How Much Is An Iphone 12 Mini

Our Verdict

The iPhone 12 mini is an low-priced and compact yet powerful flagship phone that is truly in a form all its own. Unfinished the reaching of the iPhone 13 miniskirt, this is the best small phone on that point is, and an even better 5G value now that Apple dropped the price

For

Mastered for small phone lovers
Capable dual cameras
Cosmopolitan 5G put up
Astounding A14 Bionic power
Reasonable starting price

Against

Only 64GB computer memory to start
No battery charger in box seat
Stamp battery life shorter than other iPhone 12 models

Tom's Guide Finding of fact

The iPhone 12 miniskirt is an affordable and compact yet powerful flagship phone that is sincerely in a assort all its own. Pending the arrival of the iPhone 13 miniskirt, this is the unsurpassed small phone there is, and an even better 5G value now that Orchard apple tree dropped the cost

Pros

+ Perfect for small phone lovers
+ Capable dual cameras
+ Comprehensive 5G support
+ Incredible A14 Bionic power
+ Reasonable starting price

Cons

- Only 64GB storage to start
- Zero charger in box
- Electric battery life shorter than other iPhone 12 models

"How did they make information technology that small!?"

That's invariably the reaction of friends and family when I show them the iPhone 12 mini. They can't sue how petite this 5.4-inch device is; they didn't know smartphones could be this small anymore.

The best iPhones right at once
iPhone 13: Release escort, price, specs and leaks

Truthfully, I didn't either. Dwarfish phone fan though I am, I have grown accustomed to the gargantuan size of modern flagships; an age where my 5.8-inch iPhone 11 Pro constitutes a "tight" handset, and devices like the 6.7-inch Galaxy S20 Plus that barely jibe in your pocket are inexplicably the norm. The iPhone 12 miniskirt feels like IT was made for me.

My favored matter or so the iPhone 12 mini, though, ISN't merely its diminutive frame; IT's the fact that this is fundamentally, pound-for-pound, the selfsame same device as the 6.1-inch iPhone 12 I've already reviewed. You wait corners to be butt in downsized premium smartphones, yet the iPhone 12 mini never makes them. As you'll see in our iPhone 12 miniskirt revue, digression from unavoidable sacrifices to battery spirit, this is nevertheless as the iPhone you want, at an even cheaper price in real time that Malus pumila has dropped the monetary value to hold the new iPhone 13 mini. (Yes, Apple made another one as take off of the iPhone 13 release.)

The iPhone 12 mini likewise happens to be a device that lovers of the best small phones and best unbarred iPhones are sealed to adore. Merely be trustworthy to jibe out our iPhone 13 mini review to see if Apple's newer small phone is reactionist for you.

iPhone 12 mini review: Damage and availableness

iPhone 12 miniskirt: Specs

Price: $729 unlocked; $699 on sign up
OS: iOS 14
Video display: 5.4-inch OLED (2340x1080)
CPU: A14 Bionic
Storage: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB
Buns camera: 12MP wide (ƒ/1.6), 12MP ultrawide (ƒ/2.4)
Figurehead camera: 12MP (ƒ/2.2)
Size: 5.18 x 2.53 x 0.29 in
Weight: 4.76 oz

The iPhone 12 mini debuted a trifle little than a year ago at $699 on abridge, from carriers like Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile and many others. Off contract, you'd pay $729. At that price, you'll get 64GB of storage, though there are 128GB and 256GB versions open.

These days, Apple sells the iPhone 12 mini for $599 ($629 if you buy the phone unlocked) to make way for the iPhone 13 mini which inherits that past $699 starting price. The newer mini does pop the question 128GB of storage in its base model.

Grease one's palms your iPhone 12 mini from Apple, and you can let down the price by trading in your current iPhone — an iPhone 8 wish net you up to $110 away the iPhone 12 mini, for example, with newer models earning a larger rebate. That's one of the many outdo iPhone 12 deals we're tracking.

You won't get a charging adapter or bound EarPods with the iPhone 12 miniskirt, though you testament get a Lightning-to-USB-C cable in the loge.

Like the else iPhone 12 models, the iPhone 12 mini is built to documentation sub-6GHz 5G and millimetre-wave 5G (mmWave) on all network. This should mean you'll get similar 5G stripe subscribe zero subject what iPhone 12 you buy; whatever differences you know in 5G service will represent fine-tune to each network's specific infrastructure and limitations.

iPhone 12 mini review articl: Design and MagSafe

I never expected Apple to release a handset small enough to make the iPhone SE look big, but then 2022 has been all about subverting expectations.

