The iPad Mini might be Apple’s smallest tablet, but it could have huge potential, especially with a stunning OLED display. Apple recently unveiled the iPad Pro M4 with an OLED display at a May 7 event ahead of WWDC 2024. So, it looks like Apple is ready to dive into its OLED era. The iPad Pro may be the first Apple product with OLED, but it certainly won’t be the last. The iPad Mini could soon get this major display upgrade along with an exciting design update. Here’s a look at everything we know about the OLED iPad Mini, including its potential release date, price, design, and more. OLED iPad Mini: Release date(Image credit: Phillip Tracy/Laptop Mag)The OLED iPad Mini is on the horizon, but it’s still unclear whether it will be the iPad Mini 7 or the iPad Mini 8. According to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the next iPad Mini is due to enter mass production in the second half of 2024. That model, the iPad Mini 7, will be the first iPad Mini released since the Mini 6 launched in 2021. Considering that three-year gap, it’s possible Apple could give the iPad Mini 7 a major design update with an OLED display to help justify the long wait. However, a May 23 report from ZDNet Korea hints that the OLED iPad Mini might not launch until 2026 alongside an OLED iPad Air. This lines up with a report from research firm Omdia which indicates that most of Apple’s products won’t get OLED until closer to 2026. So, it’s possible Apple might save OLED for the iPad Mini 8 rather than the Mini 7. Apple’s release date history for the iPad Mini has been a bit inconsistent, but it still gives us hints of potential windows for an OLED iPad Mini release date: Swipe to scroll horizontallyiPad modelRelease dateiPad Mini 1November 2, 2012iPad Mini 2November 12, 2013iPad Mini 3October 22, 2014iPad Mini 4September 9, 2015iPad Mini 5March 18, 2019iPad Mini 6September 24, 2021Based on this data, Apple seems to prefer fall release dates, with the exception of the iPad Mini 5. It looks like Apple is leaning toward September releases, as well. So, mid to late September is the most likely time frame for an OLED iPad Mini release, regardless of the year. If Apple is planning to give both the Mini and Air OLED upgrades in 2026, they will likely launch on the same day. Get our in-depth reviews, helpful tips, great deals, and the biggest news stories delivered to your inbox.OLED iPad Mini: PricePricing for the iPad Mini has always been a bit odd in comparison to the rest of the iPad line-up. One would think it would be the most affordable iPad due to its small screen. However, the base iPad (10th generation) is currently $150 cheaper than the iPad Mini (6th generation). So, Apple is clearly positioning the Mini as a premium device on par with the larger iPad Air. An OLED display would be a great way to justify the higher price on the iPad Mini. However, it’s still possible Apple could bump up the price on it. Right now the iPad Mini starts at $499, just $100 less than the 11-inch iPad Air M2. Apple will likely aim to maintain that price gap. So, if it does increase the price of the OLED iPad Mini (compared to the current iPad Mini 6), it likely won’t go above the $599 price tag on the current iPad Air. OLED iPad Mini: Design(Image credit: Apple)The design will be the OLED iPad Mini’s show-stopper feature. I’ve made the case in the past that the iPad Mini deserves an OLED display. Considering the Mini is the ideal iPad for media consumption, an OLED display would make it a truly phenomenal handheld device for watching movies, especially in cramped quarters like an airplane. A recent leak from ZDNet Korea indicates that Apple is indeed planning to give the iPad Mini an OLED upgrade. The screen size will likely remain roughly the same at just over 8 inches. However, the rest of the OLED iPad Mini could look noticeably different. Several recent leaks from trusted sources report that Apple’s entire product line-up is getting thinner in upcoming design refreshes. The ultra-thin chassis on the iPad Pro M4 was one of the highlights of Apple’s May 2024 iPad event and appears to be the start of this new thin devices trend. Since the iPad Mini is already considered a premium device, there’s no reason to assume Apple would leave it out. So, it’s possible we could see Apple give it a refresh similar to the iPad Pro M4 by adding an OLED display and a thinner, lighter design at the same time. That means the Mini will be even more comfortable to hold in a single hand. It would be especially impressive if it was even lighter than an iPhone, but we’ll have to wait and see. OLED iPad Mini: Features(Image credit: Apple)The OLED iPad Mini could include several key features, although some will depend on the software updates Apple releases over the next year or two. For instance, since the Mini is getting an OLED display, it’s also possible it could get ProMotion. Apple may want to keep this feature exclusive to the iPad Pro, but it would still be nice to see. Likewise, we can expect some persistent display flukes on the current iPad Mini 6 to be resolved with the OLED iPad Mini. For example, MacRumors recently reported that Apple is working to fix the “jelly scrolling” issue seen on the iPad Mini 6’s LCD display. “Jelly scrolling”, also known as screen tearing, happens when different areas of a display lag during scrolling, resulting in mismatched frames. While this issue will hopefully be less prominent in the iPad Mini 7, it should be completely gone with the OLED iPad Mini thanks to the OLED display. (Image credit: Apple)The OLED iPad Mini could also include support for the Apple Pencil Pro, which was announced in May. This stunning refresh to the Pencil is currently only compatible with the iPad Pro M4 and iPad Air M2.This is partly because Apple had to relocate the placement of the magnetic charger to accommodate landscape mode selfie cameras in these two new iPads. If Apple doesn’t add the same camera update to the iPad Mini 7, it will certainly be in the iPad Mini 8 (the most likely model to feature the OLED display). So, we can expect the OLED iPad Mini to be compatible with the Apple Pencil Pro.The OLED iPad Mini will likely also feature a much more powerful processor than the current iPad Mini 6, which includes an A15 Bionic chip. At WWDC 2024, Apple announced Apple Intelligence, its new AI platform. Apple Intelligence is designed to mainly run on-device, which requires quite a bit of processing power.So, Apple will likely give its upcoming iPads major processor upgrades to accommodate those new AI features. An M-series chip might be a bit overpowered for the iPad Mini, but it’s not out of the question. Apple could also potentially give it an A18 chip like the upcoming iPhone 16 line-up. Either way, we can expect the OLED iPad Mini to be more than capable of running Apple Intelligence features locally.OLED iPad Mini: What’s next?The OLED iPad Mini could launch anywhere in 2025 or even 2026, although a fall release date is the most likely. Of course, Apple could also unveil it at a surprise event as it did with the iPad Pro M4 in May 2024. So, we’re watching closely for the latest news, leaks, and rumors surrounding this exciting update to one of Apple’s most underrated products. As we wait for an official OLED iPad Mini announcement, there’s still a lot to look forward to from Apple. There are several major OS updates coming later this year, including iPadOS 18, which will bring the first wave of Apple Intelligence features to the iPad. Laptop Mag will be covering the latest updates on the iPad line-up and all things Apple, so stay tuned for more insights, rumors, and details. More from Laptop Mag
