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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akdj - Sunday, November 17, 2013 - link
Sirfergy....YOU were the 'one' that actually bought the Dell. I was wondering...because they sure ain't selling! Lol...that isn't an 'amazing' tablet by any stretch. It's cheaply made, feels like it's cheaply made, lacks any sort of Eco system or app development community, and 16:10 couldn't be a worse format for using in portrait, reading a book, surfing, etc. Anand's comments to wrap it up, mentioning both the Nex7 and the HDx in the article are excellent recommendations if iOS isn't your thing. That Dell is a bad joke. If Windows is hour thing, last year's Surface at a $150 discount (299-349) is a significantly better buy...or, if you can swing the $500, the Surface 2 is a significantly better option that that silly Dell that definitely does NOT boast a 'Full PC plus excellent experience'.One other cool thing about the iOS devices, they maintain their value. Like their lap and desktop counterparts, if you decide to upgrade each year, you'll typically recoup 70-80% of the original value. Keep it for two years, you'll grab 50-60/70% of that original purchase price. Try 'giving' away a two year old Dell Windows tablet. You're certainly not going to 'sell' it or recoup any of that original outlay
J
ws3 - Saturday, November 16, 2013 - link
or because they don't want a Windows 8.1 tablet.Puberticus - Saturday, November 16, 2013 - link
Who cares about the hardware. I'm only concerned about the ecosystem. Win has none. They have to bribe developers to come up with anything.Cptn_Slo - Sunday, November 17, 2013 - link
Why you don't want Win8 tabletsOS more suited for desktop
Few useful metro apps
Slower than android/ios on same hardware
Screen is shit for same price
OS takes up more space
Thicker with less battery life @ same price
Viruses
teng029 - Sunday, November 17, 2013 - link
One should choose anything they purchase based on need. A cheaper tablet doesn't make a better tablet. There are other differences to consider such as the ecosystem. When you buy a car, do you buy the cheapest or do you buy the one that fits your needs?zeagus - Monday, November 18, 2013 - link
Or, you know, preference for the iOS experience on a tablet.RadarTheKat - Monday, November 18, 2013 - link
Or prior experience with Windows, and Microsoft in general. LOL!socio-statistical - Monday, November 18, 2013 - link
Or, maybe they want to run actual tablet software on a tablet, and not have to use it like a laptop.doobydoo - Monday, November 18, 2013 - link
Firstly - because the Nexus 7 is pretty much the ONLY alternative that anyone who had done any research would consider, he arguably IS addressing every option.But secondly, and most importantly, did you miss the very first line in the comment to which you replied, in which he argues that asking Anand to address every single possibility is stupid?
jameskatt - Saturday, November 16, 2013 - link
If you can't afford an Apple product, you simply aren't a target Apple customer.If you care about quality - like the Chinese who make 3% of the world's population but buy 30% of the world's luxury goods - then you buy the iPad mini or iPad air.
When you love luxury cars, you simply don't buy a Hyundai or Chevy. You buy Mercedes Benz or BMW. If you want to economize, you at least buy a Lexus.