iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12 Pro Max, HomePod mini are available for preorder now [Update]

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Preorders start for HomePod mini, iPhone 12 Pro Max and iPhone 12 mini on November 6.
The wait is almost over for HomePod mini, along with iPhone 12 Pro Max and iPhone 12 mini.
Photo: Apple

Update: The iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12 Pro Max, and HomePod mini are all available for preorder now. The iPhone models will start delivery on November 13, while the HomePod mini will ship November 16.

More than the largest and smallest iPhone 12 models can be preordered Friday. The HomePod mini will be available to preorder that same day, too.

All three devices will go up at the same time, Nov. 6 at 8 am EST.

Take a quick HomePod mini preview

Apple finally has an answer for those find the full-size HomePod out of reach at $299. The upcoming HomePod mini is $99.

But don’t sell it short on functionality. It offers what Apple calls “computational audio” to deliver high-quality audio out of smaller speakers. Put two in the same room to make a stereo pair, or easily transfer playback to/from an iPhone.

And HomePod mini is about more than music. It’s an intelligent assistant, includes a new intercom feature, and recognizes users’ voices for a more personalized experience. Naturally, it can act has a HomeKit hub.

While HomePod mini preorders start Friday, the device won’t reach customer’s hands until Monday, November 16.

iPhone 12 Pro Max and iPhone 12 mini also about to launch

The two extreme sizes of Apple’s 2020 handsets will be ready for preorder on Friday too. That includes Apple’s largest ever, the iPhone 12 Pro Max. It sports a screen that’s 6.7 inches, up from the 6.5-inch display in its predecessor.

And there’s three cameras, including a telephoto one with 5x optical zoom. The Ultra Wide camera sports a 120-degree field of view. And the primary camera is better at taking low-light images than earlier iPhones.

On the other end of the scale, the iPhone 12 mini is Apple’s smallest handset in years. It has an edge-to-edge display that’s just 5.4 inches. While the screen is larger in this model, the exterior casing is smaller than the 2020 iPhone SE.

Pricing for the two upcoming iOS devices diverges considerably. The iPhone 12 mini starts at $699, while the Pro Max starts at $1099.

Thursday, November 5 is the last day to get preapproved by the iPhone Upgrade Program to buy either model. And orders will start on Apple’s website the next day. The first round of orders will reach customers on Friday, November 13.

Apple announced four models in the iPhone 12 series in mid-October. The the 6.1-inch iPhone 12 as well as the 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Pro came out shortly thereafter. But consumers had to wait until November to order the iPhone 12 Pro Max and iPhone 12 mini. The HomePod mini was also unveiled in October and is only ready for pre-order this week.

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