Apple’s iPad mini 6 was one of themost beloved tabletsin 2022, having launched towards the end of 2021. As we start 2024, there’s still a strong demand for the smallestApple tablet, but it does seem that updating the Mini is one of Apple’s lowest priorities, with extended gaps between the release dates of iPad mini models.
It’s no real surprise that Apple hasn’t been completely focused on putting out a new iPad mini in the last year or so, given that Apple didn’t update any of its iPads in 2023. Even then, Apple had a busy year, with the launch of the iPhone 15 line, new Macs, and the introduction of Apple’s first spatial computing device, theApple Vision Pro.
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The good news for iPad fans, however, is that there’s little doubt Apple is working on a new iPad mini. After the success of theiPad mini 6, we’re excited to see what comes next, although the likelihood is that this will be more of an incremental update rather than seeing any major new developments. Here’s what we expect based on some of the iPad mini 7 rumors.
The iPad mini seems to be the device that Apple thinks about last when it comes to upgrades. After releasing a new model every year between 2012 and 2015, there was a four-year gap until the release of thefifth-generation iPad miniin 2019, with the current generation being released two years later in 2021. Unlike the iPhone, there isn’t a clear month when the iPad mini has been released in the past. The iPad mini 5 arrived in March 2019, while the iPad mini 6 launched in September 2021. Other iPad models previously launched in October rather than September.
Right now it looks like the iPad mini 7 will be an iterative update, without any mind-blowing new features or major hardware upgrades. On the plus side, this means that we’re unlikely to see a huge jump in price.
Based on the most recent two-year gap between the last models, September or October 2023 might seem like a good bet for the iPad mini 7 release. However,Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo tweetedthat the iPad mini refresh wasn’t likely to begin mass production until the first quarter of 2024, and then in November 2023, hepublished an articlethat pushed that prediction back even further, to the second half of 2024. If previous launches are any indication, it could be fairly deep into the second half of 2024, too.
Right now it looks like the iPad mini 7 will be an iterative update, without any mind-blowing new features or major hardware upgrades. On the plus side, this means that we’re unlikely to see a huge jump in price. The iPad mini 6 was $499 at launch, and we’d expect the iPad mini 7 to launch at a similar price point, based on the rumored hardware we’ll get into shortly.
Apple iPad mini (2021)
The iPad mini 6 represented the first major redesign of the smaller Apple tablet since theiPad mini 4, so we’re not expecting any huge design changes in the iPad mini 7. This is backed up by the prediction ofBloomberg’s Mark Gurmanthat the new iPad mini will “offer little more than a processor upgrade.”
With the iPad mini 6, Apple moved towards the uniform bezel design that we see on many of its other iPad models now, including theiPad Air (2020)andiPad Air (2022), as well as theiPad (10th generation). This design saw the removal of the home button as many of us knew it and moved theTouch ID fingerprint sensorto the power button at the top. We expect this design to continue for the iPad mini 7, along with the same screen size of 8.3-inches.
Some users were hoping that the iPad mini 7 would have a 120Hz display which would help with the notorious jelly scrolling issue, but it appears that this is unlikely to be the case.Analyst Ross Younghas previously said giving the iPad mini 7 aProMotion displaywould require significant hardware changes, which are highly unlikely in what is expected to be a minor refresh.
TipsterInstant Digital on Wiebohas claimed that Apple has changed the orientation of the screen assembly, which has improved the jelly scroll issue to some extent, so this may be the stopgap solution for now.ET News has reportedthat the iPad Mini will eventually see an OLED display, although this isn’t likely to be until 2026.
One area where Apple could freshen things up a little is by introducing some new color options though. The current options are Space Grey, Pink, Purple, and Starlight. Might we see an iPadin yellow?
The upgraded processor is likely to be the biggest selling point for the iPad mini 7. The iPad mini 6 runs on the same A15 Bionic chip that’s found inthe iPhone 13 models, as well as the iPhone 14 andiPhone 14 Plus. The A15 does run slightly underclocked on the iPad mini 6, at 2.92GHz rather than 3.23GHz within the iPhone.
The iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus run on an A16 Bionic chip, with the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max using the more powerful A17 Pro. It’s likely the A16 Bionic will end up inside the iPad mini 7. The iPad Air runs on Apple’s M1 chip, but this may only have been the case due to supply issues with the A16 processor, according toMark Gurman. The use of the A16 Bionic also appears to be confirmed bytipster Instant Digital, who claims that iPad mini 7 will feature the A16 Bionic chip, although how accurate their leaks turn out to be remains to be seen.
Another change we’re hoping to see is an upgrade of the storage on the base model. The iPad mini 6 starts at 64GB, which seems more than a little tight. A base storage size of 128GB would be a step in the right direction. Finally, we expect to see the iPad mini move to USB-C charging, following in the footsteps of the iPad (10th generation).
Another area where we could see some potential upgrades is in the cameras for the iPad mini 7. Once again, this all stems from a rumor fromInstant Digital on Weibo. Without giving any details, the leak claims that both the front and rear cameras will see an upgrade.
Thecurrent iPad minihas a 12MP, f/1.8 wide camera on the rear. It has up to 5x digital zoom and a quad-LED True Tone flash. It’s capable of recording 4K video up to 60fps, with support for slow-motion capture at 1080p at up to 240fps. It’s not the world’s greatest camera, but it’s reasonable for an iPad that’s never likely to be your snapper of choice. On the front, there’s a 12MP, f/2.4 ultrawide, with a 122-degree field of view.
Any upgrade to these cameras in the iPad mini 7 would definitely be welcome, although we’re still unlikely to see anything approaching the advanced camera systems that are found on some of thenewer iPhone models.
