Apple has just unveiled its latest iPad mini, now powered by the cutting-edge A17 Pro chip and featuring Apple Intelligence, a smart system designed to deliver context-aware assistance while prioritizing user privacy. The new iPad mini, known for its ultraportable design, is available in four beautiful finishes, including fresh blue and purple options. Its 8.3-inch Liquid Retina display offers vibrant colors and clarity, while the enhanced performance driven by the A17 Pro chip ensures smooth handling of even the most demanding tasks.

The A17 Pro chip marks a significant upgrade from the previous model, delivering faster CPU and GPU performance, a Neural Engine that’s twice as fast, and support for Apple Intelligence. On top of that, it brings compatibility with Apple Pencil Pro, allowing users to unlock even greater creativity and productivity with this versatile tool.

Power-Packed A17 Pro Chip: Elevating Performance

At the heart of the new iPad mini is the A17 Pro chip, a game-changer for performance and power efficiency. Equipped with a 6-core CPU, including two high-performance cores and four efficiency cores, the chip provides a 30% improvement in speed compared to its predecessor. Its 5-core GPU boosts graphics performance by 25%, making it perfect for pro-level apps, gaming, and immersive AR experiences.

The iPad mini also features hardware-accelerated ray tracing, which delivers true-to-life graphics, making it ideal for gamers and creative professionals alike. Whether you’re editing photos, designing, or exploring immersive AR environments, the A17 Pro chip ensures fast, seamless performance.

Apple Intelligence: Personalized and Private

Apple Intelligence, deeply integrated into iPadOS 18, harnesses the power of the A17 Pro chip to deliver intuitive, personalized assistance. It uses advanced generative models to create natural language responses, understand user context, and automate tasks across apps, all while protecting user data. Most of these processes occur directly on the device, ensuring privacy, with Apple’s Private Cloud Compute system flexibly balancing on-device and server-based tasks.

Apple Intelligence is initially available in U.S. English with the iPadOS 18.1 update. Key features include:

• Writing Tools: Rewrite, proofread, and summarize text across apps like Mail, Notes, and Pages, making it easy to refine your writing.
• Enhanced Siri: Now with a sleek new design, Siri offers more natural, conversational responses, following context across multiple requests and allowing for typed commands.
• Photos: Users can create custom movies by simply typing a description, and the new Clean Up tool removes distractions from images without altering the subject.

Additional features, such as the Image Playground and Image Wand, which allow users to easily create or refine images, will be rolling out over the coming months.

Faster Connectivity, Seamless Experience

The new iPad mini comes with support for Wi-Fi 6E, delivering twice the performance of the previous generation. Whether downloading files, gaming, or streaming, users can expect a smoother experience. For those on the go, the 5G-enabled cellular models offer quick, reliable connections, with eSIM support eliminating the need for physical SIM cards. Additionally, the upgraded USB-C port offers transfer speeds of up to 10Gbps, making large file uploads and data transfers faster than ever.

Camera Capabilities: More Than Just Photos

The 12MP rear camera on the iPad mini now features Smart HDR 4, capturing rich, detailed images with a greater dynamic range. For document scanning, AI-powered machine learning automatically detects and scans documents, while the True Tone flash removes shadows, making scanned documents clearer. The 12MP Ultra Wide front-facing camera with Center Stage keeps you in frame during video calls, making it ideal for meetings and collaborations on the go.

Unlock Creativity with Apple Pencil Pro

Apple Pencil Pro adds a new dimension to the iPad mini, allowing users to sketch, write, and create with precision. The Pencil Pro introduces advanced features like squeezing to change tools, line weights, and colors, all while receiving intuitive haptic feedback. The magnetic interface allows the Apple Pencil Pro to pair, charge, and be stored effortlessly on the iPad mini, making it a perfect on-the-go tool for creatives and professionals alike. For more casual users, the regular Apple Pencil (USB-C) is also available for note-taking, drawing, and journaling.

iPadOS 18: A Smarter and More Customizable Experience

iPadOS 18 brings a host of new features, taking advantage of the iPad mini’s performance and Apple Intelligence. The new Calculator app allows for solving expressions using Apple Pencil, and Maths Notes can instantly solve handwritten equations, even graphing them directly in the Notes app.

The Photos app has been redesigned for easier navigation by themes, and Control Center now offers quicker access to commonly used settings, with third-party apps also being integrated. The Messages app introduces animated text effects, message scheduling, and new ways to express yourself through communications.

Eco-Friendly Design, Green Tech

Apple continues its commitment to sustainability with the new iPad mini. It is crafted using 100% recycled aluminum, rare earth elements, and gold plating, with packaging that is completely fiber-based, in line with Apple’s goal of eliminating plastic packaging by 2025. The iPad mini also supports Apple’s broader initiative to achieve carbon neutrality across its entire business by 2030.

Pricing and Availability

The new iPad mini is available for pre-order today, starting at A$799 inc. GST for the Wi-Fi model and A$1,049 inc. GST for the Wi-Fi + Cellular version. Storage options include 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB, with the base model offering double the storage of the previous generation. Educational discounts start at A$719 inc. GST.

Apple Pencil Pro is available for A$219 inc. GST, and the regular Apple Pencil (USB-C) retails for A$139 inc. GST. The Smart Folio, available in a range of colors, is priced at A$95 inc. GST.

The new iPad mini combines powerful performance, smart features, and an eco-friendly design, offering incredible value for users seeking a portable yet high-performing device.