Apple announced a new iPad mini this morning by press release. It has an 8.5-inch OLED display, an A20 Pro chip and an IP67 rating for water and dust. Apple’s Mac event follows on Wednesday.
Canadian prices
From the Canadian Apple Store:
| Storage | Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi + Cellular |
|---|---|---|
| 128GB | $949 | $1,149 |
| 256GB | $1,099 | $1,299 |
| 512GB | $1,379 | $1,579 |
The anti-glare nano-texture glass adds $150 and is offered only on the 256GB and 512GB models. Education pricing starts at $879. The Apple Pencil Pro is $169, and the new Smart Folio is $99.
Pre-orders open Wednesday, Oct. 28 at 10:10 a.m. PT (1:10 p.m. ET), and it arrives in stores Nov. 6.
What’s new
- Bezels are 24% thinner, so the screen grows while the footprint stays the same. Apple says it reaches 1,200 nits peak brightness, more than twice the previous model.
- It’s 5.4 mm thin, comes in midnight or starlight, and has a new speaker design that uses the display itself.
- The front camera moves to the landscape edge, where it’s better placed for video calls.
- Cellular models get Apple’s C2 modem and eSIM.
The catch
Only the 512GB model gets the full A20 Pro. The 128GB and 256GB versions have five CPU cores instead of six and a single Neural Engine instead of two, 9to5Mac points out from Apple’s spec sheet. And Apple’s specs don’t mention ProMotion, so the smoother 120Hz scrolling of the iPad Pro doesn’t appear to be included, MacRumors notes.
Why it matters: At $949 to start, this is a pricey small tablet, and the best chip costs $1,379. If you mostly read, stream and take notes, the 128GB Wi-Fi model is the one to look at. If you want the nano-texture screen or the full chip, the price climbs fast.