Apple is expected to update at least one of the iPads in its range in the coming weeks, the iPad mini. But when, exactly, and what about the regular iPad, currently in its tenth-generation? A new report claims an exact date when the mini might go on sale—Friday, Nov. 1—but is tantalizingly silent about the other iPad.
Apple iPad mini sixth-generation.
Apple is working on “updated iPads and M4 Macs,” along with other products, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman in his latest Power On newsletter.
Despite listing iPads in the plural, Gurman says that this year we’ll probably only see one new model, the iPad mini. He also says that refreshed versions of the iPad Air will go on sale next year.
The iPad mini is certainly due a refresh, as the current sixth-generation model debuted in September 2021. But the regular iPad, now in its 10th-generation manifestation, isn’t much newer, having landed in October 2022. This was the first time the regular iPad didn’t have a Touch ID home button on the front, moving it instead to the side button, where it sits on the iPad Air and iPad mini.
But back in May when the company released new iPad Air and iPad Pro models, it left the iPad untouched in all ways but one: the price. Apple simplified the range by canceling the ninth-generation iPad, which was the only remaining Apple product with a circular Touch ID button apart from the iPhone SE. At the same time, it cut the price of the 10th-gen model hugely, from the original $449 price to just $349.
This left some people, myself included, to wonder if Apple would introduce an iPad 11th-generation this fall at a similar price, easing the 10th-gen into retirement. Perhaps, given the size of the price cut, this was unlikely.
And certainly Gurman, when he goes into an extensive list of what’s coming between now and next June carefully leaves the iPad out of his calculations. This is a surprising, extraordinary strategy for Apple, and the will make the time between releases of the regular iPad the longest-ever.
This leaves the mini. This is probably going to see a significant processor bump, to make it capable of Apple Intelligence. This probably means the A17 Pro, A18 or (less likely) A18 Pro.
Which will leave the regular iPad as the only model in the current range that’s not capable of Apple Intelligence. This surprises me, as Apple is keen to push the importance of Apple Intelligence. I wonder if Apple has a surprise up its sleeve and when the new mini is announced, it will also upgrade the iPad processor to A17 Pro, making it compatible with Apple Intelligence.
iPad mini: Release Date
Gurman says the release date for the iPad mini looks likely to be Friday, Nov. 1 with an announcement “around the end of October.” As I predicted previously, I believe this will probably mean an unveiling on Monday, Oct. 28. More as we have it.