The iPhone 12 series might come without an in-box charger: new leak

Devices of the iPhone 12 series may ship with nothing else in their packages save a Lightning to USB type C cable. This is the message of a new note to investors issued by Barclays, according to a new report in the blog MacRumors. It comes on the back of an earlier leak suggesting that the OEM would also omit EarPods as standard for the first time in boxing their mobile devices up.

This potential move on the part of the Cupertino giant has fairly straightforward advantages as a cost-saving measure. In addition, the company might be able to score valuable socioeconomic points should it be able to spin it into a victory in a war against e-waste among its fans. On the other hand, it may leave a slightly sour taste in the mouths of first-time iPhone adopters should one of the brand's (relatively expensive) power bricks become a separate purchase out of necessity.

Then again, a recent Twitter leak points to a completely different situation in which the iPhone 12 charger not only be supplied in the box as usual, but turn out to be more worthwhile than usual. It indicates the development of a new, 20 watt (W) brick at Apple, whereas the most powerful one currently available for these devices is 18W and the one included as standard often goes at just 5W.

However, there are signs that this new iPhone charger (which is also reportedly of the USB Power Delivery (USB-PD) standard) is destined for the Pro Max and possibly Pro variants of the upcoming generation only. Given the latest news on the subject, this may leave the base model with a mere 5W brick or none at all.

However, we may have to wait until these smartphones' launch to confirm or deny these new hints of a rather stripped-down future for iPhone unboxing experiences. On that note, it now seems this event may be delayed by as long as 6 weeks compared to the normal scheme of things in 2020.