APPLE UNVEILS OLED IPAD MINI WITH A20 PRO CHIP

Apple announced its 2026 iPad mini on Monday, adding an 8.5-inch OLED display and an A20 Pro chip. Apple said the tablet starts at $699 for the Wi-Fi model and $849 for the Wi-Fi and cellular model. The company unveiled it ahead of its “Pro and Tell” event scheduled for Wednesday. The new model measures 5.4mm thick and comes in two colours. Apple says it is thinner and lighter than its predecessor.

The screen replaces an 8.3-inch display and has bezels 24% thinner than those on the previous model. Apple says the OLED panel reaches 1,200 nits at peak brightness and 600 nits across the full screen for SDR and HDR content. The company quotes a contrast ratio of 2,000,000:1 and offers an optional nano-texture finish to reduce glare. The iPad mini also introduces an Acoustic Display with integrated woofers that Apple says deliver “punchier” bass and greater volume. Apple rates the sealed enclosure IP67 for resistance to water and dust.

Apple says the A20 Pro’s six-core CPU delivers up to 60% faster multithreaded performance than the previous model. It claims the seven-core GPU offers up to 4.5 times faster AI performance, while new Apple Intelligence and Siri features can use personal context and information on screen. An N1 chip supports Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and Thread; Apple says the C2 modem in cellular models provides 50% faster data speeds than the previous modem. The tablet has a landscape-oriented 12-megapixel Centre Stage front camera and a rear 12-megapixel camera that records 4K video at 60 frames per second. Customers can pre-order it from 28 October, with availability beginning on 6 November.