iPhone 13 Mini Still Expected Despite Lackluster iPhone 12 Mini Sales

[snipr125]

Ive said this in other threads, but no one knows what Apples actual sales forecasts and targets are for the Iphone 12 mini, to gauge whether its a success or not. On Macrumours look how many threads their are on the 12 mini, mini owners absolutely love their device including myself. I realise macrumours does not translate to the needs of the public however. The issue here is the price, 12 mini was released a month late and the fact that everyone is on lockdown so cant go to stores to handle the phone themselves so likely take the safe option and order the larger iphone 12 models online.

The 12 mini itself though is a fantastic phone there is no disputing this, with practically all tech sites and tech you tubers loving the device in their reviews.

 

[sracer]

There were SO many comments over the years on MR about how people wanted a smaller phone. I guess more noise on the internet doesn't translate to reality.

That sounds like an over-simplification. There's more to it than that.

Many people wanted a smaller phone. How small? Was the Mini not small enough?

For the last year, people have been in quarantine/isolation because of the pandemic, and not going out and about. Did the lack of mobility result in a lower demand for a smaller phone? Once things return to normal, will that demand return?

Psychologically, people think smaller should be less expensive. Was the Mini priced too high for the expected price? (Many people complain about the iPad Mini being more expensive than some larger iPad models)

 

[Lioness~]

Happy they will keep these, and hope they will continuing doing so
Will definitely go back to a smaller phone again next time. But I won’t go selling my XR until I am done with it, and it still fill my needs and are relatively new.

 

[CyberBob859]

I'm guessing that an iPhone 13 Mini may sell better than the 12 because 1) the iPhone SE2 won't be upgraded, and the processor (A13) and design will be another year older and 2) people now know that a much more capable and modern phone is available so people won't just default to the SE2 if they want a small phone.

 

[Powerguru]

I Will Be buying a Mini. Don’t care if it’s sales are a lackluster.

 

[ndtwong]

Add a finger print scanner and better battery life and sales will do just fine.

Everyone working from home does not help the need for a small portable phone.

 

[ian87w]

The question is, will Apple keep the XR and discontinue the SE (having the XR drop to $400), or will Apple keep the current SE and discontinue the XR.

 

[and 1989 others]

For me personally I wanted a 12Mini. I have always liked the form factor and design since the iphone 4.

The Pinch point was the price. £700! No way. We all know Apple is a premium brand but thats starting price it is too much. Before launch my limit was £499, and I suspect many others are in this position.

 

[VSMacOne]

Of course they will, it’s a no-brainer. The device costs less to make than an 6.1” iPhone 12 and it’s being sold at the same price point as last year’s iPhone 11 so people who upgrade and are not willing to go down to the smaller screen will shell out $100 more to get the 6.1” model. It’s a brilliant strategy if you’re Apple.

 

[mkoesel]

This actually makes sense, assuming the SE and the XR are dropped, the new range will look something like this:
12S Pro Max. $1,099
12S Pro $999
12S $799
12S Mini $699
12 $699
12 Mini $599
11 $499

Yes, that's one possibility. However, it's not clear that the lineup needs two phones at the same price point.

Also, the SE will probably stick around for at least another year. The last one lasted two and half years, and probably ought to have stayed longer given how quickly the additional lots Apple offered in early 2019 sold out.

 

[Mojo1019]

Thanks god, I love my 12 mini!

 

[ikir]

I love my 12 mini, I would love to have lidar anyway. Mini is for few, Apple know for sure. We have titles with “lackluster sales” but many companies would love to have these numbers.

 

[Quicksilver867]

Still holding out for TouchID in some form or another. 13mini+TouchID would be an instant buy.

 

[orthorim]

The mini is the only 12 that looks reasonable - other than that, the 12 is the ugliest new iPhone Apple has ever made. Battery life is way worse than the 11 (pro); it's faster but nobody will notice since the 11 pro A13 was already super fast... it has some 5 G bits that are completely useless... I like the ceramic front but looking at all of them in the shop, the 12, 12 pro and 12 pro max all look ... turd-like... gross.

