Apple No Longer Sells Any Small iPhones

[eveluvsrainbows]

No mini - no sale!

So am I - a 12 mini owner too - done with buying Apple's phones.

If they don't make one in a form factor I like, I might just as well purchase an Android phone.
In fact, I just did. And it was considerably more affordable than any of Apple's offerings as well.

This isn't an airport; you don't need to announce your departure. /j

In all seriousness though, cool. If you found a phone that suits your needs better, that's fine. But you're admittedly in the minority as the majority of the public aren't interested in small phones anymore.

 

[krspkbl]

6.1” is a small phone.

I’d like to see Apple move to 7” at some point.

 

[krspkbl]

No mini - no sale!

So am I - a 12 mini owner too - done with buying Apple's phones.

If they don't make one in a form factor I like, I might just as well purchase an Android phone.
In fact, I just did. And it was considerably more affordable than any of Apple's offerings as well.

What phone did you buy?

 

[RogueWarrior65]

Do developers still have to support the SE?

 

[AppliedMicro]

What phone did you buy?

Pixel 9.

 

[johnBC]

I'll be holding onto my Mini for as long as possible if there is not going to be a suitable model to upgrade to.

Exactly! My 13 Mini is the perfect iPhone in my opinion even despite the complaints of it's battery (which is fine for me generally). I am hoping in the next few years there will be a successor to the 13 Mini.

 

[1037]

 

[ZircoBen]

Apple truly should give people a choice. Not just "go Android if you want a smaller phone".

I wish the Android side had small phone options. The best thing we can get is the 13 mini.

 

[frownface]

The lesson in this tale:

• whatever Apple has for sale now is practically perfect in every way...
• what others sell that Apple has not embraced now is "abominations/gimmicks/99% don't want..." and
• what Apple used to sell is not as "iconic" and "ideal" as it once was (spun)... except where Apple may still be pushing it.

Nothing ever changes.

 

[mishaneah]

Whilst there is certainly a strong arguement for larger devices ignoring the basics of ergonomics, there is also a reason Apple don't make a 9" Macbook Air.

Oh, but that 11” MBA was something special before iPads. Apple is getting away from user-centric design which is not good for them long term.

 

[ennisw]

"Small phone lovers" seem only being loud online. Sales number tell a different story.

 

[Bass Ackwards]

I still remember the day everyone thought 4" screens were too large. And how they thought the iPhone 6 Plus was TOO BIG at 5.5"

I remember when the first iPhone was announced and people thought THAT was too big (the trend at the time was actually for phones to be getting smaller, I had what at the time was billed as the smallest camera phone).

 

[Bass Ackwards]

"Apple greed"

It was reported during both "mini" product lifecycles that they were selling in significantly lower volumes than the larger phones. As I said earlier, Apple is not going to manufacture phones that only serve a small corner of the overall smartphone market. It doesn't make any financial or logistical sense.

I always wonder if there’s more behind the scenes numbers that led to this decision, cause you could move the mini to a 3 or 4 year cycle, rather than a 1 year cycle, and still move millions of units. But I suspect mini owners are less likely to participate in the app market, particularly games. It’s the backend lack of sales which I suspect really kill Apples enthusiasm for smaller models.

 

[Chuckeee]

I believe a primary factor is that mini phone users are more likely to just hold their nose and buy a larger iPhone (while continuing to complain about it). But large phone enthusiasts will skip brands if they consider the phone too small.

 

[turbineseaplane]

I believe a primary factor is that mini phone users are more likely to just hold their nose and buy a larger iPhone (while continuing to complain about it). But large phone enthusiasts will skip brands if they consider the phone too small.

What basis do you have for saying that?
Vibes?

This small phone person will absolutely not do that

Also, we wouldn't be holding our nose, we'd need both hands for the sushi plate sized Apple addiction machine

 

[dampfnudel]

A reason why small wonders are disappearing is the aging Boomer and Generation X crowd. They're not interested in phones with a display smaller than 5.8" for readability reasons.

A lot of younger people prefer a larger display as well.

 

[Tagbert]

A reason why small wonders are disappearing is the aging Boomer and Generation X crowd. They're not interested in phones with a display smaller than 5.8" for readability reasons.

I heard it was because of the Gen-Z for whom the phone is their only device and they want big screens. I’m sure that lots of people have their reasons for liking bigger screens and Apple likes them because they can charge more for bigger devices.

 

[a_drive]

Larger screens are more immersive and makes it easier to keep the masses hooked.

That's the only reason no one's making small phones anymore.

It's all about this:

View attachment 2484004

So true, and very sad. I’m going to rock my 2016 SE and 13 mini as long as I can. I can’t believe this company anymore. Jobs would not approve. Phablets are not the answer. If someone wants a bigger screen for content consumption, buy an iPad! It’s that simple. I don’t even understand why Apple calls this product an iPhone anymore. It’s more like iConsumption. I’m done.

 

[SpecSpy]

Totally agree. I loved my iPhone 5 and 12 mini - perfect size for one-handed use. Now everything feels like carrying a small tablet. Apple's basically saying "big screens or nothing" and ignoring folks who want compact phones. Disappointing move.

 

[Ctrlos]

Oh, but that 11” MBA was something special before iPads. Apple is getting away from user-centric design which is not good for them long term.

I still use an 11” iPad pro and keep my MBA for these reasons.

 

[Ctrlos]

Totally agree. I loved my iPhone 5 and 12 mini - perfect size for one-handed use. Now everything feels like carrying a small tablet. Apple's basically saying "big screens or nothing" and ignoring folks who want compact phones. Disappointing move.

The R&D costs of continually trying to squash in new features whilst losing the battery levels acceptable was probably too expensive to continue with. They didn’t sell many iPhone Minis. But they currently don’t sell as many plus models either. I guess they found the set spot.

For the record I think this is a massive shame. The Mini was the perfect phone for many people and much more ergonomic for developing hands.

 

[fabulous-femme]

I use a combination of iphone 13mini (for the portability and one hand usability - weight and size are great) and the ipad mini (for the bigger screen at home). Looks like I will use this combination for some time to come.

Still will have a few years with it ... but hope there will be a smaller version again.

(Maybe the iphone Air will do the trick ...) There is no Android alternative either.

 

[iGüey]

Just waiting for the foldable iPhones age!

 

[1madman1]

Unfortunate. I own both a 13 mini and a 13 Pro. I actually use the 13 mini as a phone, while the 13 Pro stays at home as a media controller/remote/tablet.

I cant stand big phones. My usage is one handed on the go and my hands are too small to reach all across the 13 Pro display. Only reason I didnt buy a 13 mini sooner is because Apple woudn't sell me one. I had to buy one from the US because they were "vapourware" to the Apple Store in Canada - they didnt bother stocking the mini in anything beyond the base model and suggested I buy one from a carrier..

 

[oldmacs]

There's a market for smaller than 6.1-inch smartphones but it isn't worth Apple's or any Android brand's time, resources or effort.

It is like major airlines servicing small airports with little to no passenger traffic. They do it because they're legally obligated to or doing it out of charity.

I disagree. The market for the 'Plus' models hasn't been that much better than the Mini was.

The resources required to do a 2 yearly Mini update would have been minimal, and yes sales would have been far lower than the other models, but as I said, plenty of other phone makers would have been thrilled with the sales figures of the 12 Mini for example.

The number of times people have looked at my 12 Mini (and then 13 Mini) and said "I would have bought one if I knew about them"... I don't think they were well marketed, and Apple would rather sell higher margin larger phones anyway.