Uncovered in a recent patent granted to the giant Apple, the plan to launch iPads and iPhones with ultra-fast screens, operating at 240Hz, could be implemented as early as the iPhone 13 generation.
Even though the iPhone 12 is a recent product, rumors about the next generation iPhone have been circulating for some time. According to them, the next iPhone will bring back the Touch ID sensor and will narrow the “bangs” left to accommodate the Face ID sensor. But perhaps the most important change will be the introduction of screens with variable refresh rate and very high limit for image refresh, reaching 240Hz during mobile gaming sessions.
Specifically, the new Apple patent traces a series of steps: 60Hz – 240Hz with 120Hz and 180Hz as intermediate values. Probably, depending on the budget, some devices will stop at one of the intermediate stages, but the best will reach 240Hz. The patent does not say whether the value of 240Hz can be reached at native resolution, or in a compromise for speed where the actual resolution is slightly lower. In any case, the available processing power will probably not be enough to run mobile games at native resolution and 240Hz, with other constraints on the energy consumption side.
But what we know for sure is that rivals Xiaomi and Samsung already offer support for adaptive refresh rates, which is true, in the range of 24Hz – 120Hz,
If Apple decides to use this patent for the next generation of devices, it is likely that the maximum value of 240Hz can only be reached on devices at the top of the pyramid, such as the iPhone 13 Pro Max and some iPad Pro variants.
Based on older rumors, the iPhone 13 offer looks something like this:
iPhone 13 mini with 5.4-inch LCD screen and 60Hz refresh rate
iPhone 13 with 6.1-inch LCD screen and 60Hz refresh rate
iPhone 13 Pro with 6.1-inch OLED screen and 120Hz refresh rate
iPhone 13 Pro Max with 6.7-inch OLED screen and 120Hz refresh rate
