iPhone 13 mini iPhone 13 mini hold outs

[Spike77777]

I think I can comfortably predict the mini will be the last phone apple produces that's small with the recent rumored 6.1 se model. With that being said, any 12 or 13 mini fans holding on to their for years? I have a 128gb 13 mini and I'm constantly running out of space. My drone videos take too much space. That being said, I might go all out and go 512gb mini as my long term phone. Good idea? I'd love to keep all of my photos and videos for years on this thing.

I finally upgraded to the 13 mini 256gb Oct. 2021 coming from the 2017 128gb SE. It's the closest phone that will compare to that perfect form factor. I'll be hopefully holding on to this phone for the next 5-6 years until apple makes a slim flip or another model of the mini.

Another option for the OP here, have you considered using iCloud to offload your videos? I'm just using the $.99 a month 50gb to sync notes, contacts, etc... between my devices which they should just give you for free but they have larger tiers of storage up to 2tb. Might be a better option instead of buying, selling to get the extra needed storage.

 

[1rottenapple]

Am I the only one who does not like the stainless steel frame? 😅
I'd take the telephoto lens and matte glass back for a Pro mini any time but I would very much prefer the "rougher" aluminum frame over the imho slippery stainless steel. Had it on the iPhone XS and 14 Pro and did not like it on any of them.

Yah me too. Stainless steel make it heavy! Not a fan. I prefer titanium if they were to make a premium model.

 

[DeepIn2U]

has this happened to you before?

Yes it has twice before, 2x an iPhone, 1x an Apple Watch.

First: Corporate account, purchased iPhone 5 64GB very late in product cycle, roughly 2 months prior to iPhone 5S launch (July). The iPhone lasted very well yet started having issues with a swollen battery and multiple random restarts. Took it into Apple (still under 1yr warranty), and Apple stated there will be a 4wk wait for repairs. I stated I work in I.T. and am on-call support and I need a working iPhone as we've migrated entirely from BlackBerry OS (Bold's, Curves, etc) to iPhones. Initially offered a 4S 32GB, I stated my 5 was a 64GB, why offer me a 32GB device when my apps and media storage was over 40GB. I waited 30mins and manager auto upgraded me to a 64GB iPhone 5S. Super grateful - at that time no personal Apple devices (I had prior).

Second: iPhone 6 32GB. Personal owned device, didn't really have a love for the 6 to be quite frank. Screen just went haywire, issues with colour being obviously off in iOS/Media playback, random reboots, sometimes would not power on for almost an hour even on full charge. Never any water damage. purchased used from Apple retail, 1yr past. brought it in roughly 1 month prior to iPhone 7 announcement. No iPhone 6's in stock, no 5S in stock. over a 30day+ wait time; boom iPhone 6S 64/128GB offered with more cash out of pocket (at a VERY reasonable discount I might add). I went with the 64GB 6s.

Third: Apple Watch Nike+ S3 - performance issues, cannot recall specifically, a few scuffs that I brought in for AC+ replacement. At that time Apple re-released the Watch S3 with same chip as the 4 at a cheaper price. The Nike+ S3 was discontinued after 1 yr. None in stock and without even mentioning I was out with an S4 Nike+ same storage. Supremely Happy. The week prior I purchased a Sonos Play:1 speaker, MBP 13" as well, that may have had something to do with this.

I suspect with the terrible initial uptake of the 14 Plus, and already prior to its availability on Oct 10th, with Apple already shifting production from the 14 to the Pro's that Apple will rethink their iPhone SE lineup to be the 13 mini shell. If not they'll be faced with a serious backlog of iPhone 13 mini's still under AC+ (monthly there is no expiry BTW) and as such ... will need to honor AC+ replacements. If production truly stopped and already 1 yr after launch still not on refurbished list It'll cost Apple, a lot, something their not found of being in a position of.

Just my opinion though.

 

[mikext]

Am I the only one who does not like the stainless steel frame? 😅
I'd take the telephoto lens and matte glass back for a Pro mini any time but I would very much prefer the "rougher" aluminum frame over the imho slippery stainless steel. Had it on the iPhone XS and 14 Pro and did not like it on any of them.

I find the stainless steel on the 14 pro more grippy than the aluminum sides of the mini 🤷‍♂️

 

[cocaineheart328]

Got my hands on a gold 14 pro 512GB via carrier deal but have decided to return it and to keep my trusty green 256GB 13 mini.

