iPhone 13 mini Downsizing to the 13 mini - would like to know the good and the bad

[JM]

@JM @Rashy @snipr125 Thank you all. That really helped a lot even though JM lost me with the recent post ... he won! I concede but I kinda understand (I think), as Rashy's post helps. I like a friendly debate like this as it helps me learn or unlearn that I thought I know. That's how growth happens.

Thanks for being a good sport It's really refreshing to have a disagreement online and it go well, and not have it devolve into name calling and anger.

Hope your '22 goes well. We're off to a good start!

BTW, this link from that other thread has a link to a developer document that has ALL of the apple devices' dimensions It's amazing. Even back to the iphone 5.

https://developer.apple.com/accessories/Accessory-Design-Guidelines.pdf

 

[JM]

really?

I'm very curious why you set the text size to the smallest setting?

Do you have really good vision? or hold your phone close to your eyes?

I haven't heard anyone say they made their text *smaller* on any iPhone mini model.

The only reason I've ever actually set my text smaller on my mini, is so that I could see more of the Messages on the screen at one time. But detested the small text everywhere else, so reverted back to default in the middle.

Eh. Smaller text seemed to be better on the larger 11, but on the mini... it is definitely tiny

 

[Rashy]

As I still have both devices:

When both set to 100% zoom, the regular 12/13 renders text roughly as big as the Minis set at 110% while still showing 2-3 more rows of text (and less line breaks) as well. If the standard text size on the Mini is big enough, you can set it to 90% on the 6.1“ models to get even more text. On the other hand, you can also zoom to 110% on the 6.1“ and still have slightly more content than on the Mini set at 100%, which is handy to save your eyes. Hence the 6.1“ is the new sweet-spot for me (similar to a bezel-less 5.5“ at 16:9).

I have as well observed that a slight zoom combined with bold text tends to mess up GUI elements (especially on the Mini), like the weather widget. Quite annoying.

Personally I keep zoom at 100% now and browser content at 115%, as I love to read through many forums, blogs and stories/fanfictions. For that, the bigger iPhone models are just more pleasant to use. The Mini is not a great media-consumption device, but that‘s not an issue if you also own an iPad (as I had before) and use your Mini more as a phone, mail, messaging and camera device.

 

[prazakj]

really?

I'm very curious why you set the text size to the smallest setting?

Do you have really good vision? or hold your phone close to your eyes?

I haven't heard anyone say they made their text *smaller* on any iPhone mini model.

Why not? My vision is still perfect for my age and I don’t think I have my iPhone very close to my eyes. It’s one of the thing I never changed over the years with different models. ?

 

[prazakj]

As I still have both devices:

When both set to 100% zoom, the regular 12/13 renders text roughly as big as the Minis set at 110% while still showing 2-3 more rows of text (and less line breaks) as well. If the standard text size on the Mini is big enough, you can set it to 90% on the 6.1“ models to get even more text. On the other hand, you can also zoom to 110% on the 6.1“ and still have slightly more content than on the Mini set at 100%, which is handy to save your eyes. Hence the 6.1“ is the new sweet-spot for me (similar to a bezel-less 5.5“ at 16:9).

I have as well observed that a slight zoom combined with bold text tends to mess up GUI elements (especially on the Mini), like the weather widget. Quite annoying.

Personally I keep zoom at 100% now and browser content at 115%, as I love to read through many forums, blogs and stories/fanfictions. For that, the bigger iPhone models are just more pleasant to use. The Mini is not a great media-consumption device, but that‘s not an issue if you also own an iPad (as I had before) and use your Mini more as a phone, mail, messaging and camera device.

True. That’s why I still consider return bigger and order mini. I tend to have to use bigger with both hands all the time and it annoys me.

 

[stanza.richi]

True. That’s why I still consider return bigger and order mini. I tend to have to use bigger with both hands all the time and it annoys me.

Return to the dark side my friend ?

 

[prazakj]

Return to the dark side my friends ?

A few minutes earlier, I just ordered 13 mini. ? 13 will be returning next week.

 

[stanza.richi]

A few minutes earlier, I just ordered 13 mini. ? 13 will be returning next week.

???

 

[prazakj]

A few minutes earlier, I just ordered 13 mini. ? 13 will be returning next week.

Why is @Rashy sad?

