iPad Mini 6 to Feature 8.3-Inch Display With No Home Button and Narrower Bezels

[Pezimak]

If this turns out to be true I 'may' be interested in it.
Will make a nice little tablet. Easy to carry too. If it gets Apple Pencil support I'll certainly think about one then.

 

[Khedron]

What’s the point though?

Is Apple just going all-in on unnecessary specs to bump prices and margins?

Like having an M1 with 16GB and a toy OS.

Now they’re putting screen tech ideal for 4K HDR in a product that will definitely not display 4K content.

Tim truly has no ideas.

 

[TVreporter]

Would prefer the home button - my young kids have figured out how to use the iPad 6th generation.

Figured Apple would want to keep the home button for the education sales.

 

[Jack55555]

I don't understand the appeal of making the physical size larger. Obviously I get the rationale for the larger screen, but if they are increasing the actual package size then I don't understand why a consumer wouldn't just buy an iPad air. The entire appeal of the iPad mini was that it was small, small enough to barely be pocketable.

The physical size will be unchanged! This is the good part of the story. So nothing changes concerning the formfactor except the screen size.

 

[poematik13]

I've been waiting for this since 2018

 

[SirAnthonyHopkins]

Just hurry up and announce this ffs I will buy one immediately.

 

[mdorais]

Please for the love of god give us Touch ID on the button. Masks are going to be around and Face ID is useless to me with one on.

 

[Homme]

Would prefer the home button - my young kids have figured out how to use the iPad 6th generation.

Figured Apple would want to keep the home button for the education sales.

You do realize the iPad Mini isn’t the iPad marketed for education right. That title belongs to the base cheap budget iPad

and secondly iPad Mini is more expensive than those iPads

Please for the love of god give us Touch ID on the button. Masks are going to be around and Face ID is useless to me with one on.

It will have touchID at that same button as Air 4. Mini 6 won’t have FaceID


and to those who are doubting this. Ross Young has a perfect track record and on Apple track his accuracy is around 100% I think ( or close to that). He has the display information . He is the king of displays ( not just for apple though)

 

[Jack55555]

@Homme
Yes Ross has 100% acc so we can take 8,3“ for kinda confirmed.
Plus you are completely right about your first standpoint.
The Mini is a premium multimedia device for someone who want to pay for the awesome formfactor.
I just hope it is being released this fall but I would be quite shocked if they won‘t release it

 

[spinedoc77]

The physical size will be unchanged! This is the good part of the story. So nothing changes concerning the formfactor except the screen size.

I thought the rumor from Kuo was that it would be 8.5 - 9", I don't think he was talking about the screen size. If you follow the link Macrumors theorizes that this would mean a larger size overall. No biggie, it's just unsubstantiated rumor at this point so who knows what will really happen.

 

[joelhinch]

It sounds great, but it also sounds expensive. Does anyone has an idea of price? Is this in Pro territory, or close to the existing mini?

Probably starting at $99 cheaper than the Air.

 

[DotCom2]

The physical size will be unchanged! This is the good part of the story. So nothing changes concerning the formfactor except the screen size.

Ross Young (aka display guru) just posted on Twitter that the iPad mini 6 will be 8.3" due to narrower bezels and removal of home button.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

If we use the aspect ratio and bezel thickness of the iPad Air, the 8.3" iPad mini will be:

7.6" x 5.5"

The current mini is 8.0" x 5.3", so the new model will be a little shorter and a bit wider.

Except I'm pretty sure the side bezels on the current mini are smaller than on the iPad Air, because a smaller device doesn't need as big of bezels. So I'd wager the width will stay the same and the length with shorten to meet the display.

 

[Jack55555]

I thought the rumor from Kuo was that it would be 8.5 - 9", I don't think he was talking about the screen size. If you follow the link Macrumors theorizes that this would mean a larger size overall. No biggie, it's just unsubstantiated rumor at this point so who knows what will really happen.

