Two-minute assessment
The defining function of the iPad mini (2021) is its small stature, and just like the iPhone 13 mini it is a system that marries a scaled-down design that will likely be common with many customers with top-end specs and energy.
Consider it like an iPad Air 4, however shrunk down and with a more highly effective chipset inside. It inherits an identical design to the iPad Air 4, with sq. edges, no residence button and a USB-C port on the underside edge.
The 8.3-inch show is crisp, and it’s brilliant sufficient for out of doors use, in addition to for all the things you’d need to do along with your pill indoors. Apple calls this an “all-screen design”, however we’d argue that the thicker bezels imply that’s a quite daring declare.
That stated, this iPad mini is simpler to carry due to these bezels, in order that they’re not essentially a damaging. You’ve received the selection of 4 colours – Purple, Pink, Area Grey or Starlight.
Apple has ensured that the iPad mini shines within the specs division, thanks primarily to the brand new A15 Bionic chipset, which has impressed us with its efficiency throughout our testing time.
There’s additionally both 64GB or 256GB of storage, relying on which mannequin you go for.
5G can be now out there on the iPad mini, which is a primary for Apple’s smaller pill. Which means you may connect with next-gen networks, in the event you go for the mobile model and have a supporting provider.
The modifications here over the iPad mini 2019 are incremental, however the sixth iteration of the iPad mini brings enhancements in a wide range of areas. It isn’t the absolute-best iPad, however it’s out-and-out the very best pill you should buy in the event you’re searching for a small system.
iPad mini (2021) launch date and value
The brand new iPad mini (iPad Mini 6) was revealed alongside the iPhone 13 vary at Apple’s launch occasion on September 14, and it is official worldwide launch date is on September 24, so that you’ll be capable to purchase it then within the US, UK and Australia.
You'll be able to order it now from Apple’s website, and we’re seeing it seem at various different retailers too.
You'll be able to see all the costs for the brand new iPad mini fashions beneath, for each the 64GB and 256GB storage sizes, and the Wi-Fi-only or Wi-Fi + mobile choices. It’s value noting that the 2019 iPad mini got here in 32GB or 128GB choices, so storage has been doubled for the 2021 mannequin.
Design
The brand new iPad mini isn’t fairly mini sufficient for one-handed use, however it’s noticeably simpler to make use of than even the iPad Air 4 due to its small measurement. This seems like the proper compromise, when it comes to type issue, between the iPhone 13 Professional Max and a bigger pill just like the iPad Air 4.
Its dimensions of 195.4 x 134.8 x 6.3mm (that’s notably smaller than the last-gen mini) make it one of many smallest tablets we’ve ever used, and it’s an gratifying expertise for anybody who doesn’t want a bigger display for watching video and more.
The design here is more just like the iPad Air 4 or the brand new iPhone 13 than the earlier mini – it’s a flat-edged design that appears and feels premium, with a brushed steel impact on the rear of the pill.
There are 4 shade choices: Purple, Pink, and Area Grey, plus a cream-like shade that Apple is asking Starlight – you’ll see the Purple mannequin pictured all through this assessment.
The Purple and Pink colours are more daring and vibrant than the choices for the iPad mini 2019 or the iPad Professional 2021, and we’d advocate selecting a kind of shades over the more conservative Area Grey in the event you’re searching for a more eye-catching design.
The iPad mini weighs 293 grams (a contact lower than the 2019 mannequin), which implies it’s straightforward to slip right into a bag – and even a big jacket pocket – and never really feel the additional weight.
Apple has moved the buttons barely on the brand new iPad mini, and also you’ll now discover the quantity buttons are on the highest edge, on the high right-hand nook. On earlier variations, you’d discover these on the appropriate hand fringe of the system.
There’s additionally no residence button on the iPad mini 2021, which was a staple of previous variations of this pill. As an alternative, there’s an influence button on the highest edge within the left hand nook, and that is additionally residence to the Contact ID sensor that lets you use your fingerprint to unlock the pill.
