New iPad Mini Reviews: Capable Small Tablet With Nearly All Features of New iPad Air

[PickUrPoison]

Those bezels.

...are perfect for holding it in landscape Yeah, I know people want smaller bezels—and I agree the new Pros look amazing—but I think it might be a little worse from a usability/inadvertent touch standpoint.

But even so, I think I could get on board with an iPad mini Pro. But I don’t think there are enough of us for Apple to actually do it. Maybe more than want the iPhone SE, but still not enough.

 

[AZhappyjack]

Does anyone know what ios 12 version comes with the new ipad mini?

At this point, I'd be surprised if it's not 12.1.4... 12.2 is rumored to be released next week, possibly at the Apple event on Monday.

 

[briko]

Oh, for Pete's sake, you are really just complaining for complaining sake, aren't you.

The bezels have exactly the same dimensions than in the previous iPad mini version, which - as I have to remind you - has been released about four years ago.

And the Home button has always been off center on the iPad, since the very first iPad nine years ago. If that isn't the case with current Air, it is the exception of the rule.

I understand why there's some debate about home button placement and bezel size, and I'm sure it bothers some more than others. IMHO, the completely bezel-free trend is going too far, but I do think most people will agree that the bezels shouldn't be getting bigger than they previously were.

On the bright side, maybe they filled that space with extra battery. And the flush camera is also a plus.

 

[Ladybug]

So much contention about the bezels. Do people really spend all their time staring at bezels rather than what is on the screen? Sure the bezels could be smaller I suppose and they could add many other features but then you wouldn’t be buying this for $399. I can be rather critical of Apple sometimes however this isn’t one of those times. If they had reduced the bezels how would that have changed the function of this device? It wouldn’t have changed anything.

 

[narcolpetic-haze]

The internal upgrades a very welcome, but for me to upgrade *now* I was hoping for a chassis upgrade. For what I do with my mini 4 I don't feel like it's lacking in performance, but it's nice to know there's a killer new version of it should I need to replace it in future.

 

[dyt1983]

dupe post plz delete

 

[fgengineer]

I am getting one as soon as possible.
The size is excellent for me. I can take it everywhere.

My iPad mini 2 is incredible slow now specially compared with my iPhone xs. I bought the mini 2 cause it was the only mini released with a current chip.

I thought about buying a mini 4, but could never justify buying outdated tech.

 

[Kattz]

Early reviews and hands-on impressions of the new iPad mini came out today. Most publications agree that the iPad mini is a great update for fans of the smaller 7.9-inch tablet with almost identical tech specs to the new iPad Air.

That includes the same A12 Bionic chip, 8-megapixel rear camera, 7-megapixel front camera, Touch ID, Lightning connector, 64GB and 256GB storage options, two speakers, headphone jack, Gigabit-class LTE, first-generation Apple Pencil compatibility, and up to 10 hours of battery life.

The new iPad mini's only notable differences versus the new iPad Air are its smaller screen and lack of Smart Keyboard compatibility.

As The Verge's Nilay Patel notes, however, the iPad mini design is now very old:And while the iPad mini finally supports the Apple Pencil, it comes with all of the downsides of the first-generation version:As for the iPad mini sticking with the Lightning connector, Apple told Patel that it views USB-C as a "pro" feature -- aka iPad Pro.

Patel added that "the display is very nice" on the new iPad mini despite not having the iPad Pro's ProMotion variable refresh rate for smooth scrolling, but found that its same old 8-megapixel rear camera "takes at best medium-good photos."

Most reviews conclude that if you want the smallest iPad possible, the new iPad mini is quite capable and at least somewhat reasonably priced at $399. And with little competition from Android tablets, the iPad mini is one of the only small tablets worthy of consideration in the first place.

Patel's closing paragraph:Lauren Goode of Wired:Harry McCracken of Fast Company:Chris Velazco of Engadget:Raymond Wong of Mashable:Scott Stein of CNET:Videos

Other Reviews and Hands-On Impressions
Six Colors
Business Insider
TechCrunch
CNBC
USA Today
Yahoo Finance
Pocket-lintThe new iPad mini can be ordered now on Apple.com and will be available in Apple Stores starting next week.

Article Link: New iPad Mini Reviews: Capable Small Tablet With Nearly All Features of New iPad Air

Thei iPadiMini 2 is the best tech purchase I have ever made in my life. I LIKE the bezels. Fingerprints drive me nuts. That little tablet sits on my coffee table . Everyone who comes into the house uses it, including little kids. I charge it once in awhile but it actually holds a charge quite well for it's age. It's still getting updates and it's not painfully slow.

Who cares about an off-centre button. These tablets are almost an investment .I could probably sell it and get at least $100. I like nice looking devices but I'd much rather have something that's going to last.

Just get one. You'll have it for years, it will work well and it wont break unless you throw it in a cement floor. Those are the types of things that the tech reviewers won't tell you.

 

[B4U]

Have you been clinically diagnosed as having OCD or are you simply one of the many who place disproportionate importance on things?

Yes, thanks for concerning about my well being.

 

[ThunderSkunk]

probably has been mentioned already but once you've had button-less, you never go back. Doesn't mean it's not a good device but now that have that screen real estate I don't think I can give it up anymore. If they do a mini in the design of of the new pros, I just might pick one up.

i had buttonless. it was great on the ipad pro sitting around on the couch in a living room. It was a continual hassle once I started trying to use it as a mobile device. Grab the device, set it in your lap, hit the screen, which way is it going to be facing? no idea. display is in some random orientation. ok reorient it so its right side up facing you. great now wheres your camera, or the one power button to single, double, and triple click? It’s the dark gray bump over the edge from visibility, feel around tge edges for it, no not that bump, thats something else, ok theres the button to triple click for your one programmable function, a color correction setting to fix apple maps colorblind illegibility, and it just turned your display off, but its in an inaccessible position anyway, so reposition the ipad again for the button & camera end to be up, then reorient the display image to be right side up. VS, grab ipad mini from jacket or back pants pocket, before its even out of the pocket, your thumb can feel if its on the home button, if its not, you flip it before its even in front of your face and its on and youre in. Add to that, iOS11 & 12s grand & fairly inconsistent multitouch gestures didn’t scale well down to the mini. If they were all we had to rely on to operate the device, theyd be fishing them out of rivers for centuries.

 

[blackbirdz]

One day, one would have iPhone, iPad Mini, iPad and other Pads - and what they'll do with this amazing machine is just browsing Facebook, Instagram and other social media - which technically speaking would not be healthy for body, reduce productivity and socially impaired. Correct?

 

[dampfnudel]

I think the 5th gen iPad mini is a good upgrade for current iPad mini 4 owners, which includes myself. Sure, Apple could’ve made it look like the Pro, give it FaceID, ProMotion and a couple of other features. Then, some people here would be complaining even harder over the price than they were over the bezels.

 

[aeronatis]

Looking at the tech specs it suggests not; if you use a 18/29w charger it would charger faster than the one that ships with iPad Mini, either 10 or 12w (I suspect 10w).

Isn't that the same as iPad Air. One of the reviews confirmed that iPad Air supports fast charging. That's why I wonder.

Edit: Just read on pcmag, it says it charges faster with USB-C PD adapter and USB-C to lightning cable.

 

[Janichsan]

Did you miss the part where I said "if you take an external aluminum frame into account"?

No, I did not.
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IMHO, the completely bezel-free trend is going too far, but I do think most people will agree that the bezels shouldn't be getting bigger than they previously were.

"Previously" here being before late 2015. The increase in bezel (and overall) size came with the iPad mini 4. The new mini 5 has exactly the same dimensions as the mini 4.

 

[TomOSeven]

Not going to buy one, the price is nuts.

I love the old chassis with home button and I don't mind in the slightest that they keep using it.
I love the old display and have zero complaints here, either.
I love the inclusion of an A12 processor, meaning this thing will get updates for years.

I'm quite indifferent about using the old pencil. Yeah it's older tech but it's also half the price if you buy it refurbished / used.

What I don't like is that they couldn't have added real stereo speakers or USB-C.

So if I wanted to take the Mini with me, I would have to use an extra charger and cable, but I also couldn't use it at home for music playback like my iPad Pro 10.5, because it just doesn't do that well.

It also still doesn't have WhatsApp, which probably isn't Apple's fault, but it sucks for me.

It's too bad. I'm sure it's a nice enough little computer, but it's not for me.

 

[spinedoc77]

So you’re ok with a four year old processor (will it last another four?) but a cosmetic change that’s fashionable—but can only negatively affect usability—would have you upgrading? Interesting take.

btw how is the mini “hamstrung” by the Pencil that eveyone raved about for three years (until Apple created an even better version)?

Am I ok with a 4 year old processor? Absolutely yes, it runs every single thing I throw at it with no issues whatsoever. Smaller bezel size is more than cosmetic, it's quite functional, more functional than a processor upgrade IMO. Smaller bezels allows for either a larger screen in the same physical package, or the same size screen in a physically smaller package. I do also think the old pencil is not as good as the 2nd gen pencil, you have that goofy lightning port charging, no wireless charging, etc.

 

[macguru212]

that screen shot would be very different if it were my life... Bar at 4:00AM, Toking on the Beach at Coney then Nathan's French Fries (the 1600 calorie one), midnight at the cigar bar on 56th street...

California people are cute.

 

[Val-kyrie]

What is the obsession with some people for the "off-center" button? Talk about petty complaints...

 

[sprintsucks]

Does available in stores next week mean starting Monday (March 25)? Shipment dates have already slipped into late April.

 

[terpsbball2002]

I will likely upgrade my girls’ mini 4. My daughter is always hogging my iPP 10.5 to doodle with the Apple Pencil. I kept offering to get her the iPad 6 but she refused, only wanting the mini. But then I’m planning to get the galaxy tab S5E when it releases next month so my iPP will just sit. Maybe I won’t tell her about the new mini and just give her my iPP full time.

The Tab S5E, $399 gets you a sweet 10.5” OLED screen. It’s gonna be the best media consumption device. Apple is gonna have serious competition if Samsung shrinks it down to 8” and sell it for $299.

IMO, the iPad refresh still beats it, even without the OLED screen. The refresh has a fully laminated screen, A12, extra 1GB of ram, and it runs iOS (I bet most apps are better suited and compatible with iOS than android). No doubt the iPad refresh with an A12 would smoke it in performance.

I think I'm in the minority in this thread, but I think the mini is the value out of the all he iPads.

 

[Wags]

Just nice to have updated. These get mounted for lots of uses.

 

[x-evil-x]

still the best form iPad IMO I've had full size and stuck with my mini 2. They would sell a LOT more of these of they redesigned them into the new form factor with small bezels and shape. It should of been done if they kept it but I think it would hurt the sales of the larger iPad once people try out a mini for a whole its way different then dealing with a full size iPad. It fits in my gym shorts and back jeans pocket too.
Anybody know how to get a battery replacement on these things?

 

[ignatius345]

There is no way of getting around how bad those top and bottom bezels with the off-center Home Button look, especially when you compare it to the iPad Air.

Yawn. Whatever. It works and works well, and it's nice to have a part of the device that isn't the screen to -- you know -- hold the thing.
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I don't think so. Every other iPad since the original (except mini 4) had a perfectly centered Home Button, if you take an external aluminum frame into account.

View attachment 827475
View attachment 827476

God, yeah, my eyes are just burning seeing that millimeter of asymmetry.

 

[AZhappyjack]

Best Buy is discounting all of the new iPad models by $25 for preorder...

https://9to5toys.com/2019/03/19/apple-ipad-air-mini-best-buy/

 

[jamesrick80]

Hmm they could have at least made a design similar to the Huawei mediapad m5 8.4 in tablet......the mini design remains hideous