IPHONE 12 FAMILY 2020

The box within a box within a box. There we go, iPhone 12 mini. Damn, they got that light as tech tips bath shot. yo, spokesman-review 2020 is here. Happy iPhone 12 Day. Today wasn't your typical iPhone event, of course, because one, it took place in October as opposed to September, so, 2020 just keeps the weird rolling. And two, with that, because 2020, Apple continued their virtual keynotes, which somehow I think they leveled up even further. 

INTRODUCING IPHONE FAMILY

The transitions, the cinematography. Damn, that was like a transition. The only downside with the virtual event, of course, is no hands-on coverage with the iPhones after the event that the tech world would normally be able to do. I assure you, though, coverage on these phones is coming ASAP. We did get four brand new iPhone 12s today, the iPhone 12 Mini, the iPhone 12, the iPhone 12 Pro, and the big boy, the iPhone 12 Pro Max, which will cover thoroughly, but let me know what you're most excited for with a comment down below.

MINI IPHONE 12

Also, got a brand new tiny HomePod mini, which to me kind of looks like a candle holder, but for that price, at 99 bucks, it's definitely more enticing and makes more sense than the regular HomePod. So, I am stoked to check it out. Okay, so, iPhone 12. We essentially got to look at them like the pros and then the nonpros. The iPhone 12 Mini comes in a super adorable 5.4-inch form factor, starts out at $699. So, those rumors of a $649 starting price point were wrong. Luckily, it didn't go up though.

OVERVIEW IPHONE 12

We then jump up to the larger 6.1 inches iPhone 12, which essentially is the follow-up to last year's iPhone 11. And for the iPhone 12 lineup, we have five colors, black, white, produced, green, and blue, which I think I'm all about. The iPhone 12 Pro comes in at the same 6.1 inches as the regular iPhone 12. 

DESIGN OVERLOOK

And of course, we have that biggest boy, the iPhone 12 Pro Max, which sizes in at a monster 6.7 inches. It is worth noting that all iPhone 12 models, the mini, the regular 12, the 12 Pro, the 12 Pro Max, have all adopted that squared-off rectangular design, which is kind of a throwback, and very similar to what we've seen with the iPad Pro and now the iPad Air, which I really enjoy. The rectangular design is back. I like that color. Sadly, though, they did not implement the touch ID that we saw on the new iPad air into these iPhones, so that was a little bit of a bummer.

DISPLAY QUALITY

The good news across all four phones is they're all OLED displays, all with the peak brightness of 1200 nits, and specifically, the iPhone12 Mini and the iPhone 12, which essentially are the same exact phone, just different form factors. That's a nice bump over last year's iPhone 11. Also gone with those LCDs are 750P panels. So, specifically again, with the iPhone 11, 12 Mini, and the 12, that's a nice jump over last year's 11. The 12 Pro Max, of course, with that 6.7-inch display has the most pixels out of everything here, but in terms of actual display quality, all four are stellar.

UNIQUE SELLING POINT

All four of these also share that new, super-fast, A14 bionic chip, five nanometers, four-core CPU, six-core GPU. So, on paper, definitely impressive. But what I'm most excited for is that 16 core neural engine, which I think is the underrated MVP here, especially when it's going to come to photo and video. And I'm super excited to mess around with this. Aside from the obvious color differences between the iPhone 12 pro and the iPhone 12 lineup, you're also getting some stainless steel action on the iPhone 12 Pros, which look a little flexier, a little flashier, and definitely more premium than the regular iPhone 12 and 12 Mini.

REFRESH RATE

All four of these are also IP68 certified up to six meters now, and all four now have a stronger ceramic shield front display. Everything has entered the chat. From there addressing the refresh rate elephant in the room. Apple did not implement120 Hertz refresh rates into any of the iPhone 12s, not the regular lineup, not the Pro. So we are stuck at the 60 Hertz that we've seen basically forever. And while I was definitely disappointed, I would have loved to have seen it, I'm not heartbroken. From what we've gathered, the reason for not opting for 120 Hertz was a little bit of production and a lot of bits of the combination of 5G with that 120 Hertz panel.

5G LOOKUP 

And honestly, if I had to decide between 5G and 120 Hertz, I would probably go for the higher refresh rate, simply because I don't feel like 5G is ready yet. Also, can we talk about that for a minute? Verizon and the 5G push was a little bit much. Like, they were shoving 5G down our throats. - We're excited to announce that Verizon is turning on - - No! - I think 5G is cool. I think it will be a huge deal moving forward yet. But as of now, in 2020, again, it is not quite there yet. With that said, though, if you're coming from a phone that's three, four, five years old, and you're planning on keeping this one for a few years, then I could see some potential benefit.