 

[forestinjersey]

Advantages - For my usage, everything, even the battery does not cause me any issues (12 Mini)

Cons - none really, I do use Zoom view though which makes the keyboard and text just the right size, oh and I wish I had got the 128gb instead or 64gb

Like may others I use an iPad Pro 12'9 for all media consumption.

 

[Username-already-in-use]

Thank you everyone so much for your perspectives. You’ve given me a lot to think about. Right now I’m torn between the 13 Mini and the ‘Regular’ 13. I’m going to see if I can handle both devices and see what is more comfortable.

 

[ApplePersonFreak]

I love my 13 mini but I miss a bigger screen size. The 5.8“ size on the X was perfect. I had the 12 last year and used for a year and it was nice, but a two handed phone. I am thinking about getting a regular 13 to switch back and forth with. Or at least use for a few months and see how I like it. I will keep my mini though as I still love this thing and I don’t want to sell it.

 

[prazakj]

I love my 13 mini but I miss a bigger screen size. The 5.8“ size on the X was perfect. I had the 12 last year and used for a year and it was nice, but a two handed phone. I am thinking about getting a regular 13 to switch back and forth with. Or at least use for a few months and see how I like it. I will keep my mini though as I still love this thing and I don’t want to sell it.

I feel you. After all I didn’t used that longer battery in 13 as I thought I will and I missed one-hand usability of mini. But totally agree with you about missing 5,8” size.

 

[prazakj]

Thank you everyone so much for your perspectives. You’ve given me a lot to think about. Right now I’m torn between the 13 Mini and the ‘Regular’ 13. I’m going to see if I can handle both devices and see what is more comfortable.

One tip for you: if you want to try those devices, don’t try them together. Use one week to spend with one device and one week with bigger device. If you would switch permanently, it doesn’t help you to decide.

 

[lkalliance]

After a week, I have to say that so far, I'm finding the Face ID/no home button experience definitely worse than the Touch ID/home button experience. Not enough to make me want to return the phone (I do still expect to get used to it), I like a lot of things about my new mini. But in almost every comparison in the use of Face ID vs. Touch ID, I prefer Touch ID. So far.

(I was in the middle of writing out a post going into this in great detail, when I decided that it was just getting way too long.)

 

[heyyitssusan]

One tip for you: if you want to try those devices, don’t try them together. Use one week to spend with one device and one week with bigger device. If you would switch permanently, it doesn’t help you to decide.

This is what I plan on doing also. I will probably sell my 13 mini if I like the 13 enough. I also realize the 13 is the exact same weight as the iPhone X also. that is a plus.

 

[babyexercise]

I am seriously considering downsizing to the iPhone 13 mini this year. The reason is because I am using my mobile phone less for video content and lengthy web browsing. Instead it is being used for calls/texts/WhatsApp and the occasional quick email.

My current phone is a brick-sized Samsung Note 10+ with a 6.8” screen. My iPad Mini 6 now fulfils my browsing/video consumption needs on the go. So my phablet-sized phone is overkill. Plus, I would really like a small phone that is discreet in a suit jacket pocket (which the Note 10+ just is not). I also like the idea of using the phone comfortably one-handed.

I am interested in knowing experiences from those who downsized to the mini form-factor, both good and bad:
- whether you made the right decision, or regret it and went bigger again
- whether there were any issues you didn’t expect, or benefits you didn’t expect
- what you thought about the battery life

I’m interested in the perspectives of current (or former) 13 mini or 12 mini users. Thank you in advance.

You just need SE

 

[magicMac]

I went from 12 Pro to 13 Mini, really enjoy the Mini and will stick to this size phone as I mostly use it as a phone, messaging, music player, quick news updates etc... will never go back to a 6"or more phone.

it's not actually that small of a device, just seems it compared to many of the bigger phones which are common place now. It's way bigger than the 4/5/5s era of iPhones and the screen width is about the same (slightly narrower by a few millimetres) as the 6/7/8/SE, albeit taller than those LCD models.

Tidbit: the 13 mini has the same software resolution as the X/Xs/11pro (2436x1125). This can be seen when you take screenshots and gives you an idea as to how much information fits on the screen - albeit shrunk down from 5.8" to 5.42". The hardware resolution is 2340x1080 so there is a small bit of scaling but I haven't noticed any blur from it surprisingly.

Personally I would love if apple did a future iPhone SE using the 12 mini / 13 mini chassis - but with the OLED panel reaching the edges of the device. This equates to about 5.6" instead of the current 5.42". Along with this, a corresponding increase to 2436x1125 native resolution - achieving a hardware DPI of 480~ (currently 476~) and pixel perfect mapping. Also gives it that few millimetres to match the screen width of the 7/8/SE, for the sake of my OCD.

