Comment by thesuitonym
4 hours ago
Maybe there's room in the world for a device people want, even if it's not the device the majority want? I mean I know Apple is just a small startup company with only a $4 trillion valuation, but maybe they could just do one thing that isn't maximally profitable once in a while.
If each iPhone model served only 3% of total iPhone users like the iPhone mini did, you'd end up with 33 iPhone models
I don't get this logic. Putting aside that to get 33 different models you would come up with 5-6 different form factors, each of them on a distinct point in the tradeoff scale, why do you think that something is only worth doing if it can be put on an uniform supply-demand curve?
What percent of the iPhone sales do you think it took to pay off the significant engineering and factory/tooling setup costs? I bet it's more than 3%.
3% was the iPhone 13 mini? It sold the least of the 4 relatively small phones Apple introduced in under 18 months.
How many Android phone models exist?
Not to mention the SE (variant of the 4 I think?) was way more popular. Dismissing the whole concept just because one implementation at one time was a relative flop (and as you point out, that's still a lot of sales).
Also, they're happy to have Pro and non-Pro SKUs etc., just averse to smaller for reason.
On the Samsung US store alone, currently 12 models (not counting renewed phones)
If Apple didn't run such a closed ecosystem, other hardware vendors would step in and be happy to sell a form factor that 3% of the market uses.
I keep trying to use Andriod to get more choice on form factor, but one thing always brings me back to an iPhone: texting incompatibility. Apple has me locked into their ecosystem because I can't get a decent quality video texted to me.
As an Apple fan since the 90s who remembers how Microsoft abused its market dominance for decades, it's particularly ironic that Apple continues to use this technique against other companies.
I wouldn't. I personally think iOS kind of sucks, and I only keep using it because Android developers don't support devices long enough for me. Third party developers would be as much a mess as they are in the Android world and at that point I'd rather have a phone with a good OS.
> If Apple didn't run such a closed ecosystem, other hardware vendors would step in and be happy to sell a form factor that 3% of the market uses.
There aren't any decent small (less than 6") Android phones either.
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Apple developed iMessage to work around the problems with SMS and MMS, as well as decrease load on carrier networks. There is no closed ecosystem, you can still receive messages and videos from iPhone users, just at the quality your hardware and software can support.
Google later decided to come up with a completely different implementation called RCS to deal with the same problems. Rather than work with Apple on bringing an iMessage app to Android or licensing it, they instead tried to pressure Apple with a public advertising campaign to adopt what is frankly an inferior solution that doesn't even have reliable end-to-end encryption.
Your complaint is basically that you bought a Toyota and it does not have BMW's laser headlights that adjust brightness and angle automatically. You still have headlights, you just didn't spend the money to get the good ones.
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I bet the iphone mini still outsold several macbook skus
Good.
Good, in some ways. But do people want to pay higher prices for these iPhones to cover the costs that have to be amortized over a lower volume of devices?
I highly doubt it.
>maybe they could just do one thing that isn't maximally profitable once in a while.
They tried that this year and called it iPhone Air
The iPhone Air was a turn in the wrong direction.
What people like me wanted was an iPhone 13 mini that's a bit thicker so it can have a bit more battery capacity. And with the 120 Hz PWM nausea fixed.
The iPhone Air has worse battery life. And it has a larger screen. And it's worse to handle one-handed. Coming from the 13 mini, it's not an improvement.
I bought an Air, coming from a 13 mini, and I largely agree with you on all those points except the battery life. I'm not sure why everyone keeps saying the Air has bad battery life, which maybe it does compared to the 17 or 17 Pro etc, but the past week I've been test driving it it has more than all day battery life for me. My 13 mini needed a recharge in the middle of the day (battery was worn down to about 83%).
Otherwise, yeah, you're right. I'm pretty sure I'm going to return it this week before my 14 days are up.
Totally agreed.
The one thing I don’t see criticized enough is the lack of a SIM card slot in international models. I understand they physically couldn’t fit it in, but I bet it's a deal breaker for everybody who has no experience with CDMA phones, so basically everybody outside of North America.
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I get you're referring to the profitability, but the iPhone Air is just thin, not small, which is where this conversation started.
I bought a Pro Max for myself and an Air for my wife, who had a Mini before.
The Air is DAMN SMALL. You really should try holding it. Yes the 2D dimensions are as large as a normal modern phone but it’s hardly there otherwise. It’s a good compromise.
I’d want it myself but I shoot ProRes Video.
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Right, forgot to mention it should also be somewhat practical.
I'm curious how well it is selling. Early on there was a lot of enthusiasm, but I haven't heard much since. I don't know if I'd want a phone with less battery life, but my understanding is the Air's battery is actually not much smaller than last year's pro?
It doesn’t seem to be selling well: https://www.macrumors.com/2025/11/10/next-generation-iphone-...
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It felt more like: keep the size, reduce the battery life
You missed the part where he said "make a device people want."
Ya got me there.
I think it's possible this is a good summary explanation, but isn't this a bit like saying "We only make shirts in medium because it's what the majority wants."
I would switch from Android to Apple if this fixed this problem.
Come to think of it, the only reason I switched from Android to Apple was because the 12 Mini wasn't massive and was actually a decent phone. If I have to get a massive phone again, I might as well go back to Android.
They are making 5 different iPhone models of varying sizes, features, prices.
They made it, it didn't sell well. Last I checked zero Android manufacturers were still creating high quality small phones (<5.5"). The Android community has resorted to petitions like https://smallandroidphone.com
Some people definitely want it, but when not even one Android manufacturer will create a model when they can get 100% market share, it looks like there isn't enough demand.
You've hit the nail on the head. There are still some manufacturers that make small phones, and some that make high quality phones, but zero that make high quality small phones. Apple used to be our last respite, now we have nothing.
Foldable phones sold well enough Samsung introduced their 7th generation this year.
Not in Tim Cook land. If a product is profitable that’s not good enough, it has to be very profitable.
A CEO that maximises for shareholder value? Shocking.
They used to make the "mini" but that's because Jobs had taste and it's what he, specifically, wanted in his pocket. Now Jobs is gone and... no more mini.
But I'll keep my iPhone 13 mini going as long as I can.
I own an iPhone 16 pro, but I’m constantly thinking about switching to an iPhone 13 mini with an aftermarket battery conversion to make it last all day. The only thing that holds me back is that I can’t easily convert it to USBC.
My battery is on its last legs, and I was going to pick up an iFixit one at some point and do the swap, but I believe theirs is the OEM configuration/capacity. Is there another option for an actual higher capacity battery?
Shareholders would never ever be ok with a company not trying to be maximally profitable.
Tim Cook told people they should sell their shares if they wanted Apple to abandon environmental sustainability policies. And he identified accessibility as a similar issue.[1]
[1] https://www.macobserver.com/news/tim-cook-rejects-ncppr-poli...
That's why Tesla stock tanked as soon as the FT wrote that "$1.4bn appears to have gone astray." ;)
https://www.ft.com/content/62df8d8d-31f2-445e-bfa2-c171ac43d...
What's Tesla's forward PE? Close to 200? I don't think we can use them as an example of anything resembling a sane market.
Edit: Found a link to the article content, I gather that's basically the point you're making?
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I'm all for that when it comes to things like accessibility technology that allows people to do things they otherwise couldn't. But screen sizes? You can use a larger screen, you just prefer a smaller one.