Apple's New iPad Mini Gets OLED Display and a $699 Price Hike

The iPad mini has a new look and a new price. Apple's latest iPad mini swaps its LCD screen for OLED, adds the A20 Pro chip, and picks up IP67 water resistance for the first time — but the redesign comes with a $699 starting price, the second increase for the tablet this year. It is the first major update to the small tablet since its 2024 relaunch, and the changes touch nearly every part of the device, from the screen and chip to the way it handles sound and connects to Wi-Fi.

A brighter, thinner screen
The iPad mini keeps its 8.5-inch size but moves to OLED, with up to 600 nits for standard content and 1,200 nits for HDR content — more than double the peak brightness of the outgoing model. The new body is about 15% thinner and lighter, at 5.4mm and 0.56 lb for the Wi-Fi version, down from 6.3mm and 0.65 lb on the previous generation. Buyers who want a glare-reducing nano-texture finish on the display can add it as a $100 option, though it is limited to the 256GB and 512GB configurations.

A faster chip and no speaker holes
Inside is the A20 Pro, built on a 2nm process, which Apple says is up to 60% faster than the A17 Pro on the CPU and up to 2.7 times faster on graphics. The tablet also drops visible speaker holes in favor of an "Acoustic Display" system that plays sound through the screen itself.

IP67 rating and faster wireless
This is the first iPad mini rated IP67 for water and dust resistance. It also picks up Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 through a new N1 chip, while cellular models get a C2 chip that Apple says delivers up to 50% faster data speeds than before.

Storage, color, and camera
The iPad mini ships in 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB options, in Midnight and Starlight. The rear camera stays at 12MP with an adaptive True Tone flash, and the 12MP front camera moves into a landscape-friendly position for video calls, which makes it easier to stay centered in frame during FaceTime calls held in landscape orientation. The Touch ID button, USB-C port, and dual microphones all carry over from the previous model.

Charging and software
Apple says fast charging can take the iPad mini from empty to about 50% in roughly 30 minutes with a 35W or higher adapter, and the U.S. box still includes a 20W USB-C power adapter and cable. On the software side, iPadOS 27.2 adds an extended display mode, letting the iPad mini drive content on an external monitor rather than just mirroring its own screen.

Price and release date
Pricing for the iPad mini starts at $699, up from $599 after a mid-year increase and $499 at the tablet's original 2024 launch. Pre-orders open Wednesday, October 28, with the iPad mini arriving in Apple Stores on Friday, November 6.

Protect the new iPad mini with a Komodoty case
A thinner iPad mini with a bigger price tag is worth protecting from day one. Komodoty makes slim cases for the iPad mini in materials like wood with a Kevlar core, aramid fiber, and Alcantara, with precise cutouts for the camera and buttons. Browse the fitted options in the Komodoty iPad cases collection.