2026 iPad Mini reviewed: OLED, IP67 and A20 Pro, but a $699 starting price

Left · 2Apple's 2026 iPad Mini has an 8.5-inch OLED display in place of the previous 8.3-inch LCD, and the Verge and Wired both reviewed it positively. 1 2 Left · 2Both reviewers say the display lacks the 120Hz refresh rate found on other recent Apple devices. The Verge's David Pierce calls the omission of ProMotion an odd choice and says he notices the difference with the Apple Pencil, scrolling and games. Wired's Luke Larsen notes the missing 120Hz and says the screen is less bright than the iPad Pro's, at 600 nits in SDR and 1,200 nits in HDR. 1 2 Left · 2The Mini is the first iPad with an IP67 rating. Wired describes this as handling submersion for 30 minutes in about three feet of water. To achieve the rating Apple removed the speaker holes and introduced what it calls an Acoustic Display, which fires sound from the front panel. 2 1

Left · 2The Mini uses Apple's A20 Pro chip. The Verge measures it at about 50 percent faster than the 2024 Mini for standard computing and about three times as fast for graphics. Wired says the iPad Mini plays games such as Fortnite and Assassin's Creed Mirage smoothly at 60 frames per second, with textures and effects turned down. 1 2 Left · 2Wired reports that all models have 12GB of memory, four more than the previous Mini. It also says only the 512GB model gets the full six-core CPU and dual Neural Engines. The Verge's review unit had one more CPU core than the cheaper models. 2 1 Left · 2The front camera has moved to the landscape side of the device. Both reviewers note that the Mini still has Touch ID and no Face ID. 1 2

Left · 2Both reviewers have reservations about the price. The Verge says the cheapest version, with Wi-Fi, 128GB and a regular OLED display, starts at $699, the highest starting price ever for a Mini. It says the 512GB cellular unit with nano-texture it tested costs $1,249, and that it cannot in good conscience tell readers to buy it. Wired says the previous Mini cost $499 at launch and that $699 is harder to justify. It puts the most powerful model with nano-texture at $1,099. 1 2 Left · 2The reviewers differ on nano-texture, the matte display option that costs $100 more. Wired calls it totally worth the extra cost. The Verge praises its glare reduction but says it dulls the screen slightly and advises readers not to spend the money. 2 1 Left · 2Their verdicts on the target buyer also differ. The Verge says people who already love the Mini and can afford it get the best Mini in years, and that others should look at other iPads. It sees the ideal user as someone using it in the field. Wired says it loves the tablet but asks who it is for among the other iPads. 1 2