2020 iPhone may adopt iPad Pro-style ProMotion displays

Next year's iPhones could adopt 120-hertz refresh rates, giving their displays the same level of responsiveness as the iPad Pro, according to one leaker.

"Apple is considering a switchable 60Hz/120Hz refresh rate screen on the iPhone in 2020, and is discussing with Samsung and LG," said @UniverseIce on Twitter. The person doesn't have a track record with Apple leaks, but is a well-known source on Samsung topics. Samsung and LG are known OLED suppliers for the iPhone XS and XS Max.

On the iPad Pro, ProMotion can dynamically scale refresh rates as needed for the sake of performance and battery life. The tablet continues to use LCD technology however, and Apple has yet to implement 120 hertz on any of its OLED products.

Few rumors have emerged about 2020 iPhones, likely since Apple is still finalizing design work. Rumors have suggested that Apple will use a smaller TrueDepth camera — allowing it to shrink the notch on OLED screens — plus a seven-piece lens system for the rear camera. A more questionable claim is that there could be a China-exclusive model that switches out Face ID for subscreen Touch ID.

It's generally believed that Apple will have three models, all of them OLED-based, in 5.4-, 6.1-, and 6.7-inch sizes. The 6.1-inch unit may forego 5G support however, relegating it to mid-tier status like 2018's iPhone XR.

12 Comments

iOS_Guy80 5 Years · 905 comments

About 5 years ago

Sign me up.

netrox 12 Years · 1510 comments

I honestly don't see much difference between 120Hz and 60Hz. I think it would be just wasted resources, especially on iPhones.

ksec 18 Years · 1502 comments

netrox said:

I honestly don't see much difference between 120Hz and 60Hz. I think it would be just wasted resources, especially on iPhones.

It is a world of difference on iPad Pro.

macplusplus 9 Years · 2116 comments

netrox said:

I honestly don't see much difference between 120Hz and 60Hz. I think it would be just wasted resources, especially on iPhones.

It is for Pencil compatibility (most probably). Those who own a Pencil cannot use it on the iPhone. Pencil 2 requiring flat borders for magnetic attachment and wireless charging, it will be most probably Pencil 1. Then there is a catch: Pencil 1 charging on the iPhone’s Lightning port, idiots will use it as a selfie stick when charging to drop their iPhones then will file a class action lawsuit.