Apple's iPhone 12 Mini could be announced together with its bigger siblings come mid-October. There's even news that the reveal could happen on Tuesday, October 13. Pre-order will then follow on Friday, October 16. If things went according to schedule, Apple might've already announced its latest line of iPhones.
iPhone 12 Mini and its siblings
The "Mini" model could be a new addition to the iPhone lineup. There's no official news yet on what specs this new variant will have but we're guessing it might bear similarities with the larger iPhones but with a smaller footprint. Another possibility is that it might take the route of previous iPhone SE variants. They're smaller and offer the same Apple user experience minus some premium features found on base and pro models.
Twitter user DuanRui shared a picture of case stickers including the smallest 5.4-inch case that mentions the Mini name. Other than the rumored iPhone 12 Mini, it's also expected that Apple will be launching the iPhone 12 Max and iPhone 12 Pro. If the Mini turns out to be an actual product, the Max variant might become the base model to avoid any naming scheme confusion.
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Between the two 6.1 iPhone 12 models, the Pro variant will have better cameras and a LiDAR sensor that used for improving depth sensing and augmented reality apps. Since Apple now makes iPhones with OLED displays, we're assuming the iPhone 12 Pro will also come with a much better screen than the iPhone 12 Max.
When it comes to Apple, it makes its highest variant stand out from its own lineup of devices. Take the case of the iPhone 12 Pro Max. It's 6.7-inch display is the largest among the possible four variants of iPhone 12 units.
iPhone 12 variants: Predicted specs
Along with the iPhone 12 Mini, the three other models could have all or some of the features we're hoping to get with this year's iPhones.
A14 Bionic chipset
The latest iPad Air 4 already has Apple's newest chipset. It's highly possible that most iPhone 12 models will have the A14 Bionic chipset as well. This is the first time that the company will launch an SoC that uses a 5nm manufacturing process. The reduction in size allows for better performance and reduced power consumption. Compared to the A13 Bionic chipset, the new one is 30% faster.
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USB-C
Finally! If this proves true, we'll be saying goodbye to Apple's proprietary Lightning port. Using USB-C would allow the iPhone 12 Mini and its bigger siblings to charge faster and transfer data at a higher speed compared to previous iPhone models.
The iPad Pros already have USB-C ports. Even the iPad Air 4 also comes with one. So, we're hoping Apple will incorporate the same tech on its iPhone 12 range.
Side-mounted Touch ID sensor
Going back to the iPad Air 4, this tablet is the first Apple device to feature a side-mounted button with Touch ID. Since people nowadays wear masks, it would be quite difficult to make Face ID work as intended. We're expecting that the new iPhones will feature the same side-mounted fingerprint scanner.
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