iPhone 12 video leak reveals fascinating features — and an unsightly notch

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The clip shows a pre-production iPhone 12 Pro Max in action

(Image credit: Leon Neal/Getty Images)

There is no shortage of iPhone 12 rumors floating around but most are based on speculation, not on any concrete evidence. The latest leak from Front Page Tech, however, supposedly gives us our first look at the actual device.

Jon Prosser — a leaker with a good track record for revealing accurate information — posted a YouTube video purportedly showing the iPhone 12 in action. Before I go any further, the device in the video, as Prosser explains, is a PVT version of the iPhone 12 Pro Max. 

PVT, which stands for Product Validation Testing, is the last step in the process before a phone goes into mass production. So the phone in the video isn't a final production unit — but it's pretty darn close. 

That being said, the video claims to show an iPhone 12 Pro Max flipping through iOS settings, revealing features about the phone along the way. Those features include a 120Hz refresh rate option for the display and a LiDAR sensor (Light Detection And Ranging) for the camera, among others.

The video shows a previously leaked settings screen with the option to toggle on "enable high refresh rate" and "adaptive refresh rate," which can "alter the refresh rate from 120Hz to 60Hz in accordance to the content displayed on-screen." 

This should be welcome news for iPhone fans because there has been some uncertainty about whether Apple would bring a high refresh rate to the iPhone. Prosser even said some of the PVT units don't have this option, so it looks like Apple is going down to the wire to add the feature to production models.

There was also an option to enable the LiDAR sensor, which assists in auto-focus and subject detection in Night Mode, according to the description in the settings menu. The depth-sensing technology could also be used for AR applications.

Digging deeper into the settings reveals a video mode with both 4K at 120fps and 4K at 240fps (for Slow Mo) capture capabilities. Face ID could also get upgraded to be faster and more reliable.

The clip was shot in a dark room and the phone was in a PVT case, so we didn't get to see much of the iPhone 12 Pro Max's design. We do, however, get a glimpse at the display notch and, well, it's still just as big as the one on the iPhone 11.

As a reminder, this is supposedly a PVT unit, so everything we see in the video is subject to change. Don't be surprised if something seen in this latest leak doesn't find its way onto the production line.  

Staying with Prosser and his Apple leaks, the iPhone 12 devices will supposedly be revealed at an October 12 event. The iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Max will launch first on October 19 before the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max go on sale sometime in November. 

Phillip Tracy
Phillip Tracy

Phillip Tracy is the assistant managing editor at Laptop Mag where he reviews laptops, phones and other gadgets while covering the latest industry news. After graduating with a journalism degree from the University of Texas at Austin, Phillip became a tech reporter at the Daily Dot. There, he wrote reviews for a range of gadgets and covered everything from social media trends to cybersecurity. Prior to that, he wrote for RCR Wireless News covering 5G and IoT. When he's not tinkering with devices, you can find Phillip playing video games, reading, traveling or watching soccer.