Mystery Patch on Edge of iPhone 12 is a mmWave 5G Antenna Exclusive to U.S. Models

[MacRumors]

We've been getting a number of questions from readers about a mysterious "patch" on the edge of all of the iPhone 12 models introduced today. The patch is unlabeled on Apple's specs page, but The Verge has confirmed that it is a window for the mmWave 5G antenna.

mmWave 5G support is only included on U.S. models of the iPhone 12 lineup, and thus the window is only present on those devices, as seen in images shared on Apple's pages for various countries.

Side-by-side comparison showing U.S. phones with the antenna window and international phones without (via Apple and The Verge)​

The mystery patch was first seen in leaked schematics dating back many months, and was initially speculated to potentially be a Smart Connector or docking site for a small Apple Pencil, given its similar appearance to the magnetic Apple Pencil attachment site on iPad Pro models. That speculation was, however, quickly dispelled as new rumors indicated it was for a 5G antenna.

Article Link: Mystery Patch on Edge of iPhone 12 is a mmWave 5G Antenna Exclusive to U.S. Models

 

[farewelwilliams]

inb4 youtubers make Antennagate test videos by covering up that patch with their hand.

 

[troop231]

Nice. Now hopefully Austin gets on board with 5G rollout..

 

[Zammir]

The antenna is beautifully marked y’all ?

 

[TantalizedMind]

inb4 youtubers make Antennagate test videos by covering up that patch with their hand.

Is it not normal to hold the phone with your hand?... I’m scared to ask what you use to hold your phone.... ?

 

[xnu]

That was fast, great reporting The Verge + Mac Rumors!

 

[farewelwilliams]

Is it not normal to hold the phone with your hand?... I’m scared to ask what you use to hold your phone.... ?

I think you forgot about the overreaction of the iPhone 4 Antennagate event.

 

[twocents]

I noticed this and thought it was some new SIM card tray. Thanks for researching, now to figure out how Lisa Jackson got on the roof of HQ ?

 

[AstroBackpacker]

It should have been a fingerprint reader like the new iPad.

 

[portland_bill]

Wouldn’t gold or silver have been a better choice for the demo photo (or do I need a seeing eye dog?)?

 

[dannyyankou]

I wish they found a way to hide it a little more.

 

[portland_bill]

It should have been a fingerprint reader like the new iPad.

Difference between making $107.99mm or $108mm this year for Tim. Could have benefitted humanity because covid but nah.

 

[EM2013]

That is so tacky.

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

Wonder how it looks on the gold phone?

 

[Mizouse]

I think you forgot about the overreaction of the iPhone 4 Antennagate event.

It most definitely was not an overraction on the iPhone 4. Just holding my launch day iPhone 4 like normal and I would drop calls or my internet speed would slow down to less than dial up. As soon as I added in the free bumper case that Apple provided all those issues went away.

 

[Ry L]

mmWave is a gimmick in my book, and I have no intention of switching to Verizon. I have to have that “patch” on my phone either way since I’m in the US? That’s lame.

 

[farewelwilliams]

It most definitely was not an overraction on the iPhone 4. Just holding my launch day iPhone 4 like normal and I would drop calls or my internet speed would slow down to less than dial up. As soon as I added in the free bumper case that Apple provided all those issues went away.

Plenty of people did not use a bumper and had no issues. Also issue was not specific to iPhones as many phones did the same thing when gripping in a specific way. Everyone I knew that did not use a case with their iPhone had 0 issues (same with me).

Completely overblown. If it was so bad, everyone would have returned the phone.

 

[JimmyBanks6]

So what’s the technical reason this is USA only, and why aren’t non-USA phones $50 cheaper since they don’t need the mmWave modem.

 

[Lounge vibes 05]

That means it’s time to bust out this oldie but goodie...

Even Steve Jobs dance to this

 

[cmaier]

mmWave is a gimmick in my book, and I have no intention of switching to Verizon. I have to have that “patch” on my phone either way since I’m in the US? That’s lame.

Actually you don’t have to. You can just not buy an iphone 12.

 

[TSM]

Rest of the world: pay more for less.
That's taking care of costumers.

 

[alpi123]

How was it a mystery when Apple literally said in the beginning that this is part of the new 5G antennas, they even showcased the antennas disassembled and that "patch" was there.

 

[Wackery]

Is it not normal to hold the phone with your hand?... I’m scared to ask what you use to hold your phone.... ?

you should be answering calls with your apple watch or your airpods, not your phone

 

[iOSBry]

I think you forgot about the overreaction of the iPhone 4 Antennagate event.

Actually was not an overreaction. Signal attenuation is real and the iPhone 4 did not have dual antennas for the affected bands. You could actually cause your call to drop so will this behave the same since it appears there’s only one mmWave antenna (assumes calls are routed over mmWave)?

iOSBry

 

[farewelwilliams]

Actually was not an overreaction. Signal attenuation is real and the iPhone 4 did not have dual antennas for the affected bands. You could actually cause your call to drop so will this behave the same since it appears there’s only one mmWave antenna?

iOSBry

Complete overreaction. Majority of customers did not return their phones and people who used the iPhone without case or bumper had no real issues.

Deliberately gripping in that area of course caused signal to drop, but most didn't encounter that issue on a practical day-to-day use. And iPhone wasn't the only phone that had that problem, yet they received 0 attention. Overreaction.