Malcolm Owen
The "iPhone 12" could have extremely fast wireless networking with support for 802.11ay networking potentially allowing it to connect at gigabit speeds with home appliances and other hardware, and the long-rumored "AirTag" tracking device may use wireless charging.
As part of the potential improvements in this year's "iPhone 12" refresh, Apple could be taking advantage of a near field communication Wi-Fi standard called IEEE 802.11ay. Still in its fifth draft version, 802.11ay is believed to be getting close to completion, and may have a final specification issued by the end of 2020.
The use of the technology, claimed by sources of Macotakara would center on the iPhone being able to connect directly with other network-enabled items in an ad-hoc network, rather than using more standard and structured Wi-Fi network. Connecting at gigabit WI-Fi speeds, the direct connection to nearby devices would allow for both high transfer speeds and high reliability, due to not requiring intermediary networking hardware.
Aside from networking, the iPhone 12 is said by the sources to include OLED displays, with the possibility of an LCD display model as well. This could mean Apple could be going down a similar route to the current iPhone 11 generation and earlier models, where one variant had an LCD screen alongside premium alternatives equipped with OLED.
The iPhone 12 is predicted to be offered in at least four discrete models, including a 5.4-inch model with a rear dual camera, 6.1-inch OLED with dual cameras, 6.1-inch OLED with a rear triple-camera setup and time-of-flight sensors, and a 6.7-inch OLED with triple cameras and ToF sensors, which are used for 3D depth sensing. There has also been the suggestion of a resurgence of Touch ID by using acoustic fingerprint reading across the entire display, and the inclusion of 5G connectivity.
Macotakara also touches upon the "AirTags" rumors, for an accessory that would allow the Find My service to find other items, such as bunches of keys. The small Ultra-Wideband devices, which are tipped to go on sale in the fall, are suggested to incorporate wireless charging capabilities.
Andrew Orr
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13 Comments
I thought we were ditching this ac/ay impenetrable nonsense and it was now going to be Wi-Fi 6 (or 7, I forget where we’re up to)?
I see the good old apple product cycle also applies to iPhones.
Maybe, but with iPhones supporting 802.11ax/WiFi6, relatively few users using WiFi6 routers, and Macs still without WiFi6, I don't see 802.11ay happening this year so close to the draft.
I wonder why? It's not like Wifi6 / 802.11ax isn't plenty fast enough - and then some, by orders of magnitude - for a phone.
802.11ay isn't finished yet (note: This is not the successor to Wifi 6), and while it is even faster, it also has severe limitations - e.g. don't expect it to penetrate walls/people. It would be perfect for things like replacing HDMI (less cables to your TV hanging on the wall), wireless VR etc... but I don't see a good reason to add support for a draft version to a phone.