iPhone 12, a missed opportunity?

Well, it's that time again, well, kind of. Apple usually sets there sites in September being the release month for its new flagship devices. Instead, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we had to settle for October. Although Apple did release the much anticipated iPhone 12 and 12 Pro models, they did something strange and delayed the iPhone 12 mini as well as the iPhone 12 Max. Try saying those names 5 times fast. Is it all that strange though? To people in the tech community, it's not strange at all. Everyone knows that Apple manufactured their iPhones in China, and with the global shut down there may have been some setbacks. Anyhow, the phones are here and I got some things to say about it.

This year's models are amazingly vintage, that's what I'm calling it so don't argue with me. The iPhone 12's are squared off with rounded edges all around, reminiscent of the iPhone 4 and 5 series from 2010 & 2013. This makes it easier to hold compared to the rounded shell design of the previous model. This also allowed Apple to reduce the bezels on the iPhone 12. Alongside these features comes the A14 Bionic CPU, a new GPU, a Qualcomm 5G modem, and a Lidar Sensor for some new cool activities with the cameras. With this comes a lot of missed opportunities and I'm going to rant about them.

With COVID-19 plaguing our lives, Apple has decided that for hundreds of essential working dollars, you didn't deserve the following attributes for 2020 smartphones.

- Touch ID (Fingerprint Sensor)

- 90-120Hz Display (High Refresh Rate)

- Reverse Wireless Charging (Phone Can Wirelessly Charge other devices)

- No AOD (Always On Display)

- Staring Storage at 64GB

- Smaller Battery

- The Notch

Okay, Okay. To be fair, Only the iPhone 12 starts with 64GB of storage, but news flash! That is the model most people are going to buy. The iPhone 12 Pro models begin at 128GB of internal storage.

COVID-19 has made sure that most of us have to wear a mask in our daily lives. With this, iPhone users have to plug in their passwords like it's 2010. That might sound like that's not long, but that's a decade ago folks. Face ID is virtually useless nowadays. If you aren't alone or in a place where you don't have to wear a mask, then Face ID is annoying. The normal human unlocks their phone 80 times a day. So millions of people have to settle for typing in a PIN 320 time per month. Give or take an unlock or two. Apple had a great opportunity to bring back Touch ID on its phone. Many people thought it was coming back after the September announcement of the iPad Air's power button fingerprint sensor. Apple was so proud of this achievement, they said it was revolutionary, even though manufacturers like Sony have been "revolutionizing" this feature for years now.

let's talk refresh rate. What the hell Apple? It's a new decade and we are paying for 60Hz displays on flagship smartphones? To me this is embarrassing. Nowadays there is a section of the smartphone industry called "the midrange phone". These are smartphone prices anywhere from $400-$700. These phones have high refresh screens, high storage capacities, expandable storage, innovative designs (most of the time), and more. For those who don't know, and if you are an Apple Sheep I'm talking to you, a high refresh rate is a game-changer. 120hz makes the phone feel buttery smooth and responsive, allowing for a more immersive experience with your device. Everything just feels better when you have a high refresh rate. It should almost be mandatory on a smartphone in 2020. This means your screen is refreshing itself 120 times per second. Apple calls it "ProMotion Displays", and if you have iPad Pro you know exactly what I'm talking about. The sad part about this is that most Apple users don't even know what this is. They simply have an iPhone for iMessage or FaceTime.

Apple is a Trillion dollar company, the first tech company to reach that achievement. They have all the capabilities to put in technology like reverse wireless charging, and Always On Display, and if anyone could get rid of that horrendous notch it would be Apple. Every manufacture has sourced reverse wireless charging into their smartphones, allowing the phones to charge accessories like the $250 AirPod Pros right on the back of the device. Yeah, Apple said, "to hell with that". Apple even included an OLED screen on the regular iPhone this year and still didn't add Always On Display. What's that? I'm glad you asked. That allows users to see information on their screens essentially while the screen is off. Well, it's not off, but the screen resolutions and the refresh rate get so low that the screen shows sufficient information without compromising the battery. Every major smartphone with an OLED screen has this feature! It's a damn shame!

All in all the iPhone 12 series is a beast of a smartphone regardless of its mishaps. Here is the thing about Apple's mishaps, it's Apple, nobody cares. Their software and brand name is so good they can afford to limit such features to an already amazing phone.