Apple's new fifth-generation iPad mini and resurrected iPad Air were announced this morning, and both of the new tablets are equipped with Apple's latest A12 Bionic processors, initially introduced in the 2018 iPhones.
The first Geekbench benchmark of one of the new iPad models (11,2) surfaced shortly after Apple's announcement, confirming a 2.49GHz clock speed, identical to the iPhone's clock speed. The benchmarked iPad also features 3GB RAM, 1GB less than the iPad Pro and 1GB more than the 9.7-inch iPad. 3GB RAM is also the amount of RAM in the iPhone XR, while the XS and XS Max feature 4GB.
At this point in time, we don't know if iPad 11,2 is an iPad mini 5 or a 10.5-inch iPad Air, but given the similarity in specs between the two tablets, we suspect that both models are using the same clock speed and RAM.
The iPad 11,2 earned a single-core Geekbench score of 4806 and a multi-core score of 11607, which, unsurprisingly, is right on par with iPhone Geekbench results, though a bit faster, perhaps due to improvements in iOS 12.2.
While the iPad Air and the iPad mini 5 appear to feature similar specs and may include the same amount of RAM, we'll need to wait for further Geekbench scores to confirm. We'll update this post when more information is available.
The new iPad Air and the iPad mini 5 are both available for purchase from Apple today and will arrive to customers at the end of March. The iPad Air, which features a 10.5-inch Retina display, Touch ID, a headphone jack, and Apple Pencil support, is priced starting at $499 for 64GB storage.
The fifth-generation iPad mini with a 7.9-inch Retina display, Apple Pencil support, Touch ID, 8-megapixel rear camera, and a headphone jack is priced starting at $399 for 64GB storage.
Top Stories
Apple's 2020 MacBook Air vs. 2020 iPad Pro
New Low-Cost 'iPhone SE' Could Launch as Soon as Tomorrow
Zoom Accused of Misleading Users With 'End-to-End Encryption' Claims Amid Other Security Issues [Updated]
AirTags Referenced in New Apple Support Video
Intel Unveils 10th-Gen Processors Suitable for Next 16-Inch MacBook Pro With Wi-Fi 6 and Turbo Boost Speeds Above 5GHz
Apple Acquires Weather App Dark Sky
Apple Adding Some 2013 and 2014 MacBook Air and MacBook Pro Models to Vintage Products List at End of April
Apple Paid Hacker $75,000 for Uncovering Zero-Day Camera Exploits in Safari
iPhone 8 Screen Protector Updated With 'iPhone SE' Compatibility on Apple's Online Store
Top Rated Comments
(View all)Edited: Although they are clocked the same, the A12 in the iPad likely has a better thermal solution than an iPhone and would have better sustained performance.
If it's the same A12 + (pseudo) 3 GB DRAM setup as in the XR, then it's NOT a true 3 GB DRAM device !
What did I just read? What do you mean it doesn’t “act like a 3GB device”? That makes no sense at all.Specifically, the XR does NOT act like a true 3 GB DRAM device ! ... that has been proven !
However, many won't notice the issue since neither the new 10.5" Air or 7.9" mini include a 12 Mpx image sensor ... specifically here, for those who don't know, a sufficient amount of DRAM is required when capturing Full-Res 12 Mpx photos ... this is where most will notice the Diff between 2 GB vs 3 GB vs 4 GB.
Both of the new iPads include the same set of cameras, 8 Mpx on the Back, & 7 Mpx on the Front ... so, 3 GB is ok with both.
I believe AAPL learned from their XR mistake.
The XR would have been fine with 4 GB of DRAM, but is a Dog / Performance Lemon with it's current (pseudo) 3 GB DRAM setup.
Few in the General Public know this.
Why is everyone so obsessed with ram on this forum? Even Apple doesn’t advertise it
Because it affects someone's personal usage (e.g. multi-tasking, multi-tab Safari, etc)?