The latest lineup of Apple phones includes four variants: the vanilla iPhone 12, the iPhone 12 Mini, the iPhone 12 Pro, and the iPhone 12 Pro Max. The most affordable ones are naturally the non-Pro variants and for the first time in Apple’s history, there is a Mini version of the iPhone. Despite the existence of a Mini variant, the vanilla iPhone 12 is still a pretty compact phone compared to Android flagships. Does it make sense to choose an even smaller phone? What are the differences between the two handsets? This comparison will help you find out.

Apple iPhone 12 vs Apple iPhone 12 Mini

Apple iPhone 12 Apple iPhone 12 Mini
DIMENSIONS AND WEIGHT 146.7 x 71.5 x 7.4 mm,
164 g		 131.5 x 64.2 x 7.4 mm,
135 g
DISPLAY 6.1 inches, 1170 x 2532 pixels (Full HD+), Super Retina XDR OLED 5.4 inches, 1080 x 2340p (Full HD+), Super Retina XDR OLED
PROCESSOR Apple A14 Bionic hexa-core 3.1 GHz Apple A14 Bionic hexa-core 3.1 GHz
MEMORY 4 GB RAM, 64 GB – 4 GB RAM, 128 GB – 4 GB RAM, 256 GB 4 GB RAM, 64 GB – 4 GB RAM, 128 GB – 4 GB RAM, 256 GB
SOFTWARE iOS 14 iOS 14
CONNECTIVITY Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax, Bluetooth 5, GPS Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax, Bluetooth 5, GPS
CAMERA Dual 12 + 12 MP, f/1.6 + f/2.4
Dual 12 MP + SL 3D f/2.2		 Dual 12 + 12 MP, f/1.6 + f/2.4
Dual 12 MP + SL 3D f/2.2
BATTERY 2815 mAh, fast charging 20W and Qi fast wireless charging 15W 2227 mAh, Fast Charging 20W, Qi wireless charging 12W
ADDITIONAL FEATURES 5G, optional dual SIM, optional eSIM, MagSafe, IP68 waterproof 5G, optional dual SIM, optional eSIM, MagSafe, IP68 waterproof

Design

If we exclude the dimensions, iPhone 12 and 12 Mini have the same design. They come with a glass back and an aluminum frame, as well as a borderless display on all the sides and a classic notch. Besides being more compact, the iPhone 12 Mini is also lighter with a weight of just 135 grams against 164 grams. The phones are dustproof and waterproof up to 6 meters deep for a max of 30 minutes, with the IP68 certification. Both the phones come with the MagSafe connectors on the rear side to attach official external accessories such as wireless chargers and battery packs.

 

Display

The display is the most important difference between iPhone 12 and 12 Mini. First of all, they differ for the diagonal: the vanilla version has a 6.1-inch display, while the Mini variant has a 5.4-inch diagonal. Further, the vanilla version has a higher resolution with 1170 x 2532 pixels against 1080 x 2340 pixels. Both are Super Retina XDR OLED panels with HDR10 support, Dolby Vision, and very high brightness. They are definitely two of the best displays out there, despite they do not have a high refresh rate. The phones do not come with an in-display fingerprint reader but they rely on Face ID for authentication.

 

Specs & Software

iPhone 12 and 12 Mini are equipped with the same hardware setup. It includes an Apple A14 Bionic chipset built at 5 nm with a max frequency of 3.1 GHz, 4 GB of RAM, and 64, 128, or 256 GB of native NVMe storage depending on the chosen configuration. They run iOS 14 out of the box which can be updated to iOS 14.7 with the last updates. Their performance is simply amazing in every scenario, despite you can get an even better multi-tasking experience with the Pro variants of the 12 series. Unfortunately, they do not have a micro SD slot to expand the internal storage, but they support the 5G connectivity, as well as Wi-Fi 6.

 

Camera

The iPhone 12 and the iPhone 12 Mini sport a dual rear camera with a 12 MP main sensor including optical stabilization and a 12 MP ultrawide sensor. Unfortunately, you do not get a telephoto sensor with these two phones (so no optical zoom), but they are able to shoot awesome photos in every condition and even better videos with a 4K resolution, 60 fps, and Dolby Vision.

 

Battery

The iPhone 12 Mini is smaller than the vanilla version, which means the battery is smaller too. The capacity of the battery in the iPhone 12 Mini is 2227 mAh, while the original iPhone 12 has a way bigger 2815 mAh battery. The vanilla iPhone 12 is able to reach up to 65 hours of battery life, while the Mini variant goes up to 50 hours. Both support fast charging with a power of 20W, as well as wireless charging through the MagSafe connectors. Note that iPhone 12 Mini supports 12W wireless charging, while the vanilla version goes up to 15W. However, this should not result in faster charging times because the Mini version has a smaller battery out of the box.

 

Price

The starting price of the vanilla iPhone 12 is €750 or $700, while the iPhone 12 Mini starts from €630 or $680. Note that the prices vary depending on the market: in the U.S. for example, the handsets are more affordable than in Europe. If you need a very compact phone and you do not mind having a smaller battery because you can charge your phone every day, the iPhone 12 Mini might be a very interesting choice for you. But if you prefer having a wider display and a bigger battery, just go for the iPhone 12 to get a better user experience.

 

PRO and CONS

Apple iPhone 12

PRO

  • Faster wireless charging
  • Wider display
  • Bigger battery
  • Higher resolution

CONS

  • Dimensions
  • Price

 

Apple iPhone 12 Mini

PRO

  • More compact
  • Lighter
  • Better prices

CONS

  • Inferior display

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