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Other We need a new iPhone mini

Silly John Fatty

Silly John Fatty

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Nov 6, 2012
1,820
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I love my 13 mini and I’d like to keep it, but…

First, it doesn’t have Apple intelligence, which I do appreciate. For example it summarises me news articles on my iPad Pro instead of having to read them. Saves me a lot of time. But I can’t do it on my 13 mini…

Second, I think the 4 GB RAM or whatever it has are starting to be insufficient… constant refreshing as soon as I switch to another app starts to become tiring…

But I absolutely do not have the space for a brick like the iPhone 17 Pro in my pocket! I’d love to have it, if it was the size of the 13 mini.

But right now, there’s no offer for my demand. Anyone else feel this way?
 
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I went from a 12 mini to a 16 and now a 17 (a family member got my 16, as they needed an upgrade).

The 17 will be a really nice upgrade from the mini and I think you'll get used to the size quicker than you think.

Here are some (not all) of the rather notable upgrades from the 13 mini:
  • 6.3‑inch ProMotion Display - The experience is super silky smooth. It's hard to go back once you have this. The screen size is perfect.
  • 256GB internal storage as standard
  • A huge increase in Battery Life - I usually get 2 days out of my iPhone 17
  • A19 Chip - I have never experienced the 17 slow down in any situation.
  • Apple Intelligence - This is a big deal.
    • Writing Tools
    • Live Translation
    • Notification Summaries, for email, texts, etc.
    • Phone Call screening (for unknown phone numbers, siri can ask a person who is calling and you get a summary before you need to answer the phone)
    • etc. etc.
  • 48MP cameras
    • Next-generation portraits with Focus and Depth Control
    • Macro photography
    • 2x zoom options
    • Cinematic video
    • etc. etc.
  • 18MP Center Stage front camera
  • Emergency SOS via satellite
  • Dynamic island
 
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The demand simply isn't there.

Get the regular 17 and you'll adjust to the larger size in no time as it's lightweight still.
 
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It’s such a shame too. I like it when apple do something different. Like the minis, and the air. Shame that they don’t sell. Got a feeling eventually apple will just start playing it safe every gen from now on.
 
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Son still has a 13 mini and it's pretty great, I miss it at times for sure.

I will say the 16e is the closest you can get now and is a solid upgrade from the 13 mini. No, it's not as small, but it's the smallest of the current line-up, and as light as the Air. It feels good in the hand, has great battery life (better than the 17 in my usage, though the 17 is solid for sure), and will be pretty future proofed with its 8gb of RAM and A18 processor. Unless you're addicted to the ultra-wide camera (which it lacks), I think the 16e is about as good as a mini-lover can get now.

The regular 17 is super nice as well, but is a bit larger and heavier than the 16e, though it comes with a nicer screen and better camera system. But it's also $200 more than the 16e.

But either way I agree with others, the Mini won't be coming back...
 
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It always surprises me how much mini hate there is. Makes me wonder if these people feel the same about compact cars and one-bedroom apartments.

Apple should suck it up and make Minis and Pluses on alternating years. Drum up an upgrade cycle.
 
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jntdroid said:
Son still has a 13 mini and it's pretty great, I miss it at times for sure.

I will say the 16e is the closest you can get now and is a solid upgrade from the 13 mini. No, it's not as small, but it's the smallest of the current line-up, and as light as the Air. It feels good in the hand, has great battery life (better than the 17 in my usage, though the 17 is solid for sure), and will be pretty future proofed with its 8gb of RAM and A18 processor. Unless you're addicted to the ultra-wide camera (which it lacks), I think the 16e is about as good as a mini-lover can get now.

The regular 17 is super nice as well, but is a bit larger and heavier than the 16e, though it comes with a nicer screen and better camera system. But it's also $200 more than the 16e.

But either way I agree with others, the Mini won't be coming back...
Click to expand...

We have the 16e and 17 in the household and they don't feel much different in hand to me. Considering small phones are unlikely to make a comeback, either of these would be good replacements for the mini currently.

Now the 17 Pro on the other hand is a chonker.
 
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The 13 mini still serves me well. It should receive around three more years of iOS support, and then usually you can still stay on an older iOS version for another two years or so. We’ll see what the 2030s will bring. Here’s hoping that eventually there will be another modern, compact and lightweight smartphone from one manufacturer or another.

In a pinch, something like the 16e will do. But I already found the mini a tad large compared to the OG SE.
 
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MKBHD said that phones need to be even bigger and thicker. And the parrots just repeat. So it’s not going to happen. I’m sorry. I’d buy one myself too.
 
Apple stopped making mini’s because they weren’t selling mini’s in any worthwhile numbers. I can’t see how they would need to bring the mini back.
 
jntdroid said:
I will say the 16e is the closest you can get now and is a solid upgrade from the 13 mini. No, it's not as small, but it's the smallest of the current line-up, and as light as the Air. It feels good in the hand, has great battery life (better than the 17 in my usage, though the 17 is solid for sure), and will be pretty future proofed with its 8gb of RAM and A18 processor. Unless you're addicted to the ultra-wide camera (which it lacks), I think the 16e is about as good as a mini-lover can get now.
Click to expand...

This. If I had to get a new phone today it would be this for these reasons.

I could not begin to list off features of the 17 just that I know I don't need them as getting by just fine with my Mini. And don't want to pay more for stuff I don't need/want.
 
It's seemed so weird to me. The iPhone 13 mini is already way bigger and heavier than, say, the first-generation iPhone SE (the form I wish was still current). I'd been baffled by the question of why so many people want something thicker and heavier that it actually snuffed the viability of the seemingly ideal sizes.

I think what I hadn't grasped is that many people today really do consider their iPhone their main device, and you want your main device to be more well-rounded. If it's the one you watch most of your content on, and do most of your work with, then the screen size and super performance and two-day battery are worth the size and weight.

(Sighs)

But it sure is lamentable from here.
 
If only.

But they won’t. Thoroughly enjoying my Air and don’t regret the move from my mini one bit.

At the end of the day, the majority of people use their phones for everything but making phone calls. They’re glorified portable content consumption devices.
 
bbates123 said:
As a mini user, I would say the Air is the next best alternative. Thinner, lighter, most hand-holdable.
Click to expand...

Air is far too wide in my opinion.

1761259319178.png

People who are ok with that kind of size increase, they could have gone Plus or Pro Max a long ago.
 
JPack said:
Air is far too wide in my opinion.

View attachment 2571797

People who are ok with that kind of size increase, they could have gone Plus or Pro Max a long ago.
Click to expand...

I gave the Air a try and it was both too wide and too tall. I couldn’t do the swipe up to unlock with one hand comfortably.

While none of the iPhones I’ve owned past the 4S were a full one-hander for me, at least I was still able to unlock all of them with one hand unlike the Air.
 
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rui no onna said:
I gave the Air a try and it was both too wide and too tall. I couldn’t do the swipe up to unlock with one hand comfortably.

While none of the iPhones I’ve owned past the 4S were a full one-hander for me, at least I was still able to unlock all of them with one hand unlike the Air.
Click to expand...

It's quite obvious from the photos Air is a big phone. When someone suggests going from mini to Air, they probably weren't invested in the mini form factor to begin with.
 
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