 

[prazakj]

This is what I plan on doing also. I will probably sell my 13 mini if I like the 13 enough. I also realize the 13 is the exact same weight as the iPhone X also. that is a plus.

For me the weight is incredible after using 12 mini (and waiting for 13 mini). 174g is really lot for me, hopefully you are different than me. ? I'm also a person who can handle phones up to 5,8" max.

 

[taneff]

I have iPhones since the first one. Then switching between bigger and smaller size (normal vs Plus device). I really owned big and small iPhones all the time, Plus and Max devices and the normal devices and even SE1. I switched between the normal 11 and 12 Mini last year and to the 13 Mini this year. Now I got back my iPhone 11 from my parents who now use my old 12 Mini. I love the 11, I think it is an amazing device with a surprisingly good contrast display, good battery life.

BUT, I just can't use it all day when owning the Mini. I can't. I wanted to use it several days as my main device. But it is too big and too heavy for me now. I know the normal 12 and 13 are lighter and a bit smaller than the 11, still. This size.... I don't think I can ever go back to a 6.1 inch device after owning the Mini now. The Mini is the perfect size for my smaller hands. It fits perfectly, has a good weight to it, not to light and not too heavy. Battery is better then the 12 Mini but of course worth than the 6.1 inch 11.

I can also agree with JM comments. I have more typing error than before owning a Mini. Battery life of the 13 Mini is less than I thought. I travel a lot, often weak signal on the go. And I really thought the 13 Mini would be a big upgrade to the 12 Mini. But surpringsly it is not regarding battery life and weak signal or signal switches between 5g and LTE. If I wouldn't have gotten a 13 Mini with a really good display I would have returned it and waited longer for a better price and would have kept my 12 Mini.

But this is about going to a Mini from a bigger device. And I think it really depends on so much. How big are your hands. Some guys have twice the size of my hands so I guess a 6.1 inch device would make more sense. Do you use it all day, than maybe battery life could be a problem if there is no output anywhere nearby. What I have read through forums is that the most complains are about typing and battery life. Many have more typing errors. But besides those two negative aspects you can't do anything wrong, esp since everything you do screams for a smaller device. People need a big screen for a lot of surfing, typing long texts and watching videos. That includes battery life of course. For nothing else imo.

I really would try a Mini if I were you. Maybe from Apple or Amazon, if it really really isn't for you, you can return it.

 

[taneff]

For last year I have been using 12 mini. This week I’m on 13 and still considering going back to 13 mini. So here’s my viewpoint.

PROS
1) One of the best iPhone I have ever owned (and that being said, I didn’t have 13 mini) because of it’s one-handed use. It’s amazing that you can walking around the building, go out for a walk or just laying in bed and you are OK with just one hand. It’s absolutely screaming these days like it would be some kind of magic. Everything was reacheable for me with one hand.
2) Weight. Something that’s underrated these days, but after using iPhone XS (before 12 mini) I can’t imagine something with 175g or more.
3) Because of it’s size, it sita perfectly in hand and for me it wasn’t that much slippery as bigger phones for me are.

CONS
1) Battery was sometimes very problematic for me. Sometimes I questioned myself if I shoudl pick up FaceTime call when I was at 40% of battery. After a year, my battery capacity dropped to 88% - something I never saw with any other previous iPhone I owned.
2) Some apps are not well supported to smaller display, because it uses resolution from 5,8” iPhones. But that could be more of a problem of developers rather than Apple’s.

Maybe I will message you again when I get to recall some other stuff. Also when I will decide if I will go for a 13 mini or stick with bigger one. I’m still on the verge I made a mistake with bigger one. I do still end my days with 50-70% of battery on 13, which seems to me is something why I wanted newer model, but after all I’m not really in need. And my (let’s say) “friends here” @stanza.richi @Apple_Robert @DeepIn2U @snipr125 and @Barbareren are very good in reporting about life with mini. I just worried about longeivity of the battery capacity and living with dual SIM in 13 mini - that’s why I’m trying 13. But what I feel like, is that I don’t need bigger and smaller is operational for me. I do have an iPad, Mac and in work I’m sitting before two monitors. I really don’t need another big screen which I have to use with both hands. But everybody have different situation and different usecase. I’m seeing that I’m spending more time on iPhone when I have 13 and with mini I used multiple devices for multiple actions. Hopefully this will help you.

