The iPad Air 2 was not the only new iPad announced today,
Apple also updated the iPad mini. Surprisingly the ‘iPad mini 3’ was given virtually no stage time at the keynote with marketing head Phil Schiller showing just two slides (specs and pricing) and making a cursory reference.

The speculation as to why will no doubt start immediately. One suggestion is likely to be that Apple sees the mini range as getting cannibalised by the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus, but it seems unlikely the smaller iPad is going anywhere soon. Others will say: it just wasn’t that big of an upgrade.

Regardless, here’s the breakdown compared to its predecessor, the iPad mini 2:

Design — Identical Twins

If the iPad mini 3 looks familiar, it is with good reason — virtually nothing has changed compared to the iPad mini 2 in both design and dimensions:

  • iPad mini 2: 200 x 134.7 x 7.5 mm (7.87 x 5.3 x 0.29 inches) and 341/331g (0.75/0.73lbs) for cellular/non-cellular
  • iPad mini 3: 200 x 134.7 x 7.5 mm (7.87 x 5.3 x 0.29 inches) and 341/331g (0.75/0.73lbs) for cellular/non-cellular

Interestingly the original iPad mini also has identical length and width and was actually fractionally thinner at 7.2mm (0.28 inches) and noticeably lighter (312g/308g). Yes the iPad mini may be small, but unlike the ever shrinking iPad/iPad Air it isn’t actually getting any smaller.

One small visual change is you can now get the iPad mini 3 in gold as well as space gray and silver (like the iPhone 6/6 Plus and Air 2), but otherwise the only other tweak is the addition of a Touch ID home button, but I’ll look at that more later.

Display — Retina Remains

Apple didn’t only leave the exterior of the iPad mini 3 unchanged, it also kept the same 7.7-inch 2048 x 1536 pixel Retina display. Few will be complaining here as the iPad mini 2 was the model to make the step up to Retina (the original iPad mini has a lackluster 1024 x 768 native resolution) and it still looks superb.

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Performance — Surprising Stagnation

If little was expected externally of the iPad mini 3, there was certainly greater hope of an upgrade internally but here Apple delivered perhaps the biggest shock of the night: it uses the same chipset and processor as the iPad mini 2.

While Apple has yet to clarify whether there has been any increase in CPU or GPU clock rate, this is extremely disappointing. The iPad mini 3 therefore retains the same A7 chipset as used in the iPhone 5S and the original iPad Air. This doesn’t mean the iPad mini 3 will be slow, but it does mean you’re no better off upgrading than you were last year.

Read more: iPad Air 2 Vs iPad Air: What’s The Difference?

Features — Touchdown For Touch ID

So if Apple isn’t upgrading the design or internals, what exactly makes the iPad mini 3 worthy of its ‘3’ moniker? Seemingly the integration of a Touch ID home button/fingerprint sensor.

Yes if ever the importance of the Touch ID home button to Apple’s grander plans for Apple Pay needed to be spelt out, it is in the shape of the iPad mini 3.

Emphasising that is the fact the iPad mini 3 has the same WiFi (still just 802.11n when the iPad Air 2 moved to 802.11ac) and LTE bands (when the Air 2 expanded). Which brings us nicely onto the…

Camera — Still A 5 Megapixel, 720p World

Apple couldn’t possibly also leave the iPad mini 3 with the same ageing 5 megapixel, f2.4 iSight camera and 720p-only video as the iPad mini 2 and original iPad mini could it? Yes it could.

In a somewhat unprecedented move, the iPad mini 3 features exactly the same sensor as the last two generations of iPad mini. There is also no burst mode and no slow motion recording, though iOS 8 does bring support for timelapse. Apple will be hoping the image manipulation improvements within iOS 8 paper over the cracks, because the iPad mini 3 is now distinctly behind the game.

Battery Life

It won’t come as any surprise at this point to learn that the iPad mini 3 has the same battery life as the iPad mini 2. In fact Apple now lists the entire iPad Air and mini ranges as carrying the same battery life: 10 hours of WiFi surfing, 9 hours of cellular surfing.

Given the lack of battery improvements in the iPad Air 2 as well, it seems Apple feels it has hit a sweet spot with the iPad range and — rightly or wrongly — is happy to tread water.

Read more: iPhone 6 review, iPhone 6 Plus review

Cost And Availability

If the iPad mini 3 proves to be something of a damp squib, then it at least signs off with some good news. Like the iPad Air 2, the mini 3 is moving to new, larger storage capacities.

Consequently you’ll find 16GB, 64GB and 128GB options priced at $399, $499 and $599 with the same $139 premium for models with 4G cellular. As with the Air 2, this makes the 64GB version the sweet spot in the lineup. Like the Air 2, pre-orders also begin on October 17th and ship on October 24th.

Perhaps the most interesting news after the iPad mini 3’s lack of overall improvement, however, is the price drop for the iPad mini 2 and original iPad mini. Apple will continue to sell both generations with a $100 saving on the mini 2 (16GB: $299; 32GB: $349) and $150 saving on the mini (16GB: $249).

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The benefit to be had here is with the second generation iPad mini 2, but a $249 entry point for the iPad mini (1) does bring Apple into new bargain pricing territory.

Early Verdict

There’s no point dancing around this: the iPad mini 3 is a major disappointment.

Apple feels like it has done the bare minimum to improve upon the iPad mini 2 and while a storage bump and Touch ID will tempt some, selling last year’s technology at the same price (at least with the 16GB entry level) is going to frustrate.

What this does suggest, however, is a drastic change of priorities at Apple. Whereas the original iPad mini quickly overtook the full size iPad as top seller, now it seems Apple has gotten sick of the cheaper version taking centre stage.

Touch ID may be crucial to Apple’s long term strategy and therefore to get into the mini range, but otherwise the limited changes made to the iPad mini 3 feel like Apple pushing existing mini owners towards either the Air  range or the iPhone 6 Plus. After all the original 16GB Air is now the same price as the 16GB iPad mini 3, which is essentially an iPad mini 2.

Should you upgrade if you own an iPad mini? Yes, to an iPad mini 2. What about iPad mini 2 owners? Stay put or buy an iPad Air/Air 2 or iPhone Plus. That’s clearly what Apple wants you to do.

Update: Here are at-a-glance specifications for new iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3 versus their predecessors:

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