Germany is closely watching the matter and Dutch regulators have decided to ask Apple for an explanation. Spanish consumer association OCU has asked the government to suspend the sales of the iPhone 12 in the country.
Different smartphones have different Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) values, which measure the rate of radiofrequency energy absorbed by the human body from a device. Now, SAR values don’t pertain to RF exposure under typical usage conditions. Rather, they ensure that a smartphone doesn’t exceed the highest permissible exposure levels when being used in conditions that will result in its highest possible emission.
One of the reasons behind France’s overly cautious attitude is perhaps the fact SAR values are usually only measured for prototypes and that too using an outdated test technology. France’s national frequency agency (ANFR) gets all retail units tested in an independent German laboratory to ensure SAR values are within the permissible limits.
Per ANFR, the iPhone 12‘s SAR exceeds the limit set by the EU at a distance of five millimeters. Although Apple no longer sells the iPhone 12, which came out three years ago, third-party retailers still sell it.
