iPad mini iPad Mini 4 LTE

[Tsepz]

Hi All

I currently have an old iPad 4 and I am getting sick of the Safari window reloads, I thought I'd get an iPad Pro but with the South African exchange rate being so bad and me planning a big holiday in Cape Town for later in the year with friends I simply cannot justify the iPad Air 2 or Pro, but I do want a nice tablet that is easy to carry around, the iPad 4 gets quite heavy and a bit much after a while.

What I would like to know is how is the iPad Mini 4 in terms of performance and multitasking? My grandmother has the iPad Mini 2 so I am well aware of its size and screen real estate and I am happy with it, but I'd like to get an idea of how it is e.g. for gaming, web browsing performance etc...does it play Asphalt 8 flawlessly? does Safari butter smooth and does it hold more than 3 windows in Safari before reloading them when you go back?

Your feedback will be greatly appreciated.

 

[lagwagon]

The mini 4 should meet your performance needs. Spec wise it's pretty much literally a small Air 2. (Minus the A8X from the Air 2, Mini 4 is a second gen A8. But enough to drive it at similar performance because of the smaller screen.)

Both Mini 4 and Air 2 have 2GB of RAM, so that makes a massive difference for Safari page reloads when compared to your old iPad 4. (obviously the Pro is even better with 4GB of RAM)

 

[ACG12]

You should have no problem with the mini 4 LTE. My wife loves her's and my brother just ordered one for himself because he liked the form factor (will be using it for work) and that it compliments his 6s Plus well vs the older minis which are sluggish due to half the amount of RAM.

 

[Channan]

As someone else said, the performance of the mini 4 is very similar to the Air 2. However, there is a pretty big difference between the mini 4/Air 2 and the Pro, but with normal use, you won't really notice a difference.

 

[Tsepz]

Thanks a lot guys!

I am only going to order next week. Funny thing, found a local online store that sells the Air 2 LTE 16GB for the same price as the Mini 4 64GB I was looking at, going to have to think hard about this, I plan on keeping my next iPad for around 3-4years as I have done with my iPad 4. I think the Air 2 may serve me longer as it has a lot more power.

I will have to think about this, will only order day before my BDay next week, lol.

Watching iPad Mini 4 Reviews I am very impressed by the speed, and how compact it is, stunning device, this is going to be fun yet difficult to make the final decision.

 

[Night Spring]

I think the Air 2 may serve me longer as it has a lot more power.

No, it doesn't. As someone said above, the only difference between the Air2 and Mini4 is A8x vs A8 chip. The extra power of A8x is used to drive the larger screen. Performance wise, the Air2 and Mini4 should be pretty much the same. The only question is which screen size you prefer.

 

[Tsepz]

No, it doesn't. As someone said above, the only difference between the Air2 and Mini4 is A8x vs A8 chip. The extra power of A8x is used to drive the larger screen. Performance wise, the Air2 and Mini4 should be pretty much the same. The only question is which screen size you prefer.

The iPad Air 2 and Mini 4 have the same screen resolution, despite the larger display in Air 2, the CPU doesn't do anymore work in it.

The Geekbench scores between Mini 4 and Air 2 are night and day from what I have seen.

 

[Channan]

No, it doesn't. As someone said above, the only difference between the Air2 and Mini4 is A8x vs A8 chip. The extra power of A8x is used to drive the larger screen. Performance wise, the Air2 and Mini4 should be pretty much the same. The only question is which screen size you prefer.

It's not the size of the screen. It's the resolution. If the mini 4 had the same A8X chip running at the same speed as the Air 2, they would have identical performance.

 

[Tsepz]

It's not the size of the screen. It's the resolution. If the mini 4 had the same A8X chip running at the same speed as the Air 2, they would have identical performance.

Exactly.

Having owned the iPad 4 with A6X, I can tell you now, the X chips tend to age far slower, they tend to have very powerful GPUs.

My worry with the Mini 4's A8 is that in a year or 2 it may start showing its age while the A8X probably won't. The A6X only started showing its age early last year, almost 3years later.

 

[Tsepz]

I'd like to apologise to everyone who participated here, in the end I picked a Space Grey iPad Air 2 LTE 64GB, I simply couldn't bring myself to buying a Mini 4, its weird, I began to use my iPad 4 more after making this topic, and I honestly just love the 9.7inch display, as much as I like the compact Mini 4, I just couldn't resist the 9.7inch display and A8X in the Air 2.

Thanks a lot guys!

 

[joeblow7777]

The iPad Air 2 and Mini 4 have the same screen resolution, despite the larger display in Air 2, the CPU doesn't do anymore work in it.

The Geekbench scores between Mini 4 and Air 2 are night and day from what I have seen.

I wouldn't say night and day. From what I recall, the single core scores aren't even that different, the 3rd core just gives the A8X a bit of an edge in multicore performance, and again, those are benchmarks. In most real world usage scenarios except for graphically intensive gaming I think that most people would be hard pressed to notice a real difference.