We’d advocate establishing fingers on each fingers in order that the unlock button is all the time inside straightforward attain of one in every of your digits, whether or not you are utilizing the pill in portrait or panorama orientation.
On the underside fringe of the pill is the USB-C port, which is used for recharging the system in addition to for connecting equipment. The iPad mini helps a wide range of equipment such because the Apple Pencil, though it’s not as practical because the iPad Professional 2021 with its Thunderbolt connector.
The suitable edge homes the charger / connector for the Apple Pencil (second-gen), in addition to the SIM tray. Word that the Apple Pencil doesn’t include the pill, so that you’ll be spending more if you need Apple’s stylus.
The iPad mini additionally will get upgraded stereo audio system, which we discovered gave full and clear audio when listening to music or watching video on the pill.
Show
The iPad mini options an 8.3-inch Liquid Retina show, which gives good image high quality.
Apple says it is an “all-screen design”, however we’d argue that that isn’t strictly the case, as there are thick bezels across the exterior of the display. These bezels aren’t essentially a problem although, as they will let you more simply maintain the pill with out touching the display. It’s removed from an “all-screen” look, although.
The decision is 2266 x 1488, which works out to 326 pixels per inch. That’s good for a pill, however it isn’t the very best decision we’ve seen on a slate, and – most noticeably whenever you’re watching video – the decision isn’t as robust as on some Android tablets and even the iPad Professional 2021 line.
It’s unlikely that you simply’ll discover this is a matter although, and the display is suitably brilliant and the image high quality is obvious. In contrast to the 120Hz iPad Professional line, the iPad mini options a normal 60Hz refresh-rate show, so that you’re not getting a super-smooth expertise when scrolling social feeds or enjoying video games.
For those who’re searching for a pill with a smaller display, the panel here will swimsuit you very nicely; we’d have appreciated to see a 120Hz refresh fee, however it isn’t an excessive amount of of a problem.
Specs, efficiency and digicam
The iPad mini 2021 is powered by Apple’s new A15 Bionic chipset – that’s the identical processor as within the iPhone 13 series, and it’s highly effective sufficient to run any app or recreation you’ll discover on the App Retailer, in addition to for multi-tasking.
It isn’t as highly effective because the iPad Professional’s M1 chipset, however we discovered it to be greater than succesful for all the things we needed to do on the iPad mini. For those who want top-tier energy, you could need to go for the iPad Professional line as a substitute, however most individuals will likely be proud of what’s on provide here.
We don’t but know the way a lot RAM is contained in the iPad mini, however in our testing it proved greater than enough for on a regular basis takes.
The Geekbench 5 benchmarking software program gave us a multi-core rating of 4700, which is analogous to what we’ve seen for the iPhone 13. That’s considerably higher than the iPad mini (2019), which scored 2680, however nowhere close to as excessive because the iPad Professional 2021 on 7297.
That iPad Professional 2021 rating is remarkably excessive, and we by no means anticipated the iPad mini to have the ability to compete with the M1 chipset – and the typical consumer received’t want that form of efficiency, even when they’re utilizing loads of power-hungry apps.
You should buy the pill with 64GB or 256GB of storage – as regular there’s no microSD assist, so that you’ll be utilizing the built-in storage plus no matter iCloud storage you've got. For those who’re planning to retailer a good quantity of media in your system you’ll probably need to go for the 256GB mannequin.
That stated, severe energy customers are prone to discover that 256GB of storage isn’t sufficient. The brand new iPad Professional goes as much as 1TB of storage, so it could be value taking a look at that mannequin in the event you’re desiring to fill your pill with apps and media.
There’s additionally 5G connectivity on the iPad mini for the primary time – though the pill received’t be suitable with mmWave 5G, so in the event you’re a Verizon buyer you could need to look into this earlier than you buy the pill.
The rear digicam on the iPad mini is a 12MP vast snapper with an f/1.8 aperture and digital zoom as much as 5x. It’s fantastic, and whereas it’s no substitute in your smartphone digicam, in the event you’re utilizing it for augmented actuality experiences, or with different apps that want to make use of the rear digicam, it’ll be passable.
