iPhone 12 mini Teardown: iPhone 12… But mini

We’ve already done Teardowns for the iPhone 12, 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max so there’s just one left til we’re four for four. Today we’re looking at the iPhone 12 mini. It’s basically a standard iPhone 12, but hit with a shrink ray. How did Apple fit all the features of an iPhone 12 into this tiny phone? Let’s do a mini teardown and find out.

Timestamps
00:00 Intro
00:18 Opening iPhone
00:28 Heat and Prying
00:34 First Look Inside
00:45 Removing Cameras
01:07 Removing Taptic Engine
01:21 Speaker and Battery Removal
01:55 Logic Board Removal
02:12 Chip ID
02:28 Score and Review

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[iFixitYourself]

Quick correction: @ 2:20 we say the mini has 4 GB of RAM like the 12 and 12 Pro. That's only half true—the 12 has 4 GB, but the 12 Pro (and 12 Pro Max) have 6 GB. So many iPhones in so little time, it's hard to keep them straight! Sorry for the mistake.

[joshxkerrigan]

Another YouTuber, Hugh Jeffreys, brought up a fantastic point and I'm disappointed you haven't mentioned it here... as that "repairability" score is worthless when Apple locks their hardware to each device. Hugh purchased two iPhone 12 models and tried to swap the identical, genuine Apple parts between them and was unable to have a fully operating device after. Features such as Face ID, Camera functionality, Battery capacity readout, etc. were disabled- even though the part was brand new from another iPhone 12. This has to be the largest step I've seen Apple take regarding the "right to repair", as iPhone 12 repairs seem to be impossible without Apple's hardware validation. I'd love to hear your response to this, as I've trusted iFixit for years regarding my device repairs, and I worry about long term use after seeing Apple take such drastic measures against DIY hardware repairs.

[gabrielecaruso]

All components are repairability score...

[revengerpanda]

The pain u feel when you r watching a tear down of 12mini on a 12mini😂😂

[HrdStL]

Repairability 6 out of 10? Are you freaking kidding me? Yes the components are modular, but they cannot be changed without programming from apple. In my opinion it gets 1 out of 10.

[NicolaMastrandrea]

I don't understand how it could be a 6 out of 10 if these iPhones all have hardware secure boot.
While it is 6 out of 10 for an Apple certified technician it is an 0 out of ten for everyone else.

[toniwonkanobi]

iPhone 12 mini is the spiritual successor to iPhone 4. It's almost as glorious is that [now] relatively ancient glass-sandwiched little device.

[HearMeLearn]

You should be knocking off points for having components paired to the logic board as well

[liamrobinson]

I’ve had an iPhone since forever, I’ve just got the 12 mini upgraded from a 7, on my 7 I replaced my battery and screen several times myself which was pretty easy and the 12 mini also looks pretty much the same but hearing that the individual parts are locked to the handset preventing people like me just repairing my own devices is a shame, hopefully somebody finds a way around this by the time I need to swap out parts.

[captcan]

Can the components really be replaced? I read somewhere that the camera is dongled the the system, so you cannot really put another one in. At least not with some serious hiccups.

[janinerosenberg]

iFixit: Let’s take apart the iPhone 12 Mini!
Me watching on my iPhone 12 Mini: 😐

[michaelgregory]

Maybe even mention that the camera modules cannot be installed into another iphone 12 mini due to apple pairing the modules with the device. Shouldnt that negatively affect the repairability?

[ralphal]

2:37 isn't the camera, display and battery paired to the logic board?

[KillerLettuce]

I would most definitely irreversibly break my phone if I tried to fix it myself.

I remember trying to fix a sticky button on a PS2 controller. After taking it apart, attempting to fix it, and putting it back together I no longer had a sticky button. I had a completely dead controller.

[syproful]

It's not a small phone. It's the perfect size. I switched from a first edition Iphone SE, and the screen is massive.

[Carmisci]

I didn’t know Apple made a new iPhone 5 that has a edge-to-edge display! And double cameras? Woah! But seriously, where did they move the headphone jack and home button to? How will I use Touch ID?

[munsurahmed]

U cannot replace anything without programming.

[TheSpotify]

Great teardown. Wrong score though. This iPhone 12 mini, like its iPhone 12, 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max all should have the same score, and that score is due to the severe binding and pairing between Apple's software, and the hardware components. Good luck repairing it if you don't have the necessary programming tools.
Therefore, the corrected score is the same as the Apple Pencil, Apple Airpods, and the Surface Laptop 1/2: 0 out of 10.
They all have similarities:
Apple Pencil: physically destroy it to access anything
Airpods: physically destroy them to replace the battery when it gets worn out (see Hugh Jeffreys' recent video on this)
Surface Laptop v1 and v2: cut open the keyboard to get inside, meaning that any repairs cause total destruction of the device
iPhone 12 series: each hardware component is tied to the motherboard, and if you replace a component, it cripples the functionality of the component. In fact, replacing the camera means you have to have the power cord everytime you want to turn the phone on, as it doesn't respond to the power button.

I didn't realize the Samsung Galaxy series was so more repairable - I'll be sticking with the Galaxy series.

[joshgeurink]

Should have gotten a 0/10 for repairability. Nearly every working electronic in that phone is binded to the software, this makes repairing components a technical impossibility

[LtDracula]

So basically the camera bulge is up for selling covers?