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Don't forget that the iPhone 12 Mini currently has a competitor: the iPhone SE2 which is $300 cheaper. Consumers shopping for small phones would definitely get the SE. And many people I know who waited for smaller phone have already bought the iPhone SE2 (because it's released 6 months earlier) even those who were Android users in the past. So yes, small phones still have a big market if you include iPhone SE2 in the benchmark together with the iPhone 12 mini.
 
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I still think we need to wait and let time tell the whole story.

That’s what happened with the XR too. It started off really weak compared to the XS and XS Max, but ended up becoming the best selling smartphone in the next year after.

It might not be that exact situation with the Mini, but the cheaper ones are almost never the ones in high demand immediately. It’s always been more of a slow burn. Could happen here too.
 
Everyone I know loves theirs. It's the perfect form factor. The pro is too big. But the battery life is what's really killing sales.
If youre not glued to your phone and dont need more than 5h of 4g/5g/Wifi screen time, then it will last 2-3 days, I reckon there are plenty of people that want small phone with great cameras(aside from that horrible lens flare/light orbs issue) and small size thats also speedy, me included.
Im not exactly power user, so iPhone 12 mini is good for me, use it mostly with power saver mode on given that I dont need it updating to cloud everything 24/7 or fetching e-mails with push etc. Gets me 3 days easy with no anxiety, especially since its winter and most of the time is spent at home with iPad or laptop. Without power saver its more like 2.5-3 days at max whereas with power save I feel I could squeeze good 4 days out of it semi-dumb phone style no probs.
Until they release iPhone pro with Pro Max's main sensor, that(my mini) is going to be my daily driver :)
 
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I looked at this survey a little closer and it looks like this is data from only 243 people, which I feel is too small of a sample size to get an accurate picture of how well the phones are selling. It might not be the best selling phone of the lineup, but I hope it will be well enough to keep this size in the lineup as a smaller phone with flagship features.
 
I’m a fan of the Max Models. However, I won’t deny and say that there isn’t a fan base for the smaller phone. I still think it will do well. It was only released just 2 months. It might need more time to hit the masses. I definitely think this will be a sleeper hit over the course of this year.

My sister had no clue that this phone even existed. She had a passed down 2016 SE and was about to purchase an SE 2, when I told her about the mini she brought it within the same day. Absolutely loves it.
 
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I make a good living and never minded spending on something I use non-stop. Can’t imagine why the mini isn’t leading sales but I’ll keep this forever if they stop. I’d have paid double. It’s what I spent on the last one. I absolutely live this thing just wish the camera had the 2x or more. Come out with a mini pro and I’ll fork the cash over
 
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Apple needs to think more in terms of keeping people in the ecosystem rather than requiring every device to be a huge hit. It doesn't matter if the 12 mini isn't a huge seller. It doesn't have to be at this stage in the game, because not every device can be. What's important is that yes, you have the size of phone I want, so I will also buy the MacBook that goes with it, and subscribe to Apple Music, and maybe get the Apple Watch to go with it later.
 
Battery life would be a big factor for most people. The Mini is great on hands. I love how it feels and the size is a dream come true.

But battery life is stupidly terrible, especially for an expensive, high end phone. You'd be looking for wall charger by 2PM, and looking for another after 6PM. That's not ideal, and that's not counting degraded battery life after a year or two.
 
Battery life would be a big factor for most people. The Mini is great on hands. I love how it feels and the size is a dream come true.

But battery life is stupidly terrible, especially for an expensive, high end phone. You'd be looking for wall charger by 2PM, and looking for another after 6PM. That's not ideal, and that's not counting degraded battery life after a year or two.
What are you using your phone to do? I had the mini and work at an office. Phone calls, texts, email all day long. Used all night as well for social media, news+++. Easily 30%+ battery left in the evening. BT+Wifi+4g+5g active all day.
 
Battery life would be a big factor for most people. The Mini is great on hands. I love how it feels and the size is a dream come true.

But battery life is stupidly terrible, especially for an expensive, high end phone. You'd be looking for wall charger by 2PM, and looking for another after 6PM. That's not ideal, and that's not counting degraded battery life after a year or two.
That is simply not true for average and even intense workloads.
 
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Holding a 12 and 12 pro side by side you can feel the difference in build quality.
It's literally exactly the same build just a aluminium frame instead of a ss one, which yes adds weight but it's the same exact build.
 
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I care about camera and, in particular, ProRaw. By the way ProRaw is a software feature that the current mini could easily support ...
If you cared about camera then you wouldn't care about ProRaw on your ****ing iPhone.
 
It’s because they didn’t release on the same date, and people are impatient. I’m sure the results would’ve been significantly different if they had been available on the same day.

