The iPad mini had a new lease of life with the release of the sixth-gen tablet in 2021, offering a substantial upgrade compared what came before it.
As well as a boosted 8.3-inch display in the same form factor as its older sibling, the iPad mini 6 sports a refined design similar to that of the iPad Air and iPad Pro, along with A15 Bionic performance and support for the second-gen Apple Pencil.
What can we expect from the upcoming seventh generation? With a potential launch happening very soon, here’s everything you need to know.
When will the new iPad mini 7 be released?
It’s been over three years since the last iPad mini launched, but it looks like we won’t be waiting much longer.
According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, a new version of Apple’s smallest tablet will be unveiled “around the end of October”, alongside a range of new Macs.
Gurman adds that “the company is currently aiming to then release at least some of them” on 1 November 2024.
It would be a surprise to see them at a Mac-focused event, but Apple never sticks to fixed schedules for its iPads. And that’s been especially true for the mini recently:
- iPad mini 6: September 2021
- iPad mini 5: March 2019
- iPad mini 4: September 2015
How much will the new iPad 7 mini cost?
The iPad mini used to be one of the more affordable options in Apple’s tablet collection, but that all changed with the iPad mini 6. Here’s how much it cost at launch:
- iPad mini 6 (Wi-Fi, 64GB) – £479/$499
- iPad mini 6 (Wi-Fi, 256GB) – £619/$649
- iPad mini 6 (Wi-Fi + Cellular, 64GB) – £619/$649
- iPad mini 6 (Wi-Fi + Cellular, 256GB) – £759/$799
It’s unlikely Apple will reduce prices back down closer to the iPad mini 5’s $399/£399 anytime soon. But further price rises are also unlikely, especially if the upgrades are only minor.
However, we may see prices in the UK reduced to match the US figures, as we’ve seen on some other Apple products – so £499/$499, rather than £569/$499.
What specs and features will the new iPad mini 7 have?
There are plenty of leaks and rumours regarding what to expect from the iPad mini 7. We expect that the new iPad mini will feature a more impressive processor, alongside some small internal improvements.
Design
With such a dramatic redesign on the sixth-generation iPad mini, it’s unlikely that Apple will implement any noticeable design changes on the next-gen tablet – especially when you consider that, entry-level iPad aside, all iPhones and iPads share the same design language.
That’s not to say we wouldn’t like to see any changes made to the small-screen tablet. While the 8.3-inch iPad mini 6 offers a greatly improved design with slim bezels, a lightweight form factor and the jump to USB-C, there is one big omission: a smart connector.
The smart connector is available on the iPad Air and both variants of iPad Pro, offering a way to connect Apple’s superior Magic Keyboard to turn the iPad into something resembling a traditional laptop, but it’s not present on the iPad mini 6. That leaves the small-screen tablet at a disadvantage compared to the almost-identical iPad Air.
So, while not confirmed, we’d love to see a smart connector (and accompanying Magic Keyboard) on the iPad mini 7.
The iPad mini is currently available in space grey, pink, purple, and starlight. It will probably adopt some of the colours introduced with the latest iPad Air – Starlight, Blue, Purple and Space Grey.
With the bold colour choices of the iPad 10th generation, the iPad mini may see a new palette, though there’s no concrete evidence for this.
Display
According to a Korean forum post (shared on Twitter by @FronTron), the iPad mini’s 8.3-inch display will be upgraded with 120Hz ProMotion support.
ProMotion is certainly a feature that Apple associates with Pro-level products, making an appearance on the iPad Pro, iPhone 13 Pro and MacBook Pro, so introducing it on a non-pro iPad would muddy the waters.
However, it all comes down to one issue: jelly scrolling. Jelly scrolling was a hot topic at the launch of the iPad mini 6, with some users noting a tiny delay in the screen’s refresh rate when scrolling that created a wobbly effect not dissimilar to jelly. Contrary to popular belief, this is normal behaviour for LCD screens. LCD panels refresh line by line, and there’s a tiny delay between when the lines at the top and bottom are refreshed.
However, analyst Ross Young suggested it wouldn’t happen back in June 2022:
It’s also possible that Apple could push an interim 90Hz display to the small-screen tablet, but that’s only speculation at this stage. And there probably won’t be any changes to the current 8.3-inch screen size.
On a side note, Apple is also reportedly developing an iPad with a folding display, but it’s unlikely to be implemented in this model.
Performance
It’s safe to assume that the next iPad mini will be more powerful than the current tablet, but it’s currently unclear what chipset it’ll feature.
Mark Gurman at Bloomberg said in April 2024 that “the iPad mini update won’t include much more than a processor upgrade”. Back in January 2022, Ming-Chi Kuo also claimed that the new processor would be “the main selling point” suggesting that little else will change on the next-gen tablet.
At the time, Kuo didn’t specify the processor, but it’s now anticipated to feature the A16 chip, similar to the one found in the iPhone 14 Pro and the iPhone 15 models. The rumour comes via the same Korean forum post mentioned above, which suggests Apple is working on an iPad mini with the same A15 Bionic as the existing iPad mini, but at an increased 3.23GHz clock speed.
You see, while the iPad mini shares the same A15 Bionic as the iPhone 13 series, it’s a slower clock speed – 2.9GHz vs 3.2GHz – and that results in a slight decrease in performance when compared side-by-side.
The increased clock speed of the new A15 Bionic could offer a boost in performance compared to the existing iPad mini without Apple having to manufacture more of its (presumably more complex) next-gen chipset. That’ll allegedly be accompanied by the same 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage as the current model.
However, it would be wise for Apple to upgrade it to at least 8GB/128GB, considering challenging higher-quality cameras and software. Similarly, increasing the maximum storage to 512GB would be logical, especially if the baseline storage moves up to 128GB.
Elsewhere, we’re also hoping for improvements to the cameras, battery life and charging speeds, but there are no rumours regarding these so far.
We’ll update this article once more is revealed. In the meantime, see our guides to the best iPads and best tablets.
