Apple - iPad mini 4 Wi-Fi 128GB - Space Gray

Faster, thinner and with a better screen, the iPad Mini 4 is a return to form and the best small tablet. 2014's iPad Mini 3 was a perfectly respectable tablet, but unfortunately it just wasn't the upgrade from the iPad Mini 2 that most people were expecting. Rather than revamping its internals, the only new feature introduced was Apple's Touch ID sensor and that was your lot. As a result, the Mini 3 seemed pretty poor value by comparison with its older brother. Fortunately, it looks like Apple's back on track this year, as the iPad Mini 4 seems to improve on its predecessor in pretty much every way, cramming eerily similar iPad Air 2 specs into a significantly smaller body, looking to bringing an even greater level of parity between the small and large tablets Apple puts out. Build quality There's one thing that seems to have remained a constant yet again, and that's Apple's excellent build quality, with the iPad Mini 4 seemingly retaining its crown as the best-made mini tablet. Its aluminium body, which is available in gold, space grey and silver, looks stunning, but still provides that reassuringly rugged feel that you expect from an Apple tablet. You just don't get this re-assuredness from plastic tablets, with the iPad Mini 4 blowing them all out of the water. There are a couple of minor changes here, which I feel are for the better. As was also the case with the Air 2, the iPad Mini 4 no longer has the switch on the side, which could be set to toggle the screen rotation lock or silent mode. However, given that rotation lock is now in the swipe-up Control Centre menu in iOS and you can make the iPad silent by holding the volume down button, the button has now become quite unnecessary; in fact, I didn’t miss it on the iPad Air 2, as is also the case here. There's also some newly redesigned volume buttons on the side too, so that rather from jutting out from the surface, they now sit inside a little hollow, which is yet again very similar to the button design on the iPad Air 2 Moving from the iPad Mini 2 and 3, the 4th iteration also has slightly different speaker grills at the bottom (one row of holes at the bottom, rather than stacked rows), and the size is now very slightly different: at 203x134x6.1mm the iPad Mini 4 is slightly taller and thinner than the iPad Mini 3 (200x135x7.5mm). During use, I felt that there’s very little difference between the new model and the older models: it’s actually extremely comfortable to hold and use one-handed, as you'd expect. Display In use, there wasn't anything particularly wrong with the iPad Mini 2/3’s screen: it was bright and clear. But, put the older iPads next to a tablet with a better display, such as the iPad Air 2 and the differences became much more obvious, with the iPad Mini losing out on colour accuracy and detail in images. The Expert Reviews colour calibration tests sadly reaffirmed this, finding out that the iPad Mini 3 was sadly only capable of displaying 67.1% of the sRGB colour gamut. This time around, we've now got a brand-new IPS panel with the iPad Mini 4 and the results are somewhat spectacular in comparison. I found that the new display was considerably better than the older version, with the colour calibrator registering that the iPad Mini 4 was capable of producing 94.8% of the sRGB colour gamut. What this means in real terms is that there's more detail in photos and more accurate colours, and I certainly found that the new display was one of the best that I’ve used. There's been no alteration with the resolution in this year's model, with the new screen maintaining the same 2,048x1,536 resolution of the iPad Mini 3. At a high 324ppi, it means that everything looks extremely sharp. I have to say that this improved screen makes a clear difference to the product and it’s good to see that the one slightly weaker area of previous models has been improved substantially. Performance and battery life Up until this point we’ve had two generations of the iPad Mini using the same old A7 chip, but Apple has boosted the iPad Mini 4 with an A8 chip this time around, the same as used in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. It's worth noting that this is not the A8X chip, as used in the iPad Air 2, which has three cores and greatly improved graphics performance. It’s also not the new A9 chip, as used in the iPhone 6S. Still, the difference in performance from the previous generation is definitely noteworthy. Running GeekBench 3, which measures processor performance, I found that the iPad Mini 4 scored 1694 in the single-core test and 3058 in the multi-core test; a clear improvement over the 1385 and 2485 respective scores of the iPad Mini 3. That also puts the iPad Mini 4 in good stead against its closest competition, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2, which scored 1244 and 4182 - it's higher multi-threaded performance is because it has quad-core