iPad mini (6th generation)

Nine years in, the iPad mini finally looked different. Every version since 2012 had kept the same basic shape, and the sixth-generation iPad mini threw it out: the home button went, the bezels shrank, the edges were squared off in the style of the iPad Air, and Touch ID moved into the power button on top.

The screen on the iPad mini 6th generation grew from 7.9 inches to 8.3 without the tablet itself getting much bigger, reaching 500 nits of brightness in a body just 6.3mm thick weighing 293 grams. Four colours were offered: space grey, pink, purple and starlight.

Lightning was replaced by USB-C, a change that mattered more on a small tablet people carry around, and the second-generation Apple Pencil could now snap magnetically to the side to charge instead of being plugged into the bottom.

Apple quoted 40 percent faster processing with the A15 Bionic chip, and 80 percent faster graphics than the previous mini. The front camera was upgraded to a 12MP ultra wide lens supporting Center Stage, which keeps you in frame on video calls by panning as you move. The cellular models gained 5G.

Storage stayed modest at 64GB or 256GB, which became the most common complaint as the years passed. 

It was announced on 14 September 2021 at the California Streaming event with orders opening the same day, it reached customers on 24 September 2021 at $499, and stayed on sale for just over three years.