The market of phones today has changed a ton from a few years ago used to be that having a huge screen in your pocket was a novelty. But now it's the norm. And even the mini phones now are giant from what was considered mini a few years ago.
Finding a small phone that performs well these days is just not easy anymore. The trends have changed. But Apple of surprisingly, of all companies still trying to make fetch happen with the iPhone 13 Mini.
So the 13 series has gone back to I think what Apple does best for better or worse, Degas phone they made last year and perfect it and fix all the little issues with it. And if there are too many, I think is the best phone that does this.
And now it seems like those issues that used to exist with the 12 Mini especially are gone. And the small iPhone is kind of better than ever. So is it finally time to get tiny? The iPhone 13 minutes?
So the question like Why get the mini instead of the regular 13 or 13 pro or even the Big Daddy Max, there are a few reasons I think you should probably consider. So the most obvious reason is the form factor, right?
It's called the mini it's small, I have gone to huge phones, I like getting the biggest screen I can. But huge phones are clearly not for everything and clearly not for everyone.
Something to be said for having a device that doesn't have to take up every square centimeter of space in your pocket or your purse or wherever you're putting it when you can just easily hold with one hand and type on or even just a phone that you don't use quite as often.
There are a ton of reasons why this size of phone is better than a bigger version, even if personally I don't prefer it. I'm not everybody, I'm aware of that there are different tastes and different flavors.
And the Mini is like delicious vanilla. Well, maybe I personally prefer delicious chocolate. And then the big one though, that is the price that might be why this one is for everybody.
It's the most affordable flagship iPhone you can buy. And obviously you can get last year's 1211 or even an SC for less. But if you want a brand new model, the minis are still pretty solid value.
So you're getting the same features as the bigger 13. But for a starting price of $699. They now come with 128 gigabytes standard which was long overdue. So that price leaves wiggle room I think for other things, especially if you're going to spend the money for a larger phone.
So just because you're going to get the mini and this is a weird thing to say. That doesn't mean you can't have a big screen for just a little bit more than the price of an iPhone 13 Pro Max, you can get a 13 Mini and a brand new redesigned iPad Mini so you are getting an iPhone and an iPad, you get your big screen when you need it.
And also a phone it's very easy to carry around for like about 1300 bucks. So another reason is that it seems Apple isn't going to be making this phone any longer. So for went out for the mini, it's according to rumors and the legit sales numbers.
The mini didn't sell that well last year. So apparently next year at the iPhone 14, there will not be a mini model. If you're all interested in this phone. Right now is the time to get it and then keep it for a few years.
Who knows when Apple's going to try the mini phone again. So probably a collector's item by the time we're at like iPhone 17. So at first glance, the 13 Mini looks like it could have the number 12 written next to it.
When you hold these phones next to each other the visual changes are same minor at best. The biggest feature change with the 13 and 13 Mini is the camera system.
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Now there diag No, that's how you can tell a difference. Well has received as much attention as the big pro brothers.
The updates here make this one I think one of the best cameras on any phone and especially a small phone. So visually obviously like I said diagonal layout. You might think that's because Apple wants to force you to buy a new case.
And that very well may be the case, but also the main reason for that change. It's actually in the camera sense so no matter what iPhone 13 you get whether you decide to rock the mini or go all the way up to the pro max didn't want a case to protect your device because in the battle between glass no matter how strong it is and concrete, concrete going to win.
It's got air vents to promote airflow through the case, to cool down the device. anti microbial defense, you're getting a lifetime warranty. It's gonna work with wireless chargers and magsafe charging and Max if accessories don't have to worry about any of that.
They also have another option. It's called the organic core clear, 14 foot drop tested made from plants. It's the world's first 100% compostable, clear co molded case, it looks awesome, and you get all the good stuff that I just mentioned, lifetime warranty, wireless charging, and magsafe charging compatible.
So if you want to check them out, obviously just go to your Verizon store. So now features a larger sensor and sensor shift tech, which is a mouthful to say. It's like 40 bucks to get that is essentially the same sensor setup that we got with last year's 12 Pro max.
So now you get the top end camera in the smallest iPhone Apple makes. That is a big deal. Or at least it's a big deal. On paper, blind camera test time. I love I love doing this. Here are the phones that were used.
