Why Apple Needs To Make The iPad Mini 7!

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I’m not going to quote any iPad mini 7 rumours today because prior experience with that particular line of rumour mill rumbling is that it is basically never true. Ever.

Regardless, I’m pretty sure Apple is working on an iPad mini 7 release for 2024. They have to be, right? It would be rude not to, wouldn’t it? Daft, even.

Surely.

Come on, Tim.

Much of my demand for the iPad mini 7 is entirely selfish. The current iteration of the iPad mini is a product that has helped me build a significant following within the tech review space, and mine is slowly dying a battery-influenced death.

So, if you’re going to do it for anyone, Tim, do it for me.

Here are a few reasons we need an iPad mini 7 for everyone, though. Just in case my plea doesn’t swing the vote.

They’ll (probably) never make a foldable phone

I’ve recently switched full-time to the Samsung Galaxy Fold6 and I love it. It’s not perfect, by any means; that front display is still too narrow for anything beyond social media doom scrolling and quick text messages, and the crease (although far less visible) will continue to annoy people.

The Fold6 is also biblically expensive, not least because the technology still isn’t widely adopted. It presumably takes up a significant chunk of Samsung’s R&D budget, hence the desire to claw back as much of it as possible.

Apple is no stranger to selling expensive products, but Tim and co. aren’t particularly keen on selling stuff that features design-led compromises. A crease of any kind just wouldn’t do for them, and the idea that the user experience would suffer in any way because of the form factor is a huge no-no.

Despite this, there’s something rather lovely about having access to a display size that sits somewhere between a large smartphone and a regular-sized tablet. At the moment, that’s the space occupied by the iPad mini. A foldable iPhone would probably cannibalise Apple’s tiny tablet, but in the absence of that eventuality, the latter must reign supreme in that size class.

It has a loyal fanbase

iPad mini videos for YouTube channels like mine ‘absolutely slap’, as the kids would say (this essentially means that they perform very well, consistently). More tellingly, they bring in a huge wave of engagement from people who have been long-term advocates of Apple’s smallest iPad.

Most of those people will also express their desire to see the next version of the iPad mini. When will it come out? Are the rumours true? Which chip will Apple put in it? It’s not going to die like the iPhone 13 mini is it? Please god, tell me that isn’t true.

Etc.

Apple has built its monolithic success off the back of such product and brand devotion. The iPad mini sits with the Mac mini, MacBook Air, and iPhone when it comes to the fiercely loyal fanbase it attracts.

That fanbase needs serving because its patience will fade eventually.

The only thing to bear in mind is that the iPhone 13 mini had a similarly loyal fanbase. And look what happened to that little beauty.

I still use mine all the time

Ok, back to the selfish reasons.

I still use my iPad mini daily. This is for note-taking purposes, referencing stuff, and for reading from bullet points during the filming of my YouTube videos. The latter is the most common use case, and while I could indeed use my 11-inch M4 iPad Pro for the task, there’s just something so accessible about the iPad mini. It’s never a hassle of any kind.

The iPad mini 6 remains the iPad that I’ve used most consistently and for the longest period – and it should be noted that I’ve owned or had access to every iPad that has been released over the last four years.

As a tech reviewer who constantly has new gear dropping onto his desk, the ability of a tablet that was made in 2021 to still be so relied upon in my business is a testament to how brilliantly capable it is. I can’t think of any other piece of technology in my studio that has achieved the same feat.

Smart Script is coming

I’ve been testing the public beta version of iPadOS 18 on my iPad Pro and there’s one feature with which I immediately fell in love – Smart Script.

For the uninitiated, this is where iPadOS learns how you conduct your handwriting and retrospectively makes it look better – as you write. It uses machine learning trickery to do this, and the effect is mesmerising.

It doesn’t completely change your handwriting or make it perfect. Smart Script just gently straightens letters, removes lazy strokes, and makes everything a bit more legible.

For someone like yours truly who has horrendous handwriting, Smart Script is a dream to use. I noted earlier that one of the main use cases for my iPad mini is as a note-taking device, but I’m often inclined to reach for the keyboard instead, simply because I hate my handwriting so much.

Smart Script, combined with the iPad mini, is going to be a match made in heaven later this year. It feels tailor-made for this brilliant little device.

The iPad lineup would be even more confusing without it

The current iPad lineup needs a fair bit of explaining if you have a relative who wants to buy a new tablet.

There’s the iPad Pro at the top end, which is very closely followed by the iPad Air, which in turn has the regular – formerly the 10th-generation – iPad biting at its heels. Below that, sits the iPad mini.

The iPad mini is the only device in the current lineup which can’t be cannibalised by any of its siblings, simply because it has such a unique form factor. You can’t buy a mini version of the Pro, the Air, or the regular iPad, but you can work yourself into one hell of a muddle figuring out which one to buy if the mini isn’t for you.

The iPad mini isn’t cheap, but it ticks boxes immediately for the right user base, and those people are consequently left with a very simple buying experience. Take the iPad mini away, and yet more confusion will reign.

It CAN be a little laptop

I know some people aren’t keen on the iPad being described as a laptop replacement, but it is for some buyers. Combine it with a Magic Keyboard (or a third-party option like the brilliant Logitech Combo Touch) and it will mirror most of what you can do on a MacBook.

I’m confident there’s a significant audience for this type of setup. Whenever I mention my desire to see a mini Magic Keyboard for the iPad mini, YouTube commenters back me up (among the raft of ‘woah, that’s a stupid idea” comments, of course).

That’s the extent of my audience research, I’m afraid, but a hunch is often enough in tech. I would dearly love the ability to turn my iPad mini into a little writing machine without the need for third-party keyboard solutions which are often ingenious but always fall slightly short of what Apple could do with an official accessory.

Wrapping up: is the iPad mini 7 coming?

I genuinely think it is. We’re coming on for three years since the iPad mini 6 was released but that doesn’t mean it’s curtains for Apple’s diminutive tablet. They’ve waited this long before to update a product on multiple occasions.

The big question is what Apple will do with it. What chip will be inside? What type of display will it have? What upgrades will be made over the iPad mini 6? How expensive will it be – or will we see a price reduction?

I don’t have answers to these questions, obviously, and I’m past trying to second-guess Apple on this stuff. But what I do know is that we need a new iPad mini in 2024. 

It’s time, Tim.

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