The iPhone 12 mini has a 5.4-inch display that stretches nearly from edge to edge, impeded only by a notch. Because the screen dominates the gimmick's surface arena in the way that it does, there's far Sir Thomas More available real estate than what the 4.7-inch SE offers, even though the iPhone 12 mini's footprint is nearly three-tenths of an column inch shorter and a tenth narrower. That's quite an achievement, considering modern phones' wealth of top executive-guzzling componentry and need for big batteries.

You almost take over to relearn how to swallow a gimmick and screen this miniscule; I found my thumbs clashing into from each one some other more often when typewriting, for instance. But the readjustment period isn't intimidating, and as an iPhone 11 In favour of owner, I have to admit there's a separate of me that wants to swap unsuccessful my iPhone for the 12 miniskirt. It's just soh comfy to hold and get hold of all corner of the display.

Aesthetically and structurally, the iPhone 12 mini is isotropic to the 6.1-column inch iPhone 12, only if smaller. You have the same level-edge, matte aluminium design, mostly-glossy glass back and flat display protected by Apple's sunrise Ceramic Shield material that promises 4x built shatter resistance. Cupertino has also built water resistance yet again, arsenic every iPhone 12 is built to withstand up to about 20 feet of submersion for a level bes of 30 transactions.

This is a premium-looking, agiotage-flavour iPhone for $700, and there's almost nothing to plain virtually. Though, if I were forced to nitpick, I'd say the notch is harder to ignore on the iPhone 12 mini. It's essentially the same size atomic number 3 information technology is connected other large models, and therefore dominates more of the miniskirt's petite display. Nevertheless, the overall package is beautiful.

The back of the iPhone 12 mini is where you'll find Apple's new-sprung MagSafe scheme, which can be used for wireless charging OR a range of snap-happening accessories, like a leather wallet attachments, sleeves, cases and then on.

Thither's no significant difference in the way MagSafe operates on the 12 mini relative to other iPhones, save for the fact that Orchard apple tree has reduced the sound's prime charging speed up over MagSafe to 12 watts, lowered from 15 watts on the other models. Stillness, because the 12 mini's battery is such smaller than those in the other models, charging speeds are liable to shake out even — more thereon later.

iPhone 12 miniskirt review: Display

Orchard apple tree has closed the breach between the regular and Pro iPhone models this yr by offering OLED displays on all of its devices. If you're upgrading from an Liquid crystal display-powered iPhone 8 or earlier, Beaver State mayhap the iPhone XR, the iPhone 12 miniskirt's screen is going to present a big spring forward.

Fair active everything looks richer along an OLED display. Colors are more vivid, while blacks peculiarly are deeper and truer-to-life. Watching the trailer for The Kid Detective connected YouTube, I was drawn to the pastiche of reds, yellows and oranges blanketing the trees of the bucolic autumn suburbia in which the picture show is set.

One thing missing from the iPhone 12 miniskirt's expose repertory, notwithstandin, is a high freshen up rate. The not-In favou iPhone 12 models were likely never in the running to receive 120Hz panels, but it has to be said that similarly-priced handsets from other companies — including the Google Pixel 5, the OnePlus Nord or Samsung's Galaxy S20 FE — all offer 90Hz or 120Hz screens. The Galaxy S21 — impartial $100 more than the iPhone 12 miniskirt — offers a display that dynamically adjusts its refresh rate. The iPhone 12 mini's expose is indeed very colorful and rich, nonetheless the overall feel for of using the gimmick feels little religious music all around on account of that traditional 60Hz limitation.

Under our exposure meter, the iPhone 12 miniskirt's screen registered a maximum full-screen brightness of 505 nits. That's far from the Sunday-go-to-meeting we've ever seen — the loose iPhone 12 reached 569 nits, for example, while the Coltsfoot S20 FE lidded out at 679 nits. If we were to bet on a guess, the iPhone 12 mini's peak luminousness is apt curtailed a bit to eke the best assertable battery animation come out of the closet of the device's relatively small battery. Still, it's easy enough to show the display outdoors on a clear day.

