Just buy an iPad mini 4. I've been using one since launch and it's still absolutely great, awesome screen and just as fast as I need it to be. That'll do you for at least another 5 years. Bar Apple's intentional slow downs of old devices in new versions of iOS - yes a conspiracy, but a conspiracy all the same.
Apple Rumored to Discontinue iPad Mini
- Thread starter MacRumors
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Just buy an iPad mini 4. I've been using one since launch and it's still absolutely great, awesome screen and just as fast as I need it to be. That'll do you for at least another 5 years. Bar Apple's intentional slow downs of old devices in new versions of iOS - yes a conspiracy, but a conspiracy all the same.
Smeaton1724
macrumors 6502a
Funnily enough I think the iPad Mini size is the perfect sketch notepad. Apple should release a low cost iPad Mini 4 with 16GB and bundle it with a silicone case with integrated Pencil holder and an Apple Pencil of 3/4 the length of the current one. Business meetings, education, general note taking etc, loads of uses.
Problem is that it goes against their mantra that the Apple Pencil technology is ''premium'' and if they did release such a device it wouldn't sell due to their expensive pricing strategy.
Problem is that it goes against their mantra that the Apple Pencil technology is ''premium'' and if they did release such a device it wouldn't sell due to their expensive pricing strategy.
IJ Reilly
macrumors P6
This is a good thought but if Apple went with no bezel for this form factor, the effective size of the screen would be nipping at the heals of the iPad Air.
I was about to buy a new mini 4 to panel-mount in my airplane. Granted not a typical application but it is a perfect size for this, and other places were space is at a premium. I definitely prefer it to buying a Plus iPhone, which is too small for the intended use and too large to carry in my pocket.
Also want to use it as my primary camera on upcoming vacation. Seems pretty close to ideal for that too.
jekjones1558
macrumors 6502
Waiting for an iPad mini 5? You may be disappointed. BGR, citing a source close to Apple, claims the 7.9-inch tablet is being phased out. The report doesn't offer a timeline as to when the iPad mini will be discontinued, and its sources couldn't confirm if the iPad mini 4 will remain on sale for a period of time.
Apple is rumored to introduce a new 10.5-inch iPad Pro as early as the WWDC 2017 keynote on June 5, so it's conceivable to think the iPad mini could be axed then if the report is accurate. Apple's tablet lineup would then consist of the iPad Pro in 12.9-inch, 10.5-inch, and 9.7-inch sizes, and the new low-cost 9.7-inch iPad.
Apple launched the original iPad mini in 2012. Since the iPhone 6 Plus launched in 2014, it's been speculated that the 5.5-inch smartphone may be at least partially cannibalizing sales of the iPad mini, but Apple doesn't break out its tablet sales numbers on a model-by-model basis, so it's hard to say for sure.
Nearly two months ago, Apple discontinued the iPad mini 2 and stopped selling a 32GB version of the iPad mini 4. It also lowered the starting price of the 128GB iPad mini 4 to $399, which was previously the 32GB model's price point.
Japanese blog Mac Otakara claimed Apple would release a 7.9-inch iPad Pro in March with a Smart Connector, True Tone display, four speakers and microphones, a 12-megapixel rear camera with True Tone flash, and an improved processor, but it's already May and the rumor has yet to materialize.
Article Link: Apple Rumored to Discontinue iPad Mini
I would have paid the same price as any larger iPad Pro for a new mini. Love the size. Boo to you, Apple.
redscull
macrumors 6502a
You can get a wifi-only 64GB mini 4 off Apple's refurbished site for just $309 (or +$30 for 128GB). I have and regularly use an iPad 2 (same tech as your original iPad mini you say you're stilling using) in addition to an Air 1, and my kids have mini 4s. The hassle and performance difference of your old mini vs. the mini 4 is night and day. You should totally spend the $309 and stop sweating your current iPad, especially if you happen to be dealing with a 16GB model.
Yeah, they might release a mini 5 or similar alongside the eventual iPad Pro 2 release, but rumors have long and pretty consistently suggested this won't be the case. And we don't even know that will be anyway. It might be next Spring, a whole year from now! Because it seems Apple wants to save all the glamor this year for that special new iPhone. Unless you're still thoroughly happy with that aging mini, get the mini 4 now instead of waiting 6-12 months on the slim chance of a new model (that would likely be a "pro" and cost twice as much).
