Apple iPhone 13 mini review: Powerful little mobile
Like the previous year, Apple's new iPhone 13 series comes in four variants-- iPhone 13, 13 mini, 13 Pro and the 13 Pro Max.
After reviewing the big iPhone 13 Pro Max, I thought of testing the iPhone 13 mini, the smallest of the lot. The latter comes with massive upgrades every other aspect over the predecessor. Here're my thoughts on the new cute mobile from Apple.
Design, build quality and display
Barring the slight increase in thickness and weight, the overall form factor of the iPhone 13 mini is the same as the predecessor.
However, there are a couple of noticeable changes in terms of exterior looks.
On the back, Apple has incorporated two large camera sensors on the rear side. They are so big that the company could not align them vertically within the module like in the predecessor. So, it had to place them diagonally and move the LED flash top right corner and the mic to the bottom left corner of the module.
This design change definitely serves the purpose in terms of people instantly recognising it as the latest Apple iPhone 13 series. Most importantly, it takes spectacular photos too (more on that later).
On the front, Apple has reduced the size of the notch by 20 per cent, but the compact structure of the 13 mini, makes it really subtle to notice the change, compared to the change we see in the bigger 6.1-inch iPhone 13/ 12 Pro and 6.7-inch iPhone 13 Pro Max.
The rest of the design aspects remains the same for the iPhone 13 compared to the 12 series.
It has the ring/silent slider on the top of the left-side edge and just below it, you will find the volume rockers. Further down, there is a single-SIM tray slot (dual e-SIM option available too).
On the right side, Apple has incorporated a power button.
At the base, you will the all to familiar light cable port with speakers on both sides. And on top, there are no physical buttons.
Apple has placed six antenna bands covering all sides to get seamless network coverage while talking or during video calls using mobile data. By the way, these bands are made of upcycled plastics from discarded water bottles.
Also, some of the critical components such as the main logic board, wires of the cameras, and MagSafe coil are made up using 100 per cent recycled gold, tin and rare earth elements.
Furthermore, Apple has redesigned the retail package to completely eliminate the need for plastic wrap. This apparently reduces more than 600 metric tonnes of plastics entering the environment.
As far as the build quality is concerned, the iPhone 13 mini-features Ceramic Shield on the front and is touted to be the sturdiest protective glass on a phone in the industry. Even on the back, Apple has incorporated strong glass. The rail around the edges is made of aerospace aluminium and is capable of withstanding accidental fall.
Also, the new iPhone 13 series comes with an IP68 rating, meaning the device can survive underwater to a depth of up to six metres for up to 30 minutes.
Both the front and back panel are capable of surviving deep scratches from a coin or key in the pocket, I still recommend owners to get a protective case on the shell as it will be able to protect the device from physical damage during a scenario such as a while walking on a staircase.
Apple offers a good range of snap-on silicone and leather-based cases and they are MagSafe charging compatible too. You don't have to remove them while charging. You can put them on the charger and rest easy.
The 5.4-inch iPhone 13 mini comes with a new and improved super retina XDR display. It is said to offer a 28 per cent increase in max brightness at 800 nits outdoors and it can go another notch up to peak brightness of 1200 nits for HDR content like photos and videos.
It really does work. I did not face any pressing issues while viewing messages under direct sunlight and had a good time watching a TV series. It able to reproduce videos with richer colours and darker shades of black too.
The Face ID works flawlessly in all light conditions and continues to be the gold standard for the facial recognition-based biometric security system in a phone. Also, with the recent iOS 15.0.1 update, the iPhone 13 series users will be able to open the screen with a facemask on, provided he/she wears the Apple Watch.
Performance
The new iPhone 13 mini comes loaded with a powerful 5nm class 64-bit architecture-based A15 Bionic chipset and a significant bump in the battery capacity.
The new silicon houses 6-core CPU with two performance and four efficiency cores, and they are paired with 4-core GPU and 16-core Neural Engine. It is marginally better than the A14 Bionic, but leagues ahead of any of the rival chipset seen in Android smartphones in the industry.
It works super fast in terms of all day-to-day tasks such as loading apps, switching apps, operating a camera, playing games or watching videos.
The real game-changer is the efficient power management of the device. It's really astonishing that such a small phone can last a full day under mixed usage.
For those who just make/answer calls, browse social media feeds and do normal day-to-day activities, the iPhone 13 mini can last a day with more than 30-35 per cent battery.
If you indulge a bit more, like gaming for a half hour and catch an episode or two of a TV series, it still can manage to stay alive until you reach home from an eventful day.
I have seen phones with 4,000mAh capacity battery struggling to last a day for performing the same aforementioned activities.
