Now that the buzz surrounding Apple’s sudden announcement of the iPad mini 7 has settled down, potential buyers are poring over the tablet’s specs, and the results aren’t all positive.
Yes, the iPad mini 7 is a healthy upgrade to Apple’s 8.3-inch tablet. Considering it’s been three long years since the last version, that’s something to celebrate.
But in some small ways, the mini 7 is also a rather lackluster update, as Apple is still working on a smaller tablet that can sit at the same table as its two larger models, the iPad Air 13-inch (2024). It shows that. ) and iPad Pro 13-inch (2024).
So what is it about the iPad mini 7 that’s a little underpowered? And should we care about those features at all? Based on what we wanted to know when rumors started circulating earlier this year. The main issues are listed below.
1. Downgraded A17 Pro chip
iPad mini 7 is more powerful than iPad mini (2021) thanks to the A17 Pro chip. This spec improvement means Apple’s minitablets can now support Apple Intelligence. In fact, it’s now the cheapest way to get Apple’s AI-powered features.
But as Wccftech discovered, that A17 Pro chip isn’t actually the same one that powered the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max last year. As the iPad mini 7’s official specs page shows, its chip has a 5-core GPU instead of the 6-core chip in last year’s flagship smartphone.
This isn’t the first time this has happened. When the M2 iPad Air was launched earlier this year, Apple later revealed that the tablet had a 9-core GPU instead of the 10-core GPU originally advertised.
Whatever the reason behind these chipset adjustments, most of us are unlikely to notice any difference in performance. The bigger issue for many is that the iPad mini 7 doesn’t have the latest A18 or A18 Pro chips to make it more future-proof. It would also lead to a rise in prices.
Previous leaks suggested that the iPad mini 7 would feature a 120Hz refresh rate screen, but many were surprised to learn that Apple’s new tablet still features a 60Hz display. People were a little disappointed.
This specification reveals how many times the screen is updated per second. The higher the refresh rate, the smoother the scrolling experience. Unsurprisingly, Apple has given its 120Hz display technology a fancy name: ProMotion.
However, the base iPhone 16 and iPad Air M2 (2024) also both have 60Hz screens, so the iPad mini 7’s lack of it isn’t necessarily a big deal. The bigger question may be whether Apple has fixed the “jelly scrolling” issue some iPad minis (2021) found when scrolling vertically.
At the time, Apple said this issue was normal behavior for LCD screens, so we’re looking forward to testing the new iPad mini 7 to see if there are still traces of it.
3. Touch ID instead of Face ID
Touch ID may be being phased out on the iPhone, but the iPad mini 7 continues to use the technology for security features like Apple Pay and logging into apps. That’s because the new Mini has the same design as its predecessor, apart from some new colors.
Many are expecting the mini 7 to come with a Face ID upgrade, similar to the latest iPad Pro models, which may be seen as a bit of a retro move. However, some iPad users have found that Face ID doesn’t work as well on Apple’s tablets as it does on the iPhone, and the continued reliance on the fingerprint scanner may even be considered a bonus for some. It may happen.
4. No physical nano-SIM slot
If you need cellular connectivity for your iPad, you may want to know that the iPad mini 7, like this year’s iPad Air and iPad Pro, doesn’t have a physical SIM card slot. Yes, it’s always been an eSIM.
is that bad? For most people it’s not. Setting up an eSIM and transferring it to other devices is not a complicated process and is probably faster than a physical SIM.
But if you want to move your SIM between devices regularly, having just that one option can be problematic. This may require contacting your network carrier. And as everyone knows, the process is never that simple.
5. Charger not included (within EU)
The final problem with the iPad mini 7 that MacRumors pointed out is that Apple’s new tablets don’t ship with chargers in European countries, including the UK.
This isn’t a big surprise. The latest iPad Pro and Air models have also ditched bundled chargers in the region, as Apple is likely looking ahead to new EU regulations on e-waste due in 2026.
A small plus is that the USB-C charging cable that comes with the tablet is braided, which increases durability and protects the tablet from cat-related accidents. If you live in the US or Australia, you can expect it to come with a regular 20W USB-C charging brick.
iPad mini 7 – early thoughts
Most iPad mini 7 buyers won’t consider these details a big deal. It would have been nice to have an A18 chip and ProMotion display, but that would have pushed the price up beyond the tablet’s relatively affordable starting price of $499 / £499 / AU$799 (for 128GB of storage). It will be.
So while Apple hasn’t gone all-in on developing a premium mini-tablet, it’s probably done well enough for most fans of the tablet form factor. That means it has a chip that supports Apple Intelligence, doubles the RAM and base, and future-proofs it. Storage, and added support for Apple Pencil Pro.
Other small quality-of-life upgrades, like a faster USB-C port and Wi-Fi 6E, make the iPad mini 7 the perfect travel companion for creators who love digital sketching and editing. It’s as good as it gets. photograph. We will share the full verdict as soon as we complete our investigation.
