iPhone 12 mini iPhone 12 Mini: Talking Points

[Channan]

And the diagonal Apple gives is to the extension of the rounded corners which makes the visual area difficult to compare to a true 16:9.

If we want to get even more technical, because of the notch and rounded corners, the status bar takes up even more vertical space than the notch-less iPhones do. The swipe indicator at the bottom of the screen also takes up additional space on the 12 mini’s screen. Both of these things further decrease the usable space for content on the iPhone 12 mini compared to the Plus iPhones.

I’m not trying to argue against people buying an iPhone 12 mini. Again, I love mine. I just don’t want people to think they can switch from a Plus iPhone to an iPhone 12 mini and get the same experience. If you bought a Plus iPhone in the past because it was difficult to view content on the smaller iPhone screens, then the mini is not for you.

 

[ericg301]

In terms of screen size, diagonal measurement is not at all the same as area in square inches/centimeters. This is the reason why a 4:3 screen at the same diagonal measurement as a 16:9 screen can be 5-10% larger in area. It will be very noticeable on the phone when actually consuming content, if you are switching back and forth anyway. The 5.5" size feels much less narrow/cramped in, although it does come at the cost of a larger chassis.

View attachment 1677247
Here's a diagram and some numbers if you don't believe me.

i believe you and i realize what you're saying. but you're nerding out too much. i'm talking about real world screen size, based on apple's own comparison tool.

 

[snipr125]

I believe the iPhone 12 mini should have just been called “iPhone 12” and the 6.1 version called “iPhone 12 Plus” in line with the previous naming convention (4.7 and 5.5 versions).

Also something that a lot of people don’t talk about is the resolution/ppi of the 12 mini. Finally we have a 1080p screen in a regular iPhone, and not only that due to the smaller screen size it equates to 476 ppi which is the highest ppi on any iPhone ever released. I know its a pentile display (2 sub pixels), but still it’s super sharp to my eyes. After being used to 326 ppi for so long, this is a big deal in my opinion, although Apples LCD p3 screens are excellent so not complaining about them, just the previous 326 ppi resolution that Apple have been obsessed with for years.

 

[Tulipo]

I couldn’t disagree more about real world screen size difference. The plus size phones are noticeably larger. Even more so in real world when the screen is on and you are actually using the phone. Not even close. The X had a “larger screen” than my 6s plus, but the first thing I noticed when I turned on my X on day one was how small the screen actually was. This is because it’s so damn narrow compared to the plus size phone I had - this is real world experience.

When I look at my wife’s mini it seems super narrow. It’s noticeably more narrow than our old X imo. It’s a fantastic size but the size difference between the mini and a plus is not even in the same ballpark when it comes to most things. The only time my X actually felt it’s “size” was when I watched YouTube videos with the video stretch to fit the screen. In every other use it felt noticeably smaller than my 6s plus.

 

[maerz001]

i believe you and i realize what you're saying. but you're nerding out too much. i'm talking about real world screen size, based on apple's own comparison tool.

Maybe with real world you mean your world which is subjective. In real “real world” its objectively almost 20% smaller.
And in practical world it’s narrower and media content in portrait mode is smaller...

 

[Channan]

Maybe with real world you mean your world which is subjective. In real “real world” its objectively almost 20% smaller.
And in practical world it’s narrower and media content in portrait mode is smaller...

It’s useless to continue arguing. This dude is trolling at this point. He mentioned “real world” size by comparing it to “Apple’s own comparison tool” (tool meaning a single diagonal width measurement). It doesn’t matter that the size is objectively significantly smaller because one measurement is about the same, which means they must be the same size. OP has probably never even held a Plus iPhone to know how wrong he is.

 

[firoze]

Here are the actual dimensions of various iPhone screens, copied from this Site:

SizeScreens.com

SizeScreens will help you find the detailed specification of smartphone screens, VR headsets, tablets, and smartwatches

www.sizescreens.com

(Note: D=diagonal, H=height, W=width)

iPhone 7 Plus
D (139.7 mm), H (122 mm), W (68 mm)
H (4.8 in), W (2.7 in)

iPhone X
D (147.3 mm), H (134 mm), W (62mm)
H (5.27 in), W (2.43 in)

iPhone 12 Mini
D (137 mm), H (124.5 mm), W (57.5 mm)
H (4.9 in), W (2.26 in)

iPhone 12 / 12 Pro
D (155 mm), H (141 mm), W (65 mm)
H (5.54 in), W (2.56 in)

iPhone 12 Pro Max
D (170.2 mm), H (154.5 mm), W (71.3 mm)
H (6.08 in), W (2.81 in)

As you can see, the width of the Mini screen is considerably narrower than the other iPhones. For better readability a wider screen is always preferable rather than a taller one, at least that has been my experience.

