There is little doubt that the end of October promises to be busy for Apple. After the launch of the iPhone 16 in September, the Cupertino company should meet with us within three weeks to discover new Mac M4s and an iPad mini 7. A small event for the brand’s smallest tablet at the Apple, which has not seen an update since September 24, 2021 and the release of the iPad mini 6. A long wait for fans of this format, who have the right to expect a certain number of changes.
The new iPad mini will logically retain a compact format, with an 8.3-inch screen. The design, which has seen a major overhaul with the current model, is not expected to change much. On the other hand, Apple would take advantage of this renewal to correct “jelly scrolling” – or elastic scrolling – which gives a staircase effect when you scroll the screen. Very good news as this problem, which affects some iPad mini 5 owners, is a real source of frustration.
A new LCD panel (without jelly scroll) and a nice performance boost
The advantage with an aging tablet is that the upgrade promises visible gains. The current iPad mini 6 is equipped with an A15 Bionic chip while the iPad Pro and iPad Pro now have M series chips (Apple Silicon). The iPad mini 7 is not expected to join and would opt for the A17 Pro chip, seen in the iPhone 15 Pro, or the A18 chip in the iPhone 16. Either way, this update should offer an improvement significant compared to the A15 Bionic. An important development since the iPad mini must be compatible with Apple Intelligence features.
The new iPad mini (2024) will most likely be compatible with wifi 6e (compared to wifi 6 on the current model). It could thus connect to the 6 GHz band of compatible routers while Bluetooth 5.3 would bring the latest wireless connectivity standards to the tablet. The current iPad mini 6 is limited to Bluetooth 5.0. Finally, Wi-Fi + Cellular models could switch to eSIM entirely, ditching the slot for a physical nano-SIM card.
Less expected on this point, the iPad mini version 2024 could benefit from improvements in the photo section. The most interesting element is that Apple could position the front camera in horizontal mode, like on the latest iPad Air. A change that would greatly improve the experience during video calls while the rear camera could support HDR 4. The latter could also offer a wider aperture than the current model.
Colors, Apple Pencil… what to also expect
The iPad mini 7 is likely to support the Apple Pencil Pro, a stylus unveiled earlier this year by Apple. Currently compatible with the iPad Pro (7th generation) and the iPad Air 6, this stylus benefits from better precision, haptic feedback and a pressure-sensitive sensor. Finally, it integrates Apple’s “Locate” functionality (Find My) to avoid losing it. The Apple Pencil’s Hover function is also hoped for on this new tablet.
In terms of colors, the current model is available in space gray, mauve, pink and starlight. It is rumored that the small iPad would take inspiration from the iPad Air by abandoning pink in favor of blue. According to the essential Mark Gurman of Bloomberg, the new iPad mini would arrive at the same time as the new M4 Macs. While the announcement could take place at the end of October, the iPad mini could be released as early as Friday, November 1st. The new model would maintain a Price similar to that of its predecessor, starting at 549 euros for a Wi-Fi model.
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