There is no market for small smartphones. The mini line has consistently underperformed, and may get cancelled completely in the next refresh. People who complain about large screens online are unfortunately a vocal minority.
The same people are saying that the mini is toast for the iPhone 14. It's gone. Maybe Tim Cook will do his Tim Cook thing and reuse the mini form factor as the next SE for the next half decade, but I wouldn't bet on it.
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[1] https://www.macrumors.com/2020/10/02/iphone-13-lineup-rumore...
[2] https://www.macrumors.com/2021/02/15/iphone-13-mini-expected...
I live in hope
I didn't upgrade to the 6 because it was too big, the iPhone mini is the same size as a 6.
If you're in the market for a small phone: an iPhone mini is just taking you back to when they were already too big.
iPhone 4 was my favorite form factor. I just want something I can use with one hand.
... although 5/se form factor would be even better.
The mini is smaller than the 6. Size-wise the mini is midway between the 5 and the 6. The 6 is too large for me for one-handed use, whereas the mini is (barely) okay.
It’s not comparable to an iPhone 5 at all.
There’s millimetres in the difference between a 6 and a 12 mini- I provided proof in my comment. It’s absolutely marginal.
iPhone 5: 123.8 x 58.6 x 7.6 mm
iPhone mini: 131.5 x 64.2 x 7.4 mm
iPhone 6: 138.1 x 67 x 6.9 mm
I owned all three; the extra millimeters in width on the iPhone 6 where just above what is comfortable for me. The mini I can live with.
I think it's true based on other evidence, but this on it's own isn't conclusive.
[1] https://www.macrumors.com/2021/06/30/iphone-12-passes-100-mi...
[2]https://www.macrumors.com/2021/06/30/iphone-12-passes-100-mi...
(Incidentally, not all women store phones in bags; but then I used to see men storing phones on those things that clip into your belt too… probably not within the last few years though. Also, you're not storing _anything_ in women's pockets; they're mostly decorative.)
Now, on the serious side, this is ignorant and sexist comment. It is sexist because it focuses on gender-biased fashion, emphasizing social gender inequality. It is ignorant because it does not take into account that women are usually physically smaller than men and they have smaller hands. They need a smaller device to have the same user experience as men, not because they want to carry it in their pockets (though surely they want it too).
This could very well be the reality of the phone market for women without trying to unmask anyone making the observation as sexist. Seems like you read their comment as a prescription of how things ought to be.
I'm not sure what the fuss is about though. The people doing the market research have decided offer two small options in the current iPhone generation, so there's clearly a market for it whether that's women driving that market or not. There are all sorts of reasons anyone might want a smaller phone. I own a 13 mini myself and I'm a big guy.
I have no idea what Apple did in this direction, but whenever I hear "no market for small phones," I think of the women in my life with small hands who bring up the lack of options voluntarily when phone size is discussed (especially when an older iphone SE that's small is seen).
They should make an iPhone 5 sized iPhone 13 pro and sell it for $1500 and it will sell but, but unfortunately it will suffer from battery life issues so is impossible. The advantage of larger phones is the larger batteries which allows Apple to make slim phones that last all day