‘Something only Apple would do,’ is what Apple said at the launch of the iPhone 12 Mini. The company also followed suit with the iPhone 13 Mini but seems to have lost interest in the mini lineup for now.
Apple introduced iOS 16 at WWDC 2022, and it feels like iOS 16 is the end of the line for the iPhone Mini lineup. There are also rumors that Apple will be replacing the iPhone 14 Mini with the iPhone 14 Max, an affordable iPhone with a bigger display.
How does iOS 16 kill the iPhone Mini lineup?
There are two big changes to iOS that are driving this speculation. First, Apple’s new customizable lock screen puts all the notifications at the bottom of the screen, optimizing iOS 16 for bigger screens.
Apple is also moving widgets like the music player, fitness rings, and others to the bottom of the screen. This essentially means better one-hand usage with a bigger iPhone. This makes propositions like iPhone 14 Max look more feasible as you can access everything with one hand.
The second reason why I think iOS 16 kills off iPhone Mini is because of how iOS already functions. If you don’t want to reach the top of your screen, you can customize the back tap shortcuts to access the control panel and notifications.
Moreover, iOS 16 builds upon the sharing options from iOS 15, which means everything you need is at the bottom. The share button, Safari taskbar, in-app-menus, everything has moved to the bottom of the display.
So in a way, Apple has been cleverly moving all the elements to the bottom of the display, leaving the top half of the iPhone for your eyes.
Is ‘Mini’ irrelevant now?
If your phone is more than your phone, a smaller display is certainly not your friend. Not to mention the iPhone 12 Mini and the iPhone 13 Mini lag in battery performance compared to the standard and Pro models.
As an iPhone 12 Mini user myself, I can say that it is a great phone for day-to-day usage if your day is well-separated by gadgets. I use my MacBook for most of my content consumption, making the iPhone 12 Mini the ideal phone for me. But if you expect more out of it, you’re in for a disappointment.
A bigger phone is also better as big phones with bottom-set controls give you more screen real-estate to look at content and maintain a decent grip and scroll motion flexibility. So at the end of the day, optimization defines the ideal phone size.
Concluding, I think that the iPhone Mini lineup has come to an end because iOS 16 has moved everything relevant to the bottom. What do you think about it? Let us know in the comments.