processor. Web performance was also exceptionally good, thanks to the combination of the slickness of Safari, paired with the efficient processor and operating system. Running the PeaceKeeper browser test, we got an exceptionally high score, showing that this tablet can easily cope with any website. In the GFXBench Manhattan benchmark, the iPad Mini 4 scored 925 running at native resolution and 1330 in the 1080p offscreen test. It shows that it’s more than capable of running any existing game you throw at it. Indeed, firing up Hearthstone, which is surprisingly graphically intense, the iPad Mini 4 ran the game beautifully as you'd expect. The 5,124mAh battery was also incredibly good at keeping its charge, with the tablet lasting for 10h 43m in our video playback test with the screen set to a brightness of 170cd/m2. That’s a little over an hour more than the iPad Mini 3, which is mostly down to a more efficient OS and processor. It's also the best iOS tablet battery life score I've seen this year, as it beat both the iPad Pro and iPad Air 2 in our battery life head-to-head table. It's still got a some way to go before it matches other small compact tablets, such as the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 8.0 and Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact, but it's still pretty good overall. iOS 9.2 The iPad Mini 4 originally had iOS 9, which brought with it some beautiful optimisations and animations for the diminutive tablet. The biggest introduction at the time, however, was the Split View mode, which allows you to run two apps side-by-side. It instantly makes the iPad Mini feel much more like a productivity tool. Now, iOS 9.2 has been released and is available on the iPad Mini 4, but it wasn't quite so revolutionary. You do get some useful new apps, however, such as Apple News that brings curated news articles presented in an attractive and easy-to-use manner. Mail Drop, in particular, is also a welcome addition, which lets you attach large files to emails up to 5GB. It works by sending a preview of the attachment to the recipient who will then be able to download the attachment within 30 days. Camera The 8-megapixel camera installed in the iPad Mini 4 is up from the 5-megapixel camera in the iPad Mini 3, which certainly means that there’s more detail in our test shots. Outside, I’m pretty impressed with the camera, as my test shots were well exposed with plenty of detail across all parts of the image, from the brightness of the sky to the darker parts in shadow. Inside and the camera’s limitations start to show up, with noise creeping into the image and colours becoming significantly more muted. It's worth mentioning that there’s no flash on this model, so if it gets too dark you simply won’t be able to take any shots. Given that most people will have a smartphone with them that's not necessarily a problem; what's important is that you can at least take some pretty good shots with this tablet outside when you need to. There’s the usual range of options we’ve come to expect from Apple devices here, including Panoramas, 1080p video and 120fps slow-motion at a resolution of 1,280x720. Video, as with images, works best outside where there’s lots of natural light, but suffers a little inside from image noise. TouchID As with the iPad Mini 3, this new tablet also has the TouchID fingerprint reader, which is becoming a substantially more important part of iOS. For starters, it gives you a quicker way of logging into your iPad, rather than having to type in a six-digit code (the default code length for iOS 9). It's also being used by many more apps too, such as for logging into your Amazon account. Finally, you can use it to authorise Apple Pay payments in-app, which saves having to type your credit card details in. Storage There’s no memory card slot, as is normal for Apple, so you need to buy the model with the right amount of storage for you. The entry level model has just 16GB of storage (£319), which isn’t really enough. Next up is the 64GB model (£399), which is the one that most people will buy; at the top is a 128GB version (£479). It’s a shame that 32GB isn’t available as the entry-level option. Wi-Fi and 4G As with previous generations, you get a choice of Wi-Fi or Wi-Fi+Cellular models. The first has 802.11ac Wi-Fi for fast wireless connections, which you’ll notice if you’ve got an 802.11ac router and a quick internet connection when you’re downloading apps or large files, such as films. If you pay the extra $100 for the Cellular model, you also get a built-in 4G receiver, so that you can also get online when you like. You can fit any standard microSIM, although the iPad Mini 4 comes with an Apple SIM built-in. I have to say that this such a brilliant idea, as the Apple SIM can connect to any supporting cellular network, letting you buy the data plan that’s the best value for what you need now, and then letting you change to a different provider later.

