iPad mini 6 is not as feature packed as its predecessor iPad mini 5. If you don’t want an iPad for most purposes, you would be better off with the iPad Pro 9.7 or iPad Pro 10.5.
It also lacks that 3D Touch display and a second camera lens. However, it’s still a good option for those who love the smaller size of the tablet.
iPad Mini 6 review: Design and Build Quality
Apple introduced the design of the iPad Mini 6 back when it launched the iPad Mini 4 with the glass on the front and the metal on the back. The two models however differ slightly in size as the iPad Mini 4 has a 7.9-inch display compared to the 6th generation iPad Mini’s 6.1-inch display.
It comes in two colors namely Space Grey and Silver. The company made a change this time around by using a different kind of glass on the display. Apple claims that the new laminated iPad Mini 6 has a thin, almost invisible outer shell that is formed of the scratch-resistant Corning Gorilla Glass.
As you can see, the iPad Mini 6 feels thicker than its previous versions. In fact, if you had a hand on the iPad mini 4, you’d realize that you could easily encircle the entire tablet with your thumb.
Despite being thicker, the iPad mini 6 is still light. I have owned the 10.5-inch iPad Pro 9.7 and as you can see, it’s the same case here. It measures 212 x 169.5 x 6.1mm which makes it one of the thinnest tablets out there.
But that’s not all. There is a long press for power button on the top-left corner of the screen and a volume rocker on the right. Further, you can check here the best Apple iPads for gaming in 2021.
iPad Mini 6 Review: Display
The new iPad Mini 6 comes with the same LCD display as its predecessor. That means it has a resolution of 2048 x 1536 pixels that has a pixel density of 264ppi. It has two speakers on the side and two stereo speakers in the top-right corner. It’s not as loud as the speakers on the iPad Pro 9.7 or the iPad Pro 10.5.
Another feature that’s missing here is the 3D Touch. Like the iPhone XS, XR and the iPad Pro, the iPad Mini 6 doesn’t have a 3D Touch display that allows you to press down on the display to get information. Instead, you will get a pop-up about 5 or 10 seconds before you click on the text to get the option you want.
As far as the viewing angles are concerned, the iPad Mini 6 comes with an 80% viewing angle which is excellent for watching movies or TV shows on the tablet. It should be noted that the iPad Mini 6 is not made of glass which means that you cannot use it in bright sunlight or under direct sunlight.
The iPad Mini 6 comes with a 10-point multi-touch display. You can use gestures and you can swipe through the web pages and it’s really nice. However, the experience could be better as sometimes you swipe and the tablet doesn’t respond.
You can also press the Home button to go back to the home screen. It’s an easy and quick way of navigation on this tablet.
The tablet also supports AirPlay but it doesn’t support AirPlay 2. The tablet also doesn’t come with the Smart Connector that is used to connect the iPad to an external monitor. Further, do you know the iMovie now available for both iPads and iMovie for Windows.
iPad Mini 6 Review: Hardware and Software
Like other Apple tablets, the iPad Mini 6 comes with a 64-bit A9 chip that runs on Apple’s custom-made 64-bit iOS 12. It comes with 2GB of RAM. The company is not known to upgrade the hardware often so the iPad Mini 6 is not a new device.
As far as the storage is concerned, you get 64GB of storage which is less than the 128GB storage on the iPhone 8 Plus. But that’s the same on most of the current generation tablets out there including the Apple iPad Pro 9.7.
The iPad Mini 6 does support 4G LTE but it doesn’t support 4G LTE and Wi-Fi simultaneously. If you don’t have a data plan then you will be unable to use the 4G LTE connectivity in 4G LTE mode. The tablet also does not support the same fast charging feature which is present in the iPhone 8 Plus.
The iPad Mini 6 runs on iOS 12. It comes with some bug fixes, improvements and security patches. It comes with automatic switching between light and dark modes and you can change the accent color of the lock screen from the Settings menu.
The iPad Mini 6 also comes with some pre-installed apps like Apple Pay and App Store but you can uninstall most of them.
There are a bunch of bugs which I’ve experienced in the first few days. For instance, when the iPad Mini 6 is switched off then it cannot wake up. Also, the iPad Mini 6 doesn’t automatically wake up when you flip the cover on or off. Instead, you have to press the power button.
iPad Mini 6 Review: Camera
The iPad Mini 6 comes with a 12-megapixel camera on the back and a 7-megapixel camera on the front. The rear camera comes with a portrait mode and you can take portrait shots using the front camera. However, the camera interface is rather basic and isn’t very good. In terms of performance, the iPad Mini 6 is slightly better than the iPad Air 2.
The iPad Mini 6 also has a Smart Connector but unlike the iPad Pro, the Smart Connector on the iPad Mini 6 doesn’t have a magnetic connection. Instead, it relies on the electromagnetic interface for wireless charging. The tablet also supports keyboard accessories like a keyboard and a Magic Keyboard and that makes it more useful than the iPad Pro 9.7 which doesn’t come with a keyboard.
The iPad Mini 6 also comes with an NFC chip which supports Apple Pay. The tablet also supports Apple’s native iMessage and FaceTime.
The iPad Mini 6 comes with Face ID which is more than the Face ID on the iPhone XR and the iPad Pro. However, there is no Portrait Mode on the iPad Mini 6 and the tablet doesn’t come with the TrueDepth camera. The tablet supports LTE Band 40 which is the U.S. only LTE band.
