Apple’s iPhone 12 Mini has had a rough time. Despite holding up quite well to its flagship iPhone 12 counterparts, the Mini suffered increasingly poor sales numbers.
This lead to many speculating the death knell was near for the iPhone 12 Mini and a new report may have confirmed just that.
End of the line for the iPhone 12 mini
It was reported earlier in the year that supply chain expectations for the production of the iPhone 12 Mini had been reduced by 11 million units. Now Apple is apparently ceasing production of the Mini altogether.
According to Taiwanese research firm TrendForce, via MacRumors, production for the iPhone 12 Mini has already ended.
The report mentions that the iPhone 12 Mini “reached End-of-Life ahead of time” in the second quarter of 2021.
With previous reports indicating that Apple will be reducing its manufacturing quantities, it seems like the company will sell through its existing stock of the Mini and not produce any more.
The iPhone Mini only hit shelves in October 2020 so it’s had a startlingly short lifespan when you consider models from previous years, like the iPhone 11 and XR, are still on sale.
As of now, new iPhone 12 Minis are still available online at the RRP of $1,199. Given their slow sales there’s probably no need to rush out and buy one, but it won’t be around forever.
So, where did the iPhone 12 Mini fail?
As iPhone’s grew in size each year there was a gap in small handsets waiting to be filled, which is something the iPhone 12 Mini set out to do.
Both short battery life and a high price have been counted as factors towards the Mini’s lacklustre sales performance. There’s also the fact that the iPhone SE also exists as a small-sized phone with a much smaller price tag.
That being said, Apple may not have given up on its Mini range just yet.
If rumours are to be believed the upcoming iPhone 13 lineup will still feature four models, indicating an iPhone Mini 13 may be on the way. Hopefully, it can succeed where the 12 Mini failed.