The iPad Mini is probably *the* best purchase you can make in the last 5-7 years out of hundreds of electronic devices invented, by Apple or otherwise. All iPads and minis are great investments and worth every dollar but with the mini it's more bang for the buck, being an incredibly intuitive all round tablet 90% of the population can find to useful for personal and professional use. The base model runs on wi-fi, which saves money because it doesn't require a data plan (which can be expensive). It's size and capabilities outmatch larger, heavier devices (like the larger iPad or Air, which go for $200+) and screen is large enough to enjoy clear viewing of videos/clips/tv and beats struggling to see that on a small screen cel phone. I recently upgraded to a new laptop and cel phone yet find I use my mini iPad more than both combined. I take it everywhere without any effort and is lightweight enough to forget your have it in a bag/purse. Has plenty of memory, a clear sharp screen, easy to use keyboard, high quality camera and speakers. Battery life is very long and charges fast. My 2nd generation mini (from late 2014) was still working just fine but I only decided to upgrade when I saw a sale on the newest model (mini 4) with more memory which I was needing because I take thousands of photos & create music. I was happy to give my older iPad-mini to my Grandma who loves it to bits, though never had any interest in having a cel phone or new fangled computer. She's 87, sharp mind but slowing down activity wise so appreciates the minis lightweight easy to keep at hand size, and can use it effortlessly without worrying about security issues, hacking, loss of personal info, or learning the ins and outs of the cumbersome Microsoft world of old computing with hunting through and creating files, patches, debugging, mind numbing upgrades, etc. She uses it to check email and text messages from family, gets pics of them and friends, does her banking, makes and checks pharmacy medicine refills and online Scripps shipments, checks doctor appts, reads news from all over, research her particular interests, watches many things through YouTube, reads e-books, listens to fav music, streams digital radio, loves podcasts, and fun stuff like downloaded cool (free) apps from the Apple store- plays new easy to learn but challenging games like Flow, Triominoes, Tap Colors, and old favorites like Othello, solitaire, Scrabble, Concentration, Chess, etc. It's hugely important for seniors to stay busy, use their mind and be connected with people or they can slip deep into depression and worsen conditions like dementia, etc. If they're not able to socialize in a personal way due to geographical or physical limitations using just this type of device can keep them interested, learning new things and engaged. Going online is second best- and the new tech capabilities makes it very easy and affordable now versus being tied to a cumbersome old desktop computer or bulky heavy laptop, or restricted to a tiny cel phone screen and keyboard with limited data and space. Note you can also watch live TV and movies via common cable subscriber apps (Comcast/Xfinity etc) you can download for free and use even if its a family member or friend who is the primary cable acct holder. I've done this with Xfinity and chip in for a close friends monthly cable subscription rather than waste money having my own acct and paying for services I don't need. This TV app is extremely handy and allows for watching anywhere- sitting at at desk/table/in bed, waiting somewhere (doc office/airport/etc). With things like this no wonder many people are cutting basic cable home service! Besides that there are hundreds of handy apps that open up new worlds and the only limitation is a closed, uncurious mind. Life's short, don't hesitate to explore and embrace this amazing technology tool.

I actually bought this at Best Buy at the end of July 2017 at a Black Friday in July Sale - plus I traded in a Samsung Tablet to get a bigger discount. After owning a couple of other Apple products and seeing how reliable they are, as well as Apple's customer support has always been a positive experience, I knew that buying this iPad Mini 4 was a good choice. Even though I am an Android phone user, I prefer to keep my music on a separate device. I prefer Apple over Android when it comes to my music and entertainment. I have an iPod Touch from about 2010 (and it still works), and I used that device a few times a week, especially to listen to music during a long commute. But after a few years, the battery would not hold a charge anymore and it needed to be plugged in constantly. I was considering getting another iPod touch, but the strange thing is Apple's pricing - for a while, the 128 GB iPod touch was the same price as the iPad Mini 4 128 GB - $399. That didn't make any sense, at all. Apple has since dropped the price of this iPod touch to $299 sometime later in 2017. It was a no-brainer decision here - I went for the iPad Mini 4. Build quality is great, something I know Apple is known for. The display is really incredible, The camera is pretty good, not the best, I won't split hairs, I know many people out there who will go into details about the camera, but it's good for casual or everyday pics. If people want a better camera then they can move up to one of the iPad Pro models or use their phones, as I would use my LG phone to get better pics. I am not a gamer, so even though I have several games on the IPM4 that are more mainstream and not the high-level or high-intensity games that people use to review performance - it works great for me. I realize 2GB of RAM is not the best, would have been great to see it bump up to at least 3GB. The one complaint - I wish the battery life was better. Now I bring the iPad Mini 4 when commuting, obviously a big upgrade from the iPod Touch, but much more portable than the larger iPad (I also own an iPad 3 with the 9.7" screen, which has stopped receiving updates around Oct 2016, but still works, it's just slowed down). For