Thirty years ago , if you asked a member of the populace about the futurity of engineering science , there ’s a fair chance you ’d hear the Logos “ miniaturization . ” That ’s the way of life thing seemed to be headed in the 90s , and you could hardly move for data-based comedian doing stiff fives about funny little camcorders and funny little music player and comic slightly less massive mobile phone . By 2024 , we all assumed , a household ’s entire collection of tech products would match into a matchbox .
In any event , it did n’t quite work out that way , which is often the case when you accept current trends will carry on endlessly in the same direction . An iPod nano is an appreciably more portable and convenient product than an iPod mini , but that does n’t intend we ’d get the same benefits from an iPod pico the size of a kidney bean or an iPod femto the size of a grain of rice . There ’s a tip where come small stops being helpful .
The iPhone is a case in point . Our 90s ally would be bewilder to discover that the iPhone 16 is taller , wider , and more than an troy ounce heavy than the original iPhone that came out 17 year before — but this is more than compensate for by the much heavy screen and battery , and the arsenal of vastly upgraded tech components . Apple ’s smartphones have got slimmer , but in other respects , it makes functional sense for them to outride the same size or grow . A 6.1 - inch screen is just provably more utile than a 3.5 - inch one .
Of course , it has n’t been a childlike marchland upward in size of it , and Apple has experimented with smaller handsets from time to time . For a span of generation , the iPhone SE was democratic among sept who did n’t especially want or need a phablet . ( Nowthere’san ugly coinage you do n’t try any longer , mainly because big smartphones are no longer a novelty . ) But was itreallythe small size that was the attractor , or was it the low price and the Home button ? The evidence suggests the latter , because the small but mighty iPhone 12 mini and 13 miniskirt , as popular as they were with reviewer , were so commercially abortive that Apple down off the line in favour of something bigger .
I jazz ( andmourned ) the iPhone 12 miniskirt because it seemed marvelous that something so small could contain such a unnerving set of specs and feature article . I have it away how unobtrusively it slipped into a pocket , and the deficiency of compromise its petite strain ingredient appeared to entail . But the job get along when a substance abuser goes from a 5.4 - inch screen to a 6.1 - inch one , or frailty versa . I switched from the iPhone 14 Pro to the 15 Plus last fall and can confirm frompersonal experiencethat once you stress a bigger blind , it ’s very unmanageable to go back .
Perhaps this explain the situation of the iPad miniskirt , which once seemed like the future of the production line ( following that same 90s logical system , I suppose ) but quickly became its pariah instead . Apple eventually update the iPad miniskirt last calendar month , but this came after an astonishing three year in the wilderness and involvedprecious few worthwhile climb : one imago that Apple spend a lot of that time giving serious thought to mercy - killing the iPad miniskirt like the iPhone mini before it . The gadget is manifestly democratic in some professional applications , but I ’m not certain there are enough doc and airline pilots in the world to make it commercially viable when everyone else wants to watch pic on a filmdom at least the sizing of the 10th - gen iPad .
Does shrinking tech product ever make sensation ? Of course . Apple ’s own Mac miniskirt , now smaller than ever , is the most late poster shaver for the mini concept and has raise a great and enduring achiever . Mainly , I suspect , because the Mac being mini does n’t command the display to follow suit . It ’s one of the few products in Apple ’s ecosystem where the screen is unbundled from the relaxation of the twist … and it helps that it ’s plugged in rather than battery - powered , so being smaller does n’t necessitate a step-down in functional life story . The two bad downside of smallness do n’t affect the Mac mini . ( Another such object lesson is the HomePod mini . )
What , then , would it look like if Apple tried to mini - fy one of its other product ? What would a MacBook miniskirt , for exercise , look like ? Well , we do n’t really have to guess because Apple in reality used to sell a little MacBook Airwith an 11 - in display … and the fact that it does n’t anymore suggests this is n’t the optimal laptop class factor . Even in 2015 , weconcludedthat the CRT screen was too small , although in fairness this was more a function of the extremely thick bezels than the limitation of the chassis .
A 2025 MacBook miniskirt would fix that issue , at any rate . And if we ’re perpetrate to the miniature concept then we can accept that the chassis would shrink inwards to meet the concealment , rather than the screen exposit to take on the edge of the soma . That would give us an unprecedentedly slim and portable laptop that would fit in Steve Jobs ’ manilla envelope with way to part with for a packed lunch , which is n’t an unappealing mentation . Chuck in an M3 processor and support for Apple Intelligence , and the MacBook mini would deliver in high spirits - category performance in an ultraportable package .
alas , some problemsarefundamental to a equipment ’s size . No matter how much we thin down those bezel , the screen ca n’t get any big than the flesh allows . More significantly , neither can the keyboard , which is unfit news for the great unwashed with human being - sized hands and a desire to typecast . And if you ’re one of the few mass willing to bear a laptop with a modest screen and a little keyboard , there ’s already the selection to corrupt an 11 - inch iPad Air with a Magic Keyboard and get two products in one . But I ’d recommend you channelise clear of the iPad miniskirt .
metalworks
receive to our weekly Apple Breakfast column , which includes all the Apple news you neglect last week in a ready to hand sharpness - sized roundup . We call it Apple Breakfast because we think it goes great with a Monday morning cup of chocolate or tea leaf , but it ’s nerveless if you want to give it a read during luncheon or dinner party hours too .
How Applelearned to stop worryingand express mirth at theMicrosoft Zune .
complaint about theMagic Mouseare missing the item , because there ’s alogic to Apple ’s acedia .
How Apple Intelligence cantake over the world(or just theApple ecosystem ) .
I’mskipping the Apple Watch Series 10this year , says Mahmoud Itani , and so should you .
How small is theM4 Mac minireally?This modest .
Podcast of the week
The internet did n’t become a widely accessible resource for years after the Mac was born , So where did hoi polloi go to get Mac sustenance ? In this episode of the Macworld Podcast , we explore the story ofMac User Groupsand their influence on the Mac community .
you could catch every episode of the Macworld Podcast onSpotify , Soundcloud , thePodcasts app , orour own web site .
Reviews corner
The rumor mill
TheM4 Ultrawill reportedly get amassive core upgradefor Apple ’s highest - end Macs .
Major changesare coming to theMacBook Pro – but not until 2026 .
Left - field reportclaims Apple is working on a90Hz displayfor iPad Air , iMac .
