iPhone 12 mini Upgraded from SE 1 to 12 Mini - My Experience

[kpcboopathi]

Hi MR readers, I am just sharing my experience of upgrading my iPhone SE 1 to iPhone 12 Mini. I am using the 12 Mini for around 4 months. I got 12 mini in offer price around ~450$. In my country, 13 Mini sells for ~930$, which is more than double of 12 mini price. This is not worth IMHO.

1. Screen size and weight: Both are small in size and comfortable to hold. But Mini gives more content with small increase in physical size. Slight wight increase seems to be OK given the increased real estate of screen.
2. Screen OLED quality: I am seeing marginal improvement here. Both are good IMO. When compare with my office iPhone Xr, I am seeing small improvement in OLED screen in dark mode only. In Normal mode, both LCD and OLED are looking same.
3. Speed: Day and night difference as expected. A9 is still doing good, But Mini's A14 makes all the tasks super fast. Seeing huge improvement in installing Apps and software update especially.
4. Face ID: Face ID works great and faster than Touch ID of SE (SE's Touch ID is 1st Gen). Wearing Mask makes little inconvenient though in outside, but still manageable.
5. Camera: As expected, day and night difference in quality. SE 1 still takes decent photos and videos than some of the recent mid range android phone.
6. Software support: Though both run same iOS version, I faced some issues in Apps in SE1 (May be due to the small screen size, not tested properly). Mini works great.
7. Battery: Seeing small increase in Battery life. I don't play games. FB,Insta,Twitter are installed in my iPad. Only some news app, WhatsApp, Banks Apps are installed. Both served my purpose of "Phone". iPhone 13 Mini may have improved battery life. (My company Xr lasts more than a week with Mail, Skype and 2FA Apps. But it weights way more and not comfortable to hold, use, take outside in pocket)
8. Wireless charging: Not using. So there is no difference

So overall I am happy with the upgrade after 4.5 years with SE 1. I am still having SE 1 for backup. (Rejected trade in value of ~100$ while upgrading). Share your experience if you have upgraded from SE1 to 12 or 13 Mini.

 

[harriska2]

I also went from a SE1 to a mini. I’m hoping the mini is my last iphone. I prefer an untethered cell enabled watch but currently they require an iphone or are severely limited w/o an iphone (no messages?).

 

[lkalliance]

I’ve gone from an SE 2016 to an SE 2020 to a 13 mini. All the positives are as you say. Great phone! By so far, two weeks in, I miss Touch ID a lot:

—With Touch ID I could easily orient the phone by feel in the dark or in my pocket. So far I do not have the intuitive sense for that yet with the mini.
—Touch ID was easier to use with Apple Pay. I’m not feeling it with double-pressing the side button.
—Touch ID (or just the home button) moved the bottom of the screen up, where it’s more accessible to my thumb.
—With Touch ID it was easier to get to the Home Screen from sleep. Place thumb on button, wait a fraction of a second, Home Screen. Face ID requires a swipe.
—I’m a little frustrated with the swipe-up to the Home Screen. I often get the app switcher. I know what the physical differences are supposed to be; perhaps it’s my own manual mechanics that are off. But I have to think about it. Didn’t have to think about it with Touch ID.

Some of this might be fixed with an under-screen fingerprint reader, some won’t. I’m not too worried about the mask thing. I’ve got an Apple Watch and it does the unlock pretty reliably. But it turns Apple Pay into a mess.

Face ID is more convenient with unlocking apps, but I think only marginally so.

The first time I saw Touch ID, I was blown away. The first time I saw Face ID, I thought it was a small step back.

Now, all that being said, overall I am very happy with my 13 mini. Powerful, feels great, looks great, great cameras, very good speakers. This is just the only area in which I find it very lacking.

 

[harriska2]

Touch ID never worked well for me. I have dry hands. FaceID has been the most amazing thing I've ever used. It went from simply removing TouchID or typing in a 6 digit code every single time to working 99.99% of the time with FaceID. If I end up upgrading my ipp 12.9" 1st Gen it will be to a FaceID iPad for certain.

 

[kpcboopathi]

@lkalliance, I agree Touch ID seems so simple for Pay. With Face ID, double clicking power button is not so natural when compare with Touch ID. And with Mask, Touch ID was great. But Face ID works really fast and you don't need to wait ~1 sec every single time while unlocking.
@harriska2, In my case touch ID worked good and there is no complaint. Face ID makes full screen phone possible which is great.

 

[kpcboopathi]

Update:
Battery Health is actually very bad in 12 mini. Already dropped to 90% with just mentioned basic use. Mostly used 5W wired charger. No wireless & 18W fast charging at all. Still phone is going good except battery department.

 

[Andeddu]

Update:
Battery Health is actually very bad in 12 mini. Already dropped to 90% with just mentioned basic use. Mostly used 5W wired charger. No wireless & 18W fast charging at all. Still phone is going good except battery department.

This is a known issue. I used my 12 Mini for 1.5 years and it is down to 84%. Once you reach that level you should pay for a replacement from Apple and they will hopefully use an improved battery.