On the entrance of the pill is a 12MP ultra-wide digicam with a 122-degree area of view and an f/2.4 aperture. This can be a very efficient digicam for video calling, and we discovered the standard here is best than from the shooter on the rear of the system.
Apple has additionally introduced its Middle Stage function from the 2021 iPad Professional to the iPad mini. This allows the digicam to trace you whenever you’re on video calls, and be certain that you’re all the time within the heart of the body.
We discovered this to work nicely, and it’s particularly helpful when another person enters the body and also you need them to be included within the video too.
Digital camera samples
Software program
The iPad mini comes operating iPadOS 15 out of the field, and Apple’s tablet-optimized working system works nicely on Apple’s smaller-screen pill.
iPadOS 15 brings updates akin to widgets in your residence display, that are welcome on the brand new iPad mini. There’s additionally a brand new technique to enable split-screen mode with only a faucet, which is one other good enchancment.
Each the iPad mini 2015 and iPad mini 2019 are able to upgrading to iPadOS 15, so it’s probably you’ll see a few years of software program assist in the event you purchase this pill; that’s not assured, however Apple has a robust report on this space.
Battery life
Don’t anticipate super-long battery life from the iPad mini 2021, however it’s adequate to final you for a full day of typical use. We don’t but know the scale of the cell contained in the iPad mini as Apple doesn’t reveal these particulars, though we wouldn’t be stunned if an enterprising teardowner finds out earlier than too lengthy.
Apple estimates that you simply’ll stand up to 10 hours of use when looking the net or watching video over Wi-Fi, and we discovered that to be about proper. Your iPad mini probably received’t final that lengthy in the event you’re utilizing the pill on full brightness and swapping between a number of apps – we have been getting round eight hours of battery life with more intensive use.
So the battery life is okay, however it isn’t going to blow your thoughts. We discovered that issues like sketching with the Apple Pencil additionally drained the battery life more rapidly, and it’s prone to drop even quicker in the event you’re utilizing cell connections as nicely.
A USB-C charger and cable are included within the field for recharging your pill. There’s 20W quick charging here, which we discovered was capable of recharge the pill fairly rapidly, however it’ll nonetheless take over an hour and a half to totally recharge your slate.
In our testing, the iPad mini recharged from zero to 17% in quarter-hour, and after half an hour it was as much as 36%.
There’s no wi-fi charging here, and the iPad mini isn’t suitable with the corporate’s MagSafe equipment that work with a wide range of iPhone fashions.
Do you have to purchase the iPad mini 2021?
Purchase it if…
You need small however premium
It could appear apparent, however the iPad mini's defining function is its measurement. If you would like a pill you could slip right into a bag, or simply want a smaller system within the hand, this is a superb alternative.
You want plenty of energy
Whereas the iPad mini 2021 can’t match the efficiency of the iPad Professional 2021, it does provide spectacular on a regular basis efficiency, dealing with a wide range of duties with ease.
You personal an older iPad
The iPad mini could be the good alternative in the event you’re seeking to improve from an older iPad mannequin. There’s arguably not sufficient new here to advantage an improve from the iPad mini 2019, however the newest mini could possibly be an awesome alternative in case your iPad is older than that.
Do not buy it if…
You want top-tier specs
The iPad Professional 2021 and its M1 chipset aren’t for everybody, however in the event you want top-tier energy, and loads of storage, you’ll need to take a look at that system quite than on the iPad mini.
You want robust battery life
The iPad mini’s battery life is nice, however it isn’t the very best you may get on a pill. If you would like a longer-lasting slate then a bigger iPad, or an Android pill, is prone to be a better option.
You personal one other current iPad
The iPad mini brings loads of the top-end options we’ve seen debut on iPads over the previous couple of years to a smaller type issue. For those who already personal a kind of iPads, it’s unlikely that the brand new mini will likely be for you.
First reviewed: September 2021
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