iPad mini I WANT to love the iPad Mini 6 but....i just cant! (Why cant i have my Dream Iphone/Ipad?)

[sunking101]

yeah it's a tough one as I do enjoy my mini 6 but the overall screen Quailty, 60hz and the way the device scales the Home Screen is quite bad in comparison to other devices. it's why I had the fold 4 as my mini replacement and hindsight I wish I had to kept that and not got the mini. it was more to be within the apple ecosystem.

all my devices I have all have 120HZ apart from my iMac and mini 6. and for me it is very noticeable. even my MacBook Pro is 120hz. iMac it's not really a factor like it is on the mini.

IME the Mini 6 not having 120Hz is the least of that display's problems. It's a cheap and nasty panel but people seem to overlook all of it's faults other than it not having a faster refresh rate.

I will agree that the scaling is a definite issue on that device. To this day I don't think I've ever managed to see the battery percentage on the home screen. The Amazon app is a pain too because you can't read the reviews. No pinch to zoom kills that app on the Mini 6.

 

[thadoggfather]

Mini 6 while having some strengths, made me really appreciate mini 5 a lot more.

nicer screen, good enough performance, last of the home button style.. still runs excellent on iOS 14.3 jailbroken

looking forward to what Mini 7 has to offer, and hope it’s here sooner than later but still may skip

my mini 5 and m1 11” iPad Pro has been a good combo, and mini 6 also made me appreciate my iPad Pro more

 

[jimmy_uk]

Mini 6 while having some strengths, made me really appreciate mini 5 a lot more.

nicer screen, good enough performance, last of the home button style.. still runs excellent on iOS 14.3 jailbroken

looking forward to what Mini 7 has to offer, and hope it’s here sooner than later but still may skip

my mini 5 and m1 11” iPad Pro has been a good combo, and mini 6 also made me appreciate my iPad Pro more

Would you still buy a Mini 5 today?

 

[Zest28]

Because it will make the iPad Mini too expensive. Just buy the iPad Pro 11 if you want those things because those things won't come to the Mini, due to price.

 

[dante_mr]

An iPad mini Pro would be the perfect device for me.

I don't mind a smaller chip if needed, but 120hz ProMotion is a must. I can't go back to sub-90hz after owning Pro model iPads and iPhones.

Main reason I want a mini iPad Pro is that I plan on "downsizing" in anticipation of the Vision lineup. I still want a tablet but I no longer need a large display since I use my current iPad for streaming and as a second monitor, both functions superior on the Vision.

So I essentially I'd replace my 12.9 iPad Pro with a Vision Pro + iPad mini combo. Former for streaming and multi monitor setup, and latter for casual note taking and reading.

Same goes for my MacBook. Rocking an M1 Air, and I'm never buying anything bigger as the portability is perfect as is.

 

[thadoggfather]

Would you still buy a Mini 5 today?

for the right price, ie deeply discounted, absolutely

 

[RoadWarrior56]

Would you still buy a Mini 5 today?

I own an iPad Mini 5, along with a 5th Generation Air. In my opinion, the Mini 5 is the best of the Mini line, so far. I have owned the original Mini, Mini 2, Mini 4, and briefly owned the Mini 6, before I returned it after 3 days. The Mini 5 the sharpest display (along with the Mini 4), was available with 256 MB storage, uses a pencil (or Logitech Crayon, which I use), and the A12 chip still keeps it running all apps that I use at acceptable speeds with no noticeable lagging, even running the latest version of iOS. I will keep using this device running for at least another two years. My brief experience with the Mini 6 (the display sucked!) made me appreciate the Mini 5 that much more. My only issue with it is that my battery life has somewhat degraded, most likely from heavy usage, going back to the spring of 2019, when it was released.

