iPhone 12 Mini's Battery Life is One to Two Hours Shorter Than iPhone 12 When Comparing Video Playback

[MacRumors]

Apple's iPhone 12 mini is the smallest iPhone that's been made available since the original iPhone SE, with a 5.4-inch display and a body that's 5 inches high and 2.5 inches wide.

Since it's the smallest iPhone Apple sells, it's also the iPhone 12 model with the lowest battery life, coming in at 15 hours of video playback compared to the iPhone 12's 17 hours. For streaming video, the iPhone 12 mini offers 10 hours of playback, while the iPhone 12 offers 11 hours. The iPhone mini outperforms the iPhone SE, but doesn't measure up to any of the other larger iPhones.

The 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max features 20 hours of video playback, offering five hours longer battery life than the iPhone 12 mini.

Apple breaks battery life down in three categories: video playback, video playback when streaming video, and audio playback. Battery life info for all iPhones in the current iPhone lineup is listed below.

• iPhone 12 Pro Max - Up to 20 hours video playback, 12 hours streamed, 80 hours audio
• iPhone 12 Pro - Up to 17 hours video playback, 11 hours streamed, 65 hours audio
• iPhone 12 - Up to 17 hours video playback, 11 hours streamed, 65 hours audio
• iPhone 12 mini - Up to 15 hours video playback, 10 hours streamed, 50 hours audio playback
• iPhone 11 - Up to 17 hours video playback, 10 hours streamed, 65 hours audio
• iPhone XR - Up to 16 hours video playback, 65 hours audio
• iPhone SE - Up to 13 hours video playback, 8 hours streamed, 40 hours audio

All of Apple's new iPhone 12 devices support fast charging and can be charged to 50 percent within 30 minutes using a 20W power adapter and the included USB-C to Lighting cable.

Article Link: iPhone 12 Mini's Battery Life is One to Two Hours Shorter Than iPhone 12 When Comparing Video Playback

 

[Michael Scrip]

People were begging for a smaller iPhone.

Welcome to battery physics...

 

[alayal]

it is still better that my old iPhone 8

 

[Notfroggy]

In other news, bear sh*ts in the woods.

 

[tyr2]

A fair chunk better than the 2020 SE I currently have. This mini sure has got me tempted to consider a trade-in/upgrade depending on the trade up price. The lack of touch id is the only thing currently putting me off.

 

[Metrosey]

Any news on RAM (all models).

 

[slimejester]

Wow, the pro Max battery is insane.

 

[Unggoy Murderer]

Smaller device, less space for battery.

We can't expect Apple to defy the laws of physics, can we?

 

[Skika]

Wow, the pro Max battery is insane.

Still true for the 11 pro max.

 

[thadoggfather]

I was hoping it would match XR at least...

hmmm , hard to know which end is up though until these phones are put through their paces in the real world.

 

[carrrrrlos]

That’s okay. This is a great form factor for a “phone”. Get an iPad and watch your movies.

 

[brar.arsh]

It will be iPhone SE/8 replacement, that said, it is better than those two.

 

[GeoStructural]

This iPhone 12 Pro Max is getting closer to the dream iPhone.

My only wish now is for the effing notch to disappear. (And the switch to UBS C, which will never happen).

Any news on RAM (all models).

iPhone 12 and Mini 3.66 GB, that’s what the base A14 comes with. The Pros are rumored to be closer to 6 GB.

Smaller device, less space for battery.

Exactly! Be careful what you wish for, because you might just get it.

 

[jayducharme]

In real world usage I doubt I'll notice. I used to get by fine with my SE.

 

[Zackmd1]

Smaller device, less space for battery.

We can't expect Apple to defy the laws of physics, can we?

I could potentially expect them to NOT include useless mmwave 5G (for the vast majority of the country) and save some power that way... But then I guess Verizon wouldn't be happy now would they?

 

[Cryates]

Perfectly fine by me. Wired CarPlay twice a day will charge it up a bit anyhow.

 

[alayal]

I could potentially expect them to NOT include useless mmwave 5G (for the vast majority of the country) and save some power that way... But then I guess Verizon wouldn't be happy now would they?

I'm pretty sure you can turn it off

 

[djcerla]

Battery life is the reason why only Apple can build something like the Mini.

And boy did they stress that notion during the keynote.

 

[mailman199]

Makes sense

 

[ruka.snow]

The 12 mini is the perfect phone for my fiancé. He has has to use the SE2(His SE was knocked out his hand) and it is way to big for him, now we can easily sell the SE2 and get a 12 mini to replace it.

 

[DavidDoyle]

I don't get why Macrumors always disparages notion of a smaller and lighter iPhone?

For years and years the iPhone has become unnecessarily bigger and heavier. The Mini is a good thing. Moaning about battery life of a more pocketable phone is short sighted.

 

[NotoriousNeo]

Okay, sure, the 12 Mini doesn't match the much larger/newer iPhone battery stats, like duh, how could it? However, according to Apple's website it does match the XS Max, which was pretty well-regarded for its battery life back when it launched. What's my point bringing up that comparison? Well, it's that while battery life on the 12 Mini might not be as good as the latest/larger models, it's still shaping up to be pretty dang good all things considered. For anyone upgrading from an iPhone 7/8/SE or heck, even a X or XS, you're looking at improved battery life here despite several upgrades in a significantly smaller package. That's something to be excited about imo.

 

[now i see it]

I want to watch 15 hours of video on an iPhone 12 Mini

 

[Zackmd1]

I'm pretty sure you can turn it off

Still paying the premium for it...

 

[DocMultimedia]

I'll never understand why Apple won't just add a few mm to the thickness for a significant increase in battery life. It's just like the MacBook Pro that got a miserable keyboard so it could be N mm thinner. Stupid. IMO.