5% of a very large number of phones is still a very large number of phones. I will hang onto my iPhone 13 mini, thanks very much.
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There Is No iPhone 14 Mini: Here's Why [Updated]
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Most people just don't want small phones anymore. The original iPhone SE was the proof. At the time of release it had nice specs on par with the iPhone 6S. I used to be a reseller back then and I remember it was extremely difficult to resell one as most people would opt for even the lower spec, slower iPhone 6 over the SE due to the screen size.
I also remember retailers heavily discounting it towards the end because it was so difficult to sell them. I would've been more shocked if the Mini was a success than the way it turned out. The market is just too small to be worthwhile to Apple.
I'm glad Apple did make the mini phones and test the market. Now we can all move forward and put the issue to rest. It's dead.
I also remember retailers heavily discounting it towards the end because it was so difficult to sell them. I would've been more shocked if the Mini was a success than the way it turned out. The market is just too small to be worthwhile to Apple.
I'm glad Apple did make the mini phones and test the market. Now we can all move forward and put the issue to rest. It's dead.
Nobody is talking about niche. We’re talking about (at worst) small, medium and large devices. Or more simply, adequate / too big. 😂
The mini is great for running. Doesn’t flop around in my pocket. I have a 13 mini and plan to hold onto it for a long time. Once I have to replace, SE might be the only option to keep the form small.
A key difference in that all the other times (include now with the 14) people have seen it as $100 to upgrade to a larger model (a Plus or a Max) vs with the mini it is save $100 to downgrade to a smaller model (a mini).
The issue is where can they best use the components and manufacturing capacity to generate the highest margins. Simplifying the supply chain reduces costs as well.
If that is the case, you should only make the highest margin product mix.
The lack of a competitor for that market is a good sign it doesn't exist.
It's a matter of opportunity costs - where is the most revenue and margin to be made. Just because a product is profitable is not a reason to keep building it, unless it is a cash cow.
“In some respects, the iPhone 14 Plus mirrors the iPhone 12 mini, offering the latest iPhone's features in a different display size. Instead of offering a lightweight small-screen option, customers can now choose an even bigger battery and 6.7-inch display…”
You guys are seriously adventurous today!
iPhone 14 Plus, in fact, is entirely opposite of mini, being bigger, heavier and more expensive.
You guys are seriously adventurous today!
iPhone 14 Plus, in fact, is entirely opposite of mini, being bigger, heavier and more expensive.
At 200 million total iPhone sales/year, even 3% is 6 million iPhone minis per year. That may be small in terms of total market share, but it's still "a lot of people" even though apparently not enough for Apple. I'd also add that Apple never released a Pro version of the mini. There have to be at least some people who passed on it bc the mini lacked the very best cameras available (that was certainly a consideration for me).
I'll say this - my wife absolutely positively refuses to get a larger phone. Had a 12 mini and got a 13 mini fearing it'd be the last. Not sure what she'll do when it's EOL'd or lost/broken.
I'll say this - my wife absolutely positively refuses to get a larger phone. Had a 12 mini and got a 13 mini fearing it'd be the last. Not sure what she'll do when it's EOL'd or lost/broken.
Even 3 percent is a big niche,
So the demand is there. Even though it's not as popular as bigger models, it still sold more than almost any other non-iPhone model. There are millions of customers there.
So the demand is there. Even though it's not as popular as bigger models, it still sold more than almost any other non-iPhone model. There are millions of customers there.
The problem is simple: they called it the "Mini". That's the problem. I work with teenagers. When I told them I have the iPhone 12 Mini they snickered because I said Mini. If I just said I have the iPhone 12, they wouldn't have snickered.
Apple, listen to me. Just call it the iPhone 14. Drop the word "Mini." Period.
Apple, listen to me. Just call it the iPhone 14. Drop the word "Mini." Period.
My wife is a petite lady and has small hands. She loves her Mini. Of her 4 girl friends, 2 more have a Mini and the other 2 have a Max/Plus that goes in the purse. There’s no in between with tiny girls, it’s either the big phone or the little one 😆
Sounds okay to me and others. Make the mini thicker to hide the camera bump.
My wife petite too. She is a 4.5 ring size. I thought she would go with a mini 13 last year. She hated it. She went with a regular 13.
Except Kirk proved, then said, the needs of the one outweighed the need of the many.
My brother did the exact same thing and upgraded from a 12 to a 13 mini.
I think you’re too dismissive of the niche market who prefers one-hand held devices. Apple will make a smaller screened phone again some day, in one branding or another.
Will it be every year or two, or during a pandemic shipping/supply/inflation crisis? Unlikely. If we get to the end of the decade though without seeing a new smaller-screened phone, I’ll be shocked. While the sales for the Mini were dwarfed, 3-10% of total iPhone sales is still a massive number they’ll eventually address. We saw it with the iPad mini, it’d go years between updates — but it’s got a niche.
Would be interesting to see the iPhone model share in different markets. When I roughly estimate the share of models (12 and up) from where I live here in Germany, I would say it's like: 50% 12/13, 40% Mini 12/13 and 10% Pro ...and like 0,00001% Pro Max (almost never seen one in the wild)
The mini is a great example of Apple NOT listening to Apple enthusiasts who want a small, premium, equal-to-the-pro phone.
But the 13 mini is a very powerful device, it's faster than any Android out there even today. Of the 6% of iPhone buyers each year who demand a small iPhone, there is still no Android equivalent to the 13 mini so Apple does not risk losing them or not gaining Android converts who also want a small phone. The 13 mini is already just fine and Apple doesn't even need to make or warehouse that many of them to fill years of demand for it.
This is when it all gets confusing. SE has never been anything “combined”, “redesigned”, etc. So far it has always reused the previous generations chassis. I guess it could be either XR or XS bodies with fresher internals. Then, if the next SE is XS-based, changing the screen tech from OLED to LCD would imply buying additional panels for a device that might not sell so well. Mini 12-13 won’t do either, as they are quite expensive to make and 13 mini is still being sold for 599$. So XR chassis are quite likely, as Apple could have a sub-500$ phone that is cheap to make, has a good battery, offers an LCD screen for people preferring it over OLED and is “big enough”, adding to the feeling that one gets “more for less”, which has been SE philosophy.
As a 12 mini user, I am planning to wait until next spring to see what that new SE is like and then probably get either that or 13 mini.
There’s the key word: focus. Apple did not focus on making the mini a Pro phone.
Mini is even itself a diminutive name, and it demonstrated Apple’s care (focus) about it.
Yes, it's a sad truth that we connaisseurs of reasonably sized phones have to face.
Although, it seems like kind of a self-fulfilling prophecy now. They're still asking a whooping 800€ for the 13 mini, well aware that the mini-formfactor is a unique selling point. No wonder nobody buys that.
Although, it seems like kind of a self-fulfilling prophecy now. They're still asking a whooping 800€ for the 13 mini, well aware that the mini-formfactor is a unique selling point. No wonder nobody buys that.