Yeah but Kuo‘s info is pretty old already. All latest rumors point towards an untouched physical size while the screensize increases. On my opinion this is the most likely szenario. I think they won‘t change the physical size because this is the biggest difference between all other iPads.
Plus 8,3“ is just what fits perfect on the old formfactor.

Here I did a very professional comparison 😂 :

 

[Jack55555]

Except I'm pretty sure the side bezels on the current mini are smaller than on the iPad Air, because a smaller device doesn't need as big of bezels. So I'd wager the width will stay the same and the length with shorten to meet the display.

I did some very ugly comparison myself (you can see it above) but it nicely shows that you absolutley can fit the 8,3“ screen on the current formfactor. You needn‘t change anything. Even better, the aspect ratio transforms more into a rectangular. The rather square shape always was annoying while watching movies. So I think it would be just awesome if they released it like on my pic above. Plus the Air 3 to 4 transformation was similar. The side boarders got bigger while top and bottom shrunk down.

Air 3 vs 4:

 

[JPack]

Except I'm pretty sure the side bezels on the current mini are smaller than on the iPad Air, because a smaller device doesn't need as big of bezels. So I'd wager the width will stay the same and the length with shorten to meet the display.

No, because that would be ugly. iPad Air has a uniform 0.4" bezel all around. I'd expect the same design language on the iPad mini. The RGB camera dictates the minimum bezel width.

 

[JPack]

Yeah but Kuo‘s info is pretty old already. All latest rumors point towards an untouched physical size while the screensize increases. On my opinion this is the most likely szenario. I think they won‘t change the physical size because this is the biggest difference between all other iPads.
Plus 8,3“ is just what fits perfect on the old formfactor.

Here I did a very professional comparison 😂 :View attachment 1811317View attachment 1811319

Zero chance of that happening.

What you propose is a half-assed redesign. No way Apple would do that. They are taking the time to put in a new display, USB-C, and power button Touch ID. Would Apple skip the opportunity to sell new cases and accessories?

The iPad Pro has uniform bezels. The iPad Air has uniform bezels. You can expect the iPad mini to have uniform bezels.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

No, because that would be ugly. iPad Air has a uniform 0.4" bezel all around. I'd expect the same design language on the iPad mini. The RGB camera dictates the minimum bezel width.

I think you misunderstood. I don't know what the iPad mini side bezel is, but it's smaller than the iPad Air. Lets say it's 0.3". I think Apple will make 0.3" the bezel size on all sides for the mini. Keeping the overall width the same, but shrinking the length. You say RGB camera dictates bezel width, and it probably is a factor, but you don't know what Apple's able to do. Another consideration on bezel size is convenience to hold. The smaller the device, the less bezels. The mini can already be held one handed.

 

[JPack]

I think you misunderstood. I don't know what the iPad mini side bezel is, but it's smaller than the iPad Air. Lets say it's 0.3". I think Apple will make 0.3" the bezel size on all sides for the mini. Keeping the overall width the same, but shrinking the length. You say RGB camera dictates bezel width, and it probably is a factor, but you don't know what Apple's able to do. Another consideration on bezel size is convenience to hold. The smaller the device, the less bezels. The mini can already be held one handed.

Side bezel width:

iPad Pro - 0.35"
iPad Air - 0.41"
iPad mini (current) - 0.295"

The issue is not just RGB camera height, I just don't think Apple will make a new iPad mini with bezels smaller than their iPad Pro. Even assuming it's even physically possible, it's a matter of product positioning. In all likelihood, I think the bezel on the new mini will probably fall between the Air and the Pro.

 

[Solomani]

This marks what, year three of rumors on this?

I'll believe it when I see it.

Next iPad Mini 6 rumor: It will have the ability to mine 10 Bitcoins daily. 😆

 

[Jack55555]

Zero chance of that happening.

