iPhone 12 Mini: Five Rumored Features You Might Be Giving Up

5G is overrated.

LiDAR is probably not a major selling point for most consumers.

Most consumers can’t even differentiate between OLED and LCD.

What will sell this phone will be the size and price point. Consumers aren’t interested in paying for $1000 smart phones, not when generally all these phones perform the same functionality.
Agree until the end, which is not correct based on sales figures.

The only thing I’d miss would be the telephoto lens. Everything else either doesn’t really matter (5G) or can be compensated after purchase (battery).

edit: I suppose there will be an aftermarket external telephoto lens option, but carrying one around and keeping it in good shape, not to mention mounting/unmounting it when you want to zoom in a lot, will be a pain for most folks.
 
Last edited:


The iPhone 12 mini is set to be the smallest iPhone in many years, with a screen size of just 5.4 inches and a body size smaller than anything we've seen since the original iPhone SE. While fans of smaller form-factor devices have craved a modern small iPhone for years, there are five notable features that you'll be giving up if you get the iPhone 12 mini, if you believe the current rumors about the upcoming lineup.

iPhone-12-mini-feature-2.jpg

Display Technology

The iPhone 12 mini is expected to have a flexible OLED display with Y-OCTA integrated touch, for richer colors and truer blacks than an LCD.

However, the iPhone 12 mini's display is expected to have some slight drawbacks. The iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max will reportedly have 10-bit color for more vibrant, true-to-life colors, and a richer variety of color gradations, as well as XDR classification.

In addition, although rumors have been highly mixed on some iPhone 12 models having a 120Hz ProMotion display, rumors about the iPhone 12 mini not having a 120Hz display have been consistent. If the feature does appear for the iPhone 12 lineup, it is likely to be reserved for the Pro models or even the Pro Max model only.

LiDAR Scanner

The iPhone 12 Pro models are rumored to have a LiDAR Scanner, the likes of which premiered on the iPad Pro earlier this year.

The LiDAR Scanner in the iPad Pro uses reflected light to measure the distance from the sensor to surrounding objects that are up to five meters away. It is essentially able to map the environment around you at the photon level in nanosecond speeds. The rumored LiDAR Scanner for the iPhone 12 Pro is likely to work similarly, if not identically. As a smaller and lower-cost non-Pro model, the iPhone 12 mini is not expected to have the LiDAR scanner.

iPhone-12-mini-lineup.jpg

Relative Size of iPhone 12 mini
Telephoto Lens

Much like the iPhone 11, the iPhone 12 mini is expected to have two camera lenses on its rear; a wide-angle lens and an ultrawide-angle lens. However, the iPhone 12 mini misses out on the telephoto lens, which makes up the third lens on the higher-end Pro models.

The high-end 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max is rumored to be getting sensor-shift image stabilization technology, which could potentially bring image stabilization to the ultra wide-angle lens on those devices. Sensor-shift technology allows the optical image stabilization to be applied to the camera sensor, rather than the individual lenses. This feature is not expected to trickle down to the iPhone 12 mini.

The iPhone 12 mini may still benefit from Apple's new "high-end" lens arrays and improved Smart HDR for better low-light performance.

Battery Capacity

As the smallest device in the iPhone 12 lineup, the iPhone 12 mini is also expected to have the smallest battery. Certifications have suggested that the battery capacity of the iPhone 12 mini is 2,227mAh. Apple's current smallest flagship iPhone, the 5.8-inch iPhone 11 Pro, has a battery capacity of 3,046mAh battery, making the iPhone 12 mini's capacity 819mAh smaller.

Although the A14 Bionic processor and OLED display are likely to improve energy efficiency, the fundamental limits of battery size in the iPhone 12 mini are likely to result in an overall smaller battery life.

The 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max is expected to have a much larger capacity of 3,687mAh, so users concerned about battery life would certainly benefit from getting a larger model.

Faster 5G

Rumors suggest that the ‌iPhone 12‌ Pro Max will also be the only model to have faster mmWave 5G. Sub-6GHz 5G, which is the slower but more widespread form of 5G, is expected to be present on the iPhone 12 mini. Only the largest ‌‌iPhone‌‌ in the lineup supposedly has the internal space to accommodate the antenna design needed to implement mmWave at this time, along with the larger battery needed for its higher power usage.

In spite of these missing features, the iPhone 12 mini is still expected to get the latest A14 Bionic processor, an OLED display, and a brand new squared-off design. For many fans of small phones, the iPhone 12 mini will be the device that they have long been waiting for.

