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Probably a technical limitation and needs the ginormous battery in the Pro Max to power 5G mmWave. Would prefer adaptive 5G where it defaults to low band 600MHz for balance of usable speed and better coverage then kick to mmWave on demand if it's even available.
 
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Very true. Look at TVs. Only the largest size carry the top features. Even the 65" don't have all the top features when you look at high-end models from Sony and others. You have to go to the 75" and 85" in order to get all of the top features.

you do realize that’s only because 8k makes sense at those larger sizes, not because it’s feature specific. Hdmi 2.1 devices have the same features and data rates with the only difference being resolution (because you can’t see a difference between 4 and 8k on a 55inch screen sitting on a couch)
 
Honestly, since I'm not on an unlimited LTE plan, I'd be much happier with faster WiFi support, which comes in most handy when I'm using AirDrop to transfer files/photos/movies, or printing and scanning from my phone. (In theory it might also help with updates of Apps and OSes, but I'm guessing it's Apple that's slow there.) I just can't understand the huge discrepancy - my Macbook Pro gets an amazing 600 megabits/second wireless WiFi (actual measured), while my iPhone is lucky if it gets 20-30 megabits/second in the exact same spot.

Ack- just realized that AirDrop is probably using bluetooth instead of WiFi, so it will never be fast. :( But at least printing and scanning could be better, as well as emailing, uploading/downloading from DropBox, etc.

Now we just need a WiFi solution for sound. I'm tired of the bluetooth standard forcing low quality, lossy audio on wireless headphones. I'm happy to give twice the battery life for twice the Audio bandwidth - audio is SO MUCH lower bandwidth than anything else I do like browse the web, watching movies, etc, that it just doesn't make any sense to limit it to max 320kilobits/second.
 
This is normal Apple... any of us that’s been Apple users for years can tell you Apple never releases “features” at the same rate as others. The second generation iPhone was named “3G” because it finally connected to 3G cell towers. Other carriers were doing that when the first iPhone was released. If true, true this is normal Apple behavior. Gotta save something for next year. 😄
 
I love my 11 Pro. All the features of the Pro Max, but doesn't look and feel like I'm carrying a laptop in my pocket.
 
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I couldn’t care less about 5mm Wave 5G, and I don’t understand why it’s being pushed so hard.

The U.S. was mentioned as having the infrastructure for it. Does it? I haven’t heard anything about mass deployment of mm Wave. Maybe if you live in the cities- if you live in the suburbs, forget it. It’s a technology that a minority of people are going to experience.

Roughly 80% of Americans live in cities now. Hardly the minority. But i Understand your point.
 
I don't care about mmWave 5G, butI do care about the sub 6MHz 5G. I have T-Mobile and I have 1-2 bars in my house. And there is 5G coverage here now that can penetrate walls better and much better coverage, so as long as the new iPhone support that I'll be happy.
That's fair. For you, the second part of what I said ("is your phone not fast enough now?") obviously wouldn't apply. I think for most people this doesn't provide any practical benefit outside of giving companies something else to market.
 
cellular speeds are fast enough....my concern is with reliability and reception. Does this so called 5G improve reception?
I can hit 180 Mbps on LTE on my current iPhone, which is fast enough, but this is also about building more overall capacity into the system as more and more people and more and more devices using increasingly data hungry services. That should help improve reliability.
 
1997: Your computer has 256mb RAM. Is your computer not fast enough now? Why does anyone care about this?
Nobody in the history of time has ever said "My computer is fast enough". I'm talking about the speed of your network. People DO actually say "My internet speed is fast enough to meet my needs". It's why everyone doesn't have a 1Gbit line. Try again.

Edit to add: Also, not sure how old you are, but 256 mb of ram would have been an incredible amount of RAM in 1997. So either you're being hyperbolic or missing the point: the commonly available mobile internet speeds on your current iPhone that you were just marketed to last year as being the fastest iPhone ever iPhoned is suddenly not fast enough to meet your needs? (If you don't meet this criteria don't answer me.)
 
Probably a technical limitation and needs the ginormous battery in the Pro Max to power 5G mmWave. Would prefer adaptive 5G where it defaults to low band 600MHz for balance of usable speed and better coverage then kick to mmWave on demand if it's even available.
Even early adopting people who purchase a phone that mmWave capable are probably going to spend the majority of their time on Sub6 or even LTE. 5G is adaptive tech. mmWave phones will have high, mid and low band antennas. Sub6 only phones will have mid and low band antennas. All 5G phones can fall back and use LTE tech when necessary.

'Til the network is built out properly, mmWave is just gonna be a conversation piece as it relates to phones.
 
