iPad mini 7 review

Trade in iPad mini 7

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The iPad mini 7 (starting at $499) may not be a groundbreaking leap from the impressive iPad mini 6, yet its internal upgrades make it an even better tablet.

With Apple’s new A17 Pro chip, web browsing, video streaming, and gaming now feel smoother than ever. Fresh additions like Calculator, Math Notes, and Smart Script further enhance its versatility. Storage has also doubled, starting at 128GB instead of the previous 64GB.

Though the newest iPad Air and iPad Pro models offer larger screens and faster speeds, the iPad mini 7 delivers similar experiences in a compact size. Like its predecessor, the latest iPad mini is perfect for on-the-go use or for easily moving around the house. While the display hasn’t changed, the 8.3-inch screen still offers a vibrant viewing experience, with everything appearing in sharp detail.

The A17 Pro chip—the same as in the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max—also makes editing photos and videos easier on this device. Games like Resident Evil 4 play well too, without notable graphical or performance issues. For dedicated gaming, a Steam Deck OLED might be preferable, but the iPad mini 7 still handles larger games enjoyably.

Although it’s not ideally suited for daily work and Apple Intelligence features are still in development, the iPad mini 7 remains a top choice among iPads and tablets for users seeking a compact device with powerful performance. More details are available in my complete review.

IPAD MINI 7 REVIEW: CHEAT SHEET

• What is it? The iPad mini 7 is Apple’s smallest tablet, updated with an A17 Pro chip and packing a host of new iPadOS 18 features.
• Who is it for? It’s for folks who want the iPad experience but in a smaller size.
• What does it cost? The iPad mini 7 starts at $499 on Apple’s website. This model features an A17 Pro chip, 128GB of storage space, and comes in Blue, Purple, Space Gray and Starlight colors. The tablet can cost up to $949 if you upgrade to 512GB and get Wi-Fi + Cellular. Optional accessories include the Apple Pencil Pro ($129), Apple Pencil USB-C ($79) and Smart Folio cover ($59)
• What do we like? We like its portability, fast performance, generous storage space and sharp display.
• What don’t we like? The front camera’s portrait-oriented position and the lack of Apple Pencil 2 support.

IPAD MINI 7 REVIEW: SPECS

IPAD MINI 7 REVIEW: THE UPS

The iPad mini 7 provides the fantastic iPad experience in a more compact design. Beyond its portable size, it boasts strong performance, a vibrant display, ample storage, extended battery life, and handy iPadOS 18 features.

Portable design

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Measuring 7.69 x 5.3 x 0.25 inches and weighing just 0.6 pounds, the iPad mini 7 is the definition of portability. Its size and lightness make it easy to forget it’s even in your backpack. Moving it around the house while streaming videos or gaming is a breeze, too. I’m pleased that Apple kept the design from the previous model—it’s essentially a compact version of the iPad Air, which is ideal.

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As with its predecessor, the iPad mini 7 includes four speakers, volume controls, a single USB-C port, and a power button with a Touch ID sensor. The 12MP Wide rear camera and 12MP Ultra Wide front camera remain in their prior locations, which is a bit disappointing for the front camera, as it’s not positioned for landscape mode like the front cameras on the iPad Air and iPad Pro.

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The build quality remains unchanged from the previous model. Despite its compact, lightweight form, the tablet’s durable aluminum frame feels solid and shows no signs of bending or flexing. It’s comfortable to hold, too. Our review unit came in Blue, though the iPad mini 7 is also available in Purple, Starlight, and Space Gray—all of which are visually appealing.

Vivid display

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The iPad mini 7’s 8.3-inch (2,266 x 1,488) Liquid Retina display is impressive in its own right. Although it retains the same screen and resolution as the previous model, this isn’t a drawback, as the image quality remains outstanding. For instance, while watching a nature video on YouTube, the chameleon’s vibrant scales appeared crisp and detailed. This tablet is ideal for enjoying any kind of video content.

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The previous iPad mini was my top choice for reading manga, and the iPad mini 7 is just as impressive. The contrast between the white pages and dark inks reveals every detail in the pencil work of manga like *Dragon Ball*. Naturally, the iPad mini 7 also excels at displaying color comics, such as Titan’s recent *Conan the Barbarian* series.

