Hello everyone, this is “Love Electronics“, and today we bring you a review of Apple’s iPad Mini 4 tablet, with some materials sourced from the foreign media review agency DetroitBORG.
The iPad Mini 4 is available in gold, silver, and space gray, with the 128GB WLAN version priced around 2888, and a cellular version is also available.
The iPad Mini 4 is very thin and light, the packaging includes a sim card ejector, quick start guide, safety and warranty information, and a set of white Apple stickers. It also includes basic accessories, a 10 watt charger, and a USB to Lightning data cable.
The new Mini 4 is thinner and longer than the Mini 3, with a length increase from 200 mm to 203.2 mm. The width is basically the same, but strictly speaking, the iPad Mini 4 is larger by 0.1 mm. In terms of thickness, it has decreased from 7.5 mm to 6.1 mm, with the most significant change being the weight, which has dropped from 340 to 304 grams, making it a very light tablet. Because the iPad Mini has narrow bezels, it might block your hand when held. However, when you hold the tablet, you don’t have to worry about accidental touches, as the software will recognize and not process them.
It features a Touch ID fingerprint sensor, which is not the second-generation Touch ID found on the iPhone 6s; the surface is made of sapphire glass, with a metal ring that matches the color of the iPad Mini body. The top has an improved FaceTime HD camera with a larger sensor and aperture, which is beneficial for photography, but it is still a 720p camera, and the ambient light sensor is hidden. The bottom has a Lightning port with a row of stereo speakers. The headphone jack is on the top right, and the power button is on the top left. On the sides, there are volume buttons and a nano SIM card slot, while the physical mute switch from the previous generation iPad Mini has been removed.
The back has an aluminum design, with the Apple logo in the middle as a separate component, not molded as a single piece. As it is the cellular version, there are white antenna lines on the top to allow for LTE and GPS connectivity. The top left corner has an 8 MP rear camera, along with a dual-channel microphone. The microphone position has changed and is now near the camera, likely to avoid being covered by a finger.
The new 7.9 inch Retina display has a resolution of 2048×1536, with a pixel density of 326 PPI. The screen parameters are the same as the previous generation, but the new display is better. The IPS screen has excellent viewing angles, and the color gamut is significantly improved compared to its predecessor, nearing that of the iPad Air 2, with more vibrant colors and brightness. It is a great display, much better than that of the iPad Mini 3. The screen is laminated like the iPad Air 2, so the gap between the glass is minimal. The new iPad Mini 4 has an anti-glare coating like the iPad Air 2, which reduces glare significantly, although it is not completely glare-free. Compared to the iPad Mini 3, the anti-glare performance of the iPad Mini 4 is much better, making it easy to read the screen contents.
The iPad Mini 4 is powered by an A8 processor with a frequency of 1.5GHz, while the iPad Air 2 uses the A8X. The A8X is a tri-core processor, while the A8 is dual-core. The memory is 2GB, a significant upgrade compared to the previous generation Mini. Compared to the iPad Air 2, there is a noticeable performance gap, especially in multi-core scores, as it has one more core than the Mini 4. Compared to its predecessor, the iPad Mini 3 and iPad Mini 2 are similar, but the Mini 4 scores much higher. In terms of gaming performance, while it is not as strong as the iPad Air 2, it runs most games smoothly, providing a great experience that is sufficient for most users.
The multitasking performance of the iPad Mini 4 is better; previously, only the iPad Air 2 supported it, but now the iPad Mini 4 can run multiple applications simultaneously. For applications that support Apple video, you can move them to the side while opening two applications and watching video, and both programs run smoothly.
The back features an 8 MP iSight camera, which is an upgrade from last year’s 5 MP, still with an F2.4 aperture, combined with the new A8 image processor for better results. Photos are clearer, with improved exposure and color. Its low-light performance is also decent for a tablet, with relatively clear photos. The camera focuses quickly, and in low light, the photos are not overly processed. There is a new burst mode that allows you to take a series of photos by holding the shutter, and then you can choose which photos to keep.
Video recording is also great, utilizing software for image stabilization; there is no optical stabilization, but handheld shooting is good, capable of recording 1080p slow-motion videos. The only downside is the lack of continuous autofocus; if the subject changes, you must tap the screen to focus. However, the video quality is still quite clear, with good color and exposure. Overall, the camera performance is similar to that of the iPad Air 2.
As for the front FaceTime camera, it is a significant improvement for the Mini series, with better light capture, but it is still a 720p video.
The speakers of the iPad Mini 4 have improved, but not significantly. They are louder than the previous generation, though not as loud as the iPad Air 2, but they are quite close. Battery life depends on how you use it; in Geekbench tests at maximum brightness, it lasts just over 4 hours, which is about what I expected and very similar to the previous generation. If you lower the screen brightness, the battery life will improve.
Overall, I really like the iPad Mini 4; I love its thin design, and compared to the previous generation iPad Mini, the screen is much better, the camera has improved, and it supports multitasking features of iOS 9. The portability of the iPad Mini is also excellent compared to other iPads, making it more comfortable for long-term use. There is not much difference between the iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 4 aside from size; I hope this article helps everyone.
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