For more on what to expect from the 2020 ‌‌‌‌iPhone‌‌‌‌ models, be sure to see our dedicated roundup or read our quick summary of Ten Things to Know About the iPhone 12.

Article Link: iPhone 12 Mini: Five Rumored Features You Might Be Giving Up
For people who actually only want a phone (as opposed to a pocket computer with a phone feature), a small form factor is ideal. If it takes and makes phone calls well then it is the ideal product for this type of person.
 
The main thing I'd be giving up is Touch ID. Damn I was excited about this phone that finally goes in the right direction re size until I realized that Face ID and masks just don't mix. Now I'm hesitant about getting it, may need to keep my original SE in working condition for yet another year and see if under-screen or side-button Touch ID makes a comeback...
 
It's so cute! I wouldn't mind getting one as a secondary phone. I never bought the SE 2, so I just need to see the price.
 
I’m all for a great phone that offers most of the features that make an iPhone great while keep the price down ala SE/SE2, XR, 11, but why would Apple plan on offering smaller sizes and not offering flagship features? Like the Plus and non-Plus. One of the things I like about my 11 Pro is I have all of the features of the 11 Pro Max without the unwanted size. Why can’t people who want an even smaller phone still get the flagship experience, especially if they’re willing to pay for it? I have never understood this.
 
I'm intrigued by it. If it has the zoomed feature like the 6.1, I will definitely get it. Loved the original iPhone 4 model.
I hope they release bumper cases as well to really bring back the nostalgia.
 
"Although the A14 Bionic processor and OLED display are likely to improve energy efficiency, the fundamental limits of battery size in the iPhone 12 mini are likely to result in an overall smaller battery life."

Smaller battery life?
Or shorter run time?
 
5G is overrated.

LiDAR is probably not a major selling point for most consumers.

Most consumers can’t even differentiate between OLED and LCD.

What will sell this phone will be the size and price point. Consumers aren’t interested in paying for $1000 smart phones, not when generally all these phones perform the same functionality.
I don’t care about the price. Just give me a smaller phone.
 
It's all about size and weight for me. It's a bonus that the price is low, I'd be willing to pay an extra $500 over the regular sized phone just for the advantage of having small and light.

I own and use (daily) both an original SE (now on its second battery) and an iPhone 11, I vastly prefer the SE over the 11 for its size. The main advantage of the 11 over the SE is that the iPhone 11 cameras are definitely better or at least more versatile with the ultra-wide being available. The iphone 11 face ID is also much better for me than the SE's touch ID, I commonly have moist/sweaty or dirty hands and the touch sensor is at best 90% reliable whereas the face ID is more like 99.999% reliable (I think I've only had it fail once in a year and a half and that was because the phone wasn't facing me LOL). However the 11 is just too big and unweildy. It doesn't feel good to carry in a pocket and weighs there like a brick trying to pull your pants down. Even when I have the two phones sitting side by side and just want to browse news or something I pick up the old SE, it's just more comfortable to carry, hold, and use. I'm just hoping the new iPhone 12 mini isn't too big because something the size of the old SE without bezels would have been perfect. I'm planning to buy a mini and hope for the best, I don't see how Apple can lose in the compact smartphone market since there is at this point zero competition. What gives me the greatest misgiving is that in terms of hardware options they left all of us that prefer small phones without any new/upgraded models for years and I do wonder whether they will do that to us again, what keeps me with them is that they have kept producing software updates for the SE in spite of not offering any hardware upgrade options until now.
 
Dis not mention the reduced amount of RAM for the Mini of 4GB vs. 6GB for the Pro! In the Pro, you can option or the Midnight Blue color too!
 
Last edited:
It would be nice if Apple would stop acquainting the size of the model with costs and features. The small item for Apple product design means “budget” iPhone/iPad. Largest size means “premium“.
 
I all ready have giant meat hooks for hands, so the Mini is NOT for me. I WILL drop that thing at least 5 times before the end of the week I get it. Which is my complaint with the current form factor. It's difficult for me to hold it.
I have hands the size of dinner plates and the iPhone 7/8 size is perfect for me. Anything larger won't go into the pocket of my Motorcycle jacket. I don't game or watch videos on my phone so there really is no need for anything in the Max size.
Keep on making small phones Apple. Not everyone needs to compensate for the small size of other things.
 
I don't need no:
– LiDAR
– 5G
– Telephoto Lens
So i would be quite happy if Apple just throw the A14 and stabilised UW lens into the 12 mini and bring the Night Mode to the UW lens, that's it.
 
does anyone know how to make this forum white again? I'm all for dark mode, but it just doesn't work on this site.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Back
Top