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Last-minute iPhone 12 leak gives us all the remaining details

Published Oct 12th, 2020 6:50AM EDT
iPhone 12 Release Date
Image: Svetapple.sk

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  • A leak revealed the iPhone 12 release date, specs, and prices a few days ago, seemingly confirming some of the previous reports on Apple’s next-gen iPhone series.
  • A last-minute leak now details some of the new camera capabilities of the iPhone 12 and battery life expectations ahead of Apple’s October 13th launch event.
  • The iPhone 12 is expected to feature faster Face ID support, improved optical and digital zoom, a macro-like camera mode, better low-light photography, and 4K video recording at up to 240fps.
  • The iPhone 12 will see battery life improvements across the board, although the 5.4-inch iPhone 12 won’t match the iPhone 11’s battery life on account of its smaller size.

Apple will unveil the iPhone 12 series on Tuesday, during its “Hi, Speed” media event. It’s all coming about a month later than supposed to, as the novel coronavirus pandemic delayed Apple’s 2020 iPhone launch plans. But we’ve seen plenty of iPhone 12 leaks to compensate for the phone’s late arrival, including a massive report that revealed the iPhone 12 release dates, specs, and prices a few days ago. A well-known leaker from China listed the main hardware details for each of the four upcoming iPhone 12 handsets, alongside preorder information and launch dates. Apple will unveil all handsets at the same time, but only two of them will hit stores this month, with the other two set for a mid-November launch. A last-minute leak now gives us even more details about the upcoming phones, filling in the blanks on some of the iPhone’s camera and battery features.

Prominent leaker Max Weinbach shared “finalized and revised” information on the iPhone 12 on its @PineLeaks Twitter account, reports MacRumors.

The leaker acknowledged the Kang leak from a few days ago, the Chinese users who accurately shared information about Apple’s unreleased products in the past. “The most important things were already revealed” in that leak, with Weinbach providing additional information about Face ID, the main camera system, and the battery.

The leaker says the iPhone 12’s 3D face recognition system will ship with a “dynamic zoning algorithm” that’s supposed to speed up the Face ID unlock. But the Face ID notch will keep its current size. The 5.4-inch iPhone 12 might be an exception, but that’s only because the phone is smaller than the others. The TrueDepth components will be placed more tightly together as a result.

When it comes to the main camera, the leaker says that “Digital and Optical Zoom will be getting a massive boost this year.” The standard iPhone 12 will do it via software to get the job done. “You will get a significantly extended digital zoom, both quality and distance-wise,” he said.

Additionally, the iPhone 12 will get “a sort of macro camera,” the leaker says. The iPhone 12 Pro Max might be especially useful for getting closer to subjects. The ultrawide lens will have a 35% larger aperture, which will also help with low-light photography.

Finally, iPhone 12 models will support 4K video at 120 or 240 frames per second.

As for the phones’ batteries, you should expect “at least a 1-hour battery life increase for the Pro models.” The 5.4-inch phone will perform worse than the iPhone 11, but only because it’s smaller. The batteries will be 10% larger to compensate for the 5G energy drain, the leaker says.

Chris Smith Senior Writer

Chris Smith has been covering consumer electronics ever since the iPhone revolutionized the industry in 2008. When he’s not writing about the most recent tech news for BGR, he brings his entertainment expertise to Marvel’s Cinematic Universe and other blockbuster franchises.

Outside of work, you’ll catch him streaming almost every new movie and TV show release as soon as it's available.