Sketchy iPad mini 6 leak points towards in-screen Touch ID, punch-hole camera
Alleged CAD-based renders of the iPad mini 6
The iPad mini 6 may offer a punch-hole camera
The sixth-generation iPad mini will introduce a much larger 9.1-inch display while retaining virtually the same dimensions as its predecessor. To be precise, the thickness has increased by 0.15mm but the height and width remain unchanged.
Making this possible are the thin bezels that now sit around the screen. Ming-Chi Kuo hinted at a 9-inch iPad mini 6 with an all-screen design last May, so the device pictured above and below falls in line with those predictions.
But things get interesting (and much less believable) when you take a