Apple iPad mini with Retina Display: Reviewed
by Anand Lal Shimpi on November 16, 2013 8:00 AM ESTCamera
The iPad mini with Retina Display features the same 5MP iSight rear facing camera and 1.2MP FaceTime HD camera as the iPad Air. Both are quite good for a tablet, aided by iOS’ excellent camera UI and the A7’s high performance ISP. The cameras also benefit from the same dual-mic setup of the iPad Air. I won’t talk too much about quality here as it’s no different than the Air, which I've already gone over in greater depth.
| Rear Facing Camera Comparison | |||||||
| Sensor | Resolution | Aperture | Focal Length | ||||
| Apple iPad Air | 5MP | 2592 x 1936 | f/2.4 | 3.3mm | |||
| Apple iPad 4 | 5MP | 2592 x 1936 | f/2.4 | 4.3mm | |||
| Apple iPad 3 | 5MP | 2592 x 1936 | f/2.4 | 4.3mm | |||
| Apple iPad 2,4 | 0.7MP | 960 x 720 | f/2.4 | 2.0mm | |||
| Apple iPad mini | 5MP | 2592 x 1936 | f/2.4 | 3.3mm | |||
| Apple iPad mini (Retina) | 5MP | 2592 x 1936 | f/2.4 | 3.3mm | |||
| Front Facing Camera Comparison | |||||||
| Sensor | Resolution | Aperture | Focal Length | ||||
| Apple iPad Air | 1.2MP | 1280 x 960 | f/2.4 | 2.15mm | |||
| Apple iPad 4 | 1.2MP | 1280 x 960 | f/2.4 | 2.18mm | |||
| Apple iPad 3 | 0.3MP | 640 x 480 | f/2.4 | 1.8mm | |||
| Apple iPad 2,4 | 0.3MP | 640 x 480 | f/2.4 | 1.8mm | |||
| Apple iPad mini | 1.2MP | 1280 x 960 | f/2.4 | 2.2mm | |||
| Apple iPad mini (Retina) | 1.2MP | 1280 x 960 | f/2.4 | 2.15mm | |||
WiFi & Cellular
The iPad mini with Retina Display inherits the same Qualcomm MDM9615 modem and 2-stream dual-band 802.11n from the iPad Air. The move to 2-stream 802.11n more or less doubles peak WiFi performance compared to last year’s mini. The mini's peak WiFi performance is pretty close to that of the iPad Air as well.
Lately I’ve really begun to appreciate the flexibility offered by tablets equipped with cellular modems. Especially now that it’s not terribly expensive to add a tablet to a shared data plan (or even free), the $130 LTE adder for the iPads is something worth seriously considering. The convenience of being able to pull out your tablet, wake it up, and immediately hop on the web/check email/tweet/etc… is awesome. Qualcomm's MDM9615 is a well known quantity at this point. I didn't run into any issues with its performance on the iPad mini.
| iPad Cellular Speeds | ||||||
| Property | iPhone 3G/3GS/iPad 1 3G | iPhone 4 / iPad 2 (GSM/UMTS) | iPhone 4 / iPad 2 (CDMA) | iPad 3 | iPad 4/iPad Mini | iPad Air/iPad Mini w/Retina |
| Baseband | Infineon X-Gold 608 | Infineon X-Gold 618 | Qualcomm MDM6600 | Qualcomm MDM9600 | Qualcomm MDM9615 w/RTR8600 |
Qualcomm MDM9615 w/WTR1605L |
| Max 3GPP Release Feature | Release 5 | Release 6 | Release 7 | Release 9 | Release 9 | Release 9 |
| HSDPA Category | Cat.8 - 7.2 Mbps | Cat.8 - 7.2 Mbps | N/A | Cat. 24 - 42 Mbps | Cat. 24 - 42 Mbps | Cat. 24 - 42 Mbps |
| HSUPA Category | None - 384 Kbps WCDMA only | Cat.6 - 5.76 Mbps | N/A | Cat.6 - 5.76 Mbps | Cat.6 - 5.76 Mbps | Cat.6 - 5.76 Mbps |
| EVDO | N/A | N/A | 1x/EVDO Rev.A | 1x/EVDO Rev.A | 1x/EVDO Rev.A | 1x/EVDO Rev.A |
| LTE | N/A | N/A | N/A | 100/50 UE Cat. 3 | 100/50 UE Cat. 3 | 100/50 UE Cat. 3 |
The new iPad mini, like the iPad Air, is extremely flexible from a mobile operator standpoint. Regardless of what operator you choose at the time of purchase, you can switch to others as long as you have an activated nano SIM (there’s apparently an exception for Sprint, but AT&T/T-Mobile/Verizon should all be easily switchable). The unlocked nature of the device makes it ripe for global use, especially with support for a total of 14 LTE bands (1,2,3,4,5,7,8,13,17,18,19,20,25 and 26).
