At its virtual event last night, Apple has officially launched its 2020 iPhone line-up, which, for the first time, consists of four new iPhone models, namely the iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Mini, iPhone 12 Pro, and iPhone 12 Pro Max. A lighter version of the HomePod smart speaker, dubbed as the HomePod mini also tags along.
At a first glance, the iPhone 12 looks quite similar to the iPhone 11 thanks to a similar-sized 6.1-inch display. However, this time around, all the iPhone 12 models feature the same OLED technology, which means no more of those cheaper LCD panels for the more affordable models.
The iPhone 12 mini, on the other hand, gets a 5.4-inch OLED display. You still get the same notch on top of the display housing the 12MP selfie camera along with Face ID sensors. Moreover, both the phones are powered by Apple's newest A14 Bionic chipset, which is the world's first SoC to be built around a 5nm process node.
According to Apple, the new A14 Bionic chip packs a Hexa-core CPU, Quad-core GPU, and a new 16-core Neural Engine. Further, both the phones feature a dual-camera system at the back, comprising a 12MP (f/1.6) primary camera and a 12MP (f/2.4) ultrawide lens. Apple says that the new dual-camera system can shoot Night Mode Portraits, Night Mode Time Lapse, Night Mode Selfies, HDR video recording, and so on.
There's also a new magnetic wireless charging solution for the new iPhone 12 models, dubbed as MagSafe. Along with a wireless charging coil, both the phones have magnets built-in, which allows users to align the wireless chargers properly and snap on the supported MagSafe wireless chargers. These support up to 15W charging speeds.
The iPhone 12 starts at ₹79,900 for the 64GB storage variant and will be available in 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB storage variants. The iPhone 12 mini, on the other hand, is priced at ₹69,900 for the 64GB model. It, too, will be available in the same configurations as the larger iPhone 12. Both the smartphones will be available in five shades – blue, green, black, white, and (PRODUCT)RED.
Like last year, the iPhone 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max are the flagship iPhone models. Therefore, both these smartphones get all the bells and whistles from the more affordable vanilla iPhone 12 models, and then some.
On top of the abovesaid features, both the Pro models get a triple-camera setup with an additional 12MP telephoto camera over the vanilla iPhone 12. It also gets a dedicated LiDAR sensor at the back, which, as per Apple, improves autofocus and helps render bokeh in the dark.
The iPhone 12 Pro Max, moreover, goes one step ahead as it features even larger camera sensors than the iPhone 12 Pro. This means that 12 Pro Max gets better primary and telephoto cameras. Apple has also increased the sizes of both the Pro models this year, with the 12 Pro measuring in at 6.1-inches while the 12 Pro max measuring in at 6.7-inches.
The iPhone 12 Pro starts at ₹1,19,900 for the 128GB storage variant and will be available in 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB storage variants. The iPhone 12 Pro Max, meanwhile, is priced at ₹1,29,900 for the 128GB model. It, too, will be available in the same configurations as the iPhone 12 Pro. Both the smartphones will be available in four shades – graphite, silver, gold, and pacific blue.
Alongside the iPhone 12 series, Apple has also announced a smaller and lighter version of the standard HomePod. Just like its bigger sibling, the HomePod Mini is covered with mesh fabric, which, as per Apple is made with more than 90% recycled plastic. It also features a touch surface to control the volume and music control on top, which lights up as you summon Siri.
The HomePod Mini features Apple's S5 chip to enable computational audio technology, which, as per the company, adjusts how the music sounds 180 times per second. It also comes with a main driver, two passive radiators, and an acoustic waveguide at the bottom.
Besides that, the Mini version of the HomePod also comes with Apple's U1 chip, which allows to hand-off music from your iPhone as soon as it comes within the close vicinity of the smart speaker.
There's also a new Intercom feature, which quickly allows sending a message from one HomePod to another in a different room, or in a different place from CarPlay-enabled vehicles. The Intercom messages can also be received on the Apple Watch and AirPods.
Apple has priced the HomePod Mini at ₹9,900 in the Indian market. It will be available in two colours – white and space grey.
