The next generation of the iPad mini will have a larger screen and a design inspired by the iPad Air 2019, according to a new report.
Japanese website Mac Otakara reports that the 6th generation iPad mini will be launched in March 2021, citing sources in Apple’s supply chain in China.
The new iPad mini will have a larger 8.4-inch screen instead of the 7.9-inch screen on previous models. It is expected to keep Touch ID and a Lightning port in traditional locations, but it may present a narrower frame like the 2019 iPad Air 3.
This echoes another recent report from Mac Otakara that the 9th generation iPad model would be inspired by the iPad Air 2019, but otherwise it would have few major design changes.
Therefore, it is not the first time that there is talk of a change in the screen size of the iPad mini. Well-connected analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicted in 2020 that Apple would launch an iPad mini model in the first half of 2021 with a screen between 8.5 inches and 9 inches.
The current model of the iPad mini 5 was launched in March 2019 with little change from the previous iteration, plus an A12 Bionic processor and Apple Pencil support. Although with little change, the iPad mini 5 was the first update to Apple’s device since 2015.