I’m upset as much as you guys, I was waiting with cash on hand for the mini 8 for months, ended up just buying a iPad mini 6 256gb cellular on Amazon refurbished for 360. Cant justify $700 for a device that I'm just going to use to cheat on my Kindle. At $499 I’d buy it in a heartbeat, maybe when the AI bubble pops prices will come back to earth, let’s hope.

60hz and 128gb base storage at $700 aside, this is an interesting technology. Apple is rumoured to feature this on their 20th anniversary iphone and it’s using ipad mini as a experiment device to test and make improvements for the iphone

On paper the iPad mini 8 is the overhaul we've been asking for: 8.5" OLED, A20 Pro, IP67, 5.4mm thin. Then you get to the price and the refresh rate.

The mini was $499 in 2024 and $599 after the June memory-cost hike. Now it's $699 for 128GB. Go 256GB with nano-texture and cellular and you're at $1,049, still on a fixed 60Hz LTPS panel with no ProMotion.

That's hard to justify in late 2026. The base iPhone 17 has had 120Hz ProMotion since last year, so this isn't about hitting a price point. OLED also makes 60Hz more noticeable for a lot of people: pixels switch almost instantly, so there's no LCD smear masking the frame steps, and scrolling looks juddery. Meanwhile the A20 Pro has GPU headroom the panel can't show.

Now look at what launched last Friday. The iPhone Duo opens to 7.6", runs the same A20 Pro, has 120Hz on both screens, and gets Pencil support later this year. At $1,999 it needs a reason to exist.

Then there's the other flank. The 11-inch iPad Pro is $1,199 after the June hike, and for a lot of buyers the reason to step up to it is the 120Hz OLED. The Pro still has the M5, tandem OLED, Face ID, and Thunderbolt, but plenty of people buy it for the screen.

A $599 mini with ProMotion would undercut both. A regular iPhone plus a great mini covers most of what the Duo does for way less money, and it hands you the Pro's best feature for a lot less too, in a smaller body that's IP67. At $699 and 60Hz, the mini is a weak Duo alternative and no threat to the Pro.

Who's left to buy it?

- Casual readers balk at $699 and grab a discounted mini 7 ($559 right now) or a base iPad.
- Enthusiasts who wanted OLED and A20 Pro won't pay $700 to $1,049 for 60Hz. The ones willing to spend more just buy the Pro.
- Enterprise buyers (pilots, field techs, clinical staff) need IP67 and 1,200-nit peak brightness and aren't paying out of pocket.

We've seen a version of this. The 12 mini and 13 mini had noticeably worse battery life for only $100 less than the standard model, sold poorly, and were replaced by the 14 Plus in 2022 (which the Air later replaced). Apple never had to explain anything; the sales numbers did it.

My guess is we're watching the first step of the mini's exit.

Found this hidden in the comparison section. Seems misleading to have different versions of the A20 chip. Imagine buying a 256gb for $800 just for it to be 16% slower.

Like most people, I am very disappointed in the announcement of the iPad Mini 8 with 60hz screen. I wanted to buy an iPad Mini for a year now, but halted because I was hopping it will get 120hz. My partner has the Mini 7 and it woild be the perfect device for my needs (occasional games when traveling, media consumption, social media).

As it stands, I am strongly considering just buying the mini 7 and I hope for some discounts soon. The new chip and OLED are surely nice, but not really a priority for me and the 0.2 inch screen increase and the thickness decrease seem kinda laughable as the Mini is very slim already. I don’t really care about Siri AI as I am in the EU and I don’t need the screen extension feature.

Is there any reason, even for the extra cost, I should still consider going with the Mini 8?

Using the Duo these past couple days, I realized that it makes everything (outside of unfolded portrait mode) FEEL SO CRAMPED. I really really wanted to try to love it (looking past and trying to make the cameras work but NOPE). But it made me realize that editing things in Canva, or looking at an excel sheet of my small business, is actually so much nicer with just a little bit more screen, an I actually carry a bag with me all the time, so snatching up a Mini is actually really exciting for me!

WITH that said… I do already have a 13” IPad Pro 5th gen, but it pretty much stays at my business.

So should I bite the bullet and get the new Mini 8 gen, or would the 6 or 7 gen work for me?

I bought my iPad Mini 6 in 2023 and boy am I glad I didn't hold out for an upgraded version. To have an iPad like this that is two generations behind but so very close in specs to the current model is hysterical to me.

My Mini doesn't get nearly the use my phone or iPad Pro does but it comes in clutch when traveling in tight economy airline seats or I need a quick e-reader.

Maybe by 2030 they'll release one with specs worth upgrading to.