Meh, I don't really care about 5G yet and the first gen 5G radios are too power hungry. I'll hang on to my 11 for another year and wait for the technology to get better and for 5G to become more widespread (5G has started to roll out in major urban centers in Canada, but AFAIK it's only the sub-6GHz variety so far, so it makes sense that we aren't getting mmWave supporting iPhones yet).
 
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Doesn't work in most places anyways. Where I live, LTE isn't even using it's potential because of the bandwidth available to the towers. Having a very high bandwidth cell signal doesn't mean you're going to realize it, all of these carriers aren't going to suddenly upgrade their fiber just for 5G. It's a marketing gimmick.
 
Ok, 5G dont know how many places on earth offer that and when its gonna be 100% usable.Lidar wont be for photography but for augmented reality.Wonder who the hell will need all these new features on iphone 12.
 
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Working from home means I’m tempted to go for the Max this time around. I wonder if others are thinking the same.
 
I will be surprised if the Pro line has functional differences outside of that which accompanies their differences in physical size. But feature for feature - why wild you fragment the the iPjhonem line even further, within a Pro there? A Pro and amore Pro? Seems kludgy.
 
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What do we know about sub-6GHz 5G power consumption? Is it still more power hungry than LTE? Or we can expect more or less the same power consumption as with 4G modems?

I ask because for me, battery life is preferable over speed, and if this sub-6 5G is power hungry, the small battery on the 5,4" iPhone12 won't be enough.
 
Even early adopting people who purchase a phone that mmWave capable are probably going to spend the majority of their time on Sub6 or even LTE. 5G is adaptive tech. mmWave phones will have high, mid and low band antennas. Sub6 only phones will have mid and low band antennas. All 5G phones can fall back and use LTE tech when necessary.

'Til the network is built out properly, mmWave is just gonna be a conversation piece as it relates to phones.
Well, personally, I don't buy new phones every year. I'm still on my 7 Plus so that's four years now, and I hope to keep my 2020 iPhone just as long, if not longer.

Working from home means I’m tempted to go for the Max this time around. I wonder if others are thinking the same.
I'm interested in the Max too but mainly because of the bigger screen and better cameras. However, now that I'm working from home, and may be doing so for a fair bit longer, I'm now no longer as interested in a new iPhone, cuz I don't need it as much. I have gigabit internet access at home, along with a dual-screen iMac.

But I will likely get a new Max anyway just because it's been four years and I'm itching for the new cameras, and also because I have lots of gift card moolah to spend too.
 
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My guess is that Apple will realize that they made a mistake by limiting mmWave to only the $$$ phone and then next year, each model of the 2021's iPhone (probably the 12s) will all have the mmWave.

Apple has made no mistake. If you think people aren't going to buy iPhones because of no mmWave, I'd say you're very wrong. Ask the average iPhone user what mmWave is and they'll give you a blank stare and say 'Huh? What's that?" People have no clue about this stuff.
 
5G is one of the biggest tech cons on the American public in recent memory. We'll be having the same discussion about lack of mmWave 5G availability for years to come.

I am going to get the max, but it's very annoying I have to pay more for hardware I don't want, and won't use. (And yes, I have 5G towers in my city).

Consumers: "We want better battery life!"

Apple: "Here's worse battery life, and it's more expensive!"
 
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That OK really. Here in Canada we have 5G in 54 cities now, it's all 3.5GHz or 2.5GHz and we will start to have a lot more 5G around 600-900MHz for a more robust network on the countryside. mmWave will only be in a few scattered very small spaces, such as stadiums.

It's not about top speed but average speed. Congestion is now a problem in some urban places that is/was going to get a lot worse over the next few years (ignoring Uncle Covid) and by 5G networks getting established now capacity will be there proactively rather than too late. Because of this a lot of people down the road will be able to say "congestion, pah! I never had any congestion!".
 
You know it's funny. All of these same arguments were made when 4G came out. "Nobody needs 4G! 3G is fast enough! I already get great speeds on 3G!" etc. And similarly, people for some reason never mentioned congestion vs. reliability.

Apple has made no mistake. If you think people aren't going to buy iPhones because of no mmWave, I'd say you're very wrong. Ask the average iPhone user what mmWave is and they'll give you a blank stare and say 'Huh? What's that?" People have no clue about this stuff.
If I were interested in the smaller model and it didn't have mmWave, I'd probably wait another year. I mentioned above that now that I'm working from home and may be doing so for a while, I have less need for a phone upgrade. But I'm probably going to get the Max anyway for other reasons so it's a moot point for me.
 
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