What you propose is a half-assed redesign. No way Apple would do that. They are taking the time to put in a new display, USB-C, and power button Touch ID. Would Apple skip the opportunity to sell new cases and accessories?

The iPad Pro has uniform bezels. The iPad Air has uniform bezels. You can expect the iPad mini to have uniform bezels.

First of all they will sell new cases etc no matter how the new Mini is sized. Because it 99% will be edged like the Pro and Air so all old accessoires won‘t fit. So there ain‘t a problem.

Secondly, of course there will be a uniform boarder. It will be the same thickness all around. It will look like the Air and Pro. But what I wanted to state is that this will happen on the old physical size. The device itself won‘t become larger that wouldn‘t make any sense. Maybe a few mm but overall I‘m 99% sure the new Mini will be sized as current ones only with a bigger screen.

 

[arvinsim]

This cannot come soon enough!

 

[JPack]

First of all they will sell new cases etc no matter how the new Mini is sized. Because it 99% will be edged like the Pro and Air so all old accessoires won‘t fit. So there ain‘t a problem.

Secondly, of course there will be a uniform boarder. It will be the same thickness all around. It will look like the Air and Pro. But what I wanted to state is that this will happen on the old formfactor. The device itself won‘t become larger that wouldn‘t make any sense. Maybe a few mm but overall I‘m 99% sure the new Mini will be sized as current ones only with a bigger screen.

It's physically impossible for the new 8.3" iPad mini have the new aspect ratio, uniform bezels, and retain the same size form factor. It's as simple as that.

Your own drawings show uneven borders (top is thicker than the sides).

 

[Saturn1217]

If you go on display wars, a iPad mini with a 8.3 inch display and an aspect ratio the same as the 2020 iPad Air (2360/1640)px is EXACTLY the same width as a 4:3 aspect ratio 7.9 inch display.

So either that is where this rumor is coming from or that is what Apple is aiming for (or both).

I would LOVE an iPad mini that stayed the same physical size (basically) but just had a longer screen (ie stretched to take up the space of the home button and top/bottom bezels.

But this also kinda feels like someone just did some math and came up with this number. I guess we'll see. Still very happy with my iPad mini 5.

 

[macduke]

This is the dumbest thing that I want to buy considering I have an M1 iPad Pro 12.9 and an iPhone 12 Pro Max. Although lately I’ve been using my iPad Pro with the new Brydge trackpad/kb magnetic dock thing that makes it look like an iPad Air and using it for lighter weight work tasks and it has surprisingly been decent, aside from some mouse glitches that I’m pretty sure are related to the iOS 15 beta. I’ve been using Coda and Terminus and I can actually work on code and build stuff/push up to repos and even do some basic image editing for the web in Photoshop, edit SVG icons in Illustrator, and mockup wireframes in XD while everything is syncing over Dropbox. It’s like using a gimped Mac but it has a touch screen that I can drawn on, a better camera for Zoom calls that follows me around, and has a much better display that works well outside in bright light. It’s weird because a lot of things are slower but not as slow as they’ve been before you could use the mouse, and just a few things are actually better on the iPad.

The thing about the Mini is that it’s great for content consumption but kinda small for multitasking and such. I consider it more like a big iPhone. I hope it supports Apple Pencil 2 because it would be a great little drawing pad. That would make me more likely to consider it. Otherwise I’ve been thinking about going back to a smaller iPhone so this thing would be great to just leave strewn about on the couch, and also used as a display for drone flights.

I feel like Apple needs to segment the iPad Pro from the regular iPad. This thing is starting to feel like something different, especially since a lot of the apps I need for my job are available on here, even if it’s in a more limited form. In an ideal world I’d have a 32” iMac Pro with like an M2X or something as my main device, this M1 iPad Pro but with a bit more advanced OS and third party software using this Brydge dock as a portable computing device, this new iPad Mini to use for content consumption, and the iPhone 13 Pro (non-Max).