Typical pattern emerges as the iPhone 12 Pro replaces the 12 Pro Max as the most popular 2020 5G model

At the beginning of this month, analytical firm Flurry said that the most popular 2020 iPhone model was the top-of-the-line iPhone 12 Pro Max. The model sports a large 6.7-inch display, the largest battery among the four handsets in the iPhone 12 line, and the largest battery among these units. But as we get closer to the end of this crazy year, it looks like the winds are shifting. In a note viewed by AppleInsider, JP Morgan analyst Samik Chatterjee notes that the lead time-or the time it takes for an iPhone model to be received after getting ordered-is growing for the iPhone 12 Pro. That indicates growing demand for this version of the device.

Chaterjee says that the growing lead time for the iPhone 12 Pro indicates that this particular variant will have the “”most staying power” until the 2021 iPhone 13 line is launched next year. TF International Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has already said to expect Apple to revert back to having one release date for all four 2021 models. This year, because of the global pandemic, Apple had to release the four iPhone 12 models on two different dates as some suppliers were forced to close down their factories earlier in the year.z

Typically the iPhone with the largest screen each year gets off to a quick start and becomes the most popular new model before fading. That is what happened this year with the iPhone 12 Pro Max. Other models with the same experience include the iPhone 6S Plus (2015), iPhone 7 Plus (2016), iPhone XS Max (2018), iPhone 11 Pro Max (2019).