Having said that, I think the 12 Mini is a very desirable phone and I may well buy one.

 

[Banich2]

I don't mind the Mini name, as my first iPod was a powder blue iPod Mini in 2003, BUT it's larger than the first SEVEN iPhones.

I distinctly remember Apple saying that any phone bigger than the 5 would be ergonomically challenging because of the nature of a human thumb.
Also, remember when late-middle-aged men in the late '90s and early '00s wore those flexible, vinyl cases on their SprintPCS flip phones that clipped to their waists? I do, and it was disgusting. Pocketable phones were prized for their small size when they came out back then.

The 6/7/8 was an alright size, but the practical need to use a case if you were leaving the house made it almost a little too large. I have 2 big dogs that I have to walk every day, and my Xs was really, really pushing it with its size, and the weight was borderline too heavy. Then the 11 came out and it was nuts...the entry-level size was stupid big, definitely a 2 hander for the majority of Earth's population...

The Max size is just completely crazy to me, and if I had it at work or the grocery store or something, I would have to carry it because it's too big for a pocket. I've seen people say, "Oh, well, I use my watch and I keep the phone in a bag" and that confuses me, too, as I have an Apple Watch 5, and ever though it's been out for 5 years, it still can't be trusted beyond notifications, if even those. The only use case of a pro max I'm aware of is those women with the prostitute fingernails who take 30-100 selfies a day, or maybe someone who wants to film a motion picture on it.

If someone makes fun of your Mini, tell them to blow it out their...

 

[JM]

It seems like there's a lot of misconceptions and misguided takes on the new iPhone 12 Mini—here at MR, on Reddit, and on other Mac-related forums I frequent. I've had mine since release day, and spent a lot of time online defending it. It seems like this is a polarizing device—people either love or hate it. So if you want to help me defend it, I came up with these talking points.

(also I know why Apple named it the Mini but I think calling it the iPhone Air would have been better. Mini implies less, implies childlike...implies cute...and that makes some people uncomfortable.)

All comparisons taken from

iPhone - Compare Models

Compare features and technical specifications for iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone SE, and many more.

www.apple.com

SCREEN SIZE

The screen size of the Mini is 5.4" diagonal. For comparison, the regular 11, 12 and 12 Pro is 6.1". The X/XS is 5.8". The 6-7-8-SE series was 4.7" and the plus version of those phones was 5.5".

So let's put that in perspective. The screen size of the Mini is virtually the same as the 6-7-8 PLUS phones (yes I know there's a notch to consider and PPI and other technical nitpitcks--but from a practical and real-world comparison, they are virtually the same). In fact, the entire Mini fits perfectly inside the LCD SCREEN of the 6-7-8 plus phones. In other words,THE IPHONE 12 MINI HAS VIRTUALLY THE SAME SCREEN SIZE OF APPLE'S LARGEST PHONE (8 Plus) FROM JUST 3 YEARS AGO.

BATTERY

(For the sake of this discussion, I'm not counting size of actual battery in mAH because there are too many other variables....including software optimization, LCD vs OLED, etc. I'm only focusing on real-world practical usage, which Apple uses video playback as their metric.)

The Mini is rated at 15 hours video playback. The 11 and 12 are rated at 17. The iPhone X is 13 hours, XS is 14 hours, and XS Max is 15 hours. XR is 16 hours. iPhone 7 and 8 were 13 hours and the 6-7-8 plus was 14 hours.

So using this metric, the Mini is equal to the XS Max, better than the X, XS series, only one hour less than the XR series, and 1 hour BETTER than the 6-7-8 plus phones.

In perspective, that means that the battery life of the Mini is BETTER THAN EVERY OTHER IPHONE RELEASED BEFORE THE 11. We didn't see people say complain that the "Battery life on the iPhone X/XS is trash!" like I'm seeing now with the Mini. In other words, IPHONE 12 MINI HAS VIRTUALLY THE SAME BATTERY LIFE AS APPLE'S LARGEST PHONE (XS MAX) FROM JUST 2 YEARS AGO.

USAGE
If you consider your phone your primary media and gaming device, then the Mini will probably be too small for you. But I'm going to guess that most users are like me and don't use their phones for anything more than short YouTube videos and quick casual games. If I want to watch a movie or show, I'll use my iPad. If I want to play an immersive game, I'll use my iPad. And if I need to be more productive than just sending a quick email, I'll use my Mac.

