Goodbye, iPhone 13 mini
Why I’m switching to the iPhone 14 Pro Max
I know.
I know.
I’ve spent the last year waxing lyrical about a certain tiny phone from a certain fruit-based tech company. In fact, you may well have bought one of those tiny phones yourself, based on my recommendations.
Check me out now; waltzing in here, acting like I own the place and seemingly suggesting that I’ll be throwing my iPhone 13 mini down the toilet for good.
What a jerk. What a next-level, out-of-touch, attention-seeking influencer type this guy is.
But, I’m sorry — that’s precisely what I’m doing (not the toilet bit, mind).
Later this year, although I’ll be reviewing all of the next-generation iPhones launched by Apple, the one I’ll choose as my daily driver will be the iPhone 14 Pro Max.
However, I have very good reasons for this. I promise.
Let me explain.
The iPhone mini is no more
If you’re a regular reader, or if you simply keep up-to-speed with the Apple rumour mill, you’ll know that the iPhone mini is, apparently, being put out to pasture later this year.
Despite entirely reasonable suggestions that the mini form factor will find a new home eventually in the iPhone SE, it’s highly unlikely that we’ll see an iPhone 14 mini this autumn.
This is a crying shame, and I still don’t really understand why that phone hasn’t met Apple’s sales targets, or why it no longer fits into their strategy above the SE line.
I love the iPhone 13 mini. Despite recent battery woes, it continues to be the most interesting, portable, and indeed usable iPhone on the market, in my humble opinion.
I’m not alone, either. I still receive comments every single day about the iPhone 13 mini either on here or on my YouTube channel. People appear to absolutely love it. Maybe they’re just not buying it.
So, I need to wipe away the tears and move on.
I need the best possible camera
I’ve never been much of a smartphone video shooter. This isn’t because the cameras aren’t capable (they really are) — it’s simply because I’ve rarely needed to shoot stuff with my phone.
That’s changing — rapidly.
Later this year, I’ll be launching a separate vlog channel on YouTube. My lovely patrons are currently acting as guinea pigs for this while I send them occasional test videos of myself making terrible cups of coffee and randomly turning up at elite cycling events.
As I’ve been developing my vlogging style, it has become clear that I’m going to be relying an awful lot on my phone to capture some of the most interesting and creative stuff. The iPhone 13 mini and
Apple has blurred the line between its iPhone models when it comes to camera capabilities, but there’s usually something the Pro Max can do that those below it can’t and I’m willing to bet that the iPhone 14 Pro Max will have some juicy optical tricks up its sleeve that’ll be ideal for my new career as a vlogger. Its size and battery life will also be incredibly handy in that regard.
I’ve fallen in love with the Nothing Phone (1)
Oh, that Nothing Phone (1) — what a device. It is, without doubt, almost solely responsible for my newfound desire to own the biggest iPhone available.
This brilliant budget Android phone is pretty much identical in size to the Pro Max, and as I noted earlier this week, I’ve realised that it isn’t quite the burden I thought it was — particularly when the pay-off is such a wonderfully expansive screen.
Cheers, Nothing, for nothing — you’ve definitely increased my iPhone budget for this year!
That battery life
I’ve spent some time with the iPhone 13 Pro Max and the main takeaway from that experience was the simply bonkers battery life.
You know me — I won’t do stringent tests with this kind of stuff, but I will tell you how it feels to use these devices, and the iPhone 13 Pro Max’s battery life transforms the relationship you have with your phone.
It’s similar to the M1 and M2 MacBooks. The stamina offered by those laptops is so good it removes virtually all battery anxiety from your computing life. As I’ve always said — in-use time is spectacular, but it’s the standby time on Apple silicon-powered Macs that is genuinely life-changing.
This is even more apparent on the iPhone 13 Pro Max, given how important that device can be throughout your day. The ability to stray from a charging point for as long as possible without any worry whatsoever is worth the extra spend alone.
Final thought
My iPhone 14 Pro Max plan is set in stone — I won’t be swayed, no matter what else Apple throws at us later this year during the iPhone 14 launch event.
Some will call me reckless. Others might say I’ve sold out. I may even be called a charlatan.
But I don’t care. I gots my reasons, guys.
Which iPhone 14 are you going for later this year? Get involved in the comments!
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Originally published at https://markellisreviews.com on August 19, 2022.
