Apple iPhone 12 mini Review

Big phones have become unavoidable in recent years. A 6-inch display is all but the baseline for handsets these days. 2016's Galaxy S7 is the last time a Samsung flagship had a screen under 5.5-inches. Big is in. Of course, this doesn't necessarily mean big is better.

Big phones can be unwieldy and obtrusive. You need two hands to use them properly. They're heavy. They often feel like small tablets, rather than phones. I'm used to big phones, because that's just the way of the world. There's a lot to love about having a giant display in your pocket, but it's not without its downsides.

When you’re used to carrying a larger device, it's easy to forget about the drawbacks, to live with them. Swapping over to the iPhone 12 mini made me realise that may just be Stockholm Syndrome.

Before we start, here is how all four 2020 iPhone models compare:

A little life

With a display that measures in at 5.4-inches, the iPhone 12 mini is a small phone that doesn't feel like a small phone. The screen size may be a relic from generations past, but the iPhone 12 mini is a distinctly modern affair. It has the same edge-to-edge display you'll find on any other modern iPhone, which means it's smaller than the iPhone SE - even though the iPhone SE only has a 4.7-inch screen.

The jump from 4.7-inches to 5.4-inches is surprisingly significant. When testing the iPhone SE earlier this year, I found the display wasn't great for extended usage. Even reading long form articles was a strain. On the other hand, the iPhone 12 mini has been nothing but a joy. The display is still large enough that I've been able to effortlessly power through e-books while on a treadmill, and binge Netflix without pining for a larger display.

5.4-inches is also a perfect size for one-handed usage, there's rarely a need to adjust your grip. You can reach across the entire keyboard with just one hand, but the iPhone 12 mini doesn't feel cramped if you want to use two to bang out a message faster.

The iPhone 12 mini is far more pocketable than most modern devices. It's much less of a burden to carry around, and there've even been times where I've needed to double check my shorts to make sure it's still there. It's just that unobstructive.

From the onset, my biggest concern with the iPhone 12 mini was battery life - after all, even Apple says it won't last quite as long as an iPhone 12. While this will depend on your exact usage, I found I was still comfortably able to get a full day per charge on the iPhone 12 mini, most of the time. This equated to about four to five hours of screen time before I'd need to top up, on a mix of 5G, 4G, and WiFi. Tasks like watching non-stop video or hotspotting can of course make this go a little bit faster. As with the iPhone 12, there were days I had to top up in the evening to make it through the night, and I would have loved it Apple made the mini just a little thicker to add a bit of extra battery capacity, but I honestly expected it to fare worse.

An iPhone 12 is an iPhone 12

Other than the smaller display and battery capacity, the iPhone 12 mini is identical to the iPhone 12. I've written enough words about iPhones in the last month, so these are the most important things you need to know about the iPhone 12 mini:

Camera: The iPhone 12 mini has the same two rear-facing lenses as the iPhone 12: a 12MP primary lens and a 12MP ultra-wide lens. The primary lens is the most significant upgrade from last year, offering better lowlight photography. Shots taken are brighter, sharper, and clearer than last year's model.

The ultra-wide camera is the same as last year's models, but it now benefits from night mode - a setting that takes a lowlight image over a longer period of time to get a better result. The primary camera is still a better option when it comes to lowlight photos, but it's nice to have the added versatility.

You do of course miss out on the zoom lens and LiDAR functionality you'll find on the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max. It's a shame, because zoom lenses are awesome and LiDAR helps get stunning lowlight portraits, but I'd say the ultra-wide lens is more useful than the zoom lens for the most part.

The iPhone 12 mini isn't a huge step up in terms of photographic prowess when compared to the iPhone 11, but it's still nonetheless an excellent choice for a smartphone camera. It consistently takes great photos and shoots amazing video in almost any environment.

OLED display with Ceramic Shield: As with the iPhone 12, the iPhone 12 mini has an OLED display rather than an LCD panel as seen in last year's iPhone 11. This is a big improvement for a baseline iPhone, and makes the mini feel like less of a compromise when compared to the Pros. You're getting exactly the same screen tech.