The iPhone Mini is the perfect phone for users who consider their phones to be first and foremost a portable, pocketable device. A tool to quickly scan through email, calendar, social feeds, news and sports, take a pic or two, send a text and make a call. Maybe play a quick game while I'm in a waiting room or watching TV. I want a phone that fits in my gym shorts that I can take on a run without worrying about it falling out.

Remember, phones have gotten bigger but our hands have stayed the same. Originally, the iPhone 5 was the first phone with a bigger screen because it required a bigger battery to power LTE. That was the pinnacle of portability, and I'm thrilled Apple has gone back to a smaller size.

So TLDR: yes, the iPhone 12 Mini is a small phone but it's not a lesser phone. It has the same screen size of Apple's previous largest phone, and a better battery than any phone before last year's 11.

HELP ME SPREAD THE MINI MANIFESTO!

Yeah! iPhone air would have been good

 

[JM]

I believe the iPhone 12 mini should have just been called “iPhone 12” and the 6.1 version called “iPhone 12 Plus” in line with the previous naming convention (4.7 and 5.5 versions).

Also something that a lot of people don’t talk about is the resolution/ppi of the 12 mini. Finally we have a 1080p screen in a regular iPhone, and not only that due to the smaller screen size it equates to 476 ppi which is the highest ppi on any iPhone ever released. I know its a pentile display (2 sub pixels), but still it’s super sharp to my eyes. After being used to 326 ppi for so long, this is a big deal in my opinion, although Apples LCD p3 screens are excellent so not complaining about them, just the previous 326 ppi resolution that Apple have been obsessed with for years.

The $730 price tag would have been easier to swallow if it was called iPhone 12

 

[George Dawes]

I really like the mini , after lugging around my 8 plus with case I’m going smaller not bigger next iPhone

The screen is the same size but the phone so much more compact and lighter

Very tempted...

 

[thettareddast]

As I said above, I'm talking about real world, practical comparisons. I laid my Mini ontop of the screen on an 8+, and it fit perfectly inside (just a tad narrower).

While I realize that some people do get concerned with aspect ratios, PPI, and the like, the majority or users don't know or don't care. They're just looking at overall size and what that means for their hands and pockets.

The mini has a smaller display than the other phone, by actual surface area. Technically, mathematically, factually, it is smaller.

In “real life”, in use, it is also perceivably smaller.

 

[JW313]

Its 2020 yall. The OP believes the screens are the same. If he believes it, it is true.

 

[Phone Junky]

THE IPHONE 12 MINI HAS VIRTUALLY THE SAME SCREEN SIZE OF APPLE'S LARGEST PHONE (8 Plus) FROM JUST 3 YEARS AGO.

As long as you believe that, that's all that matters.

 

[JW313]

As long as you believe that, that's all that matters.

This is the tolerant view we've grown to adopt in 2020. Good work! 2+2=5

 

[ericg301]

Its 2020 yall. The OP believes the screens are the same. If he believes it, it is true.

ya'll are too funny

 

[MrKennedy]

It seems like there's a lot of misconceptions and misguided takes on the new iPhone 12 Mini—here at MR, on Reddit, and on other Mac-related forums I frequent. I've had mine since release day, and spent a lot of time online defending it. It seems like this is a polarizing device—people either love or hate it. So if you want to help me defend it, I came up with these talking points.

(also I know why Apple named it the Mini but I think calling it the iPhone Air would have been better. Mini implies less, implies childlike...implies cute...and that makes some people uncomfortable.)

All comparisons taken from

iPhone - Compare Models

Compare features and technical specifications for iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone SE, and many more.

www.apple.com

SCREEN SIZE

The screen size of the Mini is 5.4" diagonal. For comparison, the regular 11, 12 and 12 Pro is 6.1". The X/XS is 5.8". The 6-7-8-SE series was 4.7" and the plus version of those phones was 5.5".

So let's put that in perspective. The screen size of the Mini is virtually the same as the 6-7-8 PLUS phones (yes I know there's a notch to consider and PPI and other technical nitpitcks--but from a practical and real-world comparison, they are virtually the same). In fact, the entire Mini fits perfectly inside the LCD SCREEN of the 6-7-8 plus phones. In other words,THE IPHONE 12 MINI HAS VIRTUALLY THE SAME SCREEN SIZE OF APPLE'S LARGEST PHONE (8 Plus) FROM JUST 3 YEARS AGO.

BATTERY

(For the sake of this discussion, I'm not counting size of actual battery in mAH because there are too many other variables....including software optimization, LCD vs OLED, etc. I'm only focusing on real-world practical usage, which Apple uses video playback as their metric.)