 

[xraydoc]

I'd like to apologise to everyone who participated here, in the end I picked a Space Grey iPad Air 2 LTE 64GB, I simply couldn't bring myself to buying a Mini 4, its weird, I began to use my iPad 4 more after making this topic, and I honestly just love the 9.7inch display, as much as I like the compact Mini 4, I just couldn't resist the 9.7inch display and A8X in the Air 2.

Thanks a lot guys!

You'll be very happy with the Air 2. It's an extremely fast tablet.

The mini 4 is, speed-wise, much faster than the original iPad Air but slower than the Air 2. The Air 2 is a small but noticeable amount smoother in terms of animations/transitions, web page rendering and in opening/switching apps. But it's certainly no slouch and definitely sufficient for a modern tablet.

I have an iPad Pro and a mini 4, and when I pick up my mini 4, I'm never frustrated with its performance.

 

[Wildo6882]

You'll be very happy with the Air 2. It's an extremely fast tablet.

The mini 4 is, speed-wise, much faster than the original iPad Air but slower than the Air 2. The Air 2 is a small but noticeable amount smoother in terms of animations/transitions, web page rendering and in opening/switching apps. But it's certainly no slouch and definitely sufficient for a modern tablet.

I have an iPad Pro and a mini 4, and when I pick up my mini 4, I'm never frustrated with its performance.

Funny, I've been debating between the Mini 4 and Pro. Yes, I know two completely different sizes. I'm a power junky in that I like to buy the top of the line if I can. But I also don't know if I actually NEED the extra power of the Pro. It will mostly be for couch/bed surfing and travel. There will most likely be a little work with it, but nothing too terribly strenuous. Mostly the occasional spreadsheet or word document.

Best Buy has the Mini 4 for $100 off right now. It would save me $600-700 after all was said and done with both iPads.

 

[Tsepz]

Funny, I've been debating between the Mini 4 and Pro. Yes, I know two completely different sizes. I'm a power junky in that I like to buy the top of the line if I can. But I also don't know if I actually NEED the extra power of the Pro. It will mostly be for couch/bed surfing and travel. There will most likely be a little work with it, but nothing too terribly strenuous. Mostly the occasional spreadsheet or word document.

Best Buy has the Mini 4 for $100 off right now. It would save me $600-700 after all was said and done with both iPads.

Get the iPad Pro 128GB LTE and chill for 2years knowing nothing will really catchup to it.

When went with the Air 2 64GB LTE I decided that I will use it for 1.5years then jump to the iPad Pro of that year, hopefully there will be a 256GB version with LTE by then.

 

[Tsepz]

Typing this on my brand new iPad Air 2 LTE 64GB

My word is it lite and thin, it's pure madness. Anyway going to leave it to charge for a bit then really get into setting it up and getting all my stuff up and running.

 

[Channan]

Typing this on my brand new iPad Air 2 LTE 64GB

My word is it lite and thin, it's pure madness. Anyway going to leave it to charge for a bit then really get into setting it up and getting all my stuff up and running.

It took a while for me to get over how light it was, coming from an iPad 3. I still haven't gotten over the thinness. I still look at it from the side sometimes and can't believe it's an actual thing.

 

[Tsepz]

It took a while for me to get over how light it was, coming from an iPad 3. I still haven't gotten over the thinness. I still look at it from the side sometimes and can't believe it's an actual thing.

Haha nice, it's pure madness, it feels like I could snap it in half. I am going to get it a case tomorrow, no way it's going naked.

 

[Yebubbleman]

Hi All

I currently have an old iPad 4 and I am getting sick of the Safari window reloads, I thought I'd get an iPad Pro but with the South African exchange rate being so bad and me planning a big holiday in Cape Town for later in the year with friends I simply cannot justify the iPad Air 2 or Pro, but I do want a nice tablet that is easy to carry around, the iPad 4 gets quite heavy and a bit much after a while.

What I would like to know is how is the iPad Mini 4 in terms of performance and multitasking? My grandmother has the iPad Mini 2 so I am well aware of its size and screen real estate and I am happy with it, but I'd like to get an idea of how it is e.g. for gaming, web browsing performance etc...does it play Asphalt 8 flawlessly? does Safari butter smooth and does it hold more than 3 windows in Safari before reloading them when you go back?

Your feedback will be greatly appreciated.

I love my cellular iPad mini 4. I can't comment on Asphault 8, but it does perform quite well.

 

[Tsepz]

I love my cellular iPad mini 4. I can't comment on Asphault 8, but it does perform quite well.

Thanks man, I already got a iPad Air 2 64GB LTE.

The Mini 4 certainly is one hell of a little beast, I just felt more comfy with the larger 9.7inch display and more powerful CPU in the Air 2.

 

[Yebubbleman]

Thanks man, I already got a iPad Air 2 64GB LTE.