Can you guess which one was a 13 minutes? And especially pay attention to noise that you've gotten color reproduction? how things get bright how, how the phones are dynamically brightening backgrounds, look at all of those things that make the photo kind of come together.
So what did you think. And first of all, just to tell you a was 30 minutes. So if you say you don't notice much of a difference, I can't really say I blame you. Besides the actual quality of the photos. apper really tried to throw into more features.
So if you get the result that you want. So things like photographic styles are just that, as someone who tests a ton of phones, one thing I noticed is how different the processing is between like all of them.
So the Samsung phones have punchier, kind of brighter colors picture was kind of contrast II and cool, and the iPhones kind of flat. But it's new feature, which is not filters can actually mimic the type of photo that you want to take.
It's a nice touch, I don't know how often I'm actually going to use it in real life. But it's more control than Apple's ever given you before or their photos. So I'm all for it.
Do keep in mind, though, that this is baked into the file, you can't make changes like you can with a raw photo and go back later, it's actually changing how the photo itself is taken, not just kind of filtering.
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So one of the most impressive things about the iPhone 13 Mini is the video system. I mean, Apple has been just crushing it with a video recording and the fact that you get this quality in this smaller phone is in my mind, hands down.
The best thing about it, especially if you're shooting a lot of video. So that brings us to the feature that Apple really wants you to focus on. Sorry about that cinematic mode to see a marquee around these phones, you probably already know what it is.
But essentially Think of it like portrait mode for video with automated focusing on different subjects with some AI thrown in there. I'll say this, and I covered it a lot more in the 13 Pro video, I'll link that down below, wherever you want to check it out.
This is clearly a first generation feature. It's capped at 1080 p 30. fps does have some issues. But at the same time, it's doing a better job than many of the other phones out there that have tried it. Still a few years away.
But if you have ideal lighting and a clearly defined subject, like portrait mode, it'll do an okay job. You still get the fuzzy edges around people. It cuts off in certain areas Intel It's trying too hard to get the focus, but I would assume it will learn and get better. It's just not there right now.
The cameras a giant improvement but the bigger reason to consider the 13 Mini over the 12 Mini is battery and battery life on the 12 Mini sucked.
There's no other way around it you could get through the day but you're constantly reminded there's a small phone, a small battery this year, Apple claims video you can get one and a half hours more battery life things and processing improvements and a physically larger battery.
One and a half hours is a giant deal. Is that exactly what you're going to get. I don't know probably not black with everything battery life greatly depends on what apps you're using and things doing on your Phone at the very least, though battery life does seem to be improved.
And we'll test that more as we use the phones. But if you're constantly paying attention to the battery status, at least now you can start paying attention to it towards the later part of the day. And that bigger batteries can let you enjoy other parts of the phone like more, the screen now gets brighter up to 100 800 nits which is a pretty big deal.
And there's more of it, because they're not just smaller, although you don't get any extra features because that smaller notch, which is surprising Apple didn't do anything, I would have loved to see the battery percentage finally come back and customize and put up there.
I think also when she got promotion on these screens, we find got the high refresh rate with the Pro. But considering a lot of other phones out there, especially at this price points have high refresh rates, even 90 hertz would have been really nice to have.
Eventually they will come to all of the phones. But a bummer they're not there right now. But at least if that's a deal breaker for you, you can get on the pro line. The 15 bionic is I mean, it's as fast. I bet if anybody tells you that it feels faster the 814 I think the line there's it's a very quick processor.
Typically that'd be thought of as honestly processors crazy fat, it's almost a moot point to talk about it. But like I said at the top of this video as far as iteration on what came before, but with the media in particular, the changes that came and the features that address concerns the previous model, add up to a pretty big deal.
I think now the Mini is finally a phone that you can buy without compromising don't have to worry as much about bad. You don't have to worry about not getting the best cameras out there. You're kind of getting the best that Apple has to offer, but I just getting it in a smaller package.
And the beauty of Android to me has always been choice, you can pick the form factor you want and you can pick the features you wanted. And well Apple is not offering the same feature set and choice you get in a wide variety of Android world.
You are now getting size choice without making a compromise of features. And that's awesome. So if you're in the market for a small phone, that's going to pack a pretty big punch.
Watch the video here:
