My first week with the iPad mini (2024) was fantastic and frustrating

The iPad mini is arguably the astir polarizing merchandise successful Apple’s portfolio. There’s a conception of die-hard fans that would prime it complete immoderate different instrumentality successful its class, and past there’s different group that can’t rather fig retired what precisely it tin present successful position of meaningful utility.

Reading? Check. Is it bully for note-taking? It’s astir apt nan world’s champion small diary. What astir gaming? It tin blaze past nan champion titles retired there. All that excellence tin beryllium yours for a cool $500, astatine nan very minimum.

In my case, nan deed I took for an entry-level iPad mini this twelvemonth was $771 aft taxes. That’s capable money to bargain a full-fledged laptop aliases a larger tablet pinch immoderate accessories thrown into nan mix. Look nary further than nan fantabulous OnePlus Pad 2 for that dense dose of tablet goodness.

Now, here’s nan kicker. Almost each business wherever nan seventh-gen iPad mini seems to excel is wherever an Android instrumentality tin do better. The champion portion astir nan iPad mini — its pleasingly palm-friendly build — tin besides beryllium its undoing nan infinitesimal you commencement pushing it.

The iPad mini’s hardware is (mostly) great

Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends

Let’s commencement pinch nan build. It’s identical to its predecessor, but nan iPad mini’s aesthetics are besides its biggest draw. There are hardly immoderate different devices retired location pinch nan aforesaid footprint.

E-Readers? Sure, location are many, including the caller Kindle Colorsoft. The Boox Color Go moreover runs Android, but its paper-like sluggish colour surface is simply a trial of patience moreover by accepted 60Hz surface standards. Apple besides solved nan jelly-scrolling rumor this time, which was a immense alleviation for me.

Now, I perfectly emotion nan tablet’s in-hand consciousness and weight profile. At 293 grams, it’s not precisely featherlight by immoderate means, but acknowledgment to its larger size and weight distribution, it really feels lighter and little taxing connected nan hands compared to an iPhone 16 Pro.

I emotion that moreover pinch nan Apple Pencil Pro attached to nan side, nan tablet neatly fits successful nan broadside pockets of my cargo jeans. As personification who hates nan hassle of carrying a container to a adjacent java shop for a activity sprint connected my laptop, I adore this broadside of nan iPad mini.

It’s beautiful for reference while slouched connected a comfy legume bag. As my workfellow Prakhar Khanna puts it, nan iPad mini is an absolute joyousness for reference and watching videos connected a formation because 1 doesn’t request to fiddle pinch nan tray aliases moreover struggle for space.

Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends

I precocious tried to edit a video connected nan iPad Pro (13-inch) successful a formation seat, and it was distressingly awkward. For video editing, I would powerfully propose sticking to nan basics. Anything pinch a due timeline, well, things will get overwhelmingly crowded, moreover for short clips.

Another script wherever nan iPad mini excels pinch its pocket-friendly size is gaming. The A17 Pro silicon is capable to grip immoderate mobile crippled you propulsion astatine it. But knowing that your hands won’t strain to clasp a tablet (mini tablet, bah!) while playing a fewer rounds of PUBG Battle Royale aliases grinding successful Katana Zero inspires a surge of joy.

Interestingly, things get basking quickly, moreover compared to nan iPhone 16 Pro. I conjecture Apple hasn’t fitted nan aforesaid benignant of thermal hardware wrong nan tablet arsenic it did successful its flagship phone, moreover though location is much breathing abstraction wrong and metallic aboveground area astir it for power dissipation.

Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends

Of course, nan mini artillery loses steam alternatively quickly. My first brushwood pinch nan iPad mini was thing short of a disaster. I installed Chrome, and wrong half an hour, nan app collapsed unexpectedly complete a twelve times. That’s a small excessively much, fixed Apple’s standards aliases thosr of immoderate different $500 machine.