 

[IJBrekke]

Update:
Battery Health is actually very bad in 12 mini. Already dropped to 90% with just mentioned basic use. Mostly used 5W wired charger. No wireless & 18W fast charging at all. Still phone is going good except battery department.

That price difference you mentioned between the 12 mini and 13 mini is frustrating, but the three things that are significantly better are: 1. Battery life, 2. Screen quality, and 3. Camera quality. The first two are what sold me on the 13.

As a reference, I have a 13 mini and a regular 12 from my work. Their battery life is almost identical. The screen quality of the 12 is noticeably worse, especially off-axis.

Battery health of the 13 mini is at 94% after 14 months.

 

[1rottenapple]

Update:
Battery Health is actually very bad in 12 mini. Already dropped to 90% with just mentioned basic use. Mostly used 5W wired charger. No wireless & 18W fast charging at all. Still phone is going good except battery department.

I can’t only speak for myself but I am a heavy user 13 mini before I upgraded to the 14 pro. I went to 89% after a year and 1 month. My battery degraded pretty quickly due to heavy use and charging 2x a day. It’s just part of the game with batteries and phones. Those who don’t probably experience degradation probably use their mini less. Like the YouTuber zollotech who never gets battery degradation but he uses like 3 iPhones.

My 14pro battery isn’t Amazing so I expect my battery will degraded but that’s heavy use. I’m not using fast charging a lot with the 14 pro but did with the 13 mini

 

[kpcboopathi]

This is a known issue. I used my 12 Mini for 1.5 years and it is down to 84%. Once you reach that level you should pay for a replacement from Apple and they will hopefully use an improved battery.

Yes, But I will do from a 3rd party. My last replaced 3rd party battery on my SE 2016 still holds more than 100% battery even after 2 years which is surprising. (I can also feel it, so confirming not a error in showing health)

 

[kpcboopathi]

That price difference you mentioned between the 12 mini and 13 mini is frustrating, but the three things that are significantly better are: 1. Battery life, 2. Screen quality, and 3. Camera quality. The first two are what sold me on the 13.

As a reference, I have a 13 mini and a regular 12 from my work. Their battery life is almost identical. The screen quality of the 12 is noticeably worse, especially off-axis.

Battery health of the 13 mini is at 94% after 14 months.

As I said, I will replace Battery when it is not usable anymore. Thats way cheaper than 13 Mini

 

[mikext]

Rocking a 13 mini currently but just pulled my 12 mini out of the shelf. I know they're visually pretty similar but I prefer the wider notch since it doesn't dip down on the screen as low, and of course, the smaller camera bump.

I love these little guys 🥰

 

[ndouglas]

I got a 13 mini yesterday after having the same size phone for 5 years (iphone 7 then SE 2020). It is an adjustment, more or less a positive one, but I agree with the above notes about TouchID being preferable for the listed reasons. I also miss the wider SE screen, this Mini seems too narrow, such that although I know the screen diagonal is more than the SE, it doesn’t feel like it or if it does, only ever so slightly.
I wonder if that grows on anyone, the Mini screen size? It reminds me of the shape of the iphone 5, 5s, etc. even though I never had those phones myself.

One thing I love is the pocket-ability, hopefully I will keep it and that will outweigh the cramped narrow screen. I have an ipad and laptop for stuff that merits a larger screen, but I do wish the Mini screen was just, say 1 cm or 0.5 cm wider and perhaps taller.

TLDR: Mini size is great for me, which outweighs or balances out the drawbacks. But it’s very new to me, so time will tell.

 

[TgeekB]

Got a 13 mini (used) a couple months ago and love everything about it. I want my phone to be pocketable and perform well. Bingo!

 

[kpcboopathi]

13 Mini should be a good phone for long use given its efficient A15 processor & good battery life. And no more mini phones from Apple at-least for some years. May return as SE model after several years.

 

[ndouglas]

13 Mini should be a good phone for long use given its efficient A15 processor & good battery life. And no more mini phones from Apple at-least for some years. May return as SE model after several years.

Yep that’s my sentiments exactly and if/when they make a similarly nice 13 mini, calling it whatever, I will consider but until then I feel like I’m content for at least a couple years.

 

[DeepIn2U]

Rocking a 13 mini currently but just pulled my 12 mini out of the shelf. I know they're visually pretty similar but I prefer the wider notch since it doesn't dip down on the screen as low, and of course, the smaller camera bump.

I love these little guys 🥰

Initially I felt the same way going from my 12 mini to the 13mini returning the latter in May.
I've since tried the 14 Pro and that was returned in 5 days and went straight to the 13 mini ... been in love ever since.

but I agree with the above notes about TouchID being preferable for the listed reasons. I also miss the wider SE screen, this Mini seems too narrow, such that although I know the screen diagonal is more than the SE, it doesn’t feel like it or if it does, only ever so slightly.
I wonder if that grows on anyone, the Mini screen size? It reminds me of the shape

It's an illusion.

Compare Apple iPhone 13 mini vs. Apple iPhone SE (2020) - GSMArena.com

www.gsmarena.com

The wider screen illusion is being placed on your due to the wider iPhone SE 2020 housing and shorter top/bottom reach of the display due to forehead and chin on the SE.

hold them 1 over another and line up the left edge of each display or measure each from display edge to display edge, not the housing.