The Mini 4 certainly is one hell of a little beast, I just felt more comfy with the larger 9.7inch display and more powerful CPU in the Air 2.

Hey man, if you're happier with the Air 2 than the mini 4, then that's great. Personally, I get the sense that the 9.7" tablets have more of a future with Apple than the 7.9" ones do, which is to say that subscribing to the cellular version of the 9.7" tablet will likely make more sense over the long haul than the cellular version of the 7.9" tablet. For me, I'm gonna enjoy the mini line for as long as it exists. Though, again, I'm not optimistic that there will be an iPad mini 5.

 

[Tsepz]

Hey man, if you're happier with the Air 2 than the mini 4, then that's great. Personally, I get the sense that the 9.7" tablets have more of a future with Apple than the 7.9" ones do, which is to say that subscribing to the cellular version of the 9.7" tablet will likely make more sense over the long haul than the cellular version of the 7.9" tablet. For me, I'm gonna enjoy the mini line for as long as it exists. Though, again, I'm not optimistic that there will be an iPad mini 5.

It's a strange time, especially in the tablet market, seems 12inch is where the money may be, hence the iPad Oro, Surface Pro 4, Galaxy Tab Pro S and so on.

I believe there is still a huge market for 7.9inch though, once people realize they don't want 9.7 or 12inch, which I believe may be a large number hence why we got a Mini 4 last year but no iPad Air 3.

Thanks, I am loving my Air 2, keeps he 9.7nch of my iPad 4, but is much smaller, thinner and a whole lot lighter, so I am extremely happy.
I don't even want to touch my iPad 4, that thing was far too heavy.

 

[Channan]

Hey man, if you're happier with the Air 2 than the mini 4, then that's great. Personally, I get the sense that the 9.7" tablets have more of a future with Apple than the 7.9" ones do, which is to say that subscribing to the cellular version of the 9.7" tablet will likely make more sense over the long haul than the cellular version of the 7.9" tablet. For me, I'm gonna enjoy the mini line for as long as it exists. Though, again, I'm not optimistic that there will be an iPad mini 5.

Don't get too upset. The iPad mini will get more refreshes. It's not even close to dead yet.

 

[Rideherhard]

Hey man, if you're happier with the Air 2 than the mini 4, then that's great. Personally, I get the sense that the 9.7" tablets have more of a future with Apple than the 7.9" ones do, which is to say that subscribing to the cellular version of the 9.7" tablet will likely make more sense over the long haul than the cellular version of the 7.9" tablet. For me, I'm gonna enjoy the mini line for as long as it exists. Though, again, I'm not optimistic that there will be an iPad mini 5.

Mini line has a solid future I think, it's a great device if you have a laptop or desktop computer, or if you have the iPad pro and want a couch/bed iPad. In fact I'm shopping for a new iPad to upgrade from the iPad 3 that's served me well and I'm between the mini 4 and the new 9.7" that's coming out this month. Mini has a future.

 

[joeblow7777]

Hey man, if you're happier with the Air 2 than the mini 4, then that's great. Personally, I get the sense that the 9.7" tablets have more of a future with Apple than the 7.9" ones do, which is to say that subscribing to the cellular version of the 9.7" tablet will likely make more sense over the long haul than the cellular version of the 7.9" tablet. For me, I'm gonna enjoy the mini line for as long as it exists. Though, again, I'm not optimistic that there will be an iPad mini 5.

This suggests that the Mini line does indeed have a future: http://appleinsider.com/articles/16...d-pro-jumps-in-at-12-percent-survey-data-says

 

[Yebubbleman]

Don't get too upset. The iPad mini will get more refreshes. It's not even close to dead yet.

The same rumors that predicted that there would be no iPad Air refresh in 2015 also predicted that the mini 4 would be the last update for the line. This is consistent with the diminishing amount of attention Apple gives the device when talking about it in keynotes (hell, the mini 3 got more screen time than the mini 4 when the latter had so much more of an update). Given the sad state of the 7.0" to 8.4" tablet market, and the rise of phablets, I don't see much of a future for the iPad mini beyond a long run for the iPad mini 4.

Mini line has a solid future I think, it's a great device if you have a laptop or desktop computer, or if you have the iPad pro and want a couch/bed iPad. In fact I'm shopping for a new iPad to upgrade from the iPad 3 that's served me well and I'm between the mini 4 and the new 9.7" that's coming out this month. Mini has a future.

The iPad mini doesn't have a future just because you want one.

This suggests that the Mini line does indeed have a future: http://appleinsider.com/articles/16...d-pro-jumps-in-at-12-percent-survey-data-says

You should read the article that they reference. It basically shows that more people bought the iPad Air 2 than any single model and that the only models that sold with traction were the ones priced lowest. That doesn't suggest that people are buying iPad minis for anything other than low cost. Apple can put a 9.7" tablet at that price point and still get the same customers.