iPad mini review

Introduction

Apple has gone where we never thought it would, with the iPad mini bringing the Apple tablet experience to a brave new budget world.

The new tablet comes in at a wallet-friendly £279 for the basic version, with 16GB of storage on offer for the Wi-Fi version. You can supplement the mini-slate with up to 64GB of space to chuck movies and music, as well as 4G LTE connectivity, but that will set you back an eye-watering £529 for the top model.

Apple fans need not worry too much when it comes to whether the iPad mini is a worthy addition to the iBrand, as it comes with enough power and reams of Ive-inspired design to make it a worthwhile addition to the range – this isn't a shrunken down iPad, it's a whole new product again.
Be it the larger screen size, the impressively low weight or the alternative design compared to the competition there's a lot to chew over with the iPad mini – but is it worth spending your hard-earned when more cash will get you a fully-fledged version of Apple's tablet?

 Design

As with virtually all Apple devices, the iPad mini is an undeniable beauty, combining sleek, seamless edges, a stunning brushed metal back and strong build quality that is unrivalled by anything else on the 7-inch tablet market.

To that end, the screen is larger at 7.9 inches, the design is completely different to the likes of the new iPad or the Google Nexus 7, and the whole ethos has been created from the ground up partly under the stewardship of Sir Jony Ive, according to Apple.

The aluminium chassis shares the same colouring as the iPhone 5, with the darker black slate and white silver options both bringing a touch of class to proceedings.

At 308g it's twice the weight and then some of the iPhone 5, but compared to other tablets on the market (and combined with the aluminium chassis) it gives a very lightweight feeling the hand.
The screen is something of a worry though – with the 1024 x 768 resolution in the expansive display we're only getting a sharpness akin to the iPhone 3GS. While the display is better than that, thanks to improved IPS LCD technology, its still light years behind the Retina display on the bigger brother new iPad.

Interface and performance

 I Pad mini is powered by the dual-core A5 chip, which powers iPad 2 and the fifth generation iPod touch and not iPad 3′s A5X chip or iPad 4′s A6X chip.

  

Camera:

iPad mini comes with front and back facing camera. The back-facing iSight camera is a 5-megapixel camera and the front-facing FaceTime camera is an HD camera, which will allow users to take 1.2-megapixel photos and record 720p HD videos.

Battery Life:

iPad mini comes with the same battery life as the full-sized iPad, which is amazing. It offers up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi-Fi, watching video, or listening to music.

Ultrafast Wireless:

iPad mini will also support 4G LTE networks around the world. It also supports HSPA+ and DC-HSDPA. It can also connect to Wi-Fi networks on 2.4ghz and 5ghz on 802.11n.

Lightning Connector:

As expected, iPad mini comes with Apple’s new Lightning connector like the iPhone 5, 5th generation iPod touch and 7th generation iPod nano.

Music:

Music is also well-placed on the iPad mini, with a simple to use interface and a much better price range for new songs should you want to keep up to date with the latest and greatest of the hit parade.

The sound quality through headphones is, as ever, excellent, although when playing it through the speakers the fact they're chucked down one end of the device does mean the sound quality isn't as good, especially if it's placed with the connector facing downwards (obviously).

Overall though,especially with wireless headphones, the iPad mini is great for tunes, in terms of being able to choose new songs through the store from the Music app to high-res album art playing on the lock screen - as well as the aforementioned widget controls it gets from the multitasking menu.




PROS

We liked a lot. A whole lot on the new iPad mini, and although the price is a little high . Apple has just about justified it with the way the device sits in the hand.
The larger screen might not fit fully in a single palm, but from the smooth back to the Smart Covers designed specifically for the model, we're fans - pure and simple.
The speed of the processor is perfectly acceptable and lag-free for all tasks, the UI is actually better-engineered for this 7.9-inch screen compared to its bigger brother and we're chirpy indeed about the battery prowess through harder use.

CONS

The lack of a Retina display is so, so frustrating as that's the killer feature (along with, perhaps, a slightly faster processor) that would have meant we gave the iPad mini our first five star tablet review. It's that good. But the screen is too fuzzy at times compared to the likes of the new iPad or iPhone 5 to consider it a dazzling display, and that's a real shame.
The low-power GPU is going to be an issue for some, even for the price point - although that's more for future proofing as in our tests the iPad mini performed as well as the quad core variants.
And while we've long given up on looking for expandable storage or a removable battery on these devices, 16GB of storage isn't enough for the plethora of large apps and HD content we're interested in downloading onto this device.

 Verdict

Certainly the most desirable 7-inch tablet on the market, the iPad mini’s £269 starting price is considerably higher than the competition but for that outlay you get a device that, although not specs superior, is a far more enticing option than much of what is already on the market.

Combining a brushed aluminium back with seamlessly curved edges and a fascia that will be familiar to full-sized iPad owners, the iPad mini is a device that looks and feels every penny that you pay for it. A step on from the plastic backed likes of the Google Nexus 7, the iPad mini is unrivalled in terms of build quality and style.

More than a simple piece of eye candy, however, the iPad mini is a joy to use and one which, thanks to its slightly larger 7.9-inch display is immersive and perfectly sized for a combination of business and pleasure purposes. If you have recently splashed out on a full-sized iPad 3 or iPad 4 then this might not be for you. If, however, you are looking to make the plunge into the tablet market for the first time and can live without an HD display, it’s hard to look past the new iPad mini.