 

[ndouglas]

Initially I felt the same way going from my 12 mini to the 13mini returning the latter in May.
I've since tried the 14 Pro and that was returned in 5 days and went straight to the 13 mini ... been in love ever since.



It's an illusion.

Compare Apple iPhone 13 mini vs. Apple iPhone SE (2020) - GSMArena.com

www.gsmarena.com

The wider screen illusion is being placed on your due to the wider iPhone SE 2020 housing and shorter top/bottom reach of the display due to forehead and chin on the SE.

hold them 1 over another and line up the left edge of each display or measure each from display edge to display edge, not the housing.

Interesting, yeah I did that placement thing several times the first day, then I felt better when I noted the actual measurements were pretty similar. It’s only been a few days and it feels better, I think I’ve adjusted since then. Great phone for me in all the essential areas!

 

[DeepIn2U]

I’ve gone from an SE 2016 to an SE 2020 to a 13 mini. All the positives are as you say. Great phone! By so far, two weeks in, I miss Touch ID a lot:

—With Touch ID I could easily orient the phone by feel in the dark or in my pocket. So far I do not have the intuitive sense for that yet with the mini.
—Touch ID was easier to use with Apple Pay. I’m not feeling it with double-pressing the side button.
—Touch ID (or just the home button) moved the bottom of the screen up, where it’s more accessible to my thumb.
—With Touch ID it was easier to get to the Home Screen from sleep. Place thumb on button, wait a fraction of a second, Home Screen. Face ID requires a swipe.
—I’m a little frustrated with the swipe-up to the Home Screen. I often get the app switcher. I know what the physical differences are supposed to be; perhaps it’s my own manual mechanics that are off. But I have to think about it. Didn’t have to think about it with Touch ID.

Some of this might be fixed with an under-screen fingerprint reader, some won’t. I’m not too worried about the mask thing. I’ve got an Apple Watch and it does the unlock pretty reliably. But it turns Apple Pay into a mess.

Face ID is more convenient with unlocking apps, but I think only marginally so.

The first time I saw Touch ID, I was blown away. The first time I saw Face ID, I thought it was a small step back.

Now, all that being said, overall I am very happy with my 13 mini. Powerful, feels great, looks great, great cameras, very good speakers. This is just the only area in which I find it very lacking.

Regarding dropping the phone in the pocket (From SE OG to 12 mini/13 mini) ... I've always used the Lightning Port or Volume Buttons as my orientation on ANY iPhone I had. My biggest transition confusion was going from the iPhone 4S to the iPhone 5 since the 3.5mm headphone jack switched from the TOP of the 4S to the bottom on the iPhone 5. that took me weeks to get used to. Then I realized I loathed having the headphone jack at the top of a phone.

Still great to see others loving the mini iPhone.

Regarding waking the screen from sleep:
I prefer using the touch screen vs home button. Since 80% of the time to wake up the screen (for me at least) is to actually use the phone - so my use case it makes sense, for me. Remember Jobs said having a button that is fixed is there even when you don't need it, it doesn't change when the user interface changes. Apple took that to heart after Android did.

 

[TgeekB]

13 Mini should be a good phone for long use given its efficient A15 processor & good battery life. And no more mini phones from Apple at-least for some years. May return as SE model after several years.

I have a feeling (hope) that they will come back to it at some point. I agree we’re good for a few years with the 13 mini. No need to upgrade anytime soon.

 

[kpcboopathi]

I have a feeling (hope) that they will come back to it at some point. I agree we’re good for a few years with the 13 mini. No need to upgrade anytime soon.

I think, It will take some time as next SE may be based on Xr or 11 design and stay 2 more years till March 2025.

 

[mikext]

I think, It will take some time as next SE may be based on Xr or 11 design and stay 2 more years till March 2025.

this would really suck for people wanting to upgrade to a device that can still easily be used one-handed.

 

[TgeekB]

I think, It will take some time as next SE may be based on Xr or 11 design and stay 2 more years till March 2025.

That’s not a problem for me. My 13 mini will easily last that long.

 

[Alpha Centauri]

Battery health of the 13 mini is at 94% after 14 months.

Not bad, I've a 13 Mini brought not long ago. I'm charging it overnight (mostly) with the 5W charger from my OG SE, do you know if there's much of a thermal increase doing the same but with a 20W charger? Have Battery Optimisation also running (mainly).

 

[snipr125]

Not bad, I've a 13 Mini brought not long ago. I'm charging it overnight (mostly) with the 5W charger from my OG SE, do you know if there's much of a thermal increase doing the same but with a 20W charger? Have Battery Optimisation also running (mainly).

There will definitely be more heat with a 20w charger, just touch the phone during charging you will see yourself. Using fast chargers excessively will obviously degrade the battery a bit faster, thats just the law of thermodynamics we cant escape it. A good balance is using a 2.1 amp charger, not that much heat and charges faster than a 5w, or use 5w overnight. The most important thing to remember though is we can change the battery for around $£50, so nothing to stress over really.