The Mini is rated at 15 hours video playback. The 11 and 12 are rated at 17. The iPhone X is 13 hours, XS is 14 hours, and XS Max is 15 hours. XR is 16 hours. iPhone 7 and 8 were 13 hours and the 6-7-8 plus was 14 hours.

So using this metric, the Mini is equal to the XS Max, better than the X, XS series, only one hour less than the XR series, and 1 hour BETTER than the 6-7-8 plus phones.

In perspective, that means that the battery life of the Mini is BETTER THAN EVERY OTHER IPHONE RELEASED BEFORE THE 11. We didn't see people say complain that the "Battery life on the iPhone X/XS is trash!" like I'm seeing now with the Mini. In other words, IPHONE 12 MINI HAS VIRTUALLY THE SAME BATTERY LIFE AS APPLE'S LARGEST PHONE (XS MAX) FROM JUST 2 YEARS AGO.

USAGE
If you consider your phone your primary media and gaming device, then the Mini will probably be too small for you. But I'm going to guess that most users are like me and don't use their phones for anything more than short YouTube videos and quick casual games. If I want to watch a movie or show, I'll use my iPad. If I want to play an immersive game, I'll use my iPad. And if I need to be more productive than just sending a quick email, I'll use my Mac.

The iPhone Mini is the perfect phone for users who consider their phones to be first and foremost a portable, pocketable device. A tool to quickly scan through email, calendar, social feeds, news and sports, take a pic or two, send a text and make a call. Maybe play a quick game while I'm in a waiting room or watching TV. I want a phone that fits in my gym shorts that I can take on a run without worrying about it falling out.

Remember, phones have gotten bigger but our hands have stayed the same. Originally, the iPhone 5 was the first phone with a bigger screen because it required a bigger battery to power LTE. That was the pinnacle of portability, and I'm thrilled Apple has gone back to a smaller size.

So TLDR: yes, the iPhone 12 Mini is a small phone but it's not a lesser phone. It has the same screen size of Apple's previous largest phone, and a better battery than any phone before last year's 11.

HELP ME SPREAD THE MINI MANIFESTO!

Sir, this is a Wendy's

 

[Phone Junky]

Here ya go. Real world comparison.

 

[Robbosan]

Here ya go. Real world comparison.

View attachment 1679660

Yeah mini is the same size lol.

 

[DumbPhone]

Yeah! iPhone air would have been good

no like bad word disdain?... mee put ignore.kaa

 

[Robbosan]

For $1200AUD here the mini is worst value of the lot imo. Apple would be creaming the profit on them, they would be loving the mini buyers.

 

[Hadron]

It's 5.4 vs 5.5". Taken straight from Apple. That .1" is virtually indistinguishable.

You've said this in several threads. But with different aspect ratios you can't just compare the diagonals, that's not how triganometry works.

So, let's compare screen dimensions (treating both screens as rectangles and ignoring notches):

* 12 Mini: 124.9mm x 57.6mm
* 8 Plus: 121.6 mm x 68.4mm

So the 12 Mini screen is 3mm taller than the 8 Plus but more than 1cm narrower (= 0.4" if you prefer those units). These are not "virtually indistinguishable", that cm of display width is very significant. Of course if, like me, you don't like big phones it's a positive, but others will legitimately find it a negative. But pretending there's no difference simply undermines the credibility of anything else you say.

Bear in mind when I say this that the Mini is the only iPhone 12 model that interests me at all. So I'm not knocking the device, just trying to help by pointing out that repeating a false statement doesn't help your case (and it's an obviously false statement, because as you've said yourself in this thread the old Plus phone's displays are wider than the 12 Mini device itself...).

 

[JM]

no like bad word disdain?... mee put ignore.kaa

Umm... Thanks? ?

Probably for the best ? Happy Holidays

 

[donnie.]

I get that the comparison of the mini screen with that of the plus of three years ago is probably a flawed comparison. But I'm in sympathy with the OP's gist concerning the size of the mini and I think it does help put things in some perspective. I'm constantly seeing reviewers declare in amazement "this thing is SO TINY" or seeing the battery life dissed, as if it's the smallest device that's ever been made. Things change so fast. Huge is now the new normal.

 

[thettareddast]

For $1200AUD here the mini is worst value of the lot imo. Apple would be creaming the profit on them, they would be loving the mini buyers.

Why would the profit on the mini be different than the 12 standard? They all have the same componentry. There is insignificant marginal savings on materials cost. Why would they love the mini buyers any more than the 12, 12 pro, 12 pro max?