iPad mini OLED: what changed, prices and release date
The new iPad mini OLED has an 8.5-inch screen and A20 Pro chip from $699, £699 or ₹82,900. What changed, prices by country, dates and why it costs more.
Why it matters
The iPad mini now starts $200 above its 2024 launch price, and the cheaper models get a cut-down chip. Knowing what changed and what did not helps buyers judge which version, if any, is worth it.
Apple’s smallest iPad now starts at $699, exactly $200 more than the model it replaces cost on launch day in October 2024. The new iPad mini, announced on October 26, 2026, trades the old LCD for an 8.5-inch OLED screen, moves to the A20 Pro chip and slims down to 5.4 mm. Pre-orders open on October 28 and it goes on sale on November 6.
Quick answer: The new iPad mini (A20 Pro) has an 8.5-inch OLED display, the A20 Pro chip, IP67 water and dust resistance and a 5.4 mm body weighing 255 grams. It starts at $699 in the US, £699 in the UK and ₹82,900 in India. Pre-orders open on October 28 at 10:10 a.m. Pacific time (17:10 GMT), and it reaches stores on November 6.
The jump looks steeper than it is for anyone shopping this autumn. Apple had already raised the old model from $499 to $599 in June 2026, blaming the cost of memory chips. Against last week’s price, the new mini costs $100 more.
What the extra money buys, and where Apple held back, is spread across the spec sheet rather than the launch announcement. Two details in particular matter for buyers: the screen still runs without ProMotion, and the cheaper storage tiers get a cut-down version of the chip.
What changed from the A17 Pro iPad mini?
The outside barely moves. The new model is 195.3 mm tall against 195.4 mm before, and 2.2 mm narrower. Apple says the bezels are 24% thinner, which is how it fits a 0.2-inch larger screen into almost the same footprint. Pixel density stays at 326 pixels per inch.
| iPad mini (A17 Pro), 2024 | iPad mini (A20 Pro), 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Display | 8.3-inch LCD, 2266 × 1488 | 8.5-inch OLED, 2316 × 1512 |
| Brightness | 500 nits | 600 nits full screen, 1,200 nits peak (HDR) |
| Chip | A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU | A20 Pro, 5- or 6-core CPU, 7-core GPU |
| Thickness, weight (Wi-Fi) | 6.3 mm, 293 g | 5.4 mm, 255 g |
| US starting price | $499 at launch ($599 from June 2026) | $699 |
| Source: Apple tech specs and newsroom, October 15, 2024 and October 26, 2026; Bloomberg, June 26, 2026. |
The A20 Pro is built on a 2-nanometer process. Apple claims up to 60% faster multithreaded performance, up to 2.7 times faster graphics and up to 4.5 times faster AI work than the previous generation, with a Neural Accelerator inside each GPU core.
Much of the rest is new to the mini. It is rated IP67, tested by Apple to a depth of 1 meter for 30 minutes, which MacRumors notes makes it the first water-resistant iPad. The front camera, still 12 megapixels with Center Stage, has moved to the long edge, the right place for video calls with the tablet held sideways. Apple has rebuilt the speakers into what it calls an “Acoustic Display”, with woofers working through the screen and tweeters tucked between the glass and the aluminum frame.
Wireless moves to Apple’s own N1 chip, with Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and Thread. Cellular models use the C2 modem, which Apple says delivers up to 50% faster data than the previous generation.
The color range shrinks to two: a new midnight and starlight. Blue, purple and space gray are gone.
Touch ID stays in the top button, the USB-C port still runs at up to 10 Gb/s, and both Apple Pencil Pro and Apple Pencil (USB-C) work as before. The battery is rated at 18.9 watt-hours, good for up to 10 hours of web browsing on Wi-Fi or video playback, by Apple’s figures.
How much does the new iPad mini cost in the US, UK and India?
Apple has published prices for all three markets. The dollar and pound figures match number for number.
| Model | US | UK | India |
|---|---|---|---|
| 128GB Wi-Fi | $699 | £699 | ₹82,900 |
| 256GB Wi-Fi | $799 | £799 | ₹94,900 |
| 256GB Wi-Fi, nano-texture | $899 | £899 | ₹106,900 |
| 512GB Wi-Fi | $999 | £999 | ₹118,900 |
| 128GB Wi-Fi + Cellular | $849 | £849 | ₹100,900 |
| Source: Apple online stores for the US, UK and India, October 26, 2026. |
Matching numbers do not mean matching prices. UK prices include 20% VAT, while US prices are quoted before sales tax. At late-October exchange rates, £699 works out at roughly $935, and the Indian base price of ₹82,900, which includes taxes, at roughly $870.
