Apple's Smallest iPad Grows Up: OLED, A20 Pro, and Its First Water Resistance

Apple's Smallest iPad Grows Up: OLED, A20 Pro, and Its First Water Resistance

A bigger OLED fits the same palm-sized body

Apple unveiled a redesigned iPad mini, calling it the biggest update in the mini's history. The headline is an 8.5-inch OLED display, branded Super Retina XDR, replacing the 8.3-inch LCD. Apple kept the same footprint by trimming bezels by 24 percent. The panel supports P3 wide color, with an optional nano-texture finish for glare-heavy rooms.

Twice the brightness, two-million-to-one contrast

Peak brightness reaches 1200 nits, more than twice the prior generation, with 600 nits full-screen brightness for SDR and HDR content. Contrast is rated at 2,000,000:1, and the screen can dim to 1 nit for dark rooms. Resolution is 2316 x 1512, up from 2266 x 1488 at the same sharpness over a larger area. It is still not a 120Hz ProMotion panel.

A20 Pro on 2nm brings 60 percent faster CPU

Inside sits the A20 Pro, built on a 2-nanometer process. Apple claims up to 60 percent faster multithreaded CPU performance, 2.7 times faster graphics, and 4.5 times faster AI performance than the A17 Pro it replaces. Storage dictates the bin: 128GB and 256GB models get a 5-core CPU with a single 16-core Neural Engine, while only the 512GB model gets the full 6-core CPU with a Dual 16-core Neural Engine. Both tiers share a 7-core GPU.

Thinner, lighter, and waterproof for the first time

The tablet is 5.4 mm thick, down from 6.3 mm, and weighs 255 grams in Wi-Fi trim, down from 293 grams. It is Apple's first water-resistant iPad, rated IP67 for dust and water, tested to one metre for 30 minutes under IEC standard 60529. Apple also debuted an Acoustic Display: woofers behind the panel for punchier bass and custom tweeters between the glass and aluminum enclosure for clearer highs.

Self-made radios and cameras round out the package

Wireless moves to Apple's in-house N1 chip with Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread, improving performance on 5GHz networks plus AirDrop and AirPlay reliability. Cellular models get Apple's C2 modem with up to 50 percent faster mobile data speeds. Cameras are 12MP on both ends: a Center Stage front camera on the landscape edge and a 12MP Wide rear camera with Adaptive True Tone flash. Colors shrink from four to two: Midnight and Starlight.

A $100 hike as pre-orders open October 28

Pricing starts at $699 for Wi-Fi and $849 for Wi-Fi plus Cellular, up $100 or about 17 percent from the prior $599 starting price. Configurations run 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB. Pre-orders open October 28, with availability from November 6. Apple announced the tablet days before its Pro and tell event, signaling the mini as an appetizer rather than the main course.