Phil in ocala
Suspended
+++++++++++++++++++
Good idea it was too small in the first place...okay for children but that's all
OldSchoolMacGuy
Suspended
Highly doubt it. This is the #1 selling iPad currently, as they're used for POS systems.
loon3y
macrumors 65816
It would be ironic if the iPod Touch outlived the Mini.
Business Systems/Applications need the Touch, Warehouse management, POS, TradeShows, etc etc.
IJ Reilly
macrumors P6
BornAgainMac
macrumors 604
It would be ironic if the iPod Touch outlived the Mini
I know. I am surprised Apple hasn't killed the iPod touch yet. I don't think Apple likes their customers anymore.
patrickbarnes
macrumors 6502
This is the perfect size for kids though. At least do one more rev of it with a A9/10. The A8 is slow.
apple_iBoy
macrumors 6502a
Damn, I love those little things. I ultimately gave mine up when I received the big iPad Pro, but I do miss the mini a lot.
patrickbarnes
macrumors 6502
Just people trying to spin something bad as good. It makes no difference what so ever since the resolution is identical to a 9.7".
RobinInOR
macrumors 6502a
Mini is also my favorite size. It's all I use at home, and husband has one as well. The larger sizes are too awkward for him to hold and type on.
We just bought him a new mini, mine is an 'original' mini which is basically the same thing. I have a + phone and there's no comparison in ease of reading. Websites are formatted differently for the phone, and it's a pain to keep requesting a desktop version. Macrumors is a case in point - I dislike the phone form factor but can use it in a standard size iPad.
So we'll stop updating our minis since they are completely functional for what we use them for. New iPads will have to have some awesome features for us to update to a new one.
We just bought him a new mini, mine is an 'original' mini which is basically the same thing. I have a + phone and there's no comparison in ease of reading. Websites are formatted differently for the phone, and it's a pain to keep requesting a desktop version. Macrumors is a case in point - I dislike the phone form factor but can use it in a standard size iPad.
So we'll stop updating our minis since they are completely functional for what we use them for. New iPads will have to have some awesome features for us to update to a new one.
Jayderek
macrumors 6502
So you're telling me I've been waiting for over a year now for a device that may never come.
life lesson: buy what's available when you need it as a future device may not ever materialize (and when you do buy it, expect announcement of something better not long after)
Moro,
musta oot ihan väärässä.
I don't think that Android devices / Google spies you more or less than Apple does.
78Bandit
macrumors 6502a
Probably has something to do with the push to minimal bezel designs. iPhone and iPad Pro will likely have full screen displays by the end of this year. The basic iPad will likely tread water for a year or two before being transitioned to the 10.5" iPad Pro display and case. The iPad mini, on the other hand, would need a completely new display to stay current and I think Apple may have decided to keep production costs to a minimum and just drop it.
The iPod Touch will likely be kept around as a subset of the iPhone SE and whatever improvements the SE gets will make their way down to the Touch.
The iPad mini was too unique and doesn't share the development scaling the other devices do with much higher unit sales.
The iPod Touch will likely be kept around as a subset of the iPhone SE and whatever improvements the SE gets will make their way down to the Touch.
The iPad mini was too unique and doesn't share the development scaling the other devices do with much higher unit sales.
joeblow7777
macrumors 604
Nothing is confirmed yet. People are acting like this is actually coming from Apple. It's just another rumour at this point, just like the rumour that there would be Mini 5 or Mini Pro.
There's a reason the gigantic Kindles didn't sell and the current size persists. It may just be inertia from growing up with the paper book format, but I don't think so? Specifically the amount of text in front of you at a given time and the sense of progress in turning (electronically or physically) to the next page just feels better with a smaller page. More words on a page isn't necessarily superior, and obviously blowing up the font isn't the answer.
Turning the large iPad sideways and getting two pages at a time is what I did for years before getting the mini... but I always hated it and don't think I can go back
I guess Jobs also said people don't read books anymore... so maybe I'm in a minority that isn't worth serving. God I really would like an iPad mini Pro