In terms of color replica, the iPhone 12 mini captured 117.8% of the sRGB color space and 83.4% of the wider Director of Central Intelligence-P3 gamut, indicating hues that lean toward realism, simply may look a bit muted compared to what other handsets present out of the box. For example, the Galaxy S20 FE registered 133.3% in DCI-P3, which translates to distant more saturation.

iPhone 12 miniskirt survey: Television camera

Even the smallest iPhone 12 benefits from a dual-tv camera system, and non just any three-fold-camera system. This is the same slate of optics you experience in the $100 more expensive iPhone 12: a 12-megapixel primary crystalline lens with an ƒ/1.6 aperture, paired with a 12MP ultrawide featuring an ƒ/2.4 aperture and 120-degree field of regar.

The main sensing element is the one that's seen the most melioration for the iPhone 12 line, with Malus pumila's fastest-e'er ƒ/1.6 lense contributing to a quoted 27% increase in low-fall performance and a new sensory receptor image stabilisation system that can perform 5,000 micro-adjustments per second. That same sensor can also capture 4K HDR picture at up to 60 frames per indorse, or 30 frames per second with Dolby Vision processing enabled.

Indeed what kind of photos can iPhone 12 mini owners bear from that new primary camera? I took Orchard apple tree's smallest flagship and the similarly-priced Pixel 5 out on a peaceful drop off day to snap a partner off of photos of a river, and came away affected with the result from both for diametric reasons. The Pixel 5 does colourise more of the river bank and hillside to the near, and the last leaves left hanging on the trees pop just a trifle more. However, the iPhone 12 mini's rendition is universally sharper. And though IT's not necessarily the focal point of the frame, the iPhone's colourful retains more color in the brick wall to the right every bit fit.

Neither the iPhone 12 mini nor the Pixel 5 has a telephoto Lens with optical zoom — they some rely happening processing to heighten astir digital zoom. Previously, this was an area where the iPhones have struggled, but Apple has definitely closed the gap with the iPhone 12 range, so the biggest difference of opinion relates to color balancing and contrast here. Google's phone still may retain a slight advantage in sharpness with its Super Res Zoom arrangement, but the smoke stack itself is clad in considerably more darkness and everything has a bit of a Bolshevik shift thereto, whereas the iPhone 12 mini better picks up the specular highlights bouncing off the brick.

The iPhone 12 mini has an peculiarly wide ultrawide lens compared to the Pixel 5, pulling in more than of the surroundings in this example. This does certainly leave to around distortion at the fringes, but the iPhone controls it well, and the result is an image with more color and deeper contrast than what Google's handset has given United States of America here. What's especially surprising is how Orchard apple tree's imaging system is able to really hone in on details like the window panes and brick texture, achieving a crispness that the Pixel 5 can't match, even though it packs a higher-resolution sensor in writing.

Improvements to Apple's Night mode, along with that aforementioned fres wider aperture, certainly help the iPhone 12 mini rein more lightsome in adverse conditions. I'm affected with how the little iPhone navigated this prospect, which mixed extremely dark and shadowy regions with Caucasian-hot sources of light from lamps. I too prefer the heater tone and white balance of the iPhone's shot, compared to the Picture element's rendition here. That said, Google's Night Sight technology is a bit advisable at lighting those especially dim areas, like the roof of the construction straightaway ahead and the brick off in the upper leftover. Google's still got a bit of an edge at night in my opinion, though Malus pumila's certainly done well to imminent the gap with this generation.

To get a mother wit of how the iPhone 12 mini's low-light performance fares against its predecessor's, I snapped another partner off of images of a nearly pitch-dark river, this time comparison it to my iPhone 11 Pro. There isn't very much separating the two, though if you look closely, the newer iPhone dials in a bit more sharpness closest to the camera, like with the leaves in the unmediated foreground and the rumination of the street lamp in the water. Throughout almost of the frame, however, it's crystalline to hear Apple's hasn't transformed Nox Mode with this generation — the differences are few and far 'tween.

But the iPhone 12 mini's greatest advantage, in my opinion, is the way it navigates selfies and portraits. Compared to Google's effort, I'd be much more willing to post Apple's showing here to my Instagram. Not only is the iPhone's shot generally sharper, retaining more warmth in my skin tone, but it also nails those especially minute inside information, like the fabric of my winter hat and the texture of the tag connected the front. This is Apple's Deep Fusion feature busy, snapping and melding multiple exposures together to telephone dial up the fidelity on the most intricate aspects of all scene. Appear closely, and you'll also notice the iPhone does a better job of isolating my hair and crownwork from the background bokeh as well.

iPhone 12 mini critical review: Performance

The iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro are the most powerful smartphones we've ever tried and true at Tom's Guide, and the iPhone 12 mini shares their processor — the A14 Bionic. Typically, small phones are short-denaturized happening the carrying into action front end, but the iPhone 12 mini is every flake as fast atomic number 3 those larger, pricier variants.

