Andrew Melder

Image via Apple

News of the updated iPad mini 7 was received poorly. No doubt this update is just a parts bin uplift of the old model with a RAM boost in order to promote Apple Intelligence; a service which as of writing this does not exist.

I’ve always been a fan of the iPad mini. I’ve actually owned most of them, either for myself or my kids. In part this goes back to my love of all small computing devices, when PDAs impressed us with desktop-like (but extremely limited) functionality on a device you can take with you anywhere.

I took an iPad Mini and the Logitech keyboard cover to the UK back in 2013 as my primary computing device for communication and photo editing; albeit the limitations at the time meant I quickly borrowed a laptop while I was there to more easily manage all the files during the trip.

But the weak update of the iPad Mini 7 got me thinking about what I actually want from an upgraded model.

How the iPad Mini fell out of my usage patterns

The iPad Mini 6 initially felt like the update I was waiting for. USB C, updated “full screen” design, proper Apple Pencil support with magnetic charging (not the dodgy lightning charge setup of the first gen Apple Pencil).

When I bought it, I paired it with my iPhone 13 mini as the perfect mini device combination; the phone most of the time but then the iPad when I wanted to watch content or edit photos. However even before I bought the next device, I noticed I just wasn’t using the iPad as much as I thought I would.

While the iPhone Mini was clearly smaller for tasks such as video watching and photo editing, it was good enough to increasingly not warrant bringing another device around with me. Phones became good enough primary computing devices for many.

The Pencil, as with most devices I have bought with styluses, ended up collecting dust and mainly getting in the way as the reality of me not being a natural hand writer or artist overpowered the marketing vision that drove me to buy it in the first place.

Then I needed to replace my aging Windows laptop; and I went with the M1 MacBook Air. The device that brought mobile like efficiency and battery life to a traditional desktop operating system in a light, fan-less package that also managed to improve on performance. It was so good I migrated from almost 30 years of Windows/DOS usage.

Combined with the increasing capabilities of the smartphone in your pocket; the minimal requirement for a device between the phone and a laptop, previously filled by very capable tablets, pretty much evaporated.

However, it still leaves a gap. Using a laptop means taking a laptop bag with you. A lot of times I want to carry light. A small sling to carry a few portable items but not a backpack, but still have something more capable than my phone to get computing done.

So why do I still want one (or something like it)

Initially I was thinking a ‘Pro’ update to the Mini would pull me back into the device. A better screen, an M series processor which would enable full desktop mode when connected to a desk setup, and maybe even a small version of the Magic Keyboard to make it more like a mini laptop.

And that’s the key for me. I don’t want a portable iPad, what I really want is a small laptop.

Not a mobile OS, but a full fat desktop operating system in a shrunken form factor that can fit in a small sling.

With the move to the M series processors for Mac OS, Apple is in the prime position to do this. The technical limitations that plagued ultra portables in the past are now non-existent.

But they won’t do it. iPad is their portable computing brand and they dare not cannibalise the profits of the iPad, or its viability in the marketplace as a proper computing platform, with a smaller Mac.

This niche is actually a throwback to ultra portable Windows laptops of old such as Toshiba’s Libretto series. With Snapdragon ARM processors actually catching up to the M series chipsets recently in terms of performance and efficiency, I’m hoping we see a rebirth of the form factor from manufacturers as Windows itself becomes more friendly to the architecture.

When that happens, it might be enough to pull me back into Windows and away from Mac; despite some of the niceties of the operating system compared to the increasing bastardised nature of modern Windows.

Either way, a modern iPad Mini just doesn’t have a real place in my computing needs. The technology advancements available with modern chipsets and desktop operating systems means I want more than it’s ever capable of providing.

Apple can probably see from their own figures that I’m not alone in no longer having a place for the iPad Mini; and that’s why the iPad Mini 7 is a spare parts upgrade.