Apple iPad mini 4
Still a capable device, but £399 for three-year-old tech is hard to justify unless portability is your priority
SCORE PRICE £333 (£399 inc VAT) from apple.com/uk
Without wishing to sound ageist, the iPad mini 4 is now getting a little long in the tooth. You may be surprised to hear this model first appeared back in September 2015, back when Brexit was only a theoretical possibility. Can it really be worth almost £400 three years on?
In many ways, yes, because this was a high-quality product then and remains one now. In terms of screen quality, for example, the iPad 4 mini actually has an advantage over the latest version of the 9.7in iPad, as its Retina display is fully laminated and includes an anti-reflective coating, which helps to keep the display looking vibrant even in brighter outdoors conditions. The resolution of 2,048 x 1,536 equates to a super-sharp 326ppi too.
But while the screen hasn’t dated, the hardware inside has. The new iPad features the upgraded Fusion A10 processor, while the mini 4 is left with the older Fusion A8. This is reflected in the Geekbench 4 score of 1,694 in the single-core test and 3,058 in the multicore test, while a score of 15fps in the Manhattan benchmark is in the realm of mid-range Android devices rather than a modern iPad. Still, this performance is perfectly good for a device that’s geared around media consumption and light gaming.
The major benefit of the iPad mini 4, and the main reason to consider it over its larger siblings, is portability. It’s far easier to place in a bag or pocket than the bigger devices, so if taking your iPad on the move, to play games, watch movies or read books is your primary concern then it may suit you better than a 10in or larger tablet. The smaller size doesn’t mean lower build quality, either, because it still feels superbly engineered, despite the 6.1mm thickness and airy 299g weight.
The iPad mini 4 is now only available with 128GB of storage, which should be enough for most uses, but at £399 it sits in an awkward position. On one side, there’s a crowd of Android devices with broadly comparable performance and equally good screens, with the £299 Huawei MediaPad M5 8.4in being our top choice. On the other side, iOS fans can choose the superior 2018 iPad, which is only £10 more for the 128GB model.
As such, the choice to buy the iPad mini 4 will come down to whether you specifically want the smaller screen and are so invested in the Apple ecosystem that you’re willing to pay a premium for three-year old tech. Even then, it’s tempting to wait and see if Apple releases a higher-spec version. For everyone else, a cheaper Android device offers better value.