They always lean a little too hard into making the small one the "budget" phone and end up gimping it into something nobody wants, and yet they still don't make it cost attractive.

Compared to the SomePhone Pro, the SomePhone Mini has:

• 6GB of RAM rather than 8. (I mean, okay, what do I need that much RAM for?)
• 128GB onboard storage rather than 512GB (Those chips are the same footprint so that wasn't done for miniaturization, but I don't store a lot on my phone so ok)
• No SD card slot. (I suppose you could argue that IS for miniaturization but it's still a kick in the pants)
• 1080p display rather than 4k. (fine, the PPI is still finer than my eyes)
• 3100mAh battery instead of 3600 (You know the reduced resolution on the display will probably make up for that anyway)
• No NFC (really?)
• No fast charging (fucking sigh)
• No wireless charging (pegwarmer says what?)
• 5.9 inch 9:21 display (so it's 89% the size of the Pro model anyway?)
• a laptop grade VGA camera (you're actively trying to make this product fail, aren't you?)
• Locked bootloader, locked carrier (because of course)
• $899 instead of $949 MSRP (Okay just stop saying words and drown yourself in the septic tank)

Seems like a straw man, because I can't see a single comment claiming that.

Who said that? That's not the limiting factor. Also, smartwatches have crappy processors.

Supposedly, what's hard is making a phone with good performance and battery life that's also small.

i don't think it's "too hard" to make small phones. but i bet it's easier to sell bigger phones with more profit margin.