The most on-again, off-again iPhone 12 rumor seems to be back in action. After some industry watchers and leakers denied the possibility of the iPhone 12 Pro having a 120Hz display, a new feature in the iOS 14 beta teases that the ProMotion display may be a reality after all.

Like Samsung's Galaxy Note 20 Ultra, the iPhone 12's 120Hz mode would allow for smoother scrolling and animation. However, Apple's implementation has drawbacks compared to Samsung's technology.

Twitter user @abjornx found an option in iOS 14 Beta 5 to limit the frame rate of his iPhone 11 Pro, which was picked up by iAppleTimes. iOS frame rate limiting options include " set the maximum frame rate of the display to 60 frames per second."

Since current iPhones are already limited to 60 Hz, why would Apple include this option in iOS 14 unless they plan to offer at least one iPhone 12 model with a 120 Hz display?

As reported by PhoneArena, display analyst Ross Young seems to support the idea of a 120Hz display on the iPhone 12, but also emphasizes a major caveat.

According to Young, in this build of iOS 14, "you can only choose between 60Hz and higher (120Hz)." This means that the iPhone 12 will not get the adaptive refresh rate (LTPO technology, which allows the panel to raise or lower the Hz depending on the content on the screen) found on the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.

We have previously heard reports that the ProMotion display works fine on the 6.7-inch Phone 12 Pro Max, but is problematic on the 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Pro. However, we have also heard that Apple may not include a 120Hz panel at all, with Ross Young saying in early August that "the new iPhone will not have 120Hz hardware."

So these latest developments only confuse the issue further: the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra is not the only one with a 120Hz display; other Android flagships like the OnePlus 8 Pro have 120Hz panels and and the Asus ROG Phone 3 has an even smoother 140Hz display.

The iPhone 12 Pro model will reportedly include other features that stand out against the regular iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Max, such as a telephoto lens and LiDAR sensor to improve photography and iPhone AR app performance. However, the 120Hz display will help to better justify the expected premium of the iPhone 12 Pro device.