MagSafe MAGNETIC POWER CHARGING

But again, 5G, just not quite ready yet. From there, out of nowhere, Apple just kind of whipped out and smacked everybody in the face with MagSafe wireless magnetic charging. Magnetic wireless charging. MagSafe! What? Are you kidding me? Damn, I did not see that coming. That click is satisfying. I don't think there was a leak or any predictions of MagSafe coming to the iPhone 12 line up. So, I was genuinely surprised and excited to see it. And I'm somehow hoping that it makes its way back to a MacBook. Please, let that happen. That also led to a handful of MagSafe accessories, which is going to be opened up to third party companies as well. So, it was definitely unexpected, but a welcome surprise.

CAMERA

Now, I would say, hands down, the biggest difference between the iPhone 12and the 12 Pro lineup is going to be the camera system. With the 12 Mini and 12, you have two cameras, ultra-wide and wide-angle. With the 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max, you have three cameras, ultrawide, wide-angle, telephoto, and there's also a LIDAR sensor, which in one instance will give you the ability to take night mode portrait shots, which, yes, please. So, while the ability to take night mode portrait shots is limited to the iPhone 12 Pro lineup, all four iPhone 12s.

Now have night mode on the ultra-wide-angle lens and the front-facing camera, which, thank goodness. The night mode is on the iPhone 12. Thank you.

SOUND

Now, what I would say is probably the most underrated feature on the iPhone 12 lineup is the ability to capture and record Dolby Vision content, which I get it, it sounds fancy. It sounds unnecessary, but I think what a lot of people are missing is we already consume a ton of Dolby Vision content, whether it's Netflix or Apple TV, and prices with TVs that support that are coming down and down. So what that means, in a nutshell, is you have the ability to capture 10 bit HDR Dolby Vision footage on a device that fits in your pocket.

And then on top of that, the more exciting things you can then edit that and output it directly from your phone. I agree, I think DolbyVision, much like a 120 Hertz, is something that you appreciate when you don't have it, or you experience, and then you get that taken away. But I think a lot of people with HDR, good HDR, or Dolby Vision, especially with it's so readily available on Netflix or Apple TV, watch it. They appreciate it. 

They don't truly know why, but then would notice it if they didn't have it anymore. And while I don't think it's quite ready for prime time, it is really exciting. So if this can move that standard forward, and eventually we can get Dolby Vision on our phones on YouTube, that would be incredible.

BASIC DIFFERENCES BTW IPHONE 12 FAMILY

It is worth noting that while Dolby Vision recording is supported on the iPhone 12 Mini and the 12, you are capped at 30 frames per second. Whereas with the 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max, you can do Dolby Vision recording up to 60 frames per second. 

Now, surprisingly, there actually is a difference between the 12 Pro and12 Pro Max this year, where normally that wasn't the case going to the bigger model. But the 12 Pro Max has a larger sensor which is going to be better for low-light performance, not only for video but for photos as well. 

You're also getting better image stabilization on the 12 Pro Max, where it's actually happening on the sensor itself, which looks really exciting. So, I'm really excited to check that out and see how that differs from the traditional stabilization in the iPhone, which is already top-notch. 

But definitely, if you're into video and photo, the 12 Pro lineup might be the way to go. Yo, those nighttime shots. You could definitely see the smartphone stabilizer right there put in a little bit of work. Speaking of that, one more feature that might entice you to opt for the 12 Pro lineup over the regular 12 is Apple's introduction of ProRAW photos.

 Essentially, it gives you the control, the flexibility, the power you have with a raw photo, but then the added benefits of all the computational photography Apple's doing, whether it's portrait mode, smart HDR, deep fusion, you get the best of both worlds.

USBC LIGHTNING CHARGING

And that is honestly really exciting because before, you had to kind of pick one or the other. Now, the rumors were true. Apple did get rid of the charging brick that comes with the iPhone 12. So, that is gone. The good news is, are you now get a USBC to lightning cable. I want to make that clear. I've seen some back and forth, or some people saying that apple opted to go for USBC on this iPhone 12, which they didn't. It's still a lightning port. You just get a USBC to lightning cable in the box. So, while I think the omission of that charging brick will be criticized, I think the overall move here is a good thing.

CONCLUSION

Apple is claiming it's the equivalent of removing 450,000 cars worth of carbon impact on the planet, and being from California, global warming. It's a real thing. So, I personally think it's a good move. I would say the weirdest thing here is going to be the splits of the release dates on these phones. So, first up is going to be the 12 and the 12 Pro. 

I guess that makes sense. That's shipping in October, because of the same size, the supply, the chain, all of that good stuff. Whereas the Mini, the small guy, and the big boy, the 6.7inch iPhone 12 Pro Max, those are actually shipping in November. So, we'll have to wait for those. Either way though, I am stoked to check these out. 

So, stay tuned for those new blogs. Hopefully, you enjoyed reading this blog. If you did, and you are feeling like being awesome, make sure you guys drop a comment down below. And a side note, for anyone interested in travel blogs, do visit my new blog Travel with us globally.

You guys can check it out. See you guys later. iPhone 12 Pro. The milkshake takes all the girls to the yard. It's better than yours. Stranger things. That steel looks nice.