I am not really sure why - but my guess is that design took a back seat to other considerations, like cramming in useless and non-working 5 g antennas....

I got an 11 pro as my upgrade. Amazing battery life, smaller than the 12 pro, pretty much all the same features, and most importantly, it's gorgeous vs. the fugly 12 pro.... (gold color - the gold color 12 pro is particularly bad, IDK really what happened there... pactific blue is alright)

 

[dsudorion]

The question is why are people buying a mini phone? Is it for the size or is it because it’s cheaper than the larger phones? If it’s the former than the XR and 11 won’t factor into the sales too much. The SE would have impacted on the sales as that is a smaller phone too.

The pandemic excuse can go both ways. Yes maybe people were staying in more so didn’t need a portable device so went for larger phones. However many people buy larger phones because they don’t want to carry around a tablet/laptop and a phone. However being at home means you have access to your other devices like tablets and computers and therefore could get a smaller phone.

I came from the 2016 SE and I really don't get the huge phone thing that's going on. I want to be able to do most of my tasks with one hand. The smaller bezel on more recent phones in combination with a somewhat bigger phone are exactly what I wanted. I actually thought the Mini would be a huge succes, but that's probably because I saw it from my own needs and wishes. The new SE is indeed cheaper but a lot bigger too. And yes, battery life is not all what it should be, but it's still supposed to be better than the new SE.

 

[Moonjumper]

I want an iPhone Mini, but stuck at home my phone just sits on the desk most of the time. I'm keeping hold of my SE1 for a while longer. There is also the issue of not seeing the phone in real life, including judging potential PWM issues.

 

[Kabeyun]

The camera system isn’t hobbled, and if they tweak the battery life a little bit, I’m totally in.

 

[StevieD100]

If there is in-screen TouchID then I'll buy one in a flash. FaceId is naff all use when wearing a full-face motorcycle helmet. It is a real faff to have to remove the helmet when wanting to use the phone for say route planning when I have to remove my gloves in order for the touchscreen to work. My helmet has speakers and a microphone (BT paired with the phone and handlebar controls).
Until then I'll carry on with my iPhone8.

 

[ph001bi]

Yes, that's one possibility. However, it's not clear that the lineup needs two phones at the same price point.

Also, the SE will probably stick around for at least another year. The last one lasted two and half years, and probably ought to have stayed longer given how quickly the additional lots Apple offered in early 2019 sold out.

I wondered about the two devices at the same price too but it's actually quite a common marketing positioning. Last year big model or this year small model at the same price. If you favour size you go for the 12, if you favour tech you go for the 12S mini.

 

[blairh]

The SE has and will continue to kill the Mini.

 

[Gherkin]

If there's a 13 Mini and Verizon has the same deals as last year (existing customers can trade in the two year old model (in my case iPhone 11) for ~$400 off) then I'll most likely upgrade to it this November.

 

[citysnaps]

The market has spoken. Simple as that.

 

[chucker23n1]

I wish the mini were fatter. Give it a chance to have better battery life. Not all iPhones need to be the same thickness.

As for sales…

• as others have pointed out, many who were in the market for a small phone got the SE, not knowing another small phone would be announced just half a year later
• the 12 mini and 12 are likely on a different sales trajectory than the 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max. Those who buy the newest iPhone in its first or second quarter are most likely to want the high-end features. Those who don't, therefore, may be more amenable to less featureful iPhones.
• even a relatively low sales number compared to other iPhone models is still a fairly massive amount of sales.

 

[LizardFace]

I’m just basking in the schadenfreude of those who were so sure the public wanted a small phone format, that phones had gotten too big and the small form factor would take off like a rocket to dominate the market once gain. Not.

I love the mini. I don't need to upgrade now, but when I do, it's going to be a mini. My friend has one and I love it.

 

[iBreatheApple]

There were SO many comments over the years on MR about how people wanted a smaller phone. I guess more noise on the internet doesn't translate to reality.

I was one of those comments and
I didn’t get one. I wanted an “iPhone 5 sized device” at the largest. It wasn’t enough to me for it to include more screen in a smaller-ish body.