They share practically all other specifications, including the dedicated Apple M1 chip, which currently is exclusive to the Pro in the iPad range (though it is also found in certain MacBook models). Like the Air, the Pro series is compatible with Apple’s Magic Keyboard ($299), a smart extra with USB-C and cantilever design which makes finding the right viewing angle straightforward.
iPad – Compare Models
Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi‑Fi, watching video, or listening to music Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi‑Fi, watching video, or listening to music Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi‑Fi, watching video, or listening to music Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi‑Fi, watching video, or listening to music
Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi‑Fi, watching video, or listening to music
iPad vs iPad Air vs iPad mini: Which tablet is right for you?
iPad (2019) iPad Air (2019) iPad mini (2019) Starting price $329 ($299 for schools, $459 with LTE) $499 ($629 with LTE) $399 ($629 with LTE) Screen 10.2 inches (2160 x 1620) 10.5-inch True Tone display (2224 x 1668) 7.9-inch True Tone display (2048 x 1536) Battery life 11:58 (tested) 11:54 (tested) 12:40 (tested) Processor A10 Fusion A12 Bionic with Neural Engine A12 Bionic with Neural Engine Storage 32GB to 128GB 64GB, 256GB 64GB, 256GB Cameras 8MP (rear) 1.2MP FaceTime HD (front) 8MP (rear), 7MP FaceTime HD (front) 8MP (rear), 7MP FaceTime HD (front) Video recording Up to 1080p HD at 30 fps Up to 1080p HD at 30 fps Up to 1080p HD at 30 fps Security Touch ID Touch ID w/ 2nd gen. fingerprint sensor Touch ID w/ 2nd gen. fingerprint sensor Apple Keyboard support Smart Keyboard Smart Keyboard none, Bluetooth only Pencil support Apple Pencil (1st generation) Apple Pencil (1st generation) Apple Pencil (1st generation) Dimensions 9.8 x 6.8 x 0.3 inches 9.8 x 6.8 x 0.2 inches 8.0 x 5.3 x 0.2 inches Weight 1.1 pounds 1 pound 0.7 pounds Available in silver, space gray and gold, each tablet has the same basic look: machined aluminum on the back and white or black bezels on the front, with the home button that was taken out of the iPhone.
In terms of connectivity, all share the Lightning charging port and the headphone jack. The iPad, in every generation and size, has long been known for excellent screens that make for great displays for your next Netflix or YouTube marathon.
According to our colorimeter, the iPad produces 105% of the sRGB spectrum, while the Air hits 132% and the mini reaches 135%. The iPad Air and iPad mini also win points because their panels offer True Tone display technology, automatically adjusting white balance against the ambient lighting situation. Unfortunately, this version of the Apple Pencil is exclusive to the higher-end iPad Pro. So we can say that the iPad Air and mini offer similar performance, as would be expected by the fact that they both run on the same processor. The iPad mini lasted 12 hours and 40 minutes on our battery test, which measures how long a tablet can browse the web at 150 nits of brightness before giving up the ghost. The iPad mini’s battery could last longer because it’s got fewer pixels to light up.
Meanwhile for $70 more, the iPad mini has faster performance, twice as much storage, a better selfie camera, longer battery life and a brighter screen. Shockingly, the iPad mini was the little tablet that could all along, beating (or tying) its bigger brothers in so many rounds that it picked up the overall win.
Its competitive price means that its wins in performance, display quality and battery life overshadow its lack of a Smart Keyboard or its smaller screen.
iPad mini 6 vs iPad mini 5: which should you buy?
You’ll find links to the best prices on each below, and for more offers on other products, you can check out our regular guide to the best Apple deals. The iPad mini 6 comes in four colours: space grey, pink, purple, and starlight. When Apple removed the Home button and reduced the bezels in the iPad mini 6, it was able to increase the space devoted to the device’s display.
Other than that, the displays are very similar – both support the P3 colour gamut and Apple’s True Tone technology, with the main difference being the resolution.
On the iPad mini 6, the battery capacity gets bumped up slightly to 19.3-watt-hours, but it lasts for the same 10 or nine hours (depending on the model) due to the extra energy used by the larger display. More intense use cases, like working with demanding creative apps, will likely drain the batteries of both devices faster.
Both models feature Touch ID to help you log in securely and verify payments. As for Apple Pencil support, the iPad mini 5 only works with the first-generation model.
Compared to the single 8MP camera on the back of the iPad mini 5, it is better by leaps and bounds.
If you want to take photos – or regularly do video calls – the iPad mini 6 is the clear winner here. If you intend to keep your iPad for a number of years (and want one with cellular capabilities), that could be an important point to consider. Apple no longer sells the iPad mini 5 itself, but at the time of writing, you could get a 64GB model for around $340 (£315) on websites such as Amazon.