I somehow knew the Mini is the right device for you after all those comments the last year in several threads. I think you will come back to "us". Haha. I am exactly like you. I wanted to try a bigger device and thankfully go my 6.1 11 back and will keep it as a secondary device but just can't go back to 6.1 for daily use. I also do think the biggest I could handle now is 5.8, also I like 5.4 Mini much more but if there would someday be a 5.8 device again, then maybe I would switch. But nothing bigger and esp heavier. Not now with what is on the market. Maybe if there would be a device released with a bigger display but better handling than the now available devices. But not with the current lineup.

 

[prazakj]

I have iPhones since the first one. Then switching between bigger and smaller size (normal vs Plus device). I really owned big and small iPhones all the time, Plus and Max devices and the normal devices and even SE1. I switched between the normal 11 and 12 Mini last year and to the 13 Mini this year. Now I got back my iPhone 11 from my parents who now use my old 12 Mini. I love the 11, I think it is an amazing device with a surprisingly good contrast display, good battery life.

BUT, I just can't use it all day when owning the Mini. I can't. I wanted to use it several days as my main device. But it is too big and too heavy for me now. I know the normal 12 and 13 are lighter and a bit smaller than the 11, still. This size.... I don't think I can ever go back to a 6.1 inch device after owning the Mini now. The Mini is the perfect size for my smaller hands. It fits perfectly, has a good weight to it, not to light and not too heavy. Battery is better then the 12 Mini but of course worth than the 6.1 inch 11.

I can also agree with JM comments. I have more typing error than before owning a Mini. Battery life of the 13 Mini is less than I thought. I travel a lot, often weak signal on the go. And I really thought the 13 Mini would be a big upgrade to the 12 Mini. But surpringsly it is not regarding battery life and weak signal or signal switches between 5g and LTE. If I wouldn't have gotten a 13 Mini with a really good display I would have returned it and waited longer for a better price and would have kept my 12 Mini.

But this is about going to a Mini from a bigger device. And I think it really depends on so much. How big are your hands. Some guys have twice the size of my hands so I guess a 6.1 inch device would make more sense. Do you use it all day, than maybe battery life could be a problem if there is no output anywhere nearby. What I have read through forums is that the most complains are about typing and battery life. Many have more typing errors. But besides those two negative aspects you can't do anything wrong, esp since everything you do screams for a smaller device. People need a big screen for a lot of surfing, typing long texts and watching videos. That includes battery life of course. For nothing else imo.

I really would try a Mini if I were you. Maybe from Apple or Amazon, if it really really isn't for you, you can return it.

I can relate very much. I like bigger ones for some kind of things, but not for a daily use. I enjoy using mini all day long, when I want to watch videos, there is my iPad. When I want to write longer text, I’m opening my MacBook. I understand that there are people who do all things on their iPhones. Therefore they need bigger display. For me personally, I enjoyed using regular 13 which was amazing for me with battery. Almost two days of usage. But I just can’t handle it on a daily basis. I wish I could but I just can’t. Too big and heavy for me. Despite perfect for typing both hands (one-handed typing is impossible for me), even in gloves in winter. Sadly you have a bad experience about battery on 13 mini, you‘re the first person who is disappointed about it in my circle. Still, mini’s are great phones.

 

[prazakj]

I somehow knew the Mini is the right device for you after all those comments the last year in several threads. I think you will come back to "us". Haha. I am exactly like you. I wanted to try a bigger device and thankfully go my 6.1 11 back and will keep it as a secondary device but just can't go back to 6.1 for daily use. I also do think the biggest I could handle now is 5.8, also I like 5.4 Mini much more but if there would someday be a 5.8 device again, then maybe I would switch. But nothing bigger and esp heavier. Not now with what is on the market. Maybe if there would be a device released with a bigger display but better handling than the now available devices. But not with the current lineup.

Hopefully 13 mini will come tomorrow so I can send 13 in return. My fellows here know that I will come back. I just wanted to be sure about my long-term vision and I haven’t tried 13 that much as I wanted to be sure. Now I know that it takes at least a week to get used to different size. During that trying-time I realized that I just can’t handle big phones that are bigger than 5,8”. As you said, weight is very important fact in choosing the right device. Maybe in future after prices will decrease I will buy for example 12 as a backup device. I love that design, 12 could be at lower price and for a longer days on phone I could use that. But overall if there is no 5,8” iPhone right now, then I will stick to 13 mini. Thank you for support anyway. ?

