iPhone 12 Mini's Battery Life is One to Two Hours Shorter Than iPhone 12 When Comparing Video Playback

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Apple's iPhone 12 mini is the smallest iPhone that's been made available since the original iPhone SE, with a 5.4-inch display and a body that's 5 inches high and 2.5 inches wide.

iphone 12 vs iphone 12 mini
Since it's the smallest iPhone Apple sells, it's also the iPhone 12 model with the lowest battery life, coming in at 15 hours of video playback compared to the iPhone 12's 17 hours. For streaming video, the iPhone 12 mini offers 10 hours of playback, while the iPhone 12 offers 11 hours. The iPhone mini outperforms the iPhone SE, but doesn't measure up to any of the other larger iPhones.

iphone12minivsiphone12battery
The 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max features 20 hours of video playback, offering five hours longer battery life than the iPhone 12 mini.

Apple breaks battery life down in three categories: video playback, video playback when streaming video, and audio playback. Battery life info for all iPhones in the current iPhone lineup is listed below.

  • iPhone 12 Pro Max - Up to 20 hours video playback, 12 hours streamed, 80 hours audio
  • iPhone 12 Pro - Up to 17 hours video playback, 11 hours streamed, 65 hours audio
  • iPhone 12 - Up to 17 hours video playback, 11 hours streamed, 65 hours audio
  • iPhone 12 mini - Up to 15 hours video playback, 10 hours streamed, 50 hours audio playback
  • iPhone 11 - Up to 17 hours video playback, 10 hours streamed, 65 hours audio
  • iPhone XR - Up to 16 hours video playback, 65 hours audio
  • iPhone SE - Up to 13 hours video playback, 8 hours streamed, 40 hours audio

All of Apple's new iPhone 12 devices support fast charging and can be charged to 50 percent within 30 minutes using a 20W power adapter and the included USB-C to Lighting cable.

Related Roundups: iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro
Buyer's Guide: iPhone 12 (Caution), iPhone 12 Pro (Caution)
Related Forum: iPhone

Top Rated Comments

NotoriousNeo Avatar
NotoriousNeo
9 months ago
Okay, sure, the 12 Mini doesn't match the much larger/newer iPhone battery stats, like duh, how could it? However, according to Apple's website it does match the XS Max, which was pretty well-regarded for its battery life back when it launched. What's my point bringing up that comparison? Well, it's that while battery life on the 12 Mini might not be as good as the latest/larger models, it's still shaping up to be pretty dang good all things considered. For anyone upgrading from an iPhone 7/8/SE or heck, even a X or XS, you're looking at improved battery life here despite several upgrades in a significantly smaller package. That's something to be excited about imo.
Score: 41 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DavidDoyle Avatar
DavidDoyle
9 months ago
I don't get why Macrumors always disparages notion of a smaller and lighter iPhone?

For years and years the iPhone has become unnecessarily bigger and heavier. The Mini is a good thing. Moaning about battery life of a more pocketable phone is short sighted.
Score: 40 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Michael Scrip Avatar
Michael Scrip
9 months ago
People were begging for a smaller iPhone.

Welcome to battery physics... :)
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
alayal Avatar
alayal
9 months ago
it is still better that my old iPhone 8
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DocMultimedia Avatar
DocMultimedia
9 months ago
I'll never understand why Apple won't just add a few mm to the thickness for a significant increase in battery life. It's just like the MacBook Pro that got a miserable keyboard so it could be N mm thinner. Stupid. IMO.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
carrrrrlos Avatar
carrrrrlos
9 months ago
That’s okay. This is a great form factor for a “phone”. Get an iPad and watch your movies. :)
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
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