The Mini has a smaller screen than the S3. This is not necessarily a bad thing. Personally, the humongous S3 looks and feels unwieldy despite its thinness. Putting it in your pocket is not an option because it sticks out like a sore thumb. The Mini aims to address the need of those who want a more pocket-friendly device. But it does come with compromises.
The Mini is less powerful than the S3. The quad-core processor in the S3 is downgraded to a dual-core, 1-GHz processor with 1 GB of RAM. The Mini does not have the S3’s brilliant camera. It only has a mediocre 5-megapixel snapper. The Mini does not have the LTE capability of the S3. The Mini has a lower-capacity battery–a mere 1,500 mAh.
The silver lining, however, is that the Mini comes with Android’s Jelly Bean. Despite this and its pocket-friendly size, however, some buyers might find the underwhelming specs too much of a sacrifice.