Thanks for the tips - I can manage a dummy plug if required. Glad to hear AMT would be local-only unless I take additional steps.

Glad to hear it’s working for your use case! I’ve seen lots of positive feedback about these Optiplex Micro’s.

Fully agree. One of the worst offenders is the PS5 whose standby lights can’t even be covered with tape properly because they’re complex curves. Even the clocks on my stove and microwave are too bright. I happened to have some black “washi” tape (basically masking tape) and it did a nice job of dimming them without looking out of place.

There isn’t a specific app with suspicious battery drain. Mostly it’s just Safari with considerable screen on time, which correlates with my actual observed usage. I think you’re right that for my use case, I’d ideally want a bigger battery. And if Apple ever makes a new Mini with a much improved battery, I’ll be first in line!

I’ll check out the MagSafe battery, thanks.

Good info about the battery cycles. Just checked mine and I’m sitting at 676 with 88.5% capacity as reported by CoconutBattery.

I’m in the same boat. I wish I had known the 13 mini would have significant battery improvements over the 12, as I would have used my previous phone an extra year and held out for that one.

Appreciate the suggestion. You’re correct, I’m not looking at purchasing a 13 mini due to the relatively poor value proposition of that upgrade.

Thanks. I am satisfied with the performance as I don’t do intensive gaming or anything like that. That being said, I’ll probably want to upgrade to the iPhone 16 lineup as the screen/camera/etc. upgrades should be substantial by that point, and I know I can’t cling to the small form factor forever. That’ll put the mini at 4 years which I feel is respectable.

I’ll probably get something in the iPhone 16 lineup next year, since I do understand I’ll eventually have to give up on the small form factor. Battery health shows 86%. Also downloaded CoconutBattery on Mac and it says the phone is at 88.5% design capacity. I’m torn between spending $89 on the replacement or just sticking it out for another ~14 months, maybe using a portion of that money on a portable battery pack which could be used with another device once I retire the 12 mini.

Good tip, thanks. I just looked up this stat using CoconutBattery and mine is at 676 cycles, so not too bad.

I use Apple Notes and Reminders. The Reminders app is actually pretty robust and is also good for your grocery list etc. (you can add items via Siri). The main reason I use it is because reminders stay front-and-center on my Lock Screen even after I unlock and re-lock my phone. I have yet to find another app whose notifications don’t get buried in the Notification Center.

I believe a dashed line on the left of a comment means it was written by the OP

This is a big one for me. Although, there were a few times where someone made an innocent prediction in one of these threads that ended up ruining a surprise for me later on. I’m choosing to view this as a small silver lining.