Information technology really doesn't matter what you're doing happening the iPhone 12 mini. Whether gaming, swiping through mixer media OR using the camera, this device never drops a bead of sweat. Mineral pitch 9 Legends is my graphics-pushing game of choice when I test handsets, and this little iPhone still pushes console-prime visuals at a stable framerate — a rare feat for this fastidious title. I was especially impressed with the smoothness of the apparent motion blur, which really heightened the immersion of racing on this tiny video display.

In the system-opened Geekbench 5 multi-core test, the iPhone 12 miniskirt destroyed 4,123 points — eventide better than the iPhone 12's 3,859 points, and certainly worlds apart from the Galaxy S20 FE (2,928) and Pel 5 (1,617). The Coltsfoot S21, which came out months later on the iPhone 12 miniskirt and boasts a fast Snapdragon 888 system-on-chip, smooth falls short of the iPhone 12 mini's result, with a 3,302 score.

Likewise, in our video recording encoding mental test, where we convert a 4K clip to 1080p using the Adobe Premiere Hotfoot app and time the final result, the iPhone 12 miniskirt needed just 27 seconds to complete the tax, compared to the Galaxy S20 FE's 1 hour and 24 seconds. The older iPhone 11 required 46 seconds, so it's not just Android phones that the A14 outperforms.

Finally, bringing it back to graphics, 3DMark's Wild Lifespan benchmark offered yet another glimpse at the iPhone 12 mini's tycoo. Apple's device tallied 39 frames per second in this try — identical to the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro, and much punter than the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra (25 Federal Protective Service), OnePlus 8T (23 FPS) and Picture element 5 (7 Federal Protective Service).

iPhone 12 mini review: 5G

Apple has gone all in along 5G for the iPhone 12 line, and that extends to the iPhone 12 mini as advisable. Piece it's no longer rare to see 5G handsets for less than $700 anymore, it's the iPhone 12 mini's ended accompaniment of next-generation networks in all their forms that makes it a great 5G treasure.

Most inexpensive OR mid-kitchen stove 5G phones bread and butter sub-6GHz 5G, which carries long distances across the country, but offers marginally better speeds than what LTE already delivers at best. But there's also millimeter-roll (mmWave) 5G, which is mostly bookable for dense urban areas. Millimetre-wave networks can achieve multi-gigabit downloads, sol long atomic number 3 you're close enough to the 5G small cell node and have an unobstructed line-of-good deal view.

This last mentioned form of 5G is the kind that most cheaper 5G phones skimp taboo on to save costs and battery life. However, the iPhone 12 miniskirt supports mmWave 5G along all network, and yet if you pip out unlocked. That, coupled with Apple's claim that this gimmick supports more 5G bands than any other handset, makes it the nearly later-treated pick for a 5G call up on the market precise now. It's certainly the smallest 5G telephone excessively, given that 5G phones incline to be larger to fit big batteries to offset their increased power line.

That said, wear't expect physical process speeds all over, especially over those low-band, sub-6GHz networks. In eatsern Pennsylvania I only saw download speeds hovering about 50Mbps over AT&T's 5G in my testing. Progressive LTE Advanced networks can download five times faster than that, so the presence of a 5G index number on your iPhone's covert doesn't mean it's going to make up lightyears quicker in every instance.

5G also can ware a peck of force, which explains one of the iPhone 12's new new features — Smart Data Mode. Enabled by default, Smart Data Mode drops the device pull out to LTE to consume less ability, typically when background processes are running or information is organism streamed when the screen is off. If you notice Smart Data Style resulting in longer downloads or not tapping into those faster information speeds as readily as you comparable, you could always turn IT sour — though, given the kinds of situations under which it operates, that's plausibly unlikely.

iPhone 12 mini review: Battery life and charging

With such a small frame, the iPhone 12 can't help only lose out to its brethren where electric battery life is concerned. Orchard apple tree doesn't publish battery life figures — you'll have to wait for teardowns to reveal that information — simply we do hump that the larger iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 In favour of pack 2,815-mAh units.

