This… phones always Google, laptops and tablets always Apple for me.
I get your point - but I think buying from from a drug dealer (or terrorist) is a very unlikely risk. To the point of being negligible, compared to the risk your IP address being a compromising factor. And you can still due very basic who you’re buying from.
They also make it harder for app to track you by limiting access to device ID/fingerprinting.
My main gripe with the new SE was the form factor.
I was coming from an 2016 iPhone SE as well - which I absolutely loved. I didn’t like the new form factor that was introduced with the iPhone 6 in 2014 - and every iPhone since then.
They’ve all been too big for my liking (I’m a one-handed user), I always found the round edges lacking grip - and neither did I like iPhone prices creeping up over the years.
I held out for years, until I only, finally, gave in and bought a 2020 SE when my trusty and compact old SE had suffered slight liquid damage (unusable front “selfie” cam) and I just couldn’t bear with the 16GB memory anymore. Also, the new model was cheap and by then I had lost faith in Apple bringing back square edges. I still didn’t really like the form factor.
So when they announced the 12 mini with square edges, I ordered that in a heartbeat and resold my 2020 SE. And I’ve been happy with that ever since.
It does.
My advice would be to choose between 12 mini and the regular 12 (or, possibly, between 13 mini and 13) according to the size you prefer. Not price.
The premium for the Pro models is not worth it IMO - unless you’re really getting into advanced or professional photography. Or you’re readily willing to pay more for the more “luxury” colours and materials (you wouldn’t ask on a forum like this, would you?).
PS: Also, if you can, hold off on your purchase until the new models are announced (likely in september).
Thank you very much for the sound advice! This will be exactly what I plan to do. I am holding out for another month to see what 13 mini is going to be like.
Take a look also at Revendo.ch. I bought 2 Iphone X there, one for me and one for my Gf. Never had any problems, look brand new and the price is cheaper.
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The prices could be quite interesting but for iPhone 12 mini unfortunately you only save 4% (new CHF629 vs CHF605 is Revendo).
Mid range in what sense?
Mini has exactly the same (internal) hardware like the non-mini and pro.
Size, battery, cameras are the differences.
I was referring to the price and camera specs.
Haven’t read the whole thread but here is my take:
Get the oldest, still supported iPhone you can.
In my case it’s a 6S 32GB. I got it over a year ago for around 160.- if I remember correctly. I bought an ifixit tool set (around 60.- I think) which I use to fix many things including the iPhone.
I bought a fresh new battery in it (total cost around 20.- and 90 minutes surgery time), and I’m going to replace the charging board when I find the time because I think the connector is failing (the part cost 5.- on eBay)
I also added a screen protector (around 5.- for 3 or 4 on aliexpress/ebay) and a silicone case (another couple of francs on aliexpress)
Pretty happy with it, and it takes very decent pictures too. If I truly wanted quality pictures I wouldn’t use a phone anyway so I don’t think you need to worry about picture quality too much.
I got the iPhone on tutti but I’d recommend paying a bit extra and getting it on Ricardo instead because you can see the reviews for a given seller and gauge if they’re trustworthy or not.
For the phone plan, I’m using Aldi prepaid. They paid me 50.- to port my number over to them and gave me 20.- starting credit with the 10.- SIM card. The smallest plan is 15.- a month for 3GB and unlimited Swiss calls/SMS. It goes all the way up to 29.- for more data with 3GB of roaming data. Unused domestic data is banked, I have around 80GB of data left at the moment. I don’t use much data and I use maybe 1.5GB a month. But the 29.- plan comes with something like 20GB or so.
Note that I’m blocking ads in all apps (except the YouTube app which uses its own tricks to show ads) using nextdns.io, so that helps speeding up the phone a bit and saving data.
Anyway, that’s my two cents.
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Thank you Boschika for this wealth of information!
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But won’t that mean your phone will soon not be supported by Apple’s new iOS releases?
Sure, but I’ve had my iPhone for a tad over two years now and it’s still going to get iOS 15 which means another year of use (more if it gets iOS 16 next year). So between paying 400–1200 chf for a newer phone or 160.- for mine, even if I don’t get more than iOS 15 or 16… it’s still a good deal I think, I’d have paid 160.- for 3–4 years of iPhone usage minus whatever residual value when I upgrade. And by then, the SE 2020 or one of the mini iPhones will be old news to Apple fans so I’d be able to pick one up for a similarly decent price and use it for 3–4 years again.
+ 20 CHF for the new battery
+ 60 CHF for the tool set that few people will have - or need - otherwise (unless they’re hobbyists)
+ 90mins of work to replace it, including the risk of damaging something
+ 5 CHF for the defective lightning connector
+ time to replace it?
Opening an iPhone for the first time isn’t for the faint of the heart (and I’m saying this as someone who’s not particularly fussed about working on and in Macs or computers).
I think I sold my SE 2020 for like CHF 270 last autumn (though that may have been slightly cheap)
I wouldn’t count the tools because it’s not like I bought them only to repair the iPhone once and never touched them again. The time I don’t count either because it’s not like I’d have worked a paid 90 mins instead.
But even adding all parts up for the sake of the argument, it’s still much less than 300.- for a phone I’ll have used 3 or 4 years in total.
Looking at Ricardo right now for an iPhone SE 2020, they’re all at 300–400.- (and still open for bidding)
Anyway, to each their own. I’m sharing what works for me. You do you.
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Maybe so, but if you never try then you’ll never learn and get better at it; costing yourself thousands over your lifetime. You also don’t have to start with an iPhone, there are easier things to repair/upgrade to get your feet wet.
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How did you learn how to replace parts on an iPhone? From your line of work or just by researching and watching YouTube videos? Also do you need to do soldering as well? Thank you!
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I watched YouTube videos and I had experience repairing other things like laptops or appliances (just from doing it, out of necessity and curiosity)
My work couldn’t be less “manual”, no help from that in this.
You don’t need to solder anything to repair the iPhone (it’s way too small anyway), but you need special screwdrivers because Apple really doesn’t want you to get in there and a hair dryer to soften the glue, and a succion cup to open the phone.
Ifixit makes terrific instructions and YouTube helps a lot. You can find all parts, adhesives, etc on eBay.
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I looked into replacing my 4 year old iPhone X 256GB recently, as it has a cracked display, cracked back side glass, scratched case and finally a pretty reduced battery capacity. Overall I can’t really complain since I extensively used the thing without a cover since September 2018, and it still works.
However, after checking prices for iPhone 12s/13s I’m not too fussed about parting with my hard earned cash for a phone that is quite similar to my older X 
So for now I opted to order a bunch of parts from Aliexpress and restore the phone to a more usable state. $51 for a new OLED screen, $24 for a battery and $25 for a complete back housing/frame, including the back glass. Repair tools should be included with the parts. Not really sure about the parts quality and how easy it will be to repair, let’s hope for the best 
Spending $100 to refurbish my X certainly sounds better than paying a couple houndred for a new one.
Interesting… especially the $51 for a new OLED screen! Please keep us posted when you get the pieces (or done the work). I am a bit wary of those screens, as they are a lot less bright/colorful.
Yes I’m aware that they might not be on the same level as the factory display. Let’s hope for the best. If turns out to bother me, I can always sell the phone (clearly labeled as non-OEM repaired of course) and still go for a new device.
The most difficult part will be to take everything apart despite the glue. E.g. you need a heat gun (or hair dryer), suction cups, flat prying tools…
But since you are basically replacing everything expect the internal parts, you at least don’t have to worry about breaking anything.