The iPad mini 7’s display performed as expected in our lab tests. Although the previous model scored slightly higher in brightness, the difference in nit count isn’t noticeable. It offers solid color reproduction (sRGB and DCI-P3) and strong color accuracy (Delta-E), with natural, realistic hues that avoid oversaturation.

While it’s not a major drawback, those accustomed to the iPad Air and iPad Pro’s smooth 120Hz refresh rate might find the iPad mini 7’s 60Hz display a bit less fluid when scrolling through apps. However, the 60Hz refresh rate is still excellent for watching videos and playing games.

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Finally, I didn’t encounter the well-known “jelly scrolling” screen-tearing issue that affected the iPad mini 6 during my testing. I can’t confirm whether Apple addressed this problem or if I just didn’t notice it. If anything changes, I’ll be sure to update this review.

Fast performance

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The iPad mini 7 features an A17 Pro chip, equipped with a 6-core CPU, a 5-core GPU, and a 16-core Neural Engine. Similar to its performance in the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, this piece of Apple silicon provides the compact tablet with impressive power. Even with a dozen Chrome tabs open and a YouTube video playing, the iPad mini 7 remained smooth and responsive, never showing signs of lag or stuttering.

How did the new iPad mini perform in our benchmarks? In Geekbench 6, which evaluates overall CPU performance, Apple’s tablet outperforms its A15 Bionic predecessor in both single-core and multi-core tests. Although the 12.1-inch OnePlus Pad 2 ($549) isn’t a direct competitor, it also fails to match the exceptional performance of the iPad mini 7.

In our video transcoding test using Adobe Premiere Rush, the iPad mini 7 completed the task in 21 seconds—10 seconds quicker than the iPad mini 6 and nearly 40 seconds faster than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3-equipped OnePlus Pad 2.

Finally, let’s look at gaming performance. When connected to a power source, the iPad mini 7 runs *Resident Evil 4* at a fairly stable 30 frames per second. However, the game may experience some stuttering when played without a power connection. Nonetheless, it’s impressive that such a graphically intensive game can run and look this good on the iPad mini 7.

Long battery life

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Another feature that remains consistent from the iPad mini 6 to the iPad mini 7 is its exceptional battery life.

In our battery test, which involved continuous web surfing over Wi-Fi at a display brightness of 150 nits, the iPad mini 7 lasted for 10 hours and 34 minutes. While this is roughly 20 minutes less than the previous model, it still offers remarkable battery life that should easily get you through a significant part of the day.

Generous storage size

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The entry-level iPad mini 6 came with a paltry 64GB of storage, which was a source of frustration for many users. Fortunately, that concern has been addressed.

The new iPad mini 7 starts with 128GB of storage. Even with the operating system taking up some space, you still have significantly more than what was available on the iPad mini 6. Plus, if you require additional capacity, you can opt for up to 512GB. So even with the base model, storage is no longer a worry as it was before.

Rich sound quality

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Despite its compact size, the iPad mini 7 delivers impressive sound from its stereo speakers. I played Dream Theater’s new track “Night Terror” and was struck by the clarity of the guitar riffs and drum fills. While the bass could have been more pronounced, the overall audio quality was excellent on the tablet.

Podcasts, such as *Triple K.O.*, also sound fantastic, with each panelist coming through clearly. Whether you’re listening to music, watching movies, or tuning into podcasts, the iPad mini 7’s speaker quality will not disappoint.

Useful iPadOS 18 features

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The iPad mini 7 comes pre-installed with iPadOS 18, allowing you to enjoy some of the useful features available on the latest iPad Air and iPad Pro models.

Apple’s Calculator app on the iPad is more than just a larger version of the one found on the best iPhones and MacBooks; its new Math Notes feature enhances its functionality on the tablet. You can type or write math problems directly in the app, and it will instantly solve them in your handwriting. Additionally, you can assign values to variables while learning new concepts, insert graphs, create budgets, and more.

Another impressive feature of iPadOS 18 is Smart Script, which improves the legibility of your handwriting in real-time while preserving your unique writing style—just a tidier version. If you need to add more text, simply start writing, and Smart Script will automatically adjust your existing paragraph to accommodate the new content.