The 6.1-inch iPhone 12 lasted 8 hours and 25 proceedings in our battery try out, where devices repeatedly load web pages over mobile data (in this case, AT&T 5G) while set to 150 nits of block out brightness. The iPhone 12 miniskirt, on the other hand, averaged 7 hours and 28 proceedings on the same network.

Whatever result in our test under 8 hours isn't ideal; the Pixel 5, e.g., lasted two hours longer, also on 5G, in all likelihood thanks to a significantly larger 4,000-mAh battery. At extraordinary point during my testing of the 12 miniskirt, I streamed video and briefly gamed for triplet straight hours, and the call up's shelling life dropped to 50%. This probably won't be the best device for users who really need all minute of longevity they can get during the day.

The iPhone 12 mini doesn't ship with a charger, though using Orchard apple tree's new 20-watt brick, we saw 60% in 30 transactions. The new MagSafe charging system, which offers peak speed of 15 Watts, actually tops out at 12 Watts for the iPhone 12 mini particularly. Given the smaller size of it of the mini's battery, 12 Watts should be accelerated enough to tied the other, larger iPhone 12 models in terms of charging multiplication, but it is a small stipulation to be aware of nevertheless.

iPhone 12 mini limited review: iOS 14

All iPhone 12 models launched with iOS 14 — the in vogue version of Apple's mobile operating system at the time. That update actually packs a number of sizable changes and upgrades compared to iOS 13. Most notably, the update adds plunk fo for more than metallic-coloured, expository widgets that can be placed on any home screen, and introduces the App Program library which organizes your apps into folders by type.

Notifications are now more compact, obscuring less of the block out; Maps and Messages have been redesigned a trifle to add extra functionality; and there's a picture-in-picture mode that allows you to watch or listen to video no matter what app you'Re currently using, among many other additions. For a deeper look into all of iOS 14's features, check out our iOS 1 4 .5 review.

When iOS 15 arrives on Sept. 24, expect an easy upgrade for your iPhone 12 mini. We've got a take the best iOS 15 features coming to all iPhones.

iPhone 12 mini review: Verdict

The iPhone 12 mini is just the sort of device I wish more phone makers had the conviction to build. And Apple has, in the mould of the iPhone 13 mini that offers more storage, a faster chipset and photographic camera improvements.

In a way, the iPhone 12 mini felt similar the most impressive penis of the iPhone 12 lineup, because it does everything the larger, more expensive models do, but astonishingly fits all that capacity into an unimaginable small frame.

As I said when the iPhone 12 miniskirt was proclaimed, the comer of 5G has forced USA to accept so more compromises in the phones we buy. They've had to become significantly bigger, to oblige more spacious batteries and all the necessary antennas and modems to support next-generation networks (especially the mmWave kind). They've also had to become to a greater extent expensive, to outset the cost of totally these new and emerging technologies and components.

Peerless could fence that the iPhone 12 mini isn't as great a "deal" as it may seem. Sure, it now starts at $599 — on contract, mind you — only it's also belik little than many another consumers would be comfortable with. The bulk of shoppers may peck to the 6.1-inch iPhone 12, which has also seen a price cut to $699.

For some discerning buyers, though, this will atomic number 4 exactly the iPhone they've been waiting for, at a very agreeable toll. The iPhone 12 mini answers the call for a premium small iPhone, and in doing and so immediately rockets to the teetotum of our listing of the prizewinning small phones. Information technology is an achievement of packaging, and a device without a correct rival, except for the newer iPhone 13 miniskirt. So long American Samoa you can put up with a slight hit to battery life and don't call for Apple's modish compact ring, the iPhone 12 mini is truly a phone in a course of study all its ain.

More: Treat your new phone to one of the unexceeded iPhone 12 miniskirt cases

Disco biscuit Ismail is a faculty writer at Jalopnik and antecedently worked happening Tom's Guide covering smartphones, car tech and play. His love for totally things floating began with the original Motorola Droid; since past he's owned a variety of Humanoid and iOS-steam-powered handsets, refusing to stay loyal to matchless platform. His work has also appeared on Whole number Trends and GTPlanet. When he's non fiddling with the latest devices, he's at an indie pop show, transcription a podcast OR playing Sega Dreamcast.