those of us who have phones with displays that are not mega-colossal it's great to have the iPad Mini 4 around, to use as a 2nd device, especially to use the Wi-Fi HotSpot feature. Per the title of this review, it's obvious that I don't like Galaxy Tablets. And I hope that the person/party responsible for posting my review will allow me to be honest but critical of Samsung based on my experience - and these additional reasons are relevant as to why I chose to come back to Apple. I used to own a Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4, got it for Christmas a few years back. Great tablet, loved it - had a beautiful display, was definitely fast enough, and I wanted to give it a try. But the issue with this Galaxy Tablet is that it started on KitKat, and Samsung never offered any update for the tablet past or beyond KitKat, not even to Lollipop. When I contacted Samsung's customer support earlier this year in 2017, both via online chat on the computer as well as calling phone support, I was told multiple times by Samsung technical support representatives that there would be an update for the Galaxy Tab Pro. This update was going to happen later on in the 2017 year, but all the reps that I communicated with could not give me a timeframe as to when this update would happen. Bottom line, Samsung threw us Tab Pro owners under the bus, by not offering an update to this tablet, and not only that, I was lied to multiple times by Samsung Customer reps. After doing some research I realized there were other ways to perform an update to the Galaxy Tablet by utilizing custom ROMs, but I didn't want to mess around with that. In Comparison -- the iPad 3 that I still have from 2012, I was able to update it for 4 years, from IOS 5.1 all the way till 9.3.5 . From my experience, there's a big difference between Apple and Samsung. Apple stands behind their products. Samsung on the other hand, from what I experienced is not worth my time or money anymore. I decided to use the Trade in Value for the Galaxy Tablet towards the purchase of the iPad Mini 4. I tried Samsung's Android Tablet, and the tablet itself was great, but I don't deal with companies like Samsung who not only don't support their customers but also lie to them. I realize there are other Android Tablets out there, and i would like to try another Android Tablet at some point, but for now I am sticking with Apple and the iPad Mini 4, and my non-Samsung Android phone.

Although the Ipad Mini 4 is starting to show its age (as of this writing it is over 2 years old which is ancient by technology standards), it is still a spectacular tablet. Gone are the lower storage capacities of 16 and 64 gb which used to cost $399 and $499 respectively. The only option is the top of the line 128 GB which back in the day cost $599. Despite it being on the market for quite some time, the current price of $399 (even less when on sale which is quite often makes this mini extremely attractive). The original 16 GB mini 4 only gave you about 11.8 GB after factoring all the preinstalled apps that come with it, which isnt a lot at all. Download a few games and movies and basically that's it. The 128 GB all but guarantees you'll never run out which I love since I download movies, games and take tons of pictures. The colors are beautiful and bright, the resolution is second to none and this mini will be more than enough for 99% of the people out there. I use mine for streaming videos, light game playing and email/surfing the internet. Yes this uses the older A8 processor but unless you're a die hard gamer, you won't need the Ipad Pro. To be honest I wanted the Pro 10.5 especially since it was on sale for 499 at Target, but I got this mini for 299.99 for 128 GB when the pro was only 32. Not to mention that within a year the Pro will be updated so you're spending all that money for an older product. I came from a mini 2 and this is a great upgrade. For the price I could not recommend it anymore! I love the size and how light it is (even lighter than the mini 2; less than 300 grams!) Sadly apple will not come out with a mini 5 as the demand for small tablets has dwindled with the popularity of phablets, so even though it is showing it's age, if you want one act quick (especially if it's on sale). You won't be disappointed! If this had the A10 processor found in the Pro, IMO this would be the best tablet on the market. Pros - can hold in one hand, light, beautiful colors and graphics, long battery life, price (got mine for 299), large storage size (128 gb), basically everything on this tablet is a pro except for the A8 Processor (which in it's defense is still pretty fast and more than enough for all but the hardcore gamers) Cons - Like previously mentioned the only "con" is that it still uses the A8 processor which is lightning quick compared to the Mini 2's processor. Still I can't help but wish this at least had the A9

I like iPad mini because it’s so easy to use. The iPad mini 4 is part of a dying breed of tablets. As phones become ginormous an 8 inch tablet doesn't make as much sense to many people anymore. However, if your phone is five to six inches or smaller an 8 inch tablet still serves a good purpose. It is bigger and more enjoyable to watch movies and play games on, and can still complement your cellular phone. Plus, the iPad mini 4 is considerably more portable than the regular sized iPad which isn't huge but is a bit cumbersome to carry with you on a regular basis. If you enjoy reading books in particular on a tablet or e-reader the iPad mini 4 is an excellent size for this purpose. It is incredibly light, while offering a super sharp screen with good color and contrast while having less reflection due to the lamination process used on the Mini 4. It is speedy enough for most everyone's needs, however it is not the fastest or the latest and greatest product from Apple. That being said, if you don't want to spend $600 on Apple's iPad Pro and or would like a tablet that is a bit easier to handle you can't go wrong with the iPad mini 4.

