One of the key components of the forthcoming iPhone 12 Pro appears to have leaked onto the internet, confirming a key rumor into the bargain.
Twitter leaker Mr.white has posted a photo of what is alleged to be the rear glass panel of the iPhone 12 Pro. Should this component prove to be genuine, then it confirms a couple of details about Apple’s next flagship phone, which is due for release some time over the coming month or so.
For one thing, it tells us that the rear of the iPhone 12 Pro is going to look much the same as the rear of the iPhone 11 Pro. This might not sound like much of a surprise given Apple’s history of iterative design, but the iPhone 12 family is widely tipped to sport a bold new design influenced more by the boxy iPhone 4 than the curvaceous iPhone X.
LiDAR scanner
More interestingly, the leaked photo would appear to confirm that the iPhone 12 Pro is going to feature a LiDAR scanner as part of its camera array. You can see the telltale cut out just below the three main camera slots, which bears some similarity to the LiDAR element on the latest iPad Pro.
iPad Pro’s LiDAR scanner allows for advanced Augmented Reality features
Some rumours have suggested that only the range-topping iPhone 12 Pro Max will receive this LiDAR sensor, which will bolster the phone’s AR capabilities. We shouldn’t have too long to wait to find out, with rumours of a launch event on either September 8 or October 12.
Apple CFO Luca Maestri previously confirmed that the release of the iPhone 12 will slip into October, representing a delay of “a few weeks”. This is likely due to the logistical problems brought about by the current COVID-19 pandemic.