This has to do with Apple having full control over developing a product. This allows deeper integration between hardware and software to deliver a better user experience. It has done a pretty good job with the iPhone 13 mini. Two thumbs up from me.
On AnTuTu performance testing app, it scored an impressive 8,44,502 points, way more than any of the Android competitors.
Photography
Apple iPhone 13 mini comes with improved 12MP dual-camera sensors over the predecessor. As said earlier, Apple has incorporated bigger sensors to absorb more light and this helps in getting clearer photos in almost all light conditions. As you can see in the sample pictures, they are really top-class.
The ultra-wide-angle mode succeeds in covering a lot of the area of the landscape in the frame.
Even the portrait shots look wonderful with better edge detection than before. It offers six options-- Natural, Studio, Contour, Stage, Stage Mono, and High‑Key Mono.
Low-light photos taken the evening too, have come off really good with sharper details. In the night mode, the picture quality has improved a lot over the predecessor in terms of capturing stable, sharper details with less noise.
One of the new introductions on the iPhone 13 series is the photography styles. In the camera app, it offers four options--Rich Contrast, Vibrant, Warm and Cool-- in addition to the standard. I was more than satisfied with the latter option, but if you want to explore more, the aforementioned four styles will greatly enhance the photography experience and also reduce the reliance on third-party apps to look for fancier filters.
Having tested the Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max first, the only thing I miss in the iPhone 13 mini is the macro photos. The former has totally ruined it for me.
If you are a photography enthusiast, you should really go for the 13 Pro versions. They take spectacular close up shots and the results speak for themselves.
Read more | Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max: Fully-loaded
Having said that, the iPhone 13 mini is better than its predecessor and certainly on par with some of the rival brands in the market, in the case of still images.
The video recording capability is a notch above any of the non-iPhones. The iPhone 13 mini takes pretty stable high-quality clips and the slow-motion videos are artistic, really worthy to be shared on social media platforms.
The newly introduced Cinematic mode exclusively available on iPhone 13 series, is a great attempt by Apple. It works smoothly in terms of the transition of autofocus from one subject to the other in a motion picture.
I appreciate that Apple has offered an option to manually change autofocus in an already-shot video, making the iPhone 13 series, a go-to device for photography enthusiasts and art students looking to make a short documentary using just a mobile.
As far as the front camera is concerned, it comes with 12MP (f/2.2) True Depth sensor with Retina Flash. It has most of the capabilities we see in the primary camera. It is great for high-quality video calling and takes fantastic portrait shots, worthy to be posted as DP on social media handles. Yes, it offers all six effects-Natural, Studio, Contour, Stage, Stage Mono, High-Key Mono) and also support Cinematic mode for recording videos with shallow depth of field (1080p at 30 fps), and 4K videos.
Final thoughts
The most impressive aspect of the iPhone 13 mini is the camera. It takes spectacular pictures in all lighting conditions with near-natural colours. The addition to photography styles within the native app, makes it easier for users to save time finding filters on third-party apps.
Also, the addition of the Cinematic mode further improves the video recording experience.
As far as the battery life is concerned, it is certainly better than its predecessor.
However, the compact screen may hamper the user experience for some.
Just half a decade ago, a phone with more than a 5.0-inch screen was considered 'massive'. It is just that over time we have become too accustomed to the big screen and there is more content to consume on phones than half a decade ago.
Who should buy Apple iPhone 13 mini?
Apple iPhone 13 mini is a lovely little phone for people who have a thing for small gadgets.
Also, for those of you, who own the iPhone 8 or the iPhone SE (2020), and looking for an upgrade with the same class of compact phone, the iPhone 13 mini is the best option. With 128GB storage as the base model, it is more compelling to buy.
With a bigger battery capacity, the iPhone 13 mini is now the best choice in the niche compact mobile segment and there's no best Android alternative to it. Period.
However, if you are an extreme user who consumes multi-media content, play games for several hours and doesn't want to compromise on big screen, then the regular 6.1-inch iPhone 13 is the best choice. If you have more cash to burn, go for any of the iPhone 13 Pro series models.
Apple iPhone 13 mini comes in three storage options-- 128GB, 256GB and 512GB-- for Rs 69,900, Rs 79,900 and Rs 99,900, respectively.
The company is offering the iPhone 13 mini in five vibrant colours-- pink, blue, midnight, starlight, and (PRODUCT)RED.
Get the latest news on new launches, gadget reviews, apps, cybersecurity, and more on personal technology only on DH Tech.
Deccan Herald is on WhatsApp Channels| Join now for Breaking News & Editor's Picks