iPhone 12 seen in real life for first time during appearance on Good Morning America

An iPhone 12 has been seen in real life for the first time, during an appearance on Good Morning America.

The new Apple handsets – available in four versions – were unveiled during a livestreamed virtual event from the company's Apple Park campus this week.

Usually, journalists would get their hands on the new phones during a hands-on period following the announcement, allowing the public to see them in the form of videos and photos.

But with no real life keynote because of global lockdowns, and the phone being announced in a video produced by Apple, there has not yet been a chance to see the phone in the hands of someone not employed by the company.

The first opportunity to do so came on Wednesday when the reporter Becky Worley showed off the phones and introduced their features.

It allowed potential customers to see the new blue colours that have arrived with the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro. The company introduced a different version of the colour for each edition of the iPhone, and Ms Worsley demonstrated the look of each on the show.

The demonstration is also the first time that the MagSafe features that arrived with the new phones could be shown in use. Ms Worley showed the accessories being snapped on and off the back of the device.

In the same segment, Apple’s Kaiann Drance, its vice president of iPhone marketing, appeared on the show to speak about some of the other decisions made in the phone – including the fact that the iPhone 12 will come without charging plugs or earphones in the box.

The iPhone 12 and 12 Pro open for pre-orders on 16 October, and go on sale on 23 October. The 12 Mini and 12 Pro Max will not arrive until November.