iPhone 13 mini Apple Refurbished iPhone 13 Mini

[stinkhorn9]

I use a 2020 SE, and am looking to upgrade soon. I'm no longer put off by the comparative size increase of All iPhones These Days, but I'm nevertheless underwhelmed by the price similarity between the 16E and the 15 (meaning I'm not sure which to get. All notions of 'budget' have flown out of the window.) But I see I can also get a 13 Mini on the Apple Refurbished site - and as this includes a new battery, I was wondering whether anyone else had gone this route, and whether the battery remained healthy and bright and shiny and new enough (as claimed) for you for a decent while?

 

[xxFoxtail]

I recently switched from my 14 Pro to an Apple Refurbished 13 mini. In fact, today's the last day I can return it if I wanted to. It's nice going back down to a normal sized phone, even if I could only use it for a few more years before it becomes unsupported or whatever. I'm hoping to use this for at least two years, at least until battery replacements are no longer available, or a new mini releases.

As far as battery goes, at 100% capacity, I think it's fantastic. It lasts longer than my 2.5 year old 14 Pro at 82% capacity. Though, I noticed if the phone warms up due to the camera or any heavier activity, the battery will drain much faster than the 14 Pro would in the same situations.

As far as battery longevity goes, I can’t really say since I never owned a 13 mini before. However, I did own a 12 mini for two years. I think I started using a MagSafe battery pack with it around 6 months into owning it. I just slapped it on first thing in the morning, so it drained the battery pack first before the internal battery. I’m not a battery expert, can’t really say if this was good for the iPhone's battery or not, but it worked for me and always got my 12 mini through the day during heavier use.

These days, I use my phone a lot less, intentionally keeping it away from myself when I can, so I assume my 13 mini will last longer in these regards. My goal is to not use my MagSafe battery at all with the 13 mini. But, the option is always there if I need it. And might be a good idea for you as well if you think you'd need it.

 

[stinkhorn9]

I recently switched from my 14 Pro to an Apple Refurbished 13 mini. In fact, today's the last day I can return it if I wanted to. It's nice going back down to a normal sized phone, even if I could only use it for a few more years before it becomes unsupported or whatever. I'm hoping to use this for at least two years, at least until battery replacements are no longer available, or a new mini releases.

As far as battery goes, at 100% capacity, I think it's fantastic. It lasts longer than my 2.5 year old 14 Pro at 82% capacity. Though, I noticed if the phone warms up due to the camera or any heavier activity, the battery will drain much faster than the 14 Pro would in the same situations.

As far as battery longevity goes, I can’t really say since I never owned a 13 mini before. However, I did own a 12 mini for two years. I think I started using a MagSafe battery pack with it around 6 months into owning it. I just slapped it on first thing in the morning, so it drained the battery pack first before the internal battery. I’m not a battery expert, can’t really say if this was good for the iPhone's battery or not, but it worked for me and always got my 12 mini through the day during heavier use.

These days, I use my phone a lot less, intentionally keeping it away from myself when I can, so I assume my 13 mini will last longer in these regards. My goal is to not use my MagSafe battery at all with the 13 mini. But, the option is always there if I need it. And might be a good idea for you as well if you think you'd need it.

Thanks very much for the detailed reply 👍

 

[xxFoxtail]

Thanks very much for the detailed reply 👍

No problem! Let me know if you have any other questions about it.

 

[stinkhorn9]

Just as an aside, I see that here in the UK, John Lewis is selling the iPhone 15 at exactly the same price as Apple is selling the new 16e (i.e. £100 cheaper than Apple is selling the 15)!

 

[1rottenapple]

I recently switched from my 14 Pro to an Apple Refurbished 13 mini. In fact, today's the last day I can return it if I wanted to. It's nice going back down to a normal sized phone, even if I could only use it for a few more years before it becomes unsupported or whatever. I'm hoping to use this for at least two years, at least until battery replacements are no longer available, or a new mini releases.

As far as battery goes, at 100% capacity, I think it's fantastic. It lasts longer than my 2.5 year old 14 Pro at 82% capacity. Though, I noticed if the phone warms up due to the camera or any heavier activity, the battery will drain much faster than the 14 Pro would in the same situations.

As far as battery longevity goes, I can’t really say since I never owned a 13 mini before. However, I did own a 12 mini for two years. I think I started using a MagSafe battery pack with it around 6 months into owning it. I just slapped it on first thing in the morning, so it drained the battery pack first before the internal battery. I’m not a battery expert, can’t really say if this was good for the iPhone's battery or not, but it worked for me and always got my 12 mini through the day during heavier use.

These days, I use my phone a lot less, intentionally keeping it away from myself when I can, so I assume my 13 mini will last longer in these regards. My goal is to not use my MagSafe battery at all with the 13 mini. But, the option is always there if I need it. And might be a good idea for you as well if you think you'd need it.

for me, bought the 12 mini when it came out. Then bought the 13 mini upon release. Sold my blue 256gb mini. Went to iPhone 14 pro upon release. Kept that for a year. Went back to 13 mini but bought unlocked used 512gb white . Tried the 16 upon release, returned after 2 weeks. Bought the pixel fold 9 returned.

I just love this 13 mini, and all its faults (poor battery).

The disappear in my pocket feature is timeless and can’t be beaten.

As I said in another thread i think the watch ultra 3 with sos satellite will help me keep the 13 mini another 2-3 years given satellite sos is my main reason for upgrading since I hike and off road.

 

[xxFoxtail]

for me, bought the 12 mini when it came out. Then bought the 13 mini upon release. Sold my blue 256gb mini. Went to iPhone 14 pro upon release. Kept that for a year. Went back to 13 mini but bought unlocked used 512gb white . Tried the 16 upon release, returned after 2 weeks. Bought the pixel fold 9 returned.

I just love this 13 mini, and all its faults (poor battery).

The disappear in my pocket feature is timeless and can’t be beaten.

As I said in another thread i think the watch ultra 3 with sos satellite will help me keep the 13 mini another 2-3 years given satellite sos is my main reason for upgrading since I hike and off road.

I was very back and forth using my Apple Watch Ultra as my main phone with cellular, and just keeping my 14 Pro at home all the time. Decided I needed to use CarPlay and a few other iPhone apps regularly for my day to day life. The 13 mini has been on my radar pretty much since I got my 14 Pro, but kept the 14 Pro because of those satellite and crash detection features. The latter my Apple Watch has. I may decide to upgrade to the Ultra 3 if the satellite feature rumor is true.

 

[CC91UK]

About 4 weeks ago I bought a refurbished 13 Mini from the Back Market website for £260. Battery health is 94% and lasts longer than my previous iPhone 8 with a 16-month-old battery at 98%. Condition was 'excellent' rather than pristine, but the only flaws are marks on the edges of the camera lenses which is fine by me.

I still have to use a popsocket or similar gripper to get a comfortable hold with one hand, as I have small hands and the 13 Mini is still slightly too big for me, but it's as good as I can get these days!

 

[ignatius345]

I had the 12 Mini and the 13 Mini. The 13 Mini had better battery life but it was still not really sufficient for my usage, as much as I liked the form factor. Admittedly, I was using it a lot, and sometimes in poor network conditions that really strained it.