I know there’s a thread like this every 3 months, but I have a quick story for those trying to decide.
A friend of mine was heading out solo for 7 days last week. He got to his parking spot which had no cell service and his phone wouldn’t connect to the mini. He needed to update either the app or his phone, not sure. He headed out anyways and took a tumble roughly 15km in the backcountry and did something to his knee. He did limp out, but if something more serious happened he would’ve been screwed. Even the best case scenario he wasn’t checking in with his wife or whoever.
I know a few people have had connection issues with the bigger units, but this is just one more thing to go wrong and he has to own his part for not checking his gear before heading out. This issue and the 50 hour battery life would keep me away from the mini.