 

[jimmy_uk]

Not being able to use the Mini 6 as it strained my eyes and I hated the jelly scroll, I went down the road of trying other iPads (Pros) - none of which are comfortable on my eyes. I'm down to the choice of an iPad 9,10 or Mini 5. I do prefer the small iPads, especially with the laminated display and higher ppi on the Mini 5. Naturally, with my tech luck, when I look on the UK refurb store for the Mini 5 (SB, 64GB) which has been in stock for well over a year - now it isn't. 🤦‍♂️

It's now at the point of the year where I should probably wait and see if there is a Mini 7 or iPad 2023 release. I want to believe that after the jelly gate of the Mini 6, Apple will put a better display and controller in the Mini 7.......

 

[thadoggfather]

I want to believe that after the jelly gate of the Mini 6, Apple will put a better display and controller in the Mini 7.......

maybe but not necessarily the 1x NAND 'fiasco' for 256 in M2 Air didnt seem to impact 512 in base 14/16 MBP's not being 2x NANDs either and halved read speeds

Then again, much bigger gap in release timeline from mini 6 to this potential mini 7 as it currently stands

 

[klky]

I share much of the same frustrations as the OP and others here. I've been quite critical of the Mini and Apple for leaving out all the features mentioned. Technologies like Pro Motion, Face ID and better quality displays are now several years old and should not come at a premium or be limited to the higher end models.

So to my big surprise, I finally caved and bought the Mini this past weekend.

I've been intrigued by the Mini ever since it came out in 2021. I've wanted one primarily as an e-reader but was stubbornly refusing to buy it because I felt Apple cheaped out on the specs. While I still feel this way, I came to the sad realisation that I either settle, or continue to miss out.

Let me say this. I love the Mini for reading books. It almost feels like a completely different category of product just by virtue of its size and weight. I don't think I will ever go back to the larger 11" iPad as frankly, I find iPadOS mostly useless for anything work related. The Mini is perfect for content consumption and that's all I want an iPad for. Yes, the upgrades we want will be nice one day but who the hell knows when they're coming if ever.

 

[sparksd]

I share much of the same frustrations as the OP and others here. I've been quite critical of the Mini and Apple for leaving out all the features mentioned. Technologies like Pro Motion, Face ID and better quality displays are now several years old and should not come at a premium or be limited to the higher end models.

So to my big surprise, I finally caved and bought the Mini this past weekend.

I've been intrigued by the Mini ever since it came out in 2021. I've wanted one primarily as an e-reader but was stubbornly refusing to buy it because I felt Apple cheaped out on the specs. While I still feel this way, I came to the sad realisation that I either settle, or continue to miss out.

Let me say this. I love the Mini for reading books. It almost feels like a completely different category of product just by virtue of its size and weight. I don't think I will ever go back to the larger 11" iPad as frankly, I find iPadOS mostly useless for anything work related. The Mini is perfect for content consumption and that's all I want an iPad for. Yes, the upgrades we want will be nice one day but who the hell knows when they're coming if ever.

Yeah, my Mini 6 has become my full-time Kindle reader, over my Kindle Oasis and M1 12.9.

 

[culo77]

Stop with the 120hz and the jelly scroll, they just need to software fix the UI scaling

 

[Yourbigpalal83]

Stop with the 120hz and the jelly scroll, they just need to software fix the UI scaling

Yeah, but is there any hint what so ever they will do this....even in iPadOS17?

 

[ofarlig]

Stop with the 120hz and the jelly scroll, they just need to software fix the UI scaling

What is wrong with the UI scaling?

 

[sunking101]

What is wrong with the UI scaling?

Everything.

 

[ofarlig]

Everything.

Except for the home screen being a bit weird with the empty space around the apps I think it is fine, I’d accept if everything was a bit smaller so you could fit more on the screen but I wouldn’t say it is something wrong with it.

 

[SilvioInfante]

I like my iPad mini 6 but I would jump on an iPad mini pro in a second.

• Faster SoC
• 8 GB RAM
• OLED with 120 Hz refresh
• 4 speakers for stereo in both landscape and portrait
• I don’t care about Face ID but if they could fit it in then fine
• Better cameras
• Magic Keyboard connection

I’d pay $1199 for cellular/512 GB no questions asked.

Hang in there for a bit and the Pro Max iPhone will be large enough to satisfy this concern.

 

[SilvioInfante]

its main problem....ANDROID!