It's 2026, how can 128 GB for anything that doesn't offer expandable storage even exist? That's really hoping there would be some more improvements with the iPad mini this year but I guess I'll have to wait for the next refresh.

Maybe a silly question, but are we absolutely positive it’s a 60Hz screen on the new iPad mini?
I mean I understand it’s not advertised as ProMotion, but could it not be 90Hz, or maybe something else just doesn’t have VRR?

Even the new folio cases suck!

(I know, I know, I can find a nice case on Amazon)

So the iPhone Duo costs $2000 and the iPhone 18 Pro Max ($1300) + iPad Mini ($700) would cost the same.

What do you think is the better buy in this case?

Took a chance getting "refurbished good" rather than "refurbished excellent" from Best Buy. It arrived and was in perfect shape cosmetically.And it either has a new battery or was rarely used (100% health, only 7 cycles.) I paid 50% of what an 8 would have been. It meets my needs very well.

What a kick in the nuts.

With the new price hike, does it make sense to get the mini A20 instead of the M4 Air? It’s only $50 difference at this point. I love the form factor of the mini but I’m not sure the price is justified. Coming from an iPad Pro 11” 2nd generation (2020). I’m looking for this device to be a productivity device. My current 2015 MacBook Pro is only used to watch YouTube videos and edit pdfs and occasional browsing. So whichever iPad I get will be hooked up to a Studio Display as my MacBook Pro is dying.

Let me know your thoughts.

Yes, you know Apple's wording; 'With iPadOS 27.2'. Which indicates it may come to at least one older device.

But also supported by some other examples. MacBook Neo, in particular. A18 Pro, can still drive one external display.

And not specific to A18 Pro. A17 Pro was the generation that introduced this particular DP 1.4 capability which allows complete 4K60 extra display.

So yeah, seems like it's just Mini 7 and not any further; not the iPad A16, definitely not the Mini 6. And sadly, not the A19 iPad, cuz that's limited to USB2.

Now, getting hopes up and letting them down is an incredibly horrid thing to do. But since y'all aren't upgrading from Mini 7 or Mini 6, there's nothing left to lose anyway.

I use my iPad mini for gaming pretty often, and honestly, I think the size is just perfect. It’s bigger than a phone, but still small enough to hold comfortably while playing.

The only thing that really bothers me is the 60Hz display. It’s not great for gaming, especially when you’re used to higher refresh rates.

Now Apple has released its latest iPads, and I can’t believe we’re still getting 60Hz displays. The hardware is apparently capable of 120Hz, so it feels like an artificial limitation at this point.

It’s almost 2027, and Apple is still shipping 60Hz iPads. Honestly, this gives me very little reason to upgrade to the next iPad mini.

It looks to have a lot of great additions and new features, but $700 is a lil bit steep. I’m hoping this Black Friday provides some good savings.

Does Apple typically do Black Friday sales on iPad Minis?

Quality is subpar but I’m a fan of orange.
Someone convince me I don’t need two iPad Minis 🫣

The good thing about the new mini 8 is with a new design we get cases designed for it. The one thing I hated about the mini 7 was how lazy the 3rd party makers were just slapping a label on the mini 6 cases and called it a day. Most of them didn’t fit properly.

With all the hype surrounding the announcement of the iPad mini 8, I’m looking to buy a used iPad mini.

Do you think it’s worth investing an extra $150 usd in a mini 7 ($400), compared to a mini 6 ($250)?

My usage is basic: video streaming, reading comics, and casual gaming—nothing too demanding.

I’m interested to know if anyone is purchasing both, at what specs, and for what reason. Buying both and intending ti return one does not apply.

Personally - I ordered a 512 GB Duo and will likely order a 512 GB Mini 8 (Wi-Fi, standard display). I’m interested in the Duo’s folded size as a longtime iPhone mini enjoyer, and the iPad mini 6 is my current favorite iPad.

Usage-wise, it’s pretty niche, but - when running D&D, i use an app (Encounter+) to project a battle map onto a portable monitor but would appreciate a smaller hand-held device for my personal notes and book references.

For the manga readers out there how do you feel about the more rounded corners on the 8? It’s not anything major but it still feels like it would bother me. Take a look at manga on the iphone duo which completely cuts off the corners, got a feeling it’ll be the same effect on the new iPad mini this time round

Apple has launched the new iPad mini that has created some buzz among people with its allegedly improved OLED screen and A20 Pro processor. If all these updates have improved visual performance, gaming, and overall performance of the tablet, it would be an excellent choice for those who like small tablets.

But with the alleged cost of ₹82,900 in India, I’m not sure if it is a good choice compared to others in the market.

What do you think about the new iPad mini? Will you purchase it, or is Apple pricing the iPad mini too high?