iPhone 12 leak just revealed a surprise upgrade — and it involves magnets

One of the strangest leaks for the iPhone 12 was one that apparently showed magnets inside the chassis of the iPhone 12. Now YouTuber EverythingApplePro has detailed more about the odd ring of magnets spotted inside all four iPhone 12 models. 

In a new video, EveryThingApplePro revealed fresh leaked images that show off a coil that sits in the back of the phone and also comes in the official case for the iPhone 12. And the magnetic coil will apparently provide wireless charging through what could be a “snap in” system.

This is something other images have shown off before, but these new render images give a much clearer picture of the magnetic ring. The ring also looks to contain a tightly wound near-field communication coil as well.

Wireless charging coils are nothing new, and the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro both support wireless charging, as does the iPhone SE 2020. But the addition of magnets is interesting. 

The idea would be that you could place an iPhone 12 on a charging matt or a vertical charger and it would use the magnets to snap into position. Doing this would mean you wouldn’t have to worry about not placing the phone correctly on a charger as the magnets would pull it into the correct place each time. This would mean no irritating occasions where you pick up a phone from a wireless charger only to find it has not charged. 

Theoretically, the magnets could also facilitate connectivity with other accessories, say an expandable battery pack. But that’s something Motorola has experimented with in the past and would be a very un-Apple thing to do. 

The iPhone 12 range is tipped to come in 5.4-inch and 6.1-inch Max standard models and 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Pro and 6.7-inch Pro Max variants, all of which will use a new flatter-edged design and come with the A14 Bionic chip. And the Pro models are expected to come with a 120Hz refresh-rate display as well as a trio of cameras supported by a LiDAR sensor. 

So the addition of a magnetic wireless charging ring might not seem like a standout feature in the IPhone 12. But Apple is very good at these seemingly small quality-of-life features that are minor to begin with but actually make using the phones a joy. 

We still don’t have a clear idea of when the iPhone 12 will launch. It could be revealed this month and then be released in October. Or Apple could reveal and released the phones month.