features an all-new design with smooth and flat edges, a glass front and back, and an aluminum frame. The design is compact with a classy look reminiscent of the iPhone 5. It is available in white, black, green, product red, and blue. Memory capacities for the iPhone 12 are: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB.
Despite being smaller, thinner, and lighter than the iPhone 11, the iPhone 12 still manages to bring the same 6.1 inch display. This time though, it is an OLED display with twice the number of pixels; 2532 x 1170 and HDR viewing support. Going by Apple, this phone will give you a fantastic viewing experience from things as simple as sharper texts, to more detail and precise colours for photos.
The display is protected by a new cover glass by Corning, the Ceramic Shield- praised by Apple as the toughest glass on a Smartphone. Apple terms this as the “biggest jump in reliability” they have ever had on the iPhone.
The iPhone 12 is all about speed, and for this, Apple gives it 5G capabilities and the new A14 Bionic Chip. 5G may be a long way from widespread use, but iPhone users tend to stick to their phones for four or five years before upgrading. This explains Apple’s massive investments in the 5G capabilities of the iPhone 12. The phone is optimized to take full advantage of the 5G network and internet speeds. It’s 5G is not only faster, but it is also smarter. And then there is the A14 Bionic chip, the world’s first 5nm chipset. The GPU and CPU speeds are 50% faster than any smartphone chip, with the Neural engine now 80% faster. It is so fast that League of Legends will now be available on iOS pretty soon.
The camera is a dual set up; 12MP ultra-wide and 12 MP wide lenses. Some new features are the seven-element lens for better low light performance, computational photography, and a better night mode.
The rumor about MagSafe in the iPhone 12’s back was correct. Thanks to MagSafe, the iPhone 12 wireless charging experience will be better. Your experience when using iPhone accessories will also improve since MagSafe creates a whole new ecosystem of magnetic accessories. Apple while adding MagSafe to the iPhone 12 series has also kept Qi wireless charging capability.
Apple stated there will be no charging brick or iPhone charging adaptor in the box with the new iPhone 12s, so new iPhone users face a challenge and may have to purchase one. In the box will be USB C to lightning cable so Apple is saying goodbye it seems to the USB A to Lightning cable. The iPhone 12 starts at $1349 and in the US US$799. iPhone 12 pre orders will begin on Friday, October 16 at 11pm and the device will go on sale on Friday, October 23.
· The iPhone 12 Mini
Rumors of a mini iPhone 12 had us wondering what Apple’s endgame was, and now that the iPhone 12 Mini is confirmed, it is still not clear. The phone is still a very impressive accomplishment of technology. For starters, it is smaller than the iPhone 8 but has a bigger screen at 5.4 inch thanks to the edge to edge display. Except for screen size, all the other features are similar to the standard iPhone 12. It starts at $1199 or in the US US$699. The iPhone 12 Mini is available in white, black, green, product red, and blue while memory capacities are: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB.
iPhone 12 Mini pre orders start on Saturday, November 7 at midnight and the handset will go on sale on Friday, November 13.
· iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max
The pro version offers the same design and specs as the standard iPhone 12, with the difference being in its build material and triple camera set up. You get a stainless-steel frame instead of an aluminum one and a telephoto lens and the Lidar sensor. The iPhone 12 Pro is available in gold, graphite, pacific blue, and silver, and is available for preorder on October 16th, starting at $1699 here in Australia and in the US US$999. Memory capacities for the iPhone 12 Pro are: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB. iPhone 12 Pro pre orders start on Friday the 16th of October at 11pm. The device will be on sale on Friday, October 23.
The iPhone 12 Pro Max still packs the same specs as the Pro but has a larger 6.7 inch display. The telephoto lens has also been improved from 52mm to 65 mm. Both phones have excellent camera features and support Optical Image Stabilization. The Lidar sensor takes augmented reality to a whole new level in both iPhones.
The iPhone 12 Pro Max camera is more advanced and can capture, playback, and edit in Dolby Vision. Apple has also developed a new image format, Apple Pro Raw that lets you capture tweaks as data.
The iPhone 12 Pro Max is available for preorder from November 6th with the device being on sale from Friday the 13th of November. Pricing for the 12 Pro Max starts at $1849 in Australia while in the US pricing starts at US$1099. Memory capacities for the iPhone 12 Pro Max are 64GB, 128GB and 256GB, the device is available in the following colours: gold, graphite, pacific blue, and silver.
You can see our iPhone accessories here and read more about all the iPhone models, their release dates, features and iPhone history here. The 2021 iPhone 13 has launched, read more here.
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