 

[Fozamo]

For last year I have been using 12 mini. This week I’m on 13 and still considering going back to 13 mini. So here’s my viewpoint.

PROS
1) One of the best iPhone I have ever owned (and that being said, I didn’t have 13 mini) because of it’s one-handed use. It’s amazing that you can walking around the building, go out for a walk or just laying in bed and you are OK with just one hand. It’s absolutely screaming these days like it would be some kind of magic. Everything was reacheable for me with one hand.
2) Weight. Something that’s underrated these days, but after using iPhone XS (before 12 mini) I can’t imagine something with 175g or more.
3) Because of it’s size, it sita perfectly in hand and for me it wasn’t that much slippery as bigger phones for me are.

CONS
1) Battery was sometimes very problematic for me. Sometimes I questioned myself if I shoudl pick up FaceTime call when I was at 40% of battery. After a year, my battery capacity dropped to 88% - something I never saw with any other previous iPhone I owned.
2) Some apps are not well supported to smaller display, because it uses resolution from 5,8” iPhones. But that could be more of a problem of developers rather than Apple’s.

Maybe I will message you again when I get to recall some other stuff. Also when I will decide if I will go for a 13 mini or stick with bigger one. I’m still on the verge I made a mistake with bigger one. I do still end my days with 50-70% of battery on 13, which seems to me is something why I wanted newer model, but after all I’m not really in need. And my (let’s say) “friends here” @stanza.richi @Apple_Robert @DeepIn2U @snipr125 and @Barbareren are very good in reporting about life with mini. I just worried about longeivity of the battery capacity and living with dual SIM in 13 mini - that’s why I’m trying 13. But what I feel like, is that I don’t need bigger and smaller is operational for me. I do have an iPad, Mac and in work I’m sitting before two monitors. I really don’t need another big screen which I have to use with both hands. But everybody have different situation and different usecase. I’m seeing that I’m spending more time on iPhone when I have 13 and with mini I used multiple devices for multiple actions. Hopefully this will help you.

Good post. Considering that your only complain about the 12 mini was the battery and you end your day with 70%, it sounds that 13 mini was the right choice for you

 

[JM]

For last year I have been using 12 mini. This week I’m on 13 and still considering going back to 13 mini. So here’s my viewpoint.

PROS
1) One of the best iPhone I have ever owned (and that being said, I didn’t have 13 mini) because of it’s one-handed use. It’s amazing that you can walking around the building, go out for a walk or just laying in bed and you are OK with just one hand. It’s absolutely screaming these days like it would be some kind of magic. Everything was reacheable for me with one hand.
2) Weight. Something that’s underrated these days, but after using iPhone XS (before 12 mini) I can’t imagine something with 175g or more.
3) Because of it’s size, it sita perfectly in hand and for me it wasn’t that much slippery as bigger phones for me are.

CONS
1) Battery was sometimes very problematic for me. Sometimes I questioned myself if I shoudl pick up FaceTime call when I was at 40% of battery. After a year, my battery capacity dropped to 88% - something I never saw with any other previous iPhone I owned.
2) Some apps are not well supported to smaller display, because it uses resolution from 5,8” iPhones. But that could be more of a problem of developers rather than Apple’s.

Maybe I will message you again when I get to recall some other stuff. Also when I will decide if I will go for a 13 mini or stick with bigger one. I’m still on the verge I made a mistake with bigger one. I do still end my days with 50-70% of battery on 13, which seems to me is something why I wanted newer model, but after all I’m not really in need. And my (let’s say) “friends here” @stanza.richi @Apple_Robert @DeepIn2U @snipr125 and @Barbareren are very good in reporting about life with mini. I just worried about longeivity of the battery capacity and living with dual SIM in 13 mini - that’s why I’m trying 13. But what I feel like, is that I don’t need bigger and smaller is operational for me. I do have an iPad, Mac and in work I’m sitting before two monitors. I really don’t need another big screen which I have to use with both hands. But everybody have different situation and different usecase. I’m seeing that I’m spending more time on iPhone when I have 13 and with mini I used multiple devices for multiple actions. Hopefully this will help you.

Same here with battery life concerns in the long term: it’s fine now, but will it be in a year or two?

Trade off of small phone I guess! I’ll make do and get battery replaced at Apple if there’s ever a major problem.