SpecEagle review · Apple

iPhone 12 mini review: The original 5.4" mini — 5G and OLED in the smallest modern iPhone.

SpecEagle Editorial·Nov 2020·$699
Overall
73/100
Class rank
#16 of 18
Tier
Premium
Buy?
At the right price
The verdict, up front

The smallest 5G iPhone ever made — a niche pick best bought used.

The 12 mini squeezed OLED and 5G into a 133 g body. Battery life was its undoing at launch and remains its weak point; for collectors of small phones it is still a charming, capable device.

01Display

78/100

78/100 — right at the average for premium phones of 2020.

TypeSuper Retina XDR OLED, 60 Hz
Size5.4 inches
Resolution2,340 × 1,080 px (476 ppi)
Peak brightness1,200 nits HDR
ProtectionCeramic Shield

02Camera

76/100

76/100 — right at the average for premium phones of 2020.

Main12 MP, f/1.6, OIS
Ultrawide12 MP, f/2.4
Selfie12 MP, f/2.2
Video4K @ 60 fps · Dolby Vision HDR

03Performance

74/100

74/100 — right at the average for premium phones of 2020.

ChipsetApple A14 Bionic (5 nm)
CPU6-core
GPUApple 4-core GPU
RAM4 GB
Storage64 GB / 128 GB / 256 GB

04Battery

62/100

62/100 is one of the weaker battery results among premium phones of 2020 — 11 points under the average. Check the rows below before buying for this.

Capacity2,227 mAh
Wired~20 W (Lightning)
Wireless12 W MagSafe

05Build

84/100

84/100 puts it above the 79-point average for premium phones of 2020.

06Value

74/100

74/100 trails the 77-point cohort average for premium phones of 2020.

What works
  • Smallest, lightest modern iPhone at 133 g.
  • Full OLED display and 5G despite the size.
  • A14 still handles everyday tasks comfortably.
  • Premium flat-edge aluminium build.
What doesn't
  • Very small 2,227 mAh battery — needs a midday top-up.
  • 60 Hz display.
  • Lightning port; 64 GB base.
  • Discontinued by Apple.
Cross-shop it against
OnePlus 9RT
$599 · score 80/100

How this review is built: every section score, spec row and comparison on this page comes from SpecEagle's tracked catalogue — scores weight measured specs against the 18-phone cohort of premium devices released around the same time. We don't publish invented lab anecdotes. Spot an error? .