A product listing for the Retina iPad mini with a release date of November 21 has appeared on Target.com, suggesting Apple's new tablet could make its debut on the Thursday before Thanksgiving. Thus far, Apple has not provided a prospective release date for its iPad mini with Retina Display, offering up only broad November launch plans.
While the November 21 launch date listed on the Target website could be a simple guess by the company, it is a logical release day for the tablet because it falls before Thanksgiving and more importantly, before Black Friday, which is a major shopping holiday in the United States.
A late November launch also gives Apple an opportunity to focus its attention on the iPad Air for the majority of the month. It is unclear, however, why Apple would choose to launch the Retina mini on a Thursday, as product releases typically fall on a Friday.
Apple's Retina iPad mini, which includes an A7 processor, is said to be in very short supply. According to a recent report, stock of the Retina iPad mini will be "ridiculously tight" until early 2014.
Though supplies of the Retina mini will be low, Apple is said to have a large quantity of iPad Airs available for purchase, which will likely alleviate some of the demand for the smaller tablet. Apple's iPad Air will go on sale this Friday, with online orders beginning at 12:01 AM in the United States and at varying times in other countries.
Wednesday October 1, 2025 1:26 pm PDT by Joe Rossignol
iOS 26 was released last month, but the software train never stops, and iOS 26.1 beta testing is already underway. So far, iOS 26.1 makes both Apple Intelligence and Live Translation on compatible AirPods available in additional languages, and it includes some other minor changes across Apple Music, Calendar, Photos, and Safari.
More features and changes will follow in future versions,...
Apple is entering its most significant leadership transition in more than a decade as multiple senior executives prepare to depart and CEO Tim Cook begins to shape the company's next generation of leaders, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
In the latest edition of his "Power On" newsletter, Gurman explained that Jeff Williams, who was viewed as Cook's potential successor for several...
Monday October 6, 2025 11:56 am PDT by Juli Clover
With the second beta of iOS 26.1, Apple updated the design of alarms set on the iPhone, making them harder to dismiss than before.
Stopping an alarm in iOS 26.1 beta 2 requires a new Slide to Stop gesture rather than a simple tap. You can continue to tap to snooze an alarm, but if you want to turn it off entirely, you need to use a swipe.
Transitioning from a tap to a slide gesture to...
Saturday October 4, 2025 8:19 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
Apple's website offers a list of nearly 200 new features and changes (PDF file) included in the software update, released last month.
Apple also shared equivalent lists for iPadOS 26 and macOS Tahoe.
iOS 26 is compatible with the iPhone 11 and newer. To install the update, open the Settings app on your iPhone, tap on General, and tap on Software Update.
Below, we have highlighted eight ...
Monday October 6, 2025 5:05 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
A new iPad mini is "absolutely" on the way, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. So what should we expect from the successor to the iPad mini 7 that Apple released a year ago?
Processor and Performance
Apple is working on a next-generation version of the iPad mini (codename J510/J511) that features the A19 Pro chip, according to information found in code that Apple mistakenly shared in...
After launching new iPhones last month, Apple is promoting iCloud+ with a prominent banner on its home page, in a bid to boost its services revenue. In addition to more storage, all iCloud+ plans include five perks for iPhone users.
As a refresher, iCloud includes 5GB of storage for free. If you want extra storage, you need to subscribe to an iCloud+ plan. In the United States, prices range...
Apple released the second beta of iOS 26.1 and iPadOS 26.1, introducing useful changes to alarms, multitasking on the iPad, and more. There are also subtle tweaks to some of the Liquid Glass design elements as Apple continues to refine iOS 26.
Alarms and Timers
Alarms set using the Clock app now have a slide to stop button rather than a tap to stop button on the Lock Screen. To snooze an...
On the latest episode of The Verge's Decoder podcast, Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe told guest host Joanna Stern why the EV maker continues to pass on Apple's CarPlay — both the standard version and the more advanced CarPlay Ultra.
Echoing his previous comments on the matter, Scaringe said Rivian is focused on offering a "seamless digital experience," where customers do not need to switch between...
The next iPad Pro models are rumored to feature two key upgrades, including Apple's M5 chip, and an increased minimum of 12GB of RAM.
Last week, apparent unboxing videos for the next-generation 13-inch iPad Pro were uploaded to YouTube by Russian channels Wylsacom and Romancev768.
The same YouTube channels leaked the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M4 chip before it was announced by Apple...
It's been a hard choice but I think that the easiest way to differentiate the iPad Air from the iPad mini has been obvious all along. Focus on your main use.
Mostly using it for consumption stuff like browsing, reading books, light app use? iPad mini is more portable, easier to hold longer and carry around. Using an iPad for work, need to type often or draw on its screen? The larger screen on the iPad Air is better for work, specially if you plan on using it as a laptop replacement.
Content consumption versus production is the key to the choice between the Air versus the mini. It's not a flawless method but it's very useful.
I've replaced my MacBookPro 17" with a top spec iMac 27" and was looking at a MacBookAir for mobile use but have held off because of a hunch that the iPad would get powerful enough by this generation to run desktop class apps. I wasn't wrong: iLife and iWork are now featured matched to the Mac, Logic has its companion app and Aperture is a good candidate for one as well. I think that an iPad Air can fulfill the role of a MacBookAir for most practical purposes.
iPad is a consumption device plain and simple. (...)
The Air is great, but not for productivity!
Tell that to all the doctors, farmers, airline pilots, on site engineers, photographers, musicians, store/cafe/restaurant/food truck/name-a-small-business owners who depend on iPads to make their work easier and better performing each and every day.
iPads have grown to replace laptops for many professionals. If there are outdated websites that don't run on webkit, then they either need to catch up or find themselves replaced by competing products.
As a photographer, I will use an iPad in the studio in a client's hands as I shoot so they can see the results instantly and make suggestions. I will use an iPad in the field, making quick edits for use on my client's social media and for backing JPGs to my Dropbox. If Aperture X does for iPad what Logic X did, in the studio, I will use an iPad to quickly control the heads up display sliders and curve graphs via touch to make it so much faster to optimize a photograph.
I am actually switching from a mini to an air for this release cycle. I love my mini but I have always said an 'in between' would be perfect for me. So I am picking up an iPad Air Friday. If it is still too big for my needs, my wife will hopefully appreciate her Christmas present of a nice slightly used Air! The delay of the release helped push me over the edge into trying this new slimmer model.
