iPad Mini 8 Launches With OLED Screen, A20 Pro Chip, Higher Price

The iPad mini 8 is now official, bringing Apple's smallest tablet its first OLED display. Announced on October 26 alongside a new iMac and MacBook Pro, the iPad mini 8 moves to a thinner, lighter design built around the new screen technology, closing a gap with the rest of Apple's tablet lineup.

A bigger, brighter OLED display
The iPad mini 8's screen grows slightly to 8.5 inches, up from 8.3 inches on the previous model, and now reaches 1,200 nits of peak brightness, roughly double the old LCD panel, with a 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio. That jump should make the biggest difference in bright rooms and outdoors, where the older display tended to wash out.

Thinner and lighter than before
At 5.4mm thick, down from 6.3mm, the iPad mini 8 is noticeably slimmer and is also slightly lighter and narrower than its predecessor. Apple added under-display speakers it calls an "Acoustic Display," removing the visible speaker grilles that lined the edges of earlier models.

A20 Pro chip and faster connectivity
Inside, the iPad mini 8 runs on Apple's A20 Pro chip with a 7-core GPU, a meaningful jump for a tablet that previously went several years between chip updates. The cellular model adds Apple's C2 modem, and every model gains Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread support through Apple's N1 chip.

Camera and durability changes
The 12MP front camera has moved to the landscape edge of the iPad mini 8, making video calls easier to frame when the tablet is held sideways instead of upright. The device is also IP67-rated for water and dust resistance, a first for the mini line. Face ID is still absent, with Touch ID remaining the way to unlock the tablet.

Storage and pricing
The iPad mini 8 starts at 128GB of storage, and nano-texture glass is available as an option on the 256GB and 512GB versions. Pricing starts at $699, $150 more than the previous generation, putting the OLED upgrade and larger battery behind a noticeably higher entry price.

When you can buy one
Pre-orders for the iPad mini 8 opened on October 28, with general availability starting November 6, the same week as Apple's other new hardware from this event.

Protect your iPad mini 8 with a Komodoty case
A smaller tablet with a brighter new OLED screen is still worth protecting. Komodoty makes iPad cases in slim wood with a Kevlar core, aramid fiber, and Alcantara, with precise cutouts and support for wireless charging on compatible models. Browse the fitted options in the Komodoty iPad case collection.