Both Math Notes and Smart Script leverage the capabilities of the Apple Pencil Pro. If you’re a math student or enjoy writing on tablets, these features are incredibly beneficial to have at your fingertips.

IPAD MINI 7: THE DOWNS

The iPad mini 7 is a solid upgrade over the iPad mini 6, but it does have a few notable shortcomings that stand out.

No landscape-positioned front camera

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Beginning with the iPad 10th Gen, Apple has gradually transitioned the front camera of their tablets from a portrait to a landscape orientation, a change that makes sense given that most users hold tablets in landscape mode. Unfortunately, the iPad mini 7 hasn’t adopted this improvement.

Similar to its predecessor, the 12MP front camera is positioned on the left side when the tablet is held in landscape mode. As a result, it can be challenging to center yourself during video calls or when taking selfies.

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While it might be asking for too much given that this tablet’s chassis remains unchanged, a repositioned front camera would have been a welcome improvement. That said, both cameras provide solid picture quality, just as they did on the previous mini.

No Apple Pencil 2 support

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The iPad mini 7 is compatible with both the Apple Pencil Pro ($129) and the Apple Pencil USB-C ($79), but it does not support the Apple Pencil 2.

This is disappointing, especially since the iPad mini 6 was compatible with that stylus. If you currently own an Apple Pencil 2, you will need to purchase one of the newer models.

It’s worth noting that the hover feature, which indicates where the stylus tip will land before you touch the screen, works with both the Apple Pencil Pro and Apple Pencil USB-C. However, the Apple Pencil USB-C lacks barrel roll or squeeze functionality, which are additional features supported by the iPad mini 7 but exclusive to the Pencil Pro.

IPAD MINI 7 REVIEW: IPADOS 18.1 PREVIEW

The iPad mini 7 comes pre-installed with iPadOS 18, but iPadOS 18.1 will be available soon, and this update is important as it will introduce several new Apple Intelligence features.

While this review focuses on the iPad mini 7 with iPadOS 18, I’d like to provide a sneak peek of what to expect from iPadOS 18.1, based on my experience with the beta version tested on the latest iPad Pro. Here are two of the most notable features coming to iPadOS 18.1:

Writing Tools

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Writing Tools is my favorite feature of Apple Intelligence. It serves as a personal editor designed to enhance your writing through proofreading, rewriting, or altering the tone of your text.

For example, Writing Tools can adjust your writing to sound friendly, professional, or concise. If you’re not satisfied with the modifications, you can easily revert to the original text. This feature also serves as a source of inspiration, as some of its suggestions might spark ideas you hadn’t considered.

Additionally, Writing Tools can perform various functions, including Summary, Key Points, List, and Table. These features are incredibly useful if you need to extract the main talking points from a lengthy document or create a simplified list for a recipe.

Currently, Writing Tools doesn’t function across all applications. While Gmail is compatible, for instance, Google Docs isn’t. However, having tested the feature in the beta for iPadOS 18.1, I’m optimistic that it will be available for more apps when the operating system update rolls out to the public.

Smarter Siri

Siri is set to become significantly more useful with the introduction of Apple Intelligence. The virtual assistant will respond to questions in a more natural manner, delivering personalized responses tailored to the user’s needs. One notable improvement is the ability to change the subject mid-conversation; Siri will recognize the shift and adjust its responses accordingly.

My experiences with the new Siri have been mixed. There are instances where it responds as expected, like when I inquire about the weather. However, there are also moments when it provides links instead of direct answers, such as when I ask for the best dinner recipes. Since this feature is still in beta, I’m hopeful that its performance will improve by the time it’s available to the public.

IPAD MINI 7 REVIEW: VERDICT

The iPad mini 7 may not represent a monumental leap from its predecessor, but it does introduce several enhancements that make it a standout tablet. With faster performance and increased storage options, it builds on the same portable design, stunning display, and impressive battery life we’ve come to expect from the series—all at the unchanged starting price of $499.

While the front camera’s portrait orientation and the lack of support for the Apple Pencil 2 are notable drawbacks, the iPad mini 7 still shines as a versatile device. With upcoming Apple Intelligence features like on-device image and text generation, it has the potential to become even more powerful and useful. For now, the iPad mini 7 is an impressive tablet that effectively balances performance and portability.

Source: Tom’s Guide