LCD displays still require a backlight, which makes blacks look grey and colours pop less. OLED displays like the one you'll find on the iPhone 12 mini work by lightning up individual pixels as needed. This means blacks genuinely look black, and you get a higher contrast ratio. Everything looks a little more vibrant. It's a gorgeous screen.

The display also has what Apple calls Ceramic Shield protection, which makes it up to four times more drop-resistant than last year's model. The back is still traditional glass however, so it doesn't benefit from any extra durability.

Aluminium and glass: Like the iPhone 12, the iPhone 12 mini has a glass and aluminium build. The glass on the back is the standard glossy fare we've seen on iPhones since the iPhone 8, rather than the more fingerprint resistant matte glass on the iPhone 12 Pro range. Fingerprints are a little more noticeable if you get a darker back, but my green model hid them pretty well.

A14 Processor: The iPhone 12 mini is powered by the same A14 chipset you'll find in every single iPhone 12. It's damn fast. You're not sacrificing power just because you want a smaller iPhone.

5G: All four iPhone 12 models have 5G support, including the iPhone 12 mini. It was worth remembering that 5G networks are still a work in progress. Telstra's 5G network currently only covers 40% of the population, while Vodafone's is the smallest but growing. Optus is somewhere in between. 5G connectivity doesn't mean much on a phone right now, but it's still nice to have for future-proofing reasons. There's no need to rush out and buy a phone with 5G, but if you were going to buy a new iPhone this year anyway, it's certainly a bonus.

No charger in the box: This year, Apple is no longer including headphones or a power brick in iPhone 12 boxes this year for environmental reasons. EarPods were kinda trash, so whatever, but the wall plug is a little trickier. You can always use your old iPhone charger, but to get the fastest charging speeds possible, you'll want a USB C wall plug. This will set you back an extra $29.

MagSafe: All iPhone 12 models support MagSafe, Apple's new wireless charging ecosystem. MagSafe is puck-like. MagSafe is a puck-like charger that magnetically snaps to the back of your iPhone. This ensures ideal alignment for a faster charge, and means you can still use your phone, which you can't do on a traditional wireless charging pad. Given the charger is $65 and a bit slower than a wired charge, MagSafe is more of a fun novelty for now. What's more interesting is where the MagSafe ecosystem will go in the future. I'd absolutely love to see a clip on MagSafe battery pack.

If you want more details about these features, check out our iPhone 12 review here. 

iPhone 12 mini - Final Thoughts

The iPhone 12 mini is a welcome throwback to when devices didn't need two hands. It's a pintsized powerhouse that doesn't cut corners to keep its size down. It's just as much of an iPhone as the larger iPhone 12. The battery life could be better, but otherwise, you're not missing out on anything just because you'd prefer a smaller phone.

The iPhone 12 mini is a joy to use, it's a phone that doesn't get in the way of itself. It's never unwieldy, you don't have to adapt to it. It's enough to make you question why phones got so big in the first place.

Better yet, the iPhone 12 mini is also the cheapest iPhone 12, starting at $1,199 outright. The iPhone 12 mini does however still start with just 64GB of storage, so most will be better spending an extra $80 to nab the 128GB variant. Even at $1,279, the iPhone 12 mini is still on the more affordable end of the spectrum when it comes to flagship phones, a far cry from the $2,000 or so price-tags the upper echelon now commands. The iPhone 12 mini isn't exactly cheap, but it doesn't feel unreasonable.

I'd honestly love to see other manufacturers follow Apple's lead and bring smaller devices to the market. Not everyone wants a hulking behemoth of a handset, and as the iPhone 12 mini proves, a phone doesn't have to be huge to be great.

And let's be real, the iPhone 12 mini is freaking adorable.

iPhone 12 mini camera samples

Alex Choros

Managing Editor + Group Telco Editor | X | Instagram | Threads | LinkedIn

Alex Choros is the Managing Editor of WhistleOut Australia and an award-winning journalist. He's been writing about consumer technology for over a decade and is an expert on the Australian telco sector, to the point where he knows far too many phone and internet plans by heart. In addition to leading the WhistleOut editorial team, Alex is responsible for ruining the office Sonos with his troubled taste in music.

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