iPhone 12 Pro takes fight to OnePlus 8 Pro with THIS kick-ass screen tech

(Image credit: EverythingApplePro)

published 12 May 2020

To say we're looking forward to the iPhone 12 range this year would be an understatement. Apple's latest lineup is said to consist of four powerhouse phones, all of which will be 5G in some capacity.

The range will pack two standard-issue iPhone 12s in a smaller 5.4" and a 6.1" size, an iPhone 12 Pro in the same 6.1" size and a 6.7" iPhone 12 Pro Max, acting as the top-line flagship of the range.

The iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max, understandably, will get features we won't see in the other two standard iPhones. According to leakers EverythingApplePro and XDA-Developers' Max Weinbach, among these features is a technology we can already see in the current iterations of the iPad Pro: ProMotion, a smart 120Hz screen that adjusts itself automatically based on your needs and current battery life.

When introduced on the iPad Pro, ProMotion was described as "a new technology that delivers refresh rates of up to 120Hz for fluid scrolling, greater responsiveness and smoother motion content. With ProMotion, Apple Pencil is even more responsive with an industry-best, 20-millisecond latency for even more fluid and natural drawing.

"ProMotion also improves display quality and reduces power consumption by automatically adjusting the display refresh rate to match the movement of the content."

EXCLUSIVE iPhone 12 Pro Leaks! 120Hz 'CONFIRMED' - YouTube

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No leak or piece of information we've heard from the Apple camp suggests the iPhone 12 is going to come with an iteration of the Apple Pencil, so we can discard this. But it sounds like the iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max will sport a crystal-clear 120Hz refresh rate that optimises itself depending on whether you're gaming, watching movies or scrolling through apps.

We wouldn't expect anything less. Apple's chief Android rivals, such as the Samsung Galaxy S20 series, the Oppo Find X2 Pro and the OnePlus 8 Pro all sport 120Hz refresh rate-capable screens. In particular, the OnePlus 8 Pro's display was described as "the best ever shipped on a smartphone" in our exclusive review.

In order to take the fight to OnePlus, Apple needed to not just match the display's technology, but exceed it. Fortunately, it already had what it needed, with the ultra-powerful ProMotion technology embedded in the iPad Pro.

OnePlus 8 Pro review — The OnePlus 8 Pro's incredible display will take some beating

What is refresh rate?

Refresh rate is the equivalent of cinema's frames per seconds, or fps. It's simply how many times the image refreshes on your screen. The higher the refresh rate, the smoother motion becomes, as the image changes onscreen more often. If a refresh rate is very low, it might look juddery or even lag behind your finger as you drag something across your phone's screen.

As you can imagine, higher refresh rates are very desirable, especailly when it comes to gaming on phones. Smooth motion means less lag and a better response time in addition to great-looking games, but it also makes your phone look terrific even just scrolling through apps on its home screen.

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Matt Evans now works for T3.com sister brand TechRadar, covering all things relating to fitness and wellness. He came to T3.com as staff writer before moving on, and was previously on Men's Health, and slightly counterintuitively, a website devoted to the consumption of Scotch whiskey. In his free time, he could often be found with his nose in a book until he discovered the Kindle.

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What is refresh rate?