In the US, education pricing starts at $649. The cellular version adds $150 in the US and UK and ₹18,000 in India.
The nano-texture glass, a matte etched finish that cuts glare, costs an extra $100 and is offered only on the 256GB and 512GB models. On the iPad Pro, MacRumors points out, it is limited to the 1TB and 2TB versions, so the mini is the cheapest way into it.
Accessories are separate. The new TechWoven Smart Folio is $79, Apple Pencil Pro $129.
When can you pre-order and buy it?
- 15 Oct 2024: Apple announces the A17 Pro iPad mini at $499; it goes on sale on October 23.
- 26 Jun 2026: Bloomberg reports Apple has raised the A17 Pro model to $599 as part of wider Mac and iPad price increases.
- 26 Oct 2026: Apple announces the A20 Pro iPad mini.
- 28 Oct 2026: Pre-orders open in 36 countries and regions at 17:10 GMT (10:10 a.m. in California, 5:10 p.m. in London, 10:40 p.m. in India).
- 6 Nov 2026: The new model reaches Apple Stores and authorized resellers.
What does an OLED screen change in practice?
An LCD lights the whole panel from behind and uses liquid crystals to block that light where the image should be dark. Some always leaks through, which is why black on an LCD tablet looks dark gray in a dim room.
OLED pixels make their own light. For black, they switch off.
That is where Apple’s 2,000,000:1 contrast figure comes from, and it shows most in films, dark-mode apps and reading in bed. The panel can also drop to 1 nit. At the other end, HDR highlights can reach 1,200 nits, which Apple says is more than double the previous generation, though everyday full-screen brightness rises more modestly, from 500 to 600 nits.
What OLED does not change here is motion. Neither Apple’s announcement nor its spec page mentions ProMotion, the adaptive refresh of up to 120Hz found on the iPad Pro. MacRumors reported the feature is absent, and 9to5Mac concluded the panel runs at 60Hz, the same as before. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman had reported earlier in October that Apple tested both 60Hz and 120Hz panels. The shipping model appears to use the 60Hz option, so scrolling should look much as it did on the 2024 model.
Apple also does not list how much memory the new model has. A pre-launch report of 12GB, up from 8GB, remains unconfirmed.
Why is the new iPad mini more expensive?
Apple did not explain the new price in its announcement. The company’s most recent public explanation of iPad prices dates from June, when it said “the rapid expansion of AI data centers has created an extraordinary surge in demand for memory and storage”, according to Bloomberg. That demand for chips is one strand of the AI spending boom worrying Wall Street.
The new model also carries parts the old one lacked: an OLED panel, a chip on a newer 2-nanometer process, a sealed water-resistant body and a nano-texture option. Apple has not said which of these, if any, drove the price.
The rise was smaller than some expected. On October 11, Gurman wrote that the new mini would be “considerably more expensive” and guessed at “something closer to $799”, MacRumors and 9to5Mac reported. It landed $100 under that guess.
Which iPad mini model is the one to watch?
The base models carry a catch that 9to5Mac flagged on launch day. On the 128GB and 256GB versions, the A20 Pro has a 5-core CPU (two performance “super” cores and three efficiency cores) and a single 16-core Neural Engine. Only the 512GB model, at $999, gets the sixth core and a dual Neural Engine.
That means the $699 model has one fewer CPU core than the A17 Pro mini it replaces. Apple’s speed claims are “up to” figures, and independent tests have not yet shown how much the missing core matters in daily use. A newer design with two more GPU cores may still outrun the old chip; reviews will settle it.
The mini has always been bought for its size: one-handed reading, notes with an Apple Pencil, a screen for travel or the kitchen counter. This version strengthens that case with a lighter body, water resistance and a much better screen for video and dark rooms. Buyers who mainly want smoother scrolling or a laptop replacement will find neither here.
There is also a software gap outside the US. Siri AI, the new assistant in iPadOS 27, is in beta in iPadOS 27.2 in six languages, and Apple says it is not available in the EU or to users under 13.
What to watch before November 6
Watch for: The first independent reviews, which should confirm the refresh rate, the memory and how the 5-core base chip performs. Also check whether the A17 Pro model stays on sale: on October 26, Apple’s US store listed only the new model.
Apple has promised more. After the announcement, MacRumors and 9to5Mac both reported the company teasing an “exciting week” of products, so the mini may not be the last price list to read closely before November 6.