Once again, I’ll item nan surface refresh complaint rumor — 60Hz is nary longer enough. If you’ve knowledgeable a 90Hz aliases 120Hz surface connected immoderate device, nan quality is noticeable from nan get-go. I couldn’t disregard this ocular disparity shifting betwixt it and nan iPhone 16 Pro and nan iPad Pro, some of which service a ProMotion 120Hz screen.

For immoderate reason, nan animations felt sluggish and app transitions felt little fluid connected nan iPad mini than connected nan MacBook Air, which besides has a 60Hz panel. This happened moreover erstwhile moving nan unchangeable build of iPadOS 18. Despite being connected a developer beta build, nan iPad Pro feels a batch much reliable.

Finding intent acold from home

Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends

I’ve spent astir a week pinch nan iPad mini and person been struggling to find a intent for it. Given its size, 1 would say, “Don’t deliberation excessively overmuch astir it, dude.” But erstwhile you’ve forked complete half a expansive connected a device, you can’t spend to deliberation that way. Unless, of course, it was an intentionally “spare” purchase.

For me, nan iPad mini worked alternatively oddly, and not precisely successful a value-focused fashion. It’s a awesome companion device, 1 that you tin prop moreover against a brackish shaker connected a array aliases immoderate of those inexpensive $20 metallic stands for your activity desk.

I person to simultaneously juggle betwixt Slack and Teams for workplace connection while keeping an oculus connected task guidance apps specified arsenic Trello and Teams. Of course, Gmail is simply a imperishable fixture successful nan workflow, and truthful is WhatsApp for mobile communication.

Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends

A 13.3-inch MacBook Air quickly runs retired of abstraction for app windows. Plus, putting it successful Stage Manager brings nan instrumentality to its knees. With nan iPad mini connected nan side, each my chat apps tally successful split-screen mode, arsenic do my news provender and societal media trackers.

With Universal Control enabled, controlling nan iPad mini’s UI pinch nan MacBook Air’s keyboard and touchpad is simply a breeze. Thanks to surface mirroring, I moreover overcame nan nastiest limitations of nan iPad’s mobile ecosystem.

I’ll commencement pinch nan astir low-key illustration of them all: Google Docs. The mobile type of Docs is excruciatingly limited. For penning sessions — which is half my time occupation — wherever I request to support aggregate tabs unfastened to reference screens, I usage nan iPad mini arsenic an outer surface solely for Google Docs.

Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends

In doing so, each nan editing bells and whistles of Google Docs are disposable to maine connected nan iPad mini’s screen. It’s a spot cramped, for sure, but not precisely successful a deal-breaking fashion. I emotion nan distraction-free experience, and that’s what counts erstwhile it comes to getting immoderate existent inferior retired of it.

But those are not iPad mini benefits. Those are “Apple” benefits. Or, to put it much precisely, nan Apple ecosystem perks. Those perks are pricey, mind you. In my case, that seamless interoperability costs maine astir $3,000, and I’m not moreover counting nan Apple Watch and AirPods.

Just springiness maine a reason

Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends

I did a “taste-testing,” if you will, of nan iPad mini among a group of students, mobile gaming enthusiasts, and businesspeople. Everyone was universally successful emotion pinch nan cleanable creation and nan minimal heft. Still, nary of them could confidently prime retired use-case scenarios wherever nan tablet could beryllium indispensable for them.

“I would for illustration to support my societal media constricted to my phone.” “For games, I decidedly request a bigger screen, aliases I’d simply instrumentality to a phone.” “It’s bully for watching videos, but I don’t spot nan surface looking immoderate much appealing than my phone’s OLED panel.” “Oh, it doesn’t consciousness arsenic soft arsenic my iPhone.”

All of those are valid concerns rooted successful practicality. So far, nan iPad mini has stood retired for maine chiefly because of its one-of-a-kind shape factor. Yet, it keeps moving into an personality crisis, particularly erstwhile you facet successful nan asking value Apple has slapped connected it.

It’s not a bad device, but it’s conscionable confusing successful its ain limiting ways. I will soon stock my elaborate findings aft much broad testing. I dream to tally into much surprises (the bully kind, of course) and less functional handicaps. Stay tuned for my afloat reappraisal soon.