Hey guys,
Last night I decided to dig out my old iPhone X just to charge it and update the firmware. I immediately felt nostalgic holding it again. In my opinion it is the most gorgeous looking phone ever made! I never use cases because I want to fully enjoy my phones the way they were designed to look and feel. Besides, I’m always very careful with my (expensive) stuff, so the phone still looks brand new.
While it was on the charger, I started playing around with the phone a little bit and compared it to my iPhone 12 mini.
The first thing I noticed was how warm the screen on the X was - ridiculously warm/yellow. My Mini’s screen was super white next to it (using Google home screen in Safari on both devices). That wasn’t the X I remembered… So I decided to look in Settings where I quickly discovered that True Tone was ON. Then I repeated the side by side screen comparison with True Tone turned OFF and noticed that the X’s screen was actually whiter than the Mini’s. Not by much, though. However, as others have pointed out, it seems like the entire 12-series do have ‘warmer’ screens by design. Personally I don’t have a problem with the slightly warmer screen, but I was influenced by all those screen threads here on MacRumors, so I just wanted to check.
Secondly, when I first got the Mini and transferred all my info from the X, the first thing I noticed was how speedy the Mini was in comparison. It’s not that the X was sluggish, but the difference was very noticeable. Which of course is natural because of the newer processor in the Mini. However, this time around I didn’t feel like the difference was that significant. I could still use the X comfortably. In fact, I would never have upgraded if it wasn’t for Apple releasing the Mini last year. That was my one and only real complaint about the X: I wanted it to be a tad bit smaller, while keeping the same full screen design and all the same features/specs, albeit upgraded.
Back to design… Man, design-wise the X really puts the Mini to shame, when it comes to pure aesthetics. Even though I love my Mini, the X oozes elegance. It is a flashy phone (I have the silver one), whilst the Mini is much more subtle in its appearance. When you put them next to each other on a table in a poorly lit room, the Mini almost disappears while the X screams: Look at me, I’m gorgeous!
However, there is a downside to using a flashy phone where I’m currently living. When I pulled out my X I’d get many looks, while the subtle design of the Mini never gives me any looks (other than the occasional laugh from friends at how small it is). That’s a big advantage here. I’ve already had one X and one XS stolen from me. The last one got stolen at gunpoint actually… So, I always keep that in mind, and that’s also why I’m still holding on to my old X as a spare phone, in case my phone gets stolen again. Being without a phone, even just for a little while, these days really makes you feel like you’re kind of lost and out of touch. It’s not like I can reach all my contacts from a computer…
Square edges or rounded edges, that’s the question… This is where the Mini shines! The Mini is far easier to hold, not just because of its smaller size, but also because of its square edges. I find the «bar of soap» analogy that people tend to use to be quite fitting. I still find the X fine enough to handle, but there’s just no doubt that it’s much more slippery.
On to screen size. I feel that 5.8 is perfect for iOS. It takes a bit of time to adapt to the smaller 5.4 inch screen. For me it’s not a problem, though, as I can adapt quite easily, although I did feel the need to increase the text size on my Mini quite a bit, but that’s mainly because I’m getting older. I’ve never used glasses, but I can feel that my eyesight isn’t quite as good as it used to be. When it comes to the Max-line of iPhones, I think that Apple should utilise more from iPad OS - like split screen view etc., to take advantage of the large screen.
Battery life. Since my X’s battery health has been in the mid 80s since I last used it, and the Mini is still at 100%, I haven’t noticed any difference in battery life with my use.
To those of you who still use an iPhone X, I wouldn’t bother upgrading now unless you want a change in physical size, whether it’s smaller or bigger. The updated specs really are incremental.
That’s all, folks. Next time I dig out my X I’m going to compare the 2x telephoto lens with 2x digital zoom on the Mini because I have a feeling that the Mini’s 2x digital zoom is just as good. The camera certainly is better in all other ways, especially in low light settings.
