On Tuesday, Apple just announced a new lineup of smartphones in its yearly event. This time it was a virtual event streamed on YouTube with millions of live viewers. During the event, Apple announced the new iPhone 12, as well as three other variations, the 12 Pro, 12 Max, and 12 Mini. All of them share core features but, each model is targeting a specific group of people, the 12 Mini being the most talked about.
Apple is known as a trendsetter, its devices greatly influencing other manufacturers. We’ve seen this happen with the implementation of the notch, removal of the headphone jack, and the release of the wireless headphones and wireless charging, among many more. In this article, we’ll highlight some core trends that Apple might end up setting with its new lineup.
5G-enabled
5G was a big focus of the presentation on Tuesday. Whilst brands like Xiaomi and Huawei have released 5G-enabled devices before, Apple hesitated slightly until now. Apple was also among the last to implement 4G and even 3G back in the day. However, once a giant like Apple adopts 5G, the trend has been set and most upcoming flagships should have this feature now.
Apple developed a partnership with Verizon, and its CEO, Hans Vestberg was even a speaker at the event. Verizon is expected to have 5G coverage across most US cities by the end of the year. Apple is also supporting all major providers and countries.
Apple’s 5G equipped smartphones are expected to offer insane download speeds and a considerably better gaming experience. This will enable extremely low-latency gaming which is essential for online games and gambling. A casino game like Gaminator can be downloaded for free both on iOS and Android, and the faster internet you have, the smoother you’ll be able to gamble. If you also want to play a live tournament of poker instead of just slots, having reliable internet can make a huge difference.
Moreover, 5G will bring triple-A gaming to smartphones. League of Legends, the most popular PC game in the world, will be coming to the iPhone. Apple made sure to emphasize this is only possible thanks to 5G and their latest chip, A14.
“Lighter” Box
The unboxing experience is also receiving a major revamp in iPhone 12. Apple’s set to reduce waste thus removing certain elements from the upcoming iPhone package. The new models will ship with a USB-C to Lightning cable but without a charging brick or a pair of headphones. Most customers already own a charging brick and a pair of earbuds or AirPods from Apple.
This change will reduce carbon emissions considerably by making the box smaller thus increasing the number of items that fit on a shipping pallet by up to 70%. It’s expected that other manufacturers will follow Apple’s steps and remove these items from the box. Samsung reportedly will stop including the charging brick starting next year.
Mini Design
Over the last couple of years, the trend has been to produce bigger smartphones that have a higher screen-to-body ratio. This made the phones slightly less practical whilst increasing the chances of dropping them. However, we’ve seen an increased demand for smaller smartphones, such as the new iPhone 12 Mini. This model will have a compact design of 5.4-inch whilst packing all of the essential features and horsepower from the other phones in the lineup.