To me the iPad Mini perfectly illustrates Apple's distain for its customers. It's quite willing to charge top dollar for a tablet that hasn't been updated for 3.5 years and has a 4-generation-old chip. If they do update it, I'll probably get a new one, as my generation 2 is showing its age.
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New iPad Mini 5 Could Support Apple Pencil and Smart Keyboard
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It is a bit weird, though, that the XR, which Apple considers a "normal size phone", is 6.1" and a iPad Mini is likely to be 7". The form factors are getting closer.
I don't know about a Smart Keyboard but I have for my mini a Logitech Keys-to-Go. Extraordinary piece of hardware with months of battery life under light use.
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Yes! But, laminated or not, the new model has to be at least as good as the mini 4 in the display department.
The Mini is the perfect size for when you are travelling very light - it just about fits in a pocket and takes up no more room than a paperback. A piece of A4 or letter paper is far more 'functional' than a post-it note, but sometimes you want a post-it note!
Absolutely, fits very nicely into my back jeans pocket. I love having both my hands free.
The Mini is actually 7.9. Also, the different aspect ratio (Mini is much wider) makes a big difference. I don’t think that even the largest phones on the market give a true tablet experience.
At some point, maybe... when it becomes cheap. BUT, I have to say, I love FaceID on my iPhone, not so much my iPad 11 Pro.
With my phone, its a very natural (to me) gesture to pull it towards my face while looking at it. Exactly what I would be doing anyway. With my pad...yeah, not what I usually do. I find my grip is often obscuring the camera. Or its angled strange because I am laying on my side. All in all, I can't remember the last time I typed in my passcode to my phone because of FaceID fail, but on my pad? At least 30% of the time. I would be fine with TouchID on my iPad (though I admit I like the increased screen real estate without it)
I bought a iPad Mini 4 in December and my return period ended on January 12th I think but I decided to keep it although I haven't used it music since.
I'm just not interested in them all that much anymore I guess. I always have my Max with me so I just use it for everything.
I bought a 2018 iPad Pro 12.9" and sold it in December because it was way too big after using it a week.
I'm just not interested in them all that much anymore I guess. I always have my Max with me so I just use it for everything.
I bought a 2018 iPad Pro 12.9" and sold it in December because it was way too big after using it a week.
Wait, you’re a horizontal oriented tablet user? The worst kind of person!
I kid I kid. I don’t own anything with faveID yet (typing on a 6s currently), but I follow apple’s patents pretty closely. Obviously some never materialize but the frequency the FaceID ones are updated, especially as they pertain to the Mac shows that FaceID is definitely going to be a commonality across the board for Apple devices in the next year or two. I think it’s actually the reason we’ve seen no update to iMacs. I expect to see this addressed at WWDC with FaceID being integrated into the next version of macOS for (new) machines that have it.
iPad Mini without bezels, I’ll buy it instantly.
Not the old outdated model, with bezels, it’s yesterday.
Could even buy a iPad Mini Pro, without bezels, without hesitation.
Smart Keyboard, not interesting.
But sure, I buy the pencil too, if the above factors please me
Not the old outdated model, with bezels, it’s yesterday.
Could even buy a iPad Mini Pro, without bezels, without hesitation.
Smart Keyboard, not interesting.
But sure, I buy the pencil too, if the above factors please me
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Yeah, of course Apple has done this forever. Still, a faster processor is in no way comparable to actual FEATURES. FaceID, Pencil2, "bezelless", ....you name it.
And that design and features already exist in smaller form factors: iPhone XS and Max... No, it's not rocket science. They simply don't want to. Even coding wouldn't need to be that difficult, they already have to code for various screen sizes...
I can tell you why Mini sales were low. Because it essentially was running on a years old design and features. Steve Jobs said noone wanted a small iPad and that you needed a certain screen size to appreciate all the features. Yet, eventually they introduced the Mini and it sold like hot potatoes at the time.
I agree, FaceId can be very good. I love it on my phone, because I already naturally would raise my phone to my face and look at it (same reason you can train dogs to fetch, they do it in the wild). Likewise when I sit down to a computer I am looking at the screen. Can see it working there too. But for me, and your mileage may vary, when I am laying on my side in the bed scrunched up to read, the iPad faceId camera can be at a strange angle as I shift around, or even obscured by ripples in the sheet, or my grip... (sorry for being so graphic, picture me in full pajamas), well.. FaceId just does not work at least 30% of the time for me. Its a pain. I would gladly except TouchID there.
But you are right, apple likes to keep things consistent. FaceID forever! and everywhere.
I was always pro iPad Mini, but since getting an iPhone 8 I tend to use that a lot more as its with me all the time. I hardly use my iPad Mini anymore. However having said that, for me the iPad Mini is the perfect travel utility. The screen is large enough to display maps, itineraries and other information when traveling. Its big enough to watch movies, read books, view MacRumors stories
, surf the web etc. It doesn't take up too much room in my backpack.I would prefer to save the battery on my iPhone, perhaps only use it for taking photo's & videos and then use the iPad Mini for everything else, considering that these devices use way more power during the day when you're out sightseeing in the daylight (screen brightness).
As for the pen, I don't think I would ever use one..... unless for example map apps have markup capabilities and I can make notes or mark out paths/roads I need to travel on those maps.
Yeh so for writing and drawing/sketching I wouldnt use it but for "markup" enabled applications I think it would be very useful.
I guess we'll just have to wait and see what Apple come up with.
I predict/hope that the new iPod Touch will basically be an iPhone Xr sans cellular and the new mini will be "Pro." That way the new larger iPod can occupy the pricing tiers below the $329 iPad and they can sell a full powered Pro mini to photographers and the like. Using the design of the latest large iPad Pros would result in an inch or larger display compared to the current mini, and that would be rad.
I'm not saying that they're the same, just that they slowly converging. Was only a few years ago that iPhones were 4" screens, iPads were 9.7" screens, and nobody expected Apple to make phablet-like devices. Not a big argument, just a observation.
I'll take pencil support on my Xs Max as well!! I would also love to have split view, I don't know why this hasn't made it yet.
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Neither, they will just leave the old physical Touch ID, it's supposed to be a low cost ipad.
Originally the mini was literally just a smaller version of the current iPad at the time. I’m hoping Apple will get back into this approach, but honestly I’ll buy it if it has an A11 in it.
Those are much different form factors though. The aspect ratio makes a HUGE difference.
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Yeah I'd LOVE to see smaller bezels with either in display touch ID, or face ID, but I think they are just releasing a cheapie mini with an upgraded proc and maybe pencil support. I'd gladly pay double the price if they made an ipad mini Pro, but I don't think that's in the cards.
Random point.
... I’m curious is ‘sold like hot potato’s’ a saying where you’re from (I assume the US)
I’m from Aus and was say ‘sold like hot cakes’
Haha that’s really weird.
We had 3 Mini 2's, sold the one with LTE, still have two wifi that need to be replaced. The 3 and 4 were not worth upgrading the 2's for. Its time, we want apple pencil and iPhone X form factor, don't care about keyboards, don't care about USB C, maybe?
There are many tens of thousands of pilots who use the mini because it mounts easily on the yoke of an aircraft to hold FAA approach plates and other charts.
I really hope the mini 5 has a laminated display - otherwise I'll probably keep both my mini 4s as glare is always an issue in the cockpit.
Yes, and the 19.5:9 aspect ratio makes for a very poor e-reader. Here’s the XS Max compared to the current mini: