Apple has launched its new range of tablets , including an updated version of its smaller tablet: the all-new iPad mini with Retina display, the second-generation iPad mini.
To be clear: this is not yet a full review of the iPad mini with Retina display. We hope to have a full iPad mini with Retinia display review by the end of the week. In the mean time we'll let you know everything you need to know right now about Apple's brand new little iPad with a big set of features, based on the announcement and hands on time with the device. For more information check out our other stories Apple iPad mini Retina price in the UK, Apple iPad mini with Retina display: specs and release date UK and Apple unveils iPad Air and iPad mini 2.
See also: Apple iPad mini 2 Retina vs iPad mini comparison review.
iPad mini 2 review: Screen
One of the major talking points with any new tablet launched is ‘what is the screen like?' The first-generation iPad mini's display was a bit of an embarrassment for Apple, considering that the company likes to market itself as a premium tech brand. The all important pixels per inch is simply way too small by modern terms, measuring in at just 162ppi. Especially when you consider that budget tablets such as the Nexus 7, Tesco Hudl and Kindle Fire HD all boast better pixel specs.
The iPad mini with Retina display takes care of this issue. As you might expect with that name. The resolution of the new iPad mini is 2048x1536 pixels. That's a quadrupling of the original iPad mini's resolution, and as it's the same 7.9-inch size as before, that equates to a healthy pixel density of 326ppi.
Keeping the resolution the same as other iPad Retina displays means apps can be identical across the iPad 3, 4, new Air and new iPad mini. It's an impressive upgrade.
After going hands on with the new iPad mini, Karen Haslam, Macworld UK editor told us: "Before you turn it on the new iPad mini looks a lot like the old iPad mini, but once you see the screen you'll appreciate the difference thanks to the Retina display.
"Apple was using the Auto CAD app as a great example to show off the 3D capabilities of the new iPad mini with Retina. They were also able to demonstrate zooming in to see the fine detail in one of the designs, something that might have been lost in a blur on the old iPad mini.
"We watched the new iPhoto iOS app at work as beautiful images were edited to look even more beautiful using sliders that I think even my Dad will be able to master."
Great news for Karen's Dad, and the rest of us!
iPad mini 2 review: Design
Not much has changed in terms of dimensions or design. Why mess with a winning formula? But the new iPad mini with Retina display is very slightly thicker than the original mini, at 7.5mm versus 7.2mm. That's understandable. The weight gain, not so much. And I write as one who knows a thing or two about weight gain.
The Wi-Fi iPad mini with Retina display weighs 331g (23g heavier) while the Wi-Fi + Cellular model gains 29g over the previous equivalent iPad mini.
It's doubtful the extra mass will be that noticeable, and the early suggestion from editors who have played with the iPad mini suggest asmuch. But viewed against the iPad Air's weight-loss regime, it seems the team couldn't shave off any tenths of a millimetre here and there to even retain the same weight as before.
On this, Karen said: "It still feels lighter than the iPad Air which now weighs in at 478g rather than 613g for the 3G model." The extra weight isn't a problem.
In line with the new iPhone 5s, the iPad mini with Retina display is available in white or Space Grey. A new Smart Cover and Smart Case has been launched in various colours - both fit the old and new iPad mini models. But in general apart from the colours the new iPad mini looks much like its predecessor. See also: iPad Air 5th generation release date, specs and new features.
iPad mini 2 review: Performance, specification
The original iPad mini was underpowered slightly, but the iPad mini with Retina display shares the same A7 chip that's also inside the new iPad Air. That means it's a 64-bit device, which makes it more future-proof than if it had stuck with a 32-bit processor. It also gets the M7 motion coprocessor.
As usual, Apple offered no extra details such as the amount of RAM but this is of little consequence: the second-gen iPad mini is bound to live up to Apple's claims of being four times faster.
Gamers should appreciate the fact that the new mini will be up to 8x faster in the graphics department, so next-gen titles should play and look just as great as they do on the iPad Air. We await our test results with confidence that the new iPad mini with Retina display will be a swift mover (and it's not as though the original *feels* underpowered).
Alas there's no major change in the camera department, with a 5Mp iSight snapper on the rear (capable of 1080p video) and an improved FaceTime HD webcam on the front - likely the same unit that the iPhone 5C received.
There's good news if you like to keep vast libraries of music, videos and photos on your iPad as capacities range from 16GB to 128GB. As ever, this isn't expandable. All you can do is buy a wireless hard drive if that's not enough (or use cloud storage and stream content).
You get new dual-antenna Wi-Fi and support for MIMO which Apple says doubles the theoretical transfer speed compared to the original iPad mini (300Mbps versus 150Mbps). There's also Bluetooth 4.0 and only the cellular version (which supports more LTE bands than ever) has a GPS receiver as normal. See also: MacBook Pro features, specification, UK release date.
