Apple has unveiled a redesigned iPad mini with an 8.5-inch OLED display, a new A20 Pro chip and an IP67 rating for water and dust resistance. Pre-orders open Wednesday, October 28, and the tablet goes on sale Friday, November 6, according to Apple.

In Canada, the Wi-Fi model starts at $949 for 128GB, as listed by iPhone in Canada. In the US, MacRumors reports a starting price of $699 for Wi-Fi and $849 for Wi-Fi + Cellular.

What is new

The screen grows to 8.5 inches while the body keeps the same footprint as the previous mini, because the bezels are 24 percent thinner, Apple says. The tablet is 5.4 mm thin and comes in midnight or starlight.

Apple claims peak brightness of up to 1200 nits, more than 2x the previous generation, and a 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio. A nano-texture option is new to the mini and is meant to cut glare in bright rooms or outdoors.

Other changes Apple lists:

  • A 12MP Center Stage front camera on the landscape edge, for video calls
  • A 12MP rear camera with 4K video at up to 60 fps and an Adaptive True Tone flash
  • An Acoustic Display, with woofers paired through the screen and tweeters hidden between the glass and the aluminum body
  • The N1 networking chip for Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and Thread, and the C2 modem in cellular models
  • Fast-charge support

Performance

Apple built A20 Pro on a 2-nanometer process. The company says AI performance is up to 4.5x faster than the previous generation, graphics are up to 2.7x faster, and multithreaded CPU work is up to 60 percent faster. Cellular models get data speeds up to 50 percent faster, Apple adds.

The 512GB configuration uses a Dual 16-core Neural Engine, which Apple says doubles the processing power of the previous generation for that part of the chip. The tablet ships with iPadOS 27 and the next generation of Apple Intelligence and Siri, which Apple says is rolling out in beta.

Dave Pakula, Apple’s vice president of Hardware Engineering, called it “a huge leap forward for users who love having the full iPad experience in the palm of their hand.”

Canadian pricing

iPhone in Canada lists these prices in Canadian dollars, before tax:

  • 128GB: $949 Wi-Fi, $1,149 Wi-Fi + Cellular
  • 256GB: $1,099 Wi-Fi, $1,299 Wi-Fi + Cellular
  • 512GB: $1,379 Wi-Fi, $1,579 Wi-Fi + Cellular
  • Nano-texture, 256GB: $1,249 Wi-Fi, $1,449 Wi-Fi + Cellular
  • Nano-texture, 512GB: $1,529 Wi-Fi, $1,729 Wi-Fi + Cellular

Education pricing brings the Wi-Fi model to $879. The same report lists the TechWoven Smart Folio at $99, Apple Pencil Pro at $169 and Apple Pencil (USB-C) at $109. In the US, MacRumors puts the Smart Folio at $79.

What it means for readers

If you want a small tablet that survives a splash, this is the first mini Apple has rated IP67, and the brighter screen should help outdoors. Buyers in Canada should note that the entry price is $949 and that the nano-texture glass is only offered on the 256GB and 512GB models.

Apple’s own release does not list Canadian prices, so the Canadian figures here come from iPhone in Canada. Confirm them on Apple’s store page before ordering, and check which accessories work with the new model.