Apple has unveiled the new iPad mini, and its newsroom announcement calls it the “biggest update ever” for the line. The tablet moves from an 8.3-inch LCD to an 8.5-inch OLED panel, switches to the 2nm A20 Pro chip, adds IP67 water and dust resistance, and gets a thinner, lighter body. Pre-orders open on Wednesday, October 28, with deliveries starting Friday, November 6.
OLED Display, With a 60Hz Catch
The new Super Retina XDR OLED panel grows to 8.5 inches while keeping the same footprint as the previous mini, thanks to 24 percent thinner bezels. Apple says peak brightness reaches up to 1,200 nits, more than double the previous generation, with 600 nits of full-screen brightness for both SDR and HDR content. Pixel-level lighting control brings deeper blacks and a 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio, while minimum brightness drops to 1 nit for use in dark rooms. A new nano-texture option, already familiar from the iPad Pro, reduces glare in bright environments.
The catch is refresh rate. Apple’s spec sheet doesn’t list ProMotion, so the panel appears to stay at 60Hz. Scrolling, animations and games won’t get the smoothness of the ProMotion-equipped iPads.
| Spec | New iPad mini |
| Display | 8.5-inch Super Retina XDR OLED (previous: 8.3-inch LCD) |
| Peak brightness | Up to 1,200 nits |
| Full-screen brightness | 600 nits (SDR and HDR) |
| Contrast ratio | 2,000,000:1 |
| Minimum brightness | 1 nit |
| Nano-texture glass | Optional, 256GB and 512GB models only, $100 extra |
| Thickness | 5.4mm (previous Wi-Fi model: 6.3mm) |
| Weight (Wi-Fi) | 0.56 lb, about 255g (previous: 0.65 lb) |
| Colors | Midnight, Starlight |
A20 Pro, With a Different Configuration by Storage
The A20 Pro is built on a 2nm process and pairs a 7-core GPU with Neural Accelerators in every GPU core. Apple says it delivers up to 60 percent faster multithreaded CPU performance, up to 2.7x faster graphics and up to 4.5x faster AI performance than the previous iPad mini, and more than double the unified memory bandwidth. These figures come from Apple’s own testing in September 2026.
The chip isn’t identical across the lineup. The 512GB model gets an extra CPU core and a second Neural Engine, which Apple says doubles the previous generation’s processing power for on-device AI workloads.
| Storage | CPU | GPU | Neural Engine |
| 128GB | 5-core | 7-core | 16-core |
| 256GB | 5-core | 7-core | 16-core |
| 512GB | 6-core | 7-core | Dual 16-core |
Thinner Body, IP67 and the Acoustic Display
At 5.4mm, this is the thinnest iPad mini yet, and it is the first to carry an IP67 rating. Apple tested it in controlled laboratory conditions at a maximum depth of 1 meter for up to 30 minutes. The company notes that resistance isn’t permanent and can decrease with normal wear, and that liquid damage isn’t covered under warranty.
Sealing the speakers was part of getting there. The new Acoustic Display system drops the speaker holes, using woofers that play through the display and custom tweeters hidden between the glass and aluminum enclosure. Apple says the result is punchier bass, more volume and clearer highs, and the sealed enclosure helps the tablet reach its IP67 rating.
Cameras, Wireless and Software
The 12MP Center Stage front camera now sits on the landscape edge, which suits video calls with the tablet in a keyboard case or stand. The 12MP Wide rear camera supports Smart HDR 4 and 4K video at up to 60fps, and the True Tone flash is now adaptive.
Apple’s N1 chip brings Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and Thread. Cellular models use the C2 modem, which Apple says offers up to 50 percent faster cellular speeds than the previous generation, and they support eSIM.
The iPad mini ships with iPadOS 27 and supports the new Siri AI, which arrives in beta with iPadOS 27.2 in English, French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese and Spanish. It is not available in the EU. Extended display mode for external monitors also comes with iPadOS 27.2. Both Apple Pencil Pro and Apple Pencil (USB-C) are supported.
Price and Availability
| Configuration (US) | Price |
| 128GB Wi-Fi | $699 |
| 128GB Wi-Fi + Cellular | $849 |
| Education pricing, from | $649 |
| Smart Folio (TechWoven) | $79 |
| Apple Pencil Pro | $129 |
| Apple Pencil (USB-C) | $79 |
| Milestone | Date |
| Announcement | October 26, 2026 |
| Pre-orders open | October 28, 2026 (10:10 a.m. PT) |
| Availability | November 6, 2026 |
The new model starts $100 above the previous generation’s $599 base price, an increase of roughly 17 percent. That makes it the second price rise for the iPad mini this year, after Apple lifted the previous model from its original $499 launch price to $599 in June. Storage options are 128GB, 256GB and 512GB, and the color range has narrowed to Midnight and Starlight. The Apple Pencil and Smart Folio are sold separately.
For buyers in Pakistan, Apple doesn’t run an official online store here, so the iPad mini will arrive through resellers and import channels, and local pricing will differ from the US figures. Siri AI supports English but not Urdu.
M Adnan Akram is the founder and lead writer at Phoonomo, covering mobile technology with a primary focus on Samsung and the broader smartphone industry, alongside emerging developments in AI. He follows product launches, spec leaks, and industry trends closely to keep readers informed with timely updates.
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