IPad Mini 4

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The iPad Mini 4 (stylized and marketed as iPad mini 4) is the fourth-generation iPad Mini tablet computer designed, developed and marketed by Apple Inc. It was announced along with the iPad Pro on September 9, 2015, and was released the same day. The iPad Mini 4 is also one of the two current iPad Minis sold by Apple, along with the iPad Mini 2; the iPad Mini 4 replaced the iPad Mini 3.

History

The iPad Mini 4 was announced during the "Hey Siri" Apple Special Event on September 9, 2015, alongside other new or refreshed products, including the iPad Pro, the iPhone 6s and the Apple TV. However, there was little focus directly on the new device with only a brief mention at the end of the iPad Pro presentation portion of the keynote.

Features

Software

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See also: iOS and iOS 9

The iPad Mini 4 ships with the iOS 9 operating system pre-installed, and was the first device to do so. Due to an additional 1 GB of RAM compared to the previous generation's Mini, the iPad Mini 4 is capable of utilizing the Slide Over, Split View and Picture in Picture multitasking functions in iOS 9.

The device is compatible with iOS 9.1, which was released on October 21, 2015, which adds the News app for the UK and Australia as well as additional emoji and other bug fixes.[4]

Design

The iPad Mini 4 was the first major redesign of the iPad Mini line, with a slightly taller and wider body (although there is no increase in screen size) compared to the iPad Mini 2 and Mini 3. There is also a much thinner design, with the device mirroring the depth being the same as the iPad Air 2 at 6.1 mm.[1] This device is also lighter than the previous generation by 33.2 g.

Due to this redesign, the device is incompatible with cases that would otherwise work with the iPad Mini 2 or iPad Mini 3. To make up for this, Apple released a Smart Cover and Silicone Case for the Mini 4, which can be used separately or in conjunction to make a full protective case. Unlike the iPad Air 2, there is no leather Smart Case for the device.

As with the iPad Mini 3, the iPad Mini 4 is available in three colors: Space Grey, Silver and Gold.

Hardware

While the iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 3 were released among the same time, in Q4 2014, the Mini 3 carried over the Mini 2's internals including the A7 processor, rather using the hardware of the iPad Air 2. The iPad Mini 4 features upgraded hardware closer to the iPad Air 2 released a year ago. However, the Mini 4 has a dual-core A8 processor rather than the tri-core A8X.[1] Apple claims that this processor is "1.3x faster" at CPU tasks at "1.6x faster" at graphics tasks over the A7 processor used in previous Mini models. There is also the same 2 GB of RAM, allowing the device to make use of the advanced multitasking features of the operating system.

Like the iPad Mini 3 that came before it, the iPad Mini 4 is capable of making mobile payments via Apple Pay in combination with the Touch ID sensor, although this can only be done through apps as the device lacks the NFC antenna required for payments at a merchant terminal.

The device shares the same camera module as the iPad Air 2 with an 8 megapixel camera with a ƒ/2.4 aperture. The screen is the same Retina Display that has featured since the iPad Mini 2, although it is fully laminated (also like the iPad Air 2) and contains an anti-reflective coating, resulting in drastically improved picture quality compared to its predecessors. The iPad Mini 4 display features 101% sRGB Color Gamut compared to poor ~62% on the previous models. [5]

It has a slightly smaller battery compared to the previous generations though Apple claims the runtime to be the same 10 hours as its predecessor.

There is also an updated wireless module, which adds 802.11ac Wi-Fi support along with Bluetooth 4.2. Like its predecessor, the iPad Mini 4 is available with storage options of 16, 64 or 128GB and has no expansion option. The "camera connection kit", which has an SD card reader, is only able to transfer photos and videos to and from the device.

Reception

Reviews have generally been positive, with The Verge giving the iPad Mini 4 a 9/10, praising the display, fast performance, great camera, and multitasking but not liking the speaker or the chamfered edges.[6]

CNET also praised the new "more vivid" display and the slimmer design as well as the new features in iOS 9 that the device can utilize. However, they also criticized it for being more expensive than other 8-inch tablets and that the multitasking features do not work as well on the smaller screen. There was also criticism of the iPad Mini 4's A8 processor which was a year old, regarded as a "step down" from the iPad Air 2's A8X and iPhone 6S's A9 processors. This was in contrast to the iPad Mini 2 which featured the same A7 processor as the contemporary iPad Air and iPhone 5S where all three were released in Q4 of 2013.[7]

Timeline

Source: Apple press release library[8]

References

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External links

Preceded by iPad Mini 4
4th generation		 Succeeded by
Incumbent
  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ iPad mini 4 Teardown - iFixit
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ http://www.displaymate.com/news.html#iPad_mini_4 Retrieved 31.Mar.2016
  6. ↑ Apple iPad Mini 4 review September 28, 2015. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Apple Inc. (2010–2011). Press Release Library. Retrieved April 3, 2011.
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