New iPhone 12 (2020) Undergoes Redesign, Takes Cue from iPhone 4

Has it been that long? It seems that the dust has barely settled, and we’ve got rumors that Apple is again releasing redesigned iPhones for 2020 aka the iPhone 12. What usually happens is that Apple releases a ‘new’ iPhone every two years. During an initial release, we would usually get a newly redesigned iPhone with major hardware updates and get a ‘refreshed’ or upgraded iPhone the following year before the company again releases a ‘new’ and hugely upgraded iPhone.

This can be disappointing for iPhone users who just got the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max. From previous experience, you could enjoy having Apple’s latest smartphone for two years before ditching it again for a newer unit.

News of the iPhone’s latest redesign was announced as early as last year by Ming-Chi Kuo who predicted that the new iPhones will be revisiting the metal frame structure of the iPhone 4. The original design used a square-edged aluminum frame sandwiched between two glass panes. The new design concept can already be seen in the iPad Pro which also takes similar design cues from the iPhone 4.

Kuo said that this year’s iPhones will also come in new sizes. This he said include 5.4 and 6.7 inch OLED top-tier models, and a 6.1 inch model with an OLED display. Major updates also include support for 5G networks and the LIDAR 3D-scanning system as seen in the new iPad Pro. It remains to be seen if this will simply replace one of the iPhone 11 Pro’s three cameras or will it be available on the lower-end models replacing the iPhone 11.

A Bloomberg report says that the new top-model iPhone will sport a slightly larger screen than the 6.5-inch display of the iPhone 11 Pro Max. Changes to the front display panel can also include removing the top cut-out which contains the selfie camera and Face ID sensors, and a visible reduction in the notch size. As will all previous offerings, the new iPhones will have significant upgrades to the processor with emphasis on artificial intelligence and AR tasks.