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Apple Overhauls iPad mini with 8.5-inch OLED and A20 Pro, Adds Water Resistance, Starting at ¥119,800

DevicesOctober 27, 20261 min read

Apple has announced a big redesign of the iPad mini. It has a bigger 8.5-inch OLED screen, a new A20 Pro chip, and water and dust resistance for the first time in the series.

Apple launches a redesigned iPad mini

On October 26 (US time), Apple announced a new iPad mini. The old LCD screen is replaced with an 8.5-inch OLED screen, which is a type of display where each pixel makes its own light. The tablet is thinner and lighter. It is also the first iPad mini that can survive water and dust. Pre-orders in Japan start October 29, and sales begin November 6. The Wi-Fi model starts at 119,800 yen.

Key facts and numbers

Screen: 8.5 inches, up from the old size, with the frame (bezel) 24% thinner
Peak brightness: up to 1,200 nits, more than twice the old model
Thickness: 5.4 mm, 14% thinner than before
Weight: 255 g for Wi-Fi and 263 g for Cellular, the lightest iPad
Water rating: IP67, can handle 1 m deep for up to 30 minutes

What is new inside

The new A20 Pro chip is made with Apple's latest 2-nanometer process, which packs more tiny parts into a small space. The tablet also gets Apple's own N1 wireless chip and a new C2 modem for faster mobile data. Apple says the new iPadOS 27 brings a new Siri AI that can understand your mail, messages, and what is on screen. The Japanese version of Siri AI will be in beta on iPadOS 27.2.

Why it matters

Apple calls this its biggest iPad mini update ever. A larger screen in the same body size, plus water resistance, makes the small tablet more useful for reading, drawing, and everyday use. The new AI features also show Apple's push to make its devices smarter.

What to watch

Reviews of the screen quality and battery life after sales start on November 6
How well the Siri AI beta works in Japanese
Whether the iPadOS 27.2 external display mode arrives on time

Glossary

OLED: A screen type where each tiny dot makes its own light, so blacks look deeper and the screen can be thinner.
A20 Pro: Apple's newest chip for this iPad mini, the brain that runs apps and AI tasks.
Siri AI: A new, smarter version of Apple's voice assistant Siri that can understand personal information and screen content.

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