iPhone 12 mini reportedly sees end of production because nobody is buying it

Apple has been witnessing a dip in the sales of the iPhone 12 mini ever since its launch last year.

Apple iPhone 12 mini arrived last year as the most affordable phone that dared to resize flagship-level phones. But it failed to perform in terms of sales, and now a report has said Apple has stopped the production of the iPhone 12 mini. The smallest phone in last year’s iPhone series brought a welcome change in the iPhone upgrade cycle, but, while some people loved the idea of a small yet powerful iPhone, most customers did not find value in it. What followed was lacklustre sales of the iPhone 12 mini, with Apple ultimately deciding that it is done with it.That is an interesting move though, especially at a time when a huge round of rumours have unanimously pointed out there is going to be an iPhone 13 mini this year -- as a successor to the iPhone 12 mini. The sales of the iPhone 12 mini were never great. In fact, Apple had previously downscaled the production of the smallest iPhone because of negligible interest in the smaller iPhone. A report by TrendForce has now claimed that the iPhone 12 mini reached “End-of-Life” status earlier this quarter because of weak sales. This means no further production of the iPhone 12 mini. This is in line with the prediction of JP Morgan analyst, William Yang who, in February, said the iPhone 12 mini production will end soon.Apple is likely to still have a good inventory of iPhone 12 mini units that it will continue to sell across the globe, but that is it. Apple will not ask its manufacturers to replug the production roll for the iPhone 12 mini. The iPhone 12 mini is available to buy from the Apple Store, as well, in India, without any delays in shipment. And if you check other websites, such as Amazon, you will see big discounts on the iPhone 12 mini. To make sense of it, those discounts may be a way to clear the inventory, but nothing is official about it.But the stocks are not likely to last as long as September when Apple will launch the new iPhone models. There is an iPhone 13 mini in the pipeline, according to rumours, and Apple will have to promote that phone as a priority then. This year’s iPhones will also mark the death of the production of the iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max, and the three-year-old iPhone XR, which is among the best-selling iPhone models right now. The vanilla iPhone 12 may still continue to sell, unsurprisingly, because it topped the sales charts for the iPhone 12 series altogether.The iPhone 12 mini pulled in only 6 per cent of total iPhone sales between October and November last year, according to Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP). That figure was disappointing enough for Apple to reduce production and, since there has been no recovery, the decision to pull the plug on the iPhone 12 mini production line makes sense. And this is also why the upcoming iPhone 13 mini may not be a part of Apple’s marketing plan for the new series later this year.For what it is worth, an iPhone that size is something the phone industry has needed for a long time. With the ever-growing sizes of smartphone displays, comfort and ease took a backseat. That is when Apple thought of something different with the iPhone 12 mini -- even though it was not the original idea because Samsung thought of it first with the Galaxy S10e.