Apple iPad mini with Retina Display: Reviewed
by Anand Lal Shimpi on November 16, 2013 8:00 AM ESTBattery Life
Thanks to the mini’s integrated 23.8Wh battery (and the low idle power of the 28nm A7), the Retina Display’s power consumption is more than offset. Battery life in all of our tests is at worst unchanged from the mini, but at best we’re talking about a 21% increase.
Our web browsing test shows a 10% improvement compared to the original iPad mini. The new mini with Retina Display can even last longer than a 4th generation iPad, and it’s hot on the heels of the iPad Air (I'll be updating this section with LTE and LTE hotspot results).
Video playback is where we see the biggest improvement compared to the original mini. Here the new iPad mini lasts 21% longer on a single charge, once again outlasting even the iPad 4. The iPad Air doesn’t offer any appreciable gain in battery life over the Retina mini.
Our 3D battery life test is the only one where the old mini manages to beat the new Retina model. With a 1.31% margin of victory though, it’s pretty safe to say that for current 3D gaming workloads you’ll see similar battery life out of the Retina mini as the old model. This is also the only test where the iPad Air delivers better battery life on a single charge (~11%).
Apple ships the Retina mini with a 10W USB charger and lightning cable. This appears to be the same charger as what shipped with the 3rd generation iPad (but obviously with a different cable). Using the newer 12W charger from the iPad 4/Air has no impact on charge time as the mini still only draws a maximum of 11.7W at the wall (compared to 13.8W for the iPad Air).
The iPad mini with Retina Display completes a charge from 0 to 100% in a sliver under 4 hours. That’s a little quicker than the iPad Air, and similar to the original mini with its 5W charger.
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CaptainStereo - Friday, November 22, 2013 - link
Why don't the Apple haters just type out their same old gripes so they can just copy/paste to the comments section of every single Apple article they read. It would save them time, and give them more time to sit and stew and think about how much they hate Apple. Just a thought. Why whine about Apple's prices? Pick up an iPad or iPhone and then any Android product that isn't an HTC One. There is a reason it costs more, even if you disagree with the exact 'premium' they charge. Apple is in the business of building hardware, designing software, and selling those products into the marketplace. When the market for their products at the prices they ask goes away, then perhaps they'll take everyone's well-considered advice and revise their pricing strategy. Oh, and they are not a non-profit organization. They're in business to make money. Everyone seems so angry at them, just wanted to be sure everyone understood that making money is in fact exactly what they're in business for. It's what every business is for. The beauty of the world is that you can make money by following your passions and making products for others who share those passions and earn your living doing so.fantamic - Monday, December 2, 2013 - link
"Why don't the Apple haters just type out their same old gripes so they can just copy/paste to the comments section of every single Apple article they read."What makes you think that they don't?
stevon - Tuesday, December 17, 2013 - link
There are much better apps available for iPad. It's not even close in that category.Whodathunkthat - Monday, March 10, 2014 - link
Not sure what you say isn't availble - Jeppesen has all those apps for android, as well as access to the stones and hendrix.So, somehow you are confused.
glenux - Thursday, May 1, 2014 - link
Since the chips on the iPhone 5s and the iPad mini are exactly the same,do you ever see Apple making an iPhone out of an iPad mini?
The iPhone screen is still too small for my vision.