Apple replaces any parts as required, cleans each device, and ensures it operates “like new.” It’s a good idea to check back now and then to see if you can get a bargain. It has a more modern design, larger display, a stronger processor, a better camera system, and more up-to-speed features.
iPad vs iPad Air vs iPad mini: Which non-Pro tablet is best for your budget?
During its “Peek Performance” event, Apple gave its mid-range tablet the update it should have gotten six months ago. Now the iPad Air is up to date with the rest of Apple’s lineup, with a new processor, camera, and connectivity. Like the iPhone SE, it has a home button, giant bezels, and a tapered design in the classic iPad colors, silver and space gray.
Due to the giant bezels, it’s as big as the iPad Air despite having a smaller screen and is also the heaviest of the three models here, clocking in at 1.07 pounds. They have an all-screen design like the iPhone, with slim, uniform bezels, rounded display corners, and flat edges. They both use Apple’s Liquid Retina technology with rounded corners and fully laminated construction, with a wide color gamut and True Tone support.
The performance difference is roughly 30 percent in benchmarks, but you likely won’t notice the faster speeds in real-world use. Similarly, the iPad has a Lightning port like the iPhone, while the Air and mini have USB-C.
All three iPads have the same front camera and it’s a good one: 12MP Ultra Wide with Center Stage, which uses machine learning to keep you in the frame during FaceTime and other video calls.
On the back, the ninth-gen iPad has an aging 8MP Wide camera while the Air and mini have 12MP wide cameras with Smart HDR 3 You can record 4K video on the Air and mini and HD video on the ninth-gen iPad. All three models also support Universal Control so you can use your Mac’s keyboard and mouse to work on apps or transfer files when in Bluetooth range. Each iPad is available in the same configuration: a base model with 64GB of storage and a 256GB update option.
It’s not a bad tablet—especially when compared to any Android tablet—but it has a two-generation-old processor, outdated design, and subpar display.
iPad mini 6 vs iPad mini 5: a big mini upgrade!
However, there is a small niche of users that want that Kindle-like shape, but with a powerful iOS punch to back it up. Comparatively speaking, the iPad mini’s bezels are still kind of, sort of thick, but at this point, we’d say that’s a plus. Also, interesting choice by Apple, the volume controls of the iPad mini (2021) are also located on the top frame. Well, Apple just loves to stick to that 324 pixels-per-inch density on its LCD screens and I guess the legacy goes on. Flat sides, rectangular look, and what Apple calls an “all screen design”.Comparatively speaking, the iPad mini’s bezels are still kind of, sort of thick, but at this point, we’d say that’s a plus. Also, interesting choice by Apple, the volume controls of the iPad mini (2021) are also located on the top frame.
Well, Apple just loves to stick to that 324 pixels-per-inch density on its LCD screens and I guess the legacy goes on.It’s worth noting that the iPad mini 6 has a screen aspect ratio of 4.6:3 while the iPad mini 5 has the classic 4:3. For what it’s worth, the iPad mini 6 has a bit of a disappointing jello effect when scrolling pages quickly.
But no, don’t hope for a fix or an admission, Apple basically said ” Yeah, that’s how LCD screens work “. For long, excruciating years, Apple refused to put true stereo speakers on the iPads. First, the iPad Pro line introduced true stereo with quad speaker setup. The iPad mini 6 comes with the new Apple A15 — the 5 nm wonder inside the newly-announced iPhone 13.
First, the iPad Pro line introduced true stereo with quad speaker setup. Not bad and it can be argued that this silicon can still hold its own in 2021 — despite it being a bit long in the tooth already, it was super-powered on release and is still quite potent today.The iPad mini 6 comes with the new Apple A15 — the 5 nm wonder inside the newly-announced iPhone 13.
Whether you need cellular on your iPad… eh, that’s a discussion for Also, worth noting, the iPad mini 6 comes with a USB Type-C port on the bottom, instead of Lightning. The iPad mini 5 still has a Lightning port, which requires you to find an MFi accessory or at least an adapter, which may or may not work for your purposes.In terms of RAM, Apple didn’t go above and beyond what’s needed — the iPad mini (2021) rocks 4 GB of RAM.
Apple iPad Mini (2021) review: This one’s just right
It keeps the same small footprint, but packs some features that are only found on the high-end iPad Pro models. But is that enough to sway buyers away from larger tablets, or encourage existing users to upgrade? It represents a significant redesign, with improvements to both external and internal components of the device. The screen, while still a 60Hz LCD panel, now measures 8.3 inches and features rounded corners like other modern Apple devices.
Despite the larger screen, the 2021 iPad Mini is slightly lighter and smaller (apart from an unnoticeable 2mm increase in thickness), and keeps the same 10-hour battery life. It achieves this thanks to the powerful and energy-efficient A15 Bionic chip, which is the same chipset found in the iPhone 13 lineup. Other notable changes include support for the Apple Pencil 2 ($119), which attaches to the side of the device to charge. There has been no news about the iPad Mini 7, but if Apple sticks to the two-year refresh cycle it may launch in September 2023.