The relative size and weight of the 14p are just…ugly, to be honest, and the screen is really not for me (no, really; the 13 mini’s OLED is 95% good to my eyes but the 14p’s looked weirdly dim in comparison and induced PWM eye strain/nausea almost immediately—I felt sick all night last night after setting it up and again after work today when I went to erase it before the return).

Dynamic Island (Jesus I hate that name) was cool for the first three minutes but quickly proved to be a distracting gimmick.

Viva la mini!

I did the SAME thing. I thought well I would like longer battery life and I had the bigger phones when they didnt offer a mini. But I kept it 2 days and decided it was WAY too heavy and felt like a brick in my hand and just kept my 13 mini instead of trading it in 😆

 

[ndouglas]

I remember reading about se 2016 hold outs who didn’t want to upgrade to bigger iPhone when I was a big phone fan. But ironic I’m now part of the crowd.

For this very reason, and others, I don’t think anyone needs to worry about whether the Mini will be discontinued or not. No one knows, but what is likely (and good enough for me personally) is that there will always be a semi-small options, based on the 2016 SE release, to the larger SE ones now, and the Mini among them.

 

[DeepIn2U]

Great to see many such as myself love the 13 mini and are passionate about it.

Personally I’m very passionate of the 13 mini so much so that not only by choosing it with my dinero ($), as many here have but felt the need to voice it via twitter here:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1581748963501559808

Tried to consolidate all the threads, good reviews etc while calling out tIm, Greg Jozwiak, and 2 marketing leads for iPhone in hopes they’ll notice or someone amongst them will. Maybe not the best avenue but hoping it’ll invite others as well. It hasn’t but I tried.

@sorgo I felt the exact same trying out the 14 Pro. DI looks great, but after a few short hours I noticed with my iOS setup restored hardly any notifications used it, it’s useless for my lifestyle and setup. Each to their own, I do applaud Apple for doing something vastly different.

@sailingHobbit regarding AC+ … I’ll quote a line from AVP “I’d like to have it and not need it, then to need it and not have it” (female talking bout a gun yet referencing a condom.) it’s not a substitute for not having a case but, if you’re not going full Otterbox case, it could come in handy a few years from now. Remember in N.America there is no more 2x limit anymore, does expire if you go monthly. If we guess Apple took from 2015 SE OG to 2020 to launch its true successor (a small iPhone using top tier cpu, storage & ram, top tier unlocking) with the 12 mini .. it could be that long too.

 

[sailingHobbit]

@sailingHobbit regarding AC+ … I’ll quote a line from AVP “I’d like to have it and not need it, then to need it and not have it” (female talking bout a gun yet referencing a condom.) it’s not a substitute for not having a case but, if you’re not going full Otterbox case, it could come in handy a few years from now. Remember in N.America there is no more 2x limit anymore, does expire if you go monthly. If we guess Apple took from 2015 SE OG to 2020 to launch its true successor (a small iPhone using top tier cpu, storage & ram, top tier unlocking) with the 12 mini .. it could be that long too.

Yeah that quote absolutely hits the mark. The unlimited version also applies for Germany luckily. Since I prefer case-less (especially on a phone that comfortably fits in one hand), I booked AC+. Like you said, I would definitely regret it if something broke and I had to pay the full repair price/get another phone.

 

[Philllllip]

Well..I have had the iPhone Mini 13 for a year nearly now and it is AMAZING!!. Battery not great if on ALL day but I always near a charging pad so no problem. I recently also bought the iPhone 14 PLUS and the iPhone 14 PRO and the Samsung Fold 4!! Guess which one I have decided to keep as my main phone? The MINI! The PLUS was like a huge slab of iPad ( lighter than the max pro but still way to uncomfy to hole ) So that went back. I tried the 14 pro for a few days and again its just TOO WIDE to hold comfortably!! So that went back. The fold however is the perfect width and even though its 280grammes it actually feels lighter than the 205grammes iPhone 14 pro! Weird but show what a comfy width makes a huge difference. Apple really need to slim the width of their iPhones especially with the boxy sides. horrid. The MINI is simply perfect. love it.. I will be keeping the fold as my fun second device though as that whips EVERY iPhone butt! Straight from the future the Samsung.

