The battery of the iPhone 13 mini, like that of the iPhone 12 mini, is highly questioned for being the lowest in its series. It is true that being the smallest one cannot expect great displays, but, to what extent is it true that it is a bad battery? We have compared the autonomy of these two devices to see their differences and, although they are far from the ‘Pro’ models, the results have surprised us.
Facts about your batteries
Go ahead, a simple technical data on paper is just that, just a piece of paper. What is really important is how that data is translated in practice, something that we will analyze later. However, we believe it is pertinent to know the data to get a first idea of the differences between the two iPhones.
Capabilities
At first we find a slight difference of 179 mAh in favor of the most recent model. Of course, it is not such a small difference if we take into account that they have a body of practically identical dimensions. The difference between the ‘Pro’ models of both goes hand in hand.
- iPhone 13 mini: 2,406 mAh
- iPhone 12 mini: 2,227 mAh
We must say in addition that these are not official Apple data, since the company’s policies in this regard are somewhat strange and they do not comment on them in any section of their manual or website. However, we can take them for granted based on various tests carried out by specialists, using both specific tools to obtain the data and the disassembly that have been carried out on both phones.
Autonomy (theory)
What Apple does provide are device autonomy data. Although, yes, in a way that perhaps is not the most appropriate in real environments, since the company offers data taking into account a single uninterrupted use that seems very far from the actual use we make of the devices. However, and as we already warned at the beginning, it is not bad to see first what differences both smartphones show on paper.
- Playing streaming video:
- iPhone 13 mini: up to 13 hours
- iPhone 12 mini: up to 10 hours
- Playing local video:
- iPhone 13 mini: up to 17 hours
- iPhone 12 mini: up to 15 hours
- Playing audio:
- iPhone 13 mini: up to 55 hours
- iPhone 12 mini: up to 50 hours
Other data
To keep in mind is that both devices have fast charging that allows you to obtain a charge from 0 to 50% in just 30 minutes using a power adapter of 20 W or more. Now, you have to take several things into account; The first is that the power adapter is not included in the box and, the second, that said adapter may be more than 20 W, but this will not make it charge faster because it admits that maximum power.
On the other hand, you should also bear in mind that the charging process from 50 to 100% is slower, regardless of whether the optimized charging function has been activated. Therefore, it could take around 90 minutes for both iPhones to fully charge.
Regarding the charging method , both have identical specifications as well. They have the now classic Lightning port through which they support charging with cables that have said connector, but they can also be recharged using a common wireless charging base with the Qi standard. They are also compatible with MagSafe accessories, which is none other than the one that takes advantage of the iPhone’s magnet system to adhere strongly to the device.
Performance test
Once we know the data, it is time to fully enter what both iPhones are capable of doing. We have carried out a test with two devices in identical conditions (100% battery health, same settings, apps installed, identical system version…). Therefore, both start on equal terms.
In normal, everyday use
We consider this use as the most common among users. There is no fixed standard and no one uses the telephone in the same way as another person, just as one will hardly ever make the same use. In any case, we present a few wearing averages that can be applicable to average use.
- Social networks (Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, etc.): 20%
- Messaging apps (Telegram, WhatsApp, etc.): 17%
- Video streaming (Apple TV +, Netflix, YouTube, etc.): 16%
- Video call (FaceTime, Skype, etc.): 12%
- Navigation (Safari): 12%
- Telephone (voice calls): 8%
- Camera (photo and video): 8%
- GPS (Apple Maps, Google Maps, Waze, etc.): 5%
- Podcast (Apple Podcast, Overcast, etc.): 1%
- Email (Mail, Spark, etc.): 1%
- Use of WiFi vs Mobile Data: 75% – 25%
After this, the iPhone held the day fairly well. And we say this because both were turned off before reaching the 0.00 that we established as a limit, although both did it at hours when it is understood that it is already more common to charge the phone.
- iPhone 13 mini: 14 hours (from 7:00 to 21:13)
- iPhone 12 mini: 11 and a half hours (from 7:00 to 18:22)
Intensive and demanding
In this case, we have put the devices to the test in a more forceful way, carrying out the actions that generate the highest consumption. This type of use would be more frequent in professional users who make the iPhone an almost essential work tool.
The percentages in this case were these:
- Video streaming (Apple TV +, Netflix, YouTube, etc.): 24%
- Videogames: 23%
- Camera (photo and video): 22%
- Navigation (Safari): 8%
- Video call (FaceTime, Skype, etc.): 7%
- Podcast (Apple Podcast, Overcast, etc.): 4%
- Telephone (voice calls): 4%
- GPS (Apple Maps, Google Maps, Waze, etc.): 3%
- Messaging apps (Telegram, WhatsApp, etc.): 2%
- Social networks (Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, etc.): 2%
- Email (Mail, Spark, etc.): 1%
- Use of WiFi vs Mobile Data: 60% – 40%
With this use, both devices fell far short of what the initial test resulted, the case of the iPhone 12 mini being especially striking:
- iPhone 13 mini: 8 hours (7:00 a.m. to 3:14 p.m.)
- iPhone 12 mini: 7 hours (7:00 a.m. to 1:55 p.m.)
Conclusions.
As the slogan of a famous television program says, we could say that these are the data and yours are the conclusions. In any case, we think we agree that in the end the battery is probably the weakest point of both devices . It is perhaps not as bad as one can imagine based on some comments seen in recent years, but miracles cannot be expected either.
The jump from one to the other is more than remarkable and it is a pleasant surprise to see how the iPhone 13 mini now lasts longer without needing to have the plug nearby. But in the same way we see that in a normal day and with moderate use it is difficult for him to go beyond dinner time. The ’12 mini ‘for its part arrives in the middle of the afternoon with great difficulty.
For the professional field they are discarded , unless one assumes having to charge it at lunchtime or being dependent on a portable battery. And it’s a shame because both offer very striking features such as a camera that, except for the absence of a telephoto lens and a LiDAR sensor, is practically identical to that of the ‘Pro’. In the same way that its screens, despite being moderate in size, offer a very good quality.
We must also remember that time plays against them due to the natural deterioration of the batteries. Under normal conditions, a sudden change should not be noticed and it would be after 3 years when health would have deteriorated considerably. In any case, the tendency will always be to last less, so we imagine that the results of this test would be much lower over time.
