Ever since Apple discontinued the iPhone Mini, those that love it have loudly made one request: "Bring back my compact phone!" To this vocal minority of users, the appeal wasn't nostalgia—it was practicality. A phone that fit comfortably in one hand, disappeared into a pocket or purse and didn't require stretching your thumb across a massive display was exactly what they wanted. Ironically, the rumored foldable launching with the iPhone 18 Series may end up filling the gap for iPhone Mini users.
At first glance, a foldable phone seems like the complete opposite of a compact device. Foldables are often associated with large screens, premium price tags, and cutting-edge technology. But that overlooks one of the biggest advantages of a book-style foldable: when it's closed, it's much smaller than a traditional smartphone.
If the rumors are accurate, Apple's first foldable phone set to launch with the iPhone 18 Series will have a noticeably smaller footprint than today's standard. While it may be slightly thicker when folded and may feature a somewhat wider screen ratio that's pushing closer to a square, its reduced height could make it significantly easier to hold, slip into a pocket, or use one-handed. And that's exactly what made the iPhone Mini special.
The Mini wasn't beloved because it had a small screen. It was beloved because it had a small body. People wanted a phone that was easy to carry every day without sacrificing performance. Unfortunately, Apple struggled to sell enough iPhone Minis to justify continuing the product line and due to the smaller battery it didn't quite have that "all day" performance that many look for in a phone.
Instead of asking consumers to choose between a compact phone and a large display, a foldable iPhone offers both. Closed, it delivers the portability that Mini fans have been missing. Open, it provides a display large enough for multitasking, reading, watching videos, or editing photos. It's a compromise that doesn't really feel like one.
In many ways, the foldable concept fulfills the original promise of the iPhone Mini better. Smartphones have simply become more demanding. Apps expect larger displays, productivity workflows benefit from additional screen space, and media consumption has become central to how people use their devices. A foldable acknowledges those realities without abandoning the desire for a phone that's genuinely easy to carry.
iPhone Measurements: Original, 7, Mini, 17 Pro Max and Rumored Foldable
Because I run the iPhone case start-up, OpenCase, I have a bit of an affinity for numbers and geeking out about tech specs. Given that, let's look at the Foldable's potential dimensions in a chart compared to the original iPhone, the iPhone 7 & 7 Plus (which is when iPhones started getting bigger), as well as the 12/13 Mini (the only generations), and the current big boy, the 17 Pro Max.
| Height (mm) | Width (mm) | |
| iPhone Original | 115 | 61 |
| iPhone 7 | 138 | 67 |
| iPhone 7+ | 158 | 78 |
| iPhone 12&13 mini | 131 | 64 |
| iPhone 17 Pro Max | 163 | 78 |
| iPhone 18 Foldable | 120.6 | 83.8 |
You can see that the potential height of the Foldable is somewhere in between the height of the original iPhone (the shortest iPhone ever) and the Minis, but the width is potentially wider than anything we have seen in an iPhone before. I'm guessing that since width hasn't ever been complained about, just the height, and unfolding the phone would make it potentially (175 mm x 120 mm, larger than a Pro Max Phone (163 mm x 78 mm), but slightly smaller than an iPad Mini (~195 mm x 135 mm), it might be a potential "sweet spot" for a 2-in-1 device.
Not a Direct Replacement for iPhone Mini
Of course, it won't be a direct replacement to an iPhone Mini. It will likely be priced at a premium, near the top of the line, but likely without the full suite of lenses to truly make it a "Pro" iPhone. This would put it in a completely different market than the Mini ever occupied. Cost alone means it won't satisfy everyone who simply wanted an affordable small iPhone. But from a design philosophy perspective, the connection is hard to ignore.
For years, the smartphone industry has largely equated "better" with "larger." The Foldable isn't just about making an iPhone bigger. It's about making it smaller when it matters. A device can expand when you need more screen space and shrink when you don't.
The iPhone Mini proved there was an audience, albeit a smaller one, that valued convenience over sheer display size. The forthcoming foldable iPhone may not wear the "Mini" name, but if its defining feature is being the smallest, easiest-to-carry iPhone when closed, while still offering Apple's largest display when opened, it could end up being the spiritual successor Mini fans have been waiting for. Or an evolved one anyway.
Note: The image paired with this blog post was AI-generated. As the iPhone Foldable is not yet been revealed and may not even be released, this was an "imagined" look based on the rumors circulating.