LG has announced the LG G2 mini, a mid-range handset to make its first showing during the Mobile World Congress trade show in Barcelona next week and although it won't necessarily be released in every country around the world, it has been confirmed as coming to the UK so there will be enough budget concious Android fans throwing a sneaky glance in its direction.

It borrows the LG G2 name, which could be an immediate attraction for some, but what else does it borrow from the company's already established flagship phone? It looks like a dinkier version of the same handset in design, but should you consider opting for it other than purely because it fits into your trouser pockets more effectively?

We compare the two to find out.

READ: LG G2 mini global rollout starts in March, coming to the UK too

Size

This is an easy one to see the differences as, by its very nature, the LG G2 mini is smaller - the clue's in the name. It measures 129.6 x 66 x 9.8mm while the LG G2 is 138.5 x 70.9 x 8.9mm.

As you can see though, although the mini is smaller front-on, it is fatter by almost a millimetre. That shouldn't make much of a difference really - it's hardly a brick phone from the 80s.

It weighs a lot less, at 121g in comparison to 143g.

Screen

Again, the name of the new handset suggests that it sports a smaller screen than its stablemate and that is indeed true. They both feature IPS LCD display technology though, so should be equally bright and colourful.

The LG G2 mini has a 4.7-inch screen and the LG G2's is a whopping 5.2-inches. There's a massive difference in resolution, however; a non-HD 960 x 540 in favour of a Full HD 1920 x 1080 display on the larger phone.

Processor

Dispensing with variant options for other regions and sticking with the processor we think will grace the UK handset if it does make it to these shores (a US release is not on the agenda at present), the LG G2 mini is significantly underpowered in comparison to the conventional LG G2.

It is run by a 1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 chipset, while the LG G2 sports the current class-leading 2.26GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800. That will be very apparent when opening apps and the general speed of the device. There's a disparity between the amount of RAM each phone comes with too, the LG G2 mini has 1GB of RAM and the larger handset 2GB.

Camera

Depending on your viewpoint, a drop in megapixels could make a difference to your purchasing decision. If you're not a heavy picture taker, however, it shouldn't.

The LG G2 mini has a capable 8-megapixel camera on the rear and a 1.3-megapixel video-calling/selfie cam on the front. The LG G2 has a 13-megapixel rear-snapper and a 2.1-megapixel front-facing cam.

READ: LG G2 review

Connectivity

Both phones are available with 4G data connectivity, NFC, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0. The LG G2 mini is also available in some regions with just 3G on board, but that is more likely for countries without a 4G LTE network.

Storage

The LG G2 clearly wins in the battle for storage, with 16GB and 32GB options dominating over the mini's standard 8GB. However, the LG G2 mini has a microSD card slot for expansion, something all versions of the LG G2 outside of Korea have not.

Battery

The LG G2 mini's battery is understandly smaller than the LG G2's thanks to driving a less-hungry processor and screen. It has a 2,440mAh battery while the G2's is 3,000mAh. We're not sure yet on how that translates in actual charge time.

Conclusion

To be honest, we weren't expecting the mini to be as fully-featured as LG's flagship Android phone, but are slightly surprised at how big a disparity there is between them. Many, if not all, specifications have been compromised, presumably for price.

The design of the LG G2 mini is nice though, and in its own mid-range field it stands out. Those on a budget won't be unhappy with it, although those who could stretch a little further would be best to take on a more beefy device.