After three years of waiting, the iPad mini 7 finally arrived, and I was more impressed than I expected.
Last week, Apple quietly announced a long-awaited refresh of the iPad mini 6, which will be released in October 2021. Now that our lab testing team has tested it, you can see how the iPad mini 7 compares to the Air and base models of the iPad.
Three years is a long time in the world of technology, and the new mini has had some significant upgrades, but even considering that, I was surprised at how well it performed. Our sister site tom’s guide I’m not alone in my praise for the new mini, as I’ve given the iPad mini 7 a glowing 4.5 out of 5 stars.
If you’re considering trading in your old iPad or buying a new one, you should take a look at these test results to see how the iPad mini 7 stacks up against its rivals. there is.
Overall performance of iPad Mini 7
iPad mini 7 features an A17 Pro CPU, a 6-core integrated GPU, an 8.3-inch Liquid Retina display with P3 wide color support, a 12MP rear camera with 4K video, and a 12MP portrait mode front camera.
This is the first Apple device to feature an A17 chip since the iPhone 16 lineup skipped a generation and went straight to the A18 chip. So now it’s time to take a look at how the A17 generation compares to the M-series chips, specifically the M2 chip in the iPad Air 6.
Surprisingly, the iPad mini 7 beats the iPad Air 6 by 283 points in the Geekbench 6 single-core test. Although the Air takes the lead in multi-core and Crossmark tests, it’s still impressive that the A17 Pro chip comes so close to the M2 chip’s performance.
| tablet | processor | Geekbench 6 single core | Geekbench 6 multicore | cross mark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| iPad mini 7 | A17 pro | 2,883 | 7,213 | 1,354 |
| iPad Air6 | M2 | 2,600 | 10,066 | 1,441 |
| iPad10 | A14 Bionic | Not applicable | Not applicable | 1,042 |
The iPad mini 7 and iPad Air 6 had similar scores, but the base iPad lagged behind in Crossmark tests. (Single-core or multi-core scores cannot be directly compared as they are several years old at this point and tested on an older version of Geekbench.)
Since the iPad Mini was finally updated, the base iPad is several generations behind, has an older A14 Bionic chip, and, as you might expect, has significantly lower overall performance scores. We hope Apple’s next update cycle brings a refresh to the base iPad.
iPad mini 7 graphics and games
Powered by the A17 Pro chip, the iPad mini is well-suited for gaming, especially as cloud gaming becomes more popular. Although the display is larger than a cell phone, it’s not as bulky as a MacBook or even a full-sized iPad, making the mini ideal for mobile entertainment. What’s more, the iPad Mini 7 is small enough that you can put it in a handheld controller like the Razer Kiyo Ultra and carry it around like a handheld game console.
Apple claims you can run AAA games on the iPad mini 7, but only a few games are available natively on iPadOS at this time. However, cloud gaming platforms like Xbox Cloud Gaming and Nvidia GeForce Now can run on any mobile device through a browser, greatly increasing the number of desktop-level games you can play on your iPad.
More mainstream titles are also being ported to iPadOS these days. For example, Netflix Games has brought hits such as: hades, death’s doorand oxen free On your iPad. Similarly, Apple Arcade includes the following ports: disney dreamlight valley along with an enhanced mobile version of dead cells and stardew valley.
| tablet | 3DMark Wildlife Original Score | 3DMark Wild Life original frame rate |
|---|---|---|
| iPad mini 7 | max | 59.9fps |
| iPad Air6 | max | 60fps |
| iPad10 | max | 46fps |
I love playing games on my iPad, so I was excited to see how the new iPad mini 7 would perform in this category. It did not disappoint, but I was surprised by the high scores. The iPad mini 7 not only achieved the highest score in the 3DMark Wild Life benchmark test, but also achieved an average of 59.9 frames per second. This is about the same as the iPad Air 6’s average of 60 fps.
Given that the iPad Air 6 is powered by an M-series chip, we expected it to have a noticeable advantage over the mini 7 in gaming, but it appears the two have virtually identical performance.
If you’re looking for a tablet for gaming and entertainment, the iPad Air 6 or iPad mini 7 are your best options, as the base iPad lags significantly at an average of just 46 fps.
Should I upgrade to iPad mini 7?
If you own a 6th generation iPad mini, the 7th generation model is definitely worth the upgrade. Long refresh wait times represent significant advances in chip technology. iPad mini 7 benchmark results show the A17 Pro chip performs on par with the iPad Air 6’s M2 chip, so expect great overall and gaming performance despite the smaller form factor can.
If you have a basic iPad 10 or an older iPad Air, it might be worth upgrading to the iPad mini 7, especially if you’re an avid mobile gamer. The iPad mini 7 and iPad Air 6 are significantly more powerful than the iPad 10, but the 10th generation is still a powerful and affordable tablet.
The main differences between iPad mini 7 and iPad Air 6 are accessories and screen size. If you want to use a tablet as a laptop replacement with Magic Keyboard, you should choose Air. On the other hand, if you primarily need a tablet for travel or entertainment, the new and improved mini is a great choice. The new mini and Air are compatible with Apple Pencil Pro for artists and note-takers.
And even though the mini costs $100 less than the Air, it includes the same amount of base storage, making it a good choice for anyone between the $600 Air and the $350 base iPad. Please also pay attention to
