Apple Gives iPad Mini an OLED Screen, A20 Pro Chip and a $699 Price
Apple's new iPad mini adds an 8.5-inch OLED display, an A20 Pro chip and IP67 water resistance, but its starting price climbs to $699.
Apple on Monday unveiled a redesigned iPad mini, the first version of its smallest tablet with an OLED screen, pairing the new display with a faster A20 Pro chip, water and dust resistance and a thinner body. The upgrade comes with a higher price: the Wi-Fi model starts at $699, and the cellular version starts at $849. Pre-orders open Wednesday, Oct. 28, and the tablet reaches customers and stores on Friday, Nov. 6, Apple said in a press release.
The company called it the iPad mini’s “biggest update ever.” The announcement came a few days before an Apple event scheduled for Wednesday, TechCrunch reported.
What’s new
The biggest change is the screen. The new model has an 8.5-inch OLED panel, which Apple calls Super Retina XDR, replacing the 8.3-inch LCD on the previous generation. Apple said the bezels are 24% thinner, so the device’s footprint is about the same. OLED, or organic light-emitting diode, technology lights each pixel on its own, which Apple says produces deeper blacks and higher contrast than a backlit LCD.
According to Apple, the display reaches a peak brightness of 1,200 nits, more than twice the previous model, with a contrast ratio of 2,000,000:1. Buyers of the higher-storage models can choose a glare-reducing nano-texture glass option, which until now was offered only on the iPad Pro, TechCrunch noted. Macworld reported that the screen refreshes at up to 60Hz, while Apple’s iPad Pro supports 120Hz.
Other changes include:
- Design: a 5.4-millimeter body with an IP67 rating for water and dust resistance, in midnight and starlight colors. Macworld put the weight at 255 grams, down from 293 grams.
- Audio: what Apple calls an “Acoustic Display,” with woofers that fire through the screen for more bass and volume.
- Connectivity: Apple’s own N1 wireless chip with Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6, and on cellular models its C2 modem, which Apple says delivers up to 50% faster data speeds.
- Cameras: a 12-megapixel front camera moved to the landscape edge and a 12-megapixel rear camera that records 4K video.
A chip built for AI
The A20 Pro is made on what Apple describes as a 2-nanometer process. Apple claims up to 60% faster multithreaded processor performance, up to 2.7 times faster graphics and up to 4.5 times faster AI performance than the previous generation, which used the A17 Pro chip. Each of the seven graphics cores includes a dedicated neural accelerator.
Not every configuration gets the same chip. Macworld reported that the 128GB and 256GB models use a five-core processor and a single 16-core Neural Engine, while the 512GB model gets a six-core processor and two Neural Engines.
The push on AI hardware ties into Apple’s software plans. The tablet ships with iPadOS 27, and Apple said its revamped assistant, Siri AI, arrives in beta with the iPadOS 27.2 update. The company says the assistant can draw on a user’s personal context, understand what is on screen and answer general questions. Apple noted that Siri AI will not be available in the European Union and that some server-based features carry daily usage limits.
Prices keep climbing
The new model continues a steady rise in the iPad mini’s entry price. The A17 Pro version launched at $499, and its price was raised to $599 in June 2026, according to Macworld. The new model adds another $100 to the starting price. MacRumors also described it as the tablet’s second price increase this year.
Higher storage tiers cost more. Macworld listed the new model at $799 for 256GB and $999 for 512GB in the Wi-Fi version. Apple also sells a new $79 TechWoven Smart Folio cover, and the Apple Pencil Pro costs $129, both sold separately. Education pricing starts at $649.
What comes next
Pre-orders begin Wednesday at 10:10 a.m. Pacific time on Apple’s website and in the Apple Store app, MacRumors reported, in 36 countries and regions including the United States. In a statement, Dave Pakula, Apple’s vice president of hardware engineering, called the new model “a huge leap forward” for people who want the full iPad experience in a device that fits in one hand.
How buyers respond to the higher price will be watched closely. The iPad mini remains Apple’s most compact tablet, and with the latest increase its starting price is now $200 above the previous model’s launch price.