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rake36 - Tuesday, November 19, 2013 - link
It costs less than half as much. Currently $239 for 32GB version...Walkop - Wednesday, November 27, 2013 - link
I'd like to comment that the Nexus 7 2013's power consumption on the display is incredibly low even at maximum brightness (which is extremely high, overall).1.7 watts. That's literally HALF the power consumption of the Retina Mini at max brightness, which is 32% dimmer than the Nexus 7. That alone is a massive gain; you should be able to use the Nexus 7 at maximum brightness much longer than the Mini. Not that this is a normal use case, but it IS good to know.
See here: http://www.displaymate.com/Tablet_ShootOut_4.htm
tigmd99 - Saturday, November 16, 2013 - link
Did you not read his last paragraph? Or are you just a blind Android fanboy?BPB - Saturday, November 16, 2013 - link
Yes, read it. No, not at all.I had to leave AT&T for work reasons so I had to give up my 920, which I loved. Have an HTC One and like it, but don't love it. I think too many Android apps are wanting, and I know in many cases the iOS version is better. My point is that this site's love for Apple knows no bounds. As soon as its founder switched it was all over, Apple could do no wrong. Yes, this is a nice device, no doubt. But the Nexus 7 is nice, and it's close to half the price. What does it take to simply admit that the 7 is probably the better buy for a person making a first time purchase? You pay 57% of what the mini costs! That's some deal in my mind, and yet I have no intention of buying either. I will probably get my daughter a Windows 8.1 tablet with good pen support so she can use OneNote, she is in college. My brother's family is all iOS, so I get them Apple related gifts. They're all good and have their strengths. But here, at this site, Apple is treated differently. If you don't think so just ask WP users.
tigmd99 - Saturday, November 16, 2013 - link
Why must he address every possibility or buying option? He stated that N7 is a very good alternative and cheaper. What do you want him to say? That it is superior in every way to iPad Mini? That would be stupid, no?A7 is far superior to Nexus 7 processor...far superior. App store, customer service, HD movies, etc. are better in iOS. (I have both at home, Note 2, Nexus 7 [2012], iPhones.) Do these things make up for the price difference? Well, only the end-user can determine that, which is kinda what Anandtech wrote.
Be fair.
Tetracycloide - Saturday, November 16, 2013 - link
Because addressing the single most competitive alternative is 'addressing every option.' Please...KPOM - Saturday, November 16, 2013 - link
My guess is that people considering an iPad mini aren't looking at Windows 8.1 devices. They are targeted more toward the iPad Air buyer. The Nexus 7 and Amazon Kindle HDX are the two devices most comparable to the iPad mini.kyuu - Saturday, November 16, 2013 - link
There are 8-inch Win8.1 tabs that are cheaper than the iPad Mini. Only reason someone wouldn't look at them is out of ignorance.abazigal - Saturday, November 16, 2013 - link
The reason I wouldn't consider windows tablets is simply because they don't meet my needs at all.Why would I want a 16:9 tablet running a desktop OS with apps still sporting a desktop UI?
sirfergy - Sunday, November 17, 2013 - link
The Dell is 16:10, <$299 and amazing. Full PC plus excellent touch experience.