Have a nice weekend
Cheers
Last night I decided to dig out my old iPhone X just to charge it and update the firmware. I immediately felt nostalgic holding it again. In my opinion it is the most gorgeous looking phone ever made! I never use cases because I want to fully enjoy my phones the way they were designed to look and feel. Besides, I’m always very careful with my (expensive) stuff, so the phone still looks brand new.
While it was on the charger, I started playing around with the phone a little bit and compared it to my iPhone 12 mini.
The first thing I noticed was how warm the screen on the X was - ridiculously warm/yellow. My Mini’s screen was super white next to it (using Google home screen in Safari on both devices). That wasn’t the X I remembered… So I decided to look in Settings where I quickly discovered that True Tone was ON. Then I repeated the side by side screen comparison with True Tone turned OFF and noticed that the X’s screen was actually whiter than the Mini’s. Not by much, though. However, as others have pointed out, it seems like the entire 12-series do have ‘warmer’ screens by design. Personally I don’t have a problem with the slightly warmer screen, but I was influenced by all those screen threads here on MacRumors, so I just wanted to check.
Secondly, when I first got the Mini and transferred all my info from the X, the first thing I noticed was how speedy the Mini was in comparison. It’s not that the X was sluggish, but the difference was very noticeable. Which of course is natural because of the newer processor in the Mini. However, this time around I didn’t feel like the difference was that significant. I could still use the X comfortably. In fact, I would never have upgraded if it wasn’t for Apple releasing the Mini last year. That was my one and only real complaint about the X: I wanted it to be a tad bit smaller, while keeping the same full screen design and all the same features/specs, albeit upgraded.
Back to design… Man, design-wise the X really puts the Mini to shame, when it comes to pure aesthetics. Even though I love my Mini, the X oozes elegance. It is a flashy phone (I have the silver one), whilst the Mini is much more subtle in its appearance. When you put them next to each other on a table in a poorly lit room, the Mini almost disappears while the X screams: Look at me, I’m gorgeous!
However, there is a downside to using a flashy phone where I’m currently living. When I pulled out my X I’d get many looks, while the subtle design of the Mini never gives me any looks (other than the occasional laugh from friends at how small it is). That’s a big advantage here. I’ve already had one X and one XS stolen from me. The last one got stolen at gunpoint actually… So, I always keep that in mind, and that’s also why I’m still holding on to my old X as a spare phone, in case my phone gets stolen again. Being without a phone, even just for a little while, these days really makes you feel like you’re kind of lost and out of touch. It’s not like I can reach all my contacts from a computer…
Square edges or rounded edges, that’s the question… This is where the Mini shines! The Mini is far easier to hold, not just because of its smaller size, but also because of its square edges. I find the «bar of soap» analogy that people tend to use to be quite fitting. I still find the X fine enough to handle, but there’s just no doubt that it’s much more slippery.
On to screen size. I feel that 5.8 is perfect for iOS. It takes a bit of time to adapt to the smaller 5.4 inch screen. For me it’s not a problem, though, as I can adapt quite easily, although I did feel the need to increase the text size on my Mini quite a bit, but that’s mainly because I’m getting older. I’ve never used glasses, but I can feel that my eyesight isn’t quite as good as it used to be. When it comes to the Max-line of iPhones, I think that Apple should utilise more from iPad OS - like split screen view etc., to take advantage of the large screen.
Battery life. Since my X’s battery health has been in the mid 80s since I last used it, and the Mini is still at 100%, I haven’t noticed any difference in battery life with my use.
To those of you who still use an iPhone X, I wouldn’t bother upgrading now unless you want a change in physical size, whether it’s smaller or bigger. The updated specs really are incremental.
That’s all, folks. Next time I dig out my X I’m going to compare the 2x telephoto lens with 2x digital zoom on the Mini because I have a feeling that the Mini’s 2x digital zoom is just as good. The camera certainly is better in all other ways, especially in low light settings.
Have a nice weekend
Cheers
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