 

[DeepIn2U]

Well..I have had the iPhone Mini 13 for a year nearly now and it is AMAZING!!. Battery not great if on ALL day but I always near a charging pad so no problem. I recently also bought the iPhone 14 PLUS and the iPhone 14 PRO and the Samsung Fold 4!! Guess which one I have decided to keep as my main phone? The MINI! The PLUS was like a huge slab of iPad ( lighter than the max pro but still way to uncomfy to hole ) So that went back. I tried the 14 pro for a few days and again its just TOO WIDE to hold comfortably!! So that went back. The fold however is the perfect width and even though its 280grammes it actually feels lighter than the 205grammes iPhone 14 pro! Weird but show what a comfy width makes a huge difference. Apple really need to slim the width of their iPhones especially with the boxy sides. horrid. The MINI is simply perfect. love it.. I will be keeping the fold as my fun second device though as that whips EVERY iPhone butt! Straight from the future the Samsung.

Nice. I think with the Z Fold's weight you described is regarding its balance. I find it shocking Apple allowed a top-heavy weight distribution in the Pro's due to their camera/lens setup. I'm sure there is a reason I/we just not aware of though.

Samsung is pushing their in-house screen technology for foldable's hard, and I applaud them for this. They still need to resolve that crease issue, where other manufactures opted to license Motorola's sweet fold design-solution (barely any crease at all; Motorola RAZR 5G/2022). Honestly I think the real solution will be roll-able screen phones. Same size and weight distribution, more rigid, possibility of two-sided screens enabled (camera selfie screen, showing off documents, a map with directions so you and others in your troupe can all see without huddling side by side, etc). And I think Apple can thrive with such a device, versus a foldable. Samsung does have that dust and water resistance though, a MAJOR consideration required for such devices.

For now it's Mini all the way for me.

 

[snipr125]

Nice. I think with the Z Fold's weight you described is regarding its balance. I find it shocking Apple allowed a top-heavy weight distribution in the Pro's due to their camera/lens setup. I'm sure there is a reason I/we just not aware of though.

Samsung is pushing their in-house screen technology for foldable's hard, and I applaud them for this. They still need to resolve that crease issue, where other manufactures opted to license Motorola's sweet fold design-solution (barely any crease at all; Motorola RAZR 5G/2022). Honestly I think the real solution will be roll-able screen phones. Same size and weight distribution, more rigid, possibility of two-sided screens enabled (camera selfie screen, showing off documents, a map with directions so you and others in your troupe can all see without huddling side by side, etc). And I think Apple can thrive with such a device, versus a foldable. Samsung does have that dust and water resistance though, a MAJOR consideration required for such devices.

For now it's Mini all the way for me.

A foldable iPhone like the Oppo Find N would be perfect for us Mini owners!

 

[ignatius345]

I have had comments made about my SE’16 in 2022 as they are extremely rare to see in the wild but that is a 6 year old phone so it’s understandable.

I have an old SE1 kicking around that we use as a music player and general floater device in the household. I could actually see this being a pretty great choice for those who want an extremely pocketable and less immersive device. Sadly it's not getting iOS updates anymore...

 

[DeepIn2U]

I have been in a very similar situation, except I actually ordered the 14 Pro to replace my 12 mini (really wanted to have the telephoto lens and macro feature) but returned it because it was just too heavy and big and therefore not worth the 1400€ for me.
Got a 13 mini product (RED) with 256 GB instead since I got a cash back deal which put it just under 800€ while prices for the 13 mini are increasing everywhere in Germany. I absolutely love everything about it, the minor improvements (like better cameras, slightly faster SoC, smaller Notch) as well as the way better battery life.
Also the dark/bold red of the 13 generation product (RED) just looks stunning and I like it way better than the kinda pale green of my previous 12 mini.

Only thing I am not yet sure about is whether I should get AppleCare+ again. I never had to use it in the 2 years I used the 12 mini (even though it hit the floor once or twice but took no serious damage with only some scratches in the aluminum frame). On the other hand I want to use the 13 mini as long as possible since there likely won't be another small iPhone and therefore some sort of coverage would be good. Luckily I still have some time to figure out if that's worth 180€ for me. 😅

I agree the Product(Red) 13 mini has THE best Red+Black trim balance ever done by Apple - even better than the SE2 version imho.

Important: AC+ in Canada and USA no longer has 2 returns only for subsidized repairs. It’s now unlimited: I’ve received an email directly from Apple and confirmed it online. Also paying monthly has no 2yr limit it ends until you cancel.

So if you plan on keeping the 13 mini as long as until Apple has a better (cameras, even longer than great battery life, a portrait+wide angle camera arrangement in the same or lighter dimensions of the) 13 mini it’ll serve you well.

Consider the out of warranty repair costs for case or screen repairs/replacement.

As the old saying “I’d rather have it and not use it, then need it and not have it”.