This is not normal. A working phone with a normally working firmware will only heat up in games and the like. During any other use, excessive heating is a consequence of a malfunction. Perhaps the firmware was poorly installed. In any case, there should NOT be any heating.
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iPhone 13 mini iphone 13 mini: how much longer a viable device?
- Thread starter rwh63
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I updated my 13 mini on Friday. Over the weekend, seemed to operate normally. Heat, battery and performance haven’t been an issue since then, but I’ve been on WiFi all weekend. Maybe you’re right and it was just a bad firmware update before.
I have used an iPhone 13 mini since its 2021 launch. I absolutely love it. And I still have an actual Apple leather case on it, before they switched to the "finewoven" crap. I recently paid $89 for a new battery, hoping to keep this phone as my primary driver for another 2-3 years. Even the old battery still rated 88% battery health after 3.5 years of heavy usage.
My mini gets hot when on a charging pad and when using wired CarPlay + Waze + music. It often charges to 80% and says charging on hold due to heat.
Antenna size matters. My wife often has one bar more on her standard 12 than I do on my mini.
Because repeatedly switching between WiFi and cellular is one of the most complex tasks a cellphone has to do, I reboot my mini every day or so. I typically only reboot my iPad after updating.
Batteries degrade. My M1 MacBook Air had notably shorter runtimes after 9 months. Same with my M2 iPad Air.
I’m surprised that my mini runs as long as it does after 2.5 years of heavy use. Still shows 91%, which is silly. When I know that I’m going to be out for more than 4 hours, I stick my Anker MagSafe battery in my backpack or the car’s glovebox.
I’m so unimpressed with Apple Intelligence, there’s no way to forecast how long I will stick with my minis. My 8 Plus is frozen on ios16 and all the apps still work. I’m not particularly worried about security because, well hell, every half year or so a “trustworthy” company or government agency is compromised and my information ends up on the dark web anyway.
I've got a 13 mini in red with 128GB storage, great condition since it always stayed in a case for the two years it was my primary phone. I loved it and only upgraded to the 15 Pro because I wanted the Pro features, namely the cameras and ProMotion display. If I could get those in a mini-sized phone, that would be the perfect iPhone.
Make me an offer if you want, it was a T-Mobile phone but has been unlocked since I no longer owe anything on it.
Make me an offer if you want, it was a T-Mobile phone but has been unlocked since I no longer owe anything on it.
Not true, at least not always… there are apps like Canvas Teacher that do nothing but display text documents. Not only does using it for 5, 10 mins heat up the 13 mini a lot, … using the app on my ipad which you’d think would and should be far superior and able to handle (ipad pro 2024), the same app heats up the still pretty new iPad.
Yes I understand this is just one app but it happens with others too, this one is particularly noticeable since i have to use it regularly and since it’s so crazy (to me) to picture people playing intensive-graphics games and such on devices, while I’m simply trying to read text.
As another poster said, in so many words, if you seriously have been using a 2016 SE (!?) for this long… you can _probably_ endure a 13 Mini and use it til… 2030 or so.
For me personally, having used my 13 Mini for not quite 3 years, I hope to get 1-2 years more out of it… however the slowdowns, glitches, battery drain (mine is at 89%) are certainly more and more noticeable. Nothing too severe, yet, but not worth dealing with, if you have the money and can get a later model SE (or Mini, I guess). Ultimately it seems like it depends most on what you use your phone for, and how many hours a day, i.e. for my own usage, most of the time my ipad and laptop are nearby for 90% of work and other needed tasks, which I like because usually my phone is used for communicating with people, checking weather and email (not writing email just reading it), and mostly very simple stuff.
Good luck with your decision, let us know what you decide. I think many of us on this site welcome either a newer Mini or at least another SE model, but no one seems to know any “Mac rumors” about either of those coming anytime in the foreseeable future. 😥
Yes, I’ve been using a version of the OGSE since 2017. Had a 4s before that. I know the software will eventually start causing issues with compatibility, and the mini is the better longer term refuge from big devices. I like the form factor of the SE, like the home button and headphone jack. I have the replacement shipping now. It will be be new with a 100% battery. Should take me into next year, after I get a new laptop.
I suspect that Waze is also processor intensive. I only use it because it shows kilometers to toll plazas and Google Maps and Apple Maps don’t. (I never use Apple Maps because the US/UK/metric setting is global. My gringo mind can handle kilometers but I want my weight in pounds and my walking pace in miles.)
This is why Apple didn’t update the Mini: People’s expectations are warped.
Apple has improved battery life immensely with Plus and Pro Max models… yet people keep reporting the same 10-12 hours of SOT.
Why?
Because people’s usage patterns have gotten incredibly heavy. Which iPhone gave 10-12 hours of SOT? The 6s Plus… with moderate use. People use video-heavy social media apps all the time with high brightness and Cellular, they use it for video conferencing, they use it for Maps… there’s no improvement in efficiency that can withstand that at the level people expect.
The 7 Plus gave me 10-12 hours of light use on iOS 10. The 16 Plus on iOS 18 gives me 27 hours of light SOT. Maybe even more. There has been a ridiculous improvement, but people chew through it because their usage patterns are too heavy. In this world of heavy usage, the Mini has no place. It’s too expensive for the battery life it provides, for most heavy users. Those who like the Mini often are light to Moderate users with a SOT of about 4-5 hours. That’s doable. If a light user, maybe you can get 8 hours. But most aren’t, so Apple discontinued the Mini.
No, a space grey 128 gb SE. a replacement/return, so already paid for. I’ll save the mini, maybe next year. Need to decide on what refurb MacBook Pro now.
Although I have no inside knowledge of why the 12/13 mini was dropped, I suspect it was battery life. I don’t mind because I’m retired and am rarely away from a charger (home, car) for more than four hours, but I can see where the short life would be a deal breaker for others. Before my 8 plus dropped to 80%, it was a champ of both battery runtime and cellular signal strength.
Everything is a trade off.
My 13 mini is still going strong with 75% on the original battery. I've turned the animations off which helps. I finally upgraded to a 15 and the size is far too big, but I have noticed a significant performance gain.