Speaking as someone who has used the previous iPad Mini every day for the past two years, the new design is a much-needed breath of fresh air. The curved edges and physical home button were already out of date in 2019, and now the iPad Mini looks like its counterparts in the upper echelons of Apple’s products. Plus, the added space makes the display longer and more suited to streaming media consumption. It maintains the same high 327ppi (higher than even the iPad Pro) and great brightness of the previous model, but apart from the size increase, it isn’t much of an improvement and sadly lacks the smooth “ProMotion” adaptive refresh rate of Apple’s Pro tablets and smartphones.
Although there’s no Face ID here, it does have a fingerprint unlock located on the power button at the top of the device. It isn’t a big change from previous versions of the tablet-only OS, and most of the new features are fairly irrelevant on the iPad Mini.
There are other productivity features like focus mode (essentially a fancy do not disturb) and additional keyboard shortcuts. Widgets are now directly on your homescreen (instead of in a wonky pull-out menu), and other features like Quick Notes pair perfectly with the Apple Pencil 2. Just swipe up from the bottom left corner of the screen to scribble down a note which is then accessible from all of your Apple devices. Like iOS, iPadOS also now supports app drawers, so you can keep your home screen organized and streamlined.
Yes, the 2021 iPad Mini is compatible with Apple Pencil 2, which charges wirelessly by attaching to the side of the device. The iPad Mini is too small for most productivity tasks, although it can serve as an excellent note-taking device in meetings.
Like the previous iPad Mini, Apple promises 10 hours of battery life, and that was largely the case in our testing. After a few days of heavy use with video conferences and graphically intensive games, it achieved well over seven hours of screen-on time.
Under more typical use cases like web browsing and media consumption, it easily achieved 10 hours or more. As someone who doesn’t use an iPhone, the switch to USB-C charging meant I could finally eliminate Apple’s proprietary Lighting chargers from my life entirely.
Apple isn’t known for being at the forefront when it comes to fast charging, with even its premium iPhone 13 lineup using 30W chargers. I typically read and browse the web for an hour or so before sleeping, and under those conditions, the battery lasted for well over a week. This tablet punches far above its weight limit, and should be capable of handling everything you can throw at it, both today and for years to come.
The iPad Mini never missed a beat when streaming video, playing demanding games, or opening multiple apps in split-screen. It won’t handle truly professional apps as smoothly as the iPad Pro lineup will, but then again, it isn’t really designed to. While this is serviceable for those who primarily stream content, it’s woefully unequipped for downloading media and installing several storage-heavy apps. The 12MP ultra-wide front-facing camera is more than serviceable, and combined with the new Center Stage tech it makes the iPad Mini an excellent device for 1080p HD video chatting on the go. When activated, it will focus the camera on any face it detects to give you a tighter shot. To house the larger sensor, a slight camera bump sticks out from a corner of the device, although it’s not large enough to cause the iPad Mini to rock when sitting on a table. To house the larger sensor, a slight camera bump sticks out from a corner of the device, although it’s not large enough to cause the iPad Mini to rock when sitting on a table. The iPad Mini features capable stereo speakers, one at the top and one at the bottom for loud and clear audio. The smallest in the iPad line has some new power under the hood for 2021 as well as Apple Pencil (2nd Gen) support.
Both devices are excellent tablets (although the M1 processor on the iPad Air offers laptop-level power), and which one you choose will depend more on what size you want than anything else. They’re best paired with accessories like a Magic Keyboard ($279) and Apple Pencil 2 ($119), which will put the total cost at well over twice an iPad Mini. On the Android side of the fence, the Samsung Galaxy Tab A8.4 ($279) is the closest you’ll find to the iPad Mini experience.
The smaller, more rugged Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 3 ($489) might fit the bill, but with aging specs and a chunky design, it doesn’t quite match Apple’s offering.
The larger screen means it’s no longer relegated to niche uses and can serve as a capable media companion. The wider aspect ratio is now much more streaming-friendly, and the small size means it won’t tire your arms during long streaming or reading sessions.
Despite being every bit as powerful as its larger cousins (barring the ultra-premium M1 iPad Pro models), Apple doesn’t even try to upsell you with a magic keyboard to turn the iPad Mini into a mini laptop replacement.
Apple iPad vs. iPad Air vs. iPad mini vs. iPad Pro: Which Tablet Should You Buy?
A few years ago, Apple formally split the iPad’s operating system off from iOS, which powers iPhones, into iPadOS. The tablet-specific operating system is very similar to iOS, but focuses on streamlining and expanding multitasking to improve the usefulness of iPads as workplace devices, with pinnable widgets and cross-app workflow features like split screen and rapidly sliding between screens.