The Apple experience is the same across all platforms. If you're an Apple person or own other Apple products you know what you're getting into so it comes down to size. I enjoy the smaller tablet for holding and portability. The Mini's are renowned for their battery life and this is no exception. I typically go a week between charges which I find fantastic although it is not as good as my Gen 1 Mini. I attribute this to the higher resolution screen and better processor in the Gen 4 but I'm happy to make this trade off. This is not my primary device and used mostly for media consumption at home before and after work: YouTube, YouTubeTV, Netflix, Amazon Video, Vudu... While that is my primary use I do have all my other normal apps loaded and those work as expected too. If I had one real complaint is that the screen format. When watching widescreen video it crops quite a bit of the screen and for a 2:39:1 movies that means you have about a 3 inch band in the middle of actual screen and the rest is black bar. If you're a video watcher there are other tablets in the Android line that make better use of the screen real estate but NONE of them seem to handle bluetooth audio as well as Apple and it really irks me to watch something with audio out of sync like I'm watching a foreign film or something. So thats the compromise I have to accept, smaller watchable screen with fully sync'd audio. As of 12/17 the processor is still very good, no issues or slowness and it is running the latest iOS 11.1.2. This is my second Mini, I jumped from a Gen 1 to this Gen 4 and its not let me down. I'm sad to see the Mini line die off, guess I'll have to look at an Android 8" when I'm due for my next upgrade.

Overall I like the iPad mini. It's lightweight and ergonomic, I can comfortably type with two hands in portrait mode, which is not possible with the regular iPad. I haven't noticed any performance issues either, it's been responsive and stutter free in use. The iPad mini is more than just a blown up phone. Unlike smartphones, it typically allows you to access full versions of websites which for me makes web browsing much more enjoyable. Battery life is good as well. The iPad mini does have flaws though. When watching Netflix I noticed that the display will dim and brighten repeatedly. I don't have auto brightness on, apparently it's a bug that's been with the iPad for years and only goes away if you turn on a setting called 'assistive touch,' which then leaves a gray circle somewhere on the screen that you have to try and hide somewhere in the letterboxing. I haven't noticed this issue with youtube, but I did with youtube TV. Also, although I prefer the display ratio of the iPad for web browsing, when watching a video that is widescreen, about half the display is wasted with black bars. The display aside from that is nice, but it's definitely no OLED. The other issue I have is that when multitasking with 2 apps, you can only split the display vertically. That's fine in landscape mode, but in portrait mode you're left with a display area about 2 inches wide and 7 inches long. It's really weird that apple still hasn't better implemented this feature. Overall though the iPad mini is a good tablet, and it's become the device I use most both at home or on the go.

I love iPads. I've got three of them going back to an original and still working version 1 from shortly after they came out. I've also got three or four flavors of Android tablets, a couple of Kindles, and a pretty spiffy Asus Windows 10 two in one lap top with a detachable keyboard that works great as a tablet, but for certain tasks the iPad can't be beat. I use iPads almost exclusively for reading web pages and watching streaming video and it's perfect for that. What I hate is iTunes. Part of the reason I don't watch my own saved movies, or read my own saved books on an iPad is the infernal lengths I have to go to in order to transfer a single PDF from my computer to the iPad. I'm sure that some of this is me, but I'm not alone in this. My sister who lives and works in the figurative shadow of Apple's corporate HQ, and who is as Apple a person as I am not, loathes iTunes just as much as I do. Perhaps it's genetic :) Anyway, the mini itself is great. It's much smaller than my full size tablets obviously, but the screen is crisp and the size hasn't caused any problems with my stubby fingers using it. I haven't checked the specs on this one as compared to my older two but it's noticeably faster as I'd expect it would be. The extra memory - the other two are both pokey 16 GB device - is nice but I don't imagine I'll come close to needing it. I got it during one of the holiday sales at $299 which also makes me smile - though I'm sure by now that's the MSRP.