Apple unveils all-new iPad mini with OLED display, A20 Pro chip and AI-powered features

New Delhi, October 26 (IANS) Apple on Monday introduced the next-generation iPad mini, featuring a redesigned thinner and lighter form factor, a larger OLED display, the new A20 Pro processor, and enhanced artificial intelligence capabilities powered by iPadOS 27.The new iPad mini comes with an 8.5-inch OLED display, larger than its predecessor while maintaining a similar overall footprint due to significantly slimmer bezels.Apple said the Super Retina XDR display offers more than twice the peak brightness of the previous-generation model, deeper blacks, a 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio, and support for the P3 wide colour gamut.The tablet is also available with an optional nano-texture display designed to reduce glare in bright environments.At just 5.4 mm thick, the latest iPad mini is Apple's thinnest mini tablet yet. It is available in midnight and starlight finishes and carries an IP67 rating for water and dust resistance, making it suitable for outdoor and on-the-go use.Powering the device is Apple's new A20 Pro chip, built using a 2-nanometre process. The company claims the processor delivers up to 60 per cent faster multithreaded CPU performance, up to 2.7 times faster graphics performance, and up to 4.5 times faster AI processing compared with the previous generation.The chip features a 7-core GPU with Neural Accelerators integrated into each GPU core, while the top-end 512GB variant includes a Dual 16-core Neural Engine for advanced on-device AI workloads.Apple has also enhanced the device's multimedia capabilities with an Acoustic Display system that integrates specially designed woofers and tweeters into the display structure to deliver improved audio quality, higher volume levels, and stronger bass response.On the camera front, the iPad mini now features a 12MP Center Stage front camera positioned on the landscape edge for video calls and online meetings.The rear houses a 12MP Wide camera with Smart HDR 4, support for 4K video recording at up to 60 fps, and an Adaptive True Tone flash aimed at improving photography and document scanning.Connectivity has also received a major upgrade. The tablet is equipped with Apple's new N1 wireless networking chip, enabling support for Wi‑Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread technology.Cellular variants feature Apple's next-generation C2 modem, which the company says delivers up to 50 per cent faster cellular data speeds while improving power efficiency.The new iPad mini runs iPadOS 27 and introduces the latest version of Apple Intelligence and Siri AI.Apple said Siri AI can understand personal context, analyse on-screen content, assist users across messages, emails and photos, and answer questions across a broad range of topics.The software also includes upgraded AI-powered photo editing tools, a new Image Playground app, and Safari's Notify Me feature for tracking changes on websites.