The upcoming iPad mini 4 will be the smallest the line-up has seen, equivalent to a miniaturized version of the iPad Air 2, according to a new design render video shared by uSwitch and Nowhereelse.fr's OnLeaks channel. The render gives the iPad mini 4 a thickness of 6.1mm, the same as the iPad Air 2, and less than the current 7.5mm thickness of the iPad mini 3.

ipad mini 4 render
The design render video backs up a part of a previous rumor that claimed the next iPad mini would adopt the slimmer form factor of the current line-up of iPad Air models, alongside the Air's 8-megapixel rear-facing iSight camera and a fully laminated display with anti-reflective coating. Today's report gives no news on the iPad mini 4's internal upgrades, nor its camera or display changes, but Apple will undoubtedly aim to make the new generation of mini a bit more substantial than the simple addition of Touch ID that was introduced with last year's model.


Apple is expected to reveal the new line-up of iPads at the next major company keynote, rumored as of now to be taking place on September 9. Alongside the iPad mini and iPad Air, the company is likely to showcase the so-called "iPhone 6s" and "iPhone 6s Plus" at the event, and possibly even finally reveal the next-generation Apple TV set-top box.

Related Roundup: iPad mini
Buyer's Guide: iPad Mini (Caution)
Related Forum: iPad

Top Rated Comments

Alenore Avatar
100 months ago
iPhone 6S Rumored to Be Smaller Version iPhone of iPhone 6S Plus.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Brian Y Avatar
100 months ago
I wish they'd do what they did with the Mini 2 - have it as a smaller version of the current "big" iPad. I don't see the need for the spec difference.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
639051 Avatar
100 months ago
I wish they'd do what they did with the Mini 2 - have it as a smaller version of the current "big" iPad. I don't see the need for the spec difference.
The Air 2 is quite the machine though. Normally I would wait to buy whatever the latest is but I found a resale Air 2 for a good price and jumped on it for my wife. My Air 2 is fantastic .. 3 core CPU + 2GB RAM, I don't see what more APple is going to add to the next one to make it worth while paying full price.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BMcCoy Avatar
100 months ago
This is clearly what should have been released last year, instead of the somewhat insulting Mini3, with only TouchID as an update over the Mini2.

However, the evolution of the Mini has never fitted with expectation - the Mini2 was a huge jump from the first Mini release, and carried with it all the same spec as the Ipad Air released at the same time.. A7 chip, etc (although for nitpickers the screen carried a higher density/ppi than the Air, to fit in the same number of pixels in a smaller size screen, but a fractionally lower colour gamut.)
So perhaps they gave the Mini2 too much? And the Mini3 just sort of balanced it out.. holding back some features until this year.. et voila, the Mini4.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
0815 Avatar
100 months ago
iPhone 6S Rumored to Be Smaller Version iPhone of iPhone 6S Plus.
But the big difference is that iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S+ are the same and latest generation where as the iPad 4 mini will be one generation behind for its internal features compared to the latest model of iPad Air (at the time of its release).
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
unobtainium Avatar
100 months ago
iPhone 6S Rumored to Be Smaller Version iPhone of iPhone 6S Plus.
The iPad Air 2 will be "last generation" by the time this is released.

Therefore, iPhone 6s/6s+ is not an equivalent analogy. Nor is the current iPad mini 3/iPad Air 2 lineup an equivalent analogy. That is why this story is newsworthy.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

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