The simple fact is that people won’t buy a mini if they already gave in and bought a 12.

Not to mention that, in The Netherlands at least, they’re actually the same price. That’s because providers actually sell the 12 for about a 100 euros lower than Apple’s price, and the Mini doesn’t get that same price cut. That puts both phones at the same price when bought at a provider.
 
It's literally exactly the same build just a aluminium frame instead of a ss one, which yes adds weight but it's the same exact build.
Which influences how much the 12 flexes during normal usage. And yes, you can feel it.
 
What are you using your phone to do? I had the mini and work at an office. Phone calls, texts, email all day long. Used all night as well for social media, news+++. Easily 30%+ battery left in the evening. BT+Wifi+4g+5g active all day.

Taking photos, shooting videos, and play games? Sure I use it for works and email too, and in my experience recording videos taxing the Mini’s battery most.

I switched to Pro Max and even with its huge battery, by the evening I‘m left with 40%, maybe 50% if I’m lucky. So I cannot live a day with Mini, obviously.
 
Wow. For some reason a lot of people in this thread seem to really dislike people who want a smaller phone and feel the need to express that dislike.

I just hope poor sales don’t dissuade Apple from offering smaller phones again in the future.
 
It’s crazy how the VERY vocal minority cried and whined over wanting a powerful, smaller iPhone with all the bells and whistles of the ‘regular’ version and yet none of them are putting their money where their mouth is. I just can’t believe how poor the sales are.

There will be a mini version of the 12S/13 but if sales don’t pick up with the 2021 edition it wouldn’t shock me to see Apple drop the mini from the lineup thereafter. If the market is that tiny there’s no way Apple will keep making them for long.

After which, people better get used to 6”+ phones being the norm... they had their chance to step up and show the demand was there for a smaller device and so far have failed miserably. 🤷🏻‍♂️
 
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After 1.5 months of using iPhone 12 Pro Max, I switched to iPhone 12 Mini few days ago. I'm loving the experience so far. While Pro Max is a great phone, the handling of it was not something I liked. I have had big phones in the past (iPhone 6 Plus and iPhone 6S Plus) but 12 Pro Max is a different beast. My usage habit allows almost 1.5-day battery life out of the Mini.

Before someone asks why I just did not go for iPhone 12/Pro, well, if I am going to get a phone where two-handed handling is required then I might as well just go for a Pro Max. Also, coming from iPhone XS, I was looking for a "change" as well.
 
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It’s crazy how the VERY vocal minority cried and whined over wanting a powerful, smaller iPhone with all the bells and whistles of the ‘regular’ version and yet none of them are putting their money where their mouth is. I just can’t believe how poor the sales are.

There will be a mini version of the 12S/13 but if sales don’t pick up with the 2021 edition it wouldn’t shock me to see Apple drop the mini from the lineup thereafter. If the market is that tiny there’s no way Apple will keep making them for long.

After which, people better get used to 6”+ phones being the norm... they had their chance to step up and show the demand was there for a smaller device and so far have failed miserably.

We don’t really know whether Mini sales are bad yet, it’s all guesses apart from some US data.
 
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It’s not the size, it’s the pricing. It is only discounted $100 below the flagship iPhone 12. With pricing like that, there’s no incentive for middle-of-the-road customers or upgraders to really even consider it.
 
It’s not the size, it’s the pricing. It is only discounted $100 below the flagship iPhone 12. With pricing like that, there’s no incentive for middle-of-the-road customers or upgraders to really even consider it.
What? Why? The only advantage the 12 has over the Mini is the battery life, but that’s offset by the size and the extra cost. For most people, especially if they’re upgrading from a couple-year-old phone, the 12 Mini has plenty of battery life, and for people who want a small phone, they get all the advantages of a 12 in a better form factor for cheaper. You can get some pretty fancy charge options for that $100.
 
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Apple needs to think more in terms of keeping people in the ecosystem rather than requiring every device to be a huge hit. It doesn't matter if the 12 mini isn't a huge seller. It doesn't have to be at this stage in the game, because not every device can be. What's important is that yes, you have the size of phone I want, so I will also buy the MacBook that goes with it, and subscribe to Apple Music, and maybe get the Apple Watch to go with it later.
Excellent point and hopefully, Apple agrees with you. I know I do. :D
 
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This has nothing to do with preferences and all to do with marketing.

If the iPhone 12 mini was instead sold as the standard "iPhone 12" and then the 12 as a "12 Plus", imagine how sales would be different. Then take that and imagine that the hypothetical "12 Plus" got released 2 weeks later, giving the other an automatic selling advantage.

Not many are staying away from it because it's too small. It's about as large as the iPhone 6/7/8 which are considered normal-sized. The name "mini" is its biggest limitation.
 
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