Apple said to be launching a new 8.4-inch iPad mini in March with thinner bezels

iPad mini 5
iPad mini 5 (Image credit: iMore)

What you need to know

  • A new, larger 8.4-inch screen with smaller bezels is said to be coming to iPad mini this March.

Apple will release a new iPad mini as soon as March according to a new report. More interestingly, the report claims that the screen will grow to 8.4 inches while the bezels shrink.

The report, courtesy of Macotakara, claims that the new tablet will continue to offer Touch ID via the Home button and a Lightning port, but with smaller bezels than we're used to. That, presumably, will allow the iPad mini to remain the same physical size while still getting a larger display.

Via Google Translate

According to the Chinese suppliers, the next iPad mini (6th Generation), which will be released in March, going to replace from previous 7.9-inch display To an 8.4-inch display.It's a narrow frame like iPad Air (3rd generation), and the design goes with iPad (9th Generation), which continues to use Touch ID and Lightning port.

Apple's iPad mini last saw some attention back in 2019 when it received a new A12 Bionic processor. There's no indication in this new report as to what chip Apple will put in this new version, but we can expect a decent increase in performance from whatever is used.

Often neglected in Apple's lineup, iPad mini is a great little tablet for kids. I for one would love to see it get some love this year and if that happens to be March, that's all the better.

Oliver Haslam
Contributor

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.