Apple iPhone 12 5G packaging render gives you a clue about what's missing from the box
This is how things change quickly when you live in a world populated by leaks and rumors. On June 24th, a Twitter tipster shared an image of a 20W Apple charging brick and said that it could be included in the box with the iPhone 12 series. Last year, Apple included a fast charger in the box for the first time since it added fast charging capabilities to the iPhone back in 2017 with the iPhone 8 line. Up until last year's iPhone 11 Pro models, iPhone users who wanted to experience fast charging would experience Apple reaching into their pockets and removing the $29 cost of the charger.
Render of the iPhone 12 box insert confirms recent rumors
A few days after the image of the 20W charger was shared, TF International's ace analyst Ming-Chi Kuo told clients that while the picture of the 20W charger was legitimate, Apple decided not to put it in the box with the upcoming iPhone models. In fact, Kuo said that Apple will not include any charging brick at all with the iPhone 12 line. That is in addition to the analyst's comments back in May that Apple will stop including the wired EarPods in the box to help drive AirPods sales higher. Apple is trying to gauge how consumers will respond to the lack of a charging brick inside the iPhone 12 retail box. It has been sending out a survey asking iPhone users to detail what they did with their old charging brick after trading in an older iPhone for a newer model.
Render of the box insert for the iPhone 12 series shows no room for the EarBuds or the charging brick
With Kuo's reputation, he didn't necessarily need his forecast to be seconded, but seconded it was today when an image obtained from a "reliable source" by ConceptsiPhone's Ron Avi (via AppleInsider) shows a render of the insert that you will supposedly find inside an iPhone 12 box. The insert doesn't have any room for a pair of EarBuds or a charging brick. Instead, there is a square opening with a deeper circular opening next to it. The former could hold the usual papers and the latter could be where the Lightning cable will reside.
What makes us feel that this is legitimate is the source of this entire rumor. Year after year we have seen Ming-Chi Kuo make incredible calls that have turned out to be right on and if you might indulge us for a moment, perhaps his greatest forecast was made in February 2017, nearly seven months before the iPhone X, the iPhone 8 and the iPhone 8 Plus were all announced. In fact, at the time we still referred to the iPhone X as the iPhone 8. Not only did Kuo nail the importance of the "revolutionary" TrueDepth Camera,but he also correctly forecast the screen sizes and configurations of all three handsets that Apple ended up unveiling nearly seven months later. So if you think that there is no way that this rumor can be true, guess again.
Last week, another rumor related to the iPhone 12 retail box surfaced and it dovetails with the removal of the EarPods and charger from the box. The new design is thinner and is said to be 'exquisite.' Honestly, we like a good box design as much as the next consumer. But we would bet that if asked, most would prefer to have the EarPods and the charging brick included with their iPhone 12 purchase instead of an "exquisite" box that will end up forgotten inside a desk drawer.
At this point, we still expect Apple to introduce four new 5G iPhone models later this year (consisting of three screen sizes). There will be the 5.4-inch iPhone 12, the 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Plus, the 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Pro, and the 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max. And as we've discussed a few times, the new design uses the flat sides that will immediately bring the iPhone 4to mind. And that means that as far as current iPhone owners are concerned, the upcoming iPhone 12 series will not only look different, but it will surely feel different in their hands.
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