I feel like anyone here could have told you that and spared you the awful experience. Android is just not an option.

and god do i hate the power button fingerprint sensor. Talk about cheeping out.

It's not about cost. It's about the fact that Face ID is still the best thing Apple has to offer, and with nothing newer or better to replace it, it has to remain exclusive to the highest end iPads, in order to drive sales. The Touch ID in the power button is one terrible user experience, and there is no denying that. It's that way on purpose.

I dont get for the life of me why apple cant put out a 120HZ FaceID Ipad Mini, even with just an M1 Processor! Even if it was a LCD Screen and not an OLED, id settle, but its so jarring to me going from one to another its like why cant we have this stuff across the board.

The iPad mini is a terrible iPad. It always has been. The only reason it has continued to exist is because it is the largest screen that can still fit into a lab coat pocket. But its terrible at being an iPad, and will never get the best hardware, because it would be too expensive with the best hardware, and then even fewer people would buy it (down from the vanishingly small crowd that buys it now).

Everyone else now on the market is coming out with foldables, and its fustrating that we have to wait for apple

You're really way off on your perception of this. Most people don't even want this. It's not even on Apple's short term radar. Long term plans say 2025-2026 at the earliest, because Apple's plans prior to that are pretty well understood. All that means is that IF Apple were even thinking about it, it wouldn't be until at least then, if not later. But by then, the foldable craze will have moved on to something else, because it has no staying power, because the devices are not that interesting.

 

[ofarlig]

Hang in there for a bit and the Pro Max iPhone will be large enough to satisfy this concern.

I doubt we will see an iPhone that is large enough to compete with the iPad Minis screen size until we see a foldable iPhone, they won’t release an iPhone that doesn’t fit in a pants pocket. The iPhone 14 Pro Max at it’s current screen size is more or less useless for anything like browsing, reddit, looking at media and so on, what it can do is calling, texting and using random apps for parking on the go and such.

 

[darngooddesign]

I doubt we will see an iPhone that is large enough to compete with the iPad Minis screen size until we see a foldable iPhone, they won’t release an iPhone that doesn’t fit in a pants pocket.

This is correct.

The iPhone 14 Pro Max at it’s current screen size is more or less useless for anything like browsing, reddit, looking at media and so on, what it can do is calling, texting and using random apps for parking on the go and such.

This is objectively incorrect, but it might be subjectively correct.

 

[ofarlig]

This is correct.

This is objectively incorrect, but it might be subjectively correct.

Well I agree, it isn’t technically correct since you could technically look at YouTube video on a 2” display but it isn’t a nice experience. So where you draw the line is subjective, should have clarified it was my opinion.

 

[darngooddesign]

Well I agree, it isn’t technically correct since you could technically look at YouTube video on a 2” display but it isn’t a nice experience. So where you draw the line is subjective, should have clarified it was my opinion.

Lots of people view YouTube on screens as small as 3” wide if they keep their phone in portrait.

 

[klky]

The other thing I’ll say is, because I just bought the Mini last weekend, the new one is all but certain to come this Fall. Those that are waiting, you’re welcome lol.

 

[sparksd]

I doubt we will see an iPhone that is large enough to compete with the iPad Minis screen size until we see a foldable iPhone, they won’t release an iPhone that doesn’t fit in a pants pocket. The iPhone 14 Pro Max at it’s current screen size is more or less useless for anything like browsing, reddit, looking at media and so on, what it can do is calling, texting and using random apps for parking on the go and such.

I have both the cellular Mini 6 and the 14PM and while I prefer the larger Mini for browsing, etc., I would not at all typify the 14PM as useless for these activities. It may be for you, but that is not a universal truth.

 

[pdoherty]

The 11" is LED. MiniLED was $100 more than LED, and the OLED Apple plans on using is supposed to have a several hundred dollar price increase over MiniLED.

I think an LED iPad Pro 8.5" at that spec will be $999, and $1299+ for the OLED version.

But why? OLED TVs are barely more expensive than other TVs these days. OLED isn't appreciably more expensive to produce anymore.