{"id":1780,"date":"2024-06-07T11:06:12","date_gmt":"2024-06-07T11:06:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mozillion.com\/resources\/?p=1780"},"modified":"2026-06-26T09:57:41","modified_gmt":"2026-06-26T09:57:41","slug":"best-small-iphone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mozillion.com\/resources\/best-small-iphone\/","title":{"rendered":"Which is the Best Small iPhone?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

 <\/p>\n

It's iPhone SE (2022) vs iPhone 13 mini vs iPhone 12 mini!<\/strong><\/h1>\n<\/div><\/div>

There\u2019s no two ways around it: nobody makes a properly small Android phone these days. That means if you want a truly small smartphone, it\u2019s going to have the Apple<\/a> logo on it.<\/p>\n

In fact, Cupertino has a strong track record of making phones for smaller hands and pockets. There have now been three versions of the budget iPhone SE, along with the superb iPhone 12 mini<\/a> and iPhone 13 mini<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But while all three are small, they\u2019re quite different. The original iPhone SE was created as a cheaper way to own an iPhone, and the iPhone SE (2020)<\/a> and iPhone SE (2022)<\/a> have kept to the same script.<\/p>\n

The iPhone 12 mini, on the other hand, was simply a shrunken version of the iPhone 12<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The iPhone 13 mini is much the same - both offer full iPhone performance in a smaller package, and are only a little cheaper than their mainstream iPhone equivalent.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\"iPhone<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>

If you\u2019re in the market for a small phone, you\u2019ll probably end up asking \u201cShould I buy an iPhone SE, iPhone 12 mini or iPhone 13 mini?\u201d<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s look at how they compare, so you can choose the best small iPhone for you...<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

iPhone SE
\n<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

The original iPhone SE launched in Spring 2016. On the outside it was essentially an iPhone 5S, but on the inside it shared components with the iPhone 6S. As a cheaper, smaller iPhone it was a success, leading on to the second generation iPhone SE (2020), and most recently the iPhone SE (2022).<\/p>\n

The third generation iPhone SE shares plenty with the mainstream iPhone 13<\/a> lineup, including its hugely powerful A15 Bionic chip. However, it has the classic iPhone design, with a smaller screen than other contemporary iPhones. It\u2019s more basic in some other ways, as we\u2019ll explain below.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 13 mini
\n<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

The iPhone 12 mini was the first time Apple had tried to shrink the mainstream iPhone without lowering its spec. It\u2019s basically a smaller version of the iPhone 12, with identical specs other than a smaller screen and shorter battery life. The same applies to the iPhone 13 mini, which is a shrunken iPhone 13. Both phones are a little cheaper than their full-sized counterparts, but neither feels compromised.<\/p>\n

The key difference between \u2018mini\u2019 iPhones and the iPhone SE is that the latter was created as a budget model, and has lower specs, while an iPhone mini is essentially a smaller version of the mainstream iPhone. Now, let\u2019s get into the details.<\/p>\n

Want to consider Android phones too? Check out our guide to the best small phones<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

iPhone SE (2022) vs iPhone 12 mini vs iPhone 13 mini | Size<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

All three of these phones are significantly smaller than today\u2019s norm.<\/p>\n

The iPhone SE (2022) measures 138.4x67.3x7.3mm, making it easy to hold one-handed, even if you don\u2019t have particularly big hands.<\/p>\n

The iPhone 13 mini is smaller still, measuring 131.5x64.2x7.7mm.<\/p>\n

But if you want the smallest iPhone, the iPhone 12 mini has the edge at 131.5x64.2x7.4mm. It\u2019s the lightest of the three, too, weighing 133 grams compared to 140g for the iPhone 13 mini, and 144g for the iPhone SE (2022).<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

iPhone SE (2022) vs iPhone 12 mini vs iPhone 13 mini | Display<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

The iPhone SE (2022) screen is one of its biggest compromises compared to other current iPhones. The iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 13 mini both have modern, near-borderless OLED displays measuring 5.4\u201d diagonally. They also have a 2,340x1,080 resolution, giving them a smooth 476 pixels per inch (ppi).<\/p>\n

The iPhone SE (2022) by contrast makes do with a 4.7\u201d LCD panel offering just 1,334x750 pixels, equivalent to 326ppi. While it\u2019s not a bad screen to look at, it\u2019s incredibly small by today\u2019s standards, and doesn\u2019t have the same brightness or sharpness as either generation of the iPhone mini. Importantly, it also doesn\u2019t have the minimum 1,920x1,080 resolution you need to display HD content without scaling. On the plus side, it doesn\u2019t have a cut out or notch for the front camera like other phones, so nothing spoils the view you do have.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s much less to choose between the iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 13 mini. While both screens offer a 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio and 1,200 nits maximum brightness, the iPhone 13 mini has a higher typical brightness of 800 nits, versus 625 nits for the iPhone 12 mini. In practice, you\u2019re unlikely to notice much difference. Incidentally, all three of these phones have a 60Hz refresh rate - among iPhones, only the iPhone 13 Pro<\/a> and iPhone 13 Pro Max<\/a> go higher.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

iPhone SE (2022) vs iPhone 12 mini vs iPhone 13 mini | Processor<\/p>\n

<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

The iPhone SE (2022) might be a budget iPhone, but here it has an advantage over the iPhone 12 mini. While that phone has Apple\u2019s blistering A14 Bionic chip, the iPhone SE (2022) and iPhone 13 mini both have the newer A15 Bionic, which is significantly quicker.<\/p>\n

In fact the iPhone 13 mini and iPhone SE (2022) are among the fastest phones you can buy - they\u2019re beaten only by the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max, both of which have an enhanced version of the same chip.<\/p>\n

The iPhone 12 mini isn\u2019t too far behind, though. In our tests it notched up a single-core score of 1,589 in the Geekbench 5 CPU benchmark, compared to the iPhone 13 mini\u2019s 1,724. Its 3,888 multi-core score isn\u2019t all that far off the iPhone 13 mini\u2019s 4,590, either. It\u2019s a similar story in the 3DMark Wild Life Extreme benchmark: the iPhone 12 mini posted a best of 2,190 points, compared to 2,520 from the iPhone 13 mini.<\/p>\n

In truth, all three of these phones have more than enough power for almost anything you\u2019ll want to throw at them. iOS (Apple\u2019s operating system) still runs smoothly on much older iPhones than these, and it\u2019s likely they\u2019ll all be fine for cutting edge apps for a couple of generations yet.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

iPhone SE (2022) vs iPhone 12 mini vs iPhone 13 mini | Camera<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

This is an area where the iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 13 mini have the iPhone SE (2022) comprehensively beaten. Both \u2018mini\u2019 iPhones have a dual-lens setup at the back, with 12 megapixel (MP) wide and ultra-wide cameras. Both phones feature a fairly wide \u0192\/1.6 aperture on the wide camera, allowing lots of light through in darker conditions. To help, both phones get Apple\u2019s brilliant Night Mode, which can turn in reasonable shots in astonishingly dim conditions - the iPhone 13 mini is particularly adept here.<\/p>\n

The iPhone SE (2022) isn\u2019t as impressive, but it still has a decent, 12MP camera with a wide-angle lens. Its \u0192\/1.8 aperture is still reasonable, and like the iPhone 12 mini it has optical image stabilisation, helping sharpen up photos and prevent shaky videos, particularly in low light. By contrast, the iPhone 13 mini has sensor-shift stabilisation, which Apple says offers better performance.<\/p>\n

While all three cameras offer great features including 5x digital zoom and Portrait Mode, the iPhone SE (2022) doesn\u2019t support Night Mode, which could be a big omission if you take a lot of night, or dimly lit indoor pictures. On the other hand, both it and the iPhone 13 mini have Apple\u2019s new Photographic Styles feature, which lets you set a preference for the tone of your images. It\u2019s a good feature, which the iPhone 12 mini goes without, but if we had to choose we\u2019d rather have the iPhone minis\u2019 Night Mode.<\/p>\n

Both the iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 13 mini have 12MP front cameras, also supporting Night Mode. The iPhone SE (2022) offers only a 7MP snapper and no Night Mode, but it does again support Photographic Styles.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

iPhone SE (2022) vs iPhone 12 mini vs iPhone 13 mini | Video<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

All three of these phones will shoot 4K video at 24, 25, 30 or 60 frames per second (fps), or 1,080p HD video at up to 60fps. The \u2018mini\u2019 iPhones both also support HDR recording with Dolby Vision up to 4K at 60fps. All three support slo-mo up to 240fps, but only the iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 13 mini support Night Mode Time Lapse.<\/p>\n

With its limited resolution, the iPhone SE (2022)\u2019s front camera doesn\u2019t support 4K recording. It tops out at 1,080p HD, which is supported up to 30fps, or 120fps in slo-mo. On both the iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 13 mini, the front camera will shoot 4K video or 1,080p HD at up to 60fps.<\/p>\n

Both the front and rear cameras of the iPhone 13 mini support the new Cinematic Mode, providing powerful depth-of-field control. This allows more precise use of focus and blurring to create more compelling videos. It\u2019s a neat feature, currently only found on the iPhone 13 lineup.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

iPhone SE (2022) vs iPhone 12 mini vs iPhone 13 mini | Battery<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

One problem with small phones is that there\u2019s less space for a battery. All three of these handsets offer a shorter battery life than a full-sized iPhone would. Apple says that the iPhone SE (2022) and iPhone 12 mini will each give you 15 hours of video playback, or 50 hours of audio, while the iPhone 13 mini will stretch to 17 and 55 hours respectively.<\/p>\n

In our own tests, the iPhone 12 mini lasted just over 12 hours showing HD video, while the iPhone 13 mini went an hour longer. All three of these phones are likely to last a day between charges, unless you\u2019re on long video calls or enjoying lots of entertainment.<\/p>\n

All three phones support fast charging at 20W, which is as fast as any other iPhone, but slower than many Android rivals. They also support Qi wireless charging, with the iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 13 mini also supporting MagSafe accessories and chargers. None of them come with a charger in the box, just a USB-C to Lightning cable.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

Battery life<\/strong> -by Apple (movie playback)<\/strong>*<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>