The only significant change to the latest model’s screen is the addition of Apple’s True Tone feature, which adjusts color balance based on surrounding light. The selfie camera is 12MP, with a 122-degree field of view and support for Apple’s Center Stage tracking feature.
It’s nearly double the resolution of the 2020 iPad’s selfie camera, making FaceTime calls much nicer. If you want a versatile entertainment device for watching videos, reading books and comics, browsing the web, communicating with your friends, and even doing light text-crunching and presentations, it’s an excellent choice.
The iPad mini weighs 0.66 pounds and measures less than a quarter of an inch thick, small enough to easily fit in a bag or even a large jacket pocket. It doesn’t have the ProMotion technology of the iPad Pro’s screen, but it features the same P3 Wide Color and True Tone modes, in a fully laminated panel with anti-reflective coating.
The selfie camera is the same as the standard iPad, a 12MP ultra-wide sensor that supports Center Stage in FaceTime to automatically frame your face.
The 2022 iPad Air tilts that balance heavily toward the Pro end, with extensive upgrades that put it within striking distance of the pricey, professional tablet. It’s a huge step up from the A14 Bionic mobile processor in the previous model, and starting at $599, it’s by far the least expensive M1 device available. That distinction is important, because it needs to justify the much higher $799 and $1,099 baseline price tags the Pro models command over the other versions.
It’s still an utter beast that can handle pretty much any processing tasks you can throw its way, and beats out the iPad Air with its smoother ProMotion screen and multiple rear cameras, along with the choice between 11- and 12.9-inch models. The 11-inch iPad Pro has a Liquid Retina display with a 2,388-by-1,668 resolution and Apple’s ProMotion 120Hz refresh rate and True Tone technologies, as well as Wide Color support. The 12.9-inch iPad Pro has all of those technologies and a higher 2,732-by-2,048-pixel resolution (for the same 264 pixels per inch as the smaller model), but adds a mini-LED backlight system that can both get much brighter and more precisely control the light output of the screen for better contrast.
The front-facing TrueDepth camera is also 12MP, with support for Face ID, 1080p60 recording, cinematic video stabilization, and Smart HDR 3.
No matter which model you choose, make sure you learn how to master iPadOS with our top tricks and tips.
Apple iPad Air 5 (2022) vs Apple iPad Mini 6 (2021): Which tablet to buy?
Whether you’re binging your favorite shows, playing games, or attending online classes — these devices provide a relatively large screen, portability, and versatility. Supports Apple Pencil (2nd generation) Liquid Retina display Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi‐Fi or watching video Built-in 19.3-watt-hour rechargeable lithium-polymer battery
Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi‑Fi or watching video Connectivity 4G/5G on Cellular model
The two of them follow Apple’s latest design language and are built from the same materials. The only difference — apart from the size, obviously — is the camera LED on the iPad Mini. They both have edge-to-edge displays with thin bezels on the front, and clean aluminum back builds. It’s worth noting, though, that the iPad Air is available in one additional color — Blue. As such, this round should be insignificant, unless you really want a camera LED or the Blue finish. For many people, the tablet’s display is one of the most important elements to consider when buying a new device. That’s because plenty of them use it for watching series, gaming, attending work meetings, and reading eBooks. Luckily, both iPads have solid edge-to-edge displays that won’t disappoint.
If you’d rather have the higher pixel density and sacrifice the screen real estate, then the Mini is what you’re looking for. Ultimately, their resolutions are 2360-by-1640 and 2266-by-1488 respectively, so you shouldn’t be facing any quality issues. Obviously, the former outperforms the latter — that’s not to mention that the Air has double the RAM included in the Mini model.
So despite the iPad Air packing the M1 SoC, it still doesn’t fully take advantage of its power due to software boundaries. Ultimately, both of these iPads are fluid, but the Air wins this round by far. However, some users still search for tablets with decent cameras for whatever reason.
They indeed share the same front design as the iPad Pro, but unlike the highest-end model, they lack the TrueDepth camera system. If you tend to read, doodle, or work on the go, solid battery life on your tablet will likely be on your priority list.
So, basically, as long as you’re not using them for intensive tasks, they should be lasting you a full day without needing to stop for a charge.
iPadOS is great at power efficiency, and both tablets have large batteries that match their respective sizes. As a result, battery life and charging shouldn’t be points you look into when considering buying either of these two iPads — as they’re almost identical. To summarize, the Air model has a larger screen, is $100 more expensive in the US, packs the Macs’ M1 chip, includes double the RAM, lacks a camera LED, and is available in an extra color.
Which makes more sense to you to buy depends on your personal budget, screen size standards, and performance needs and expectations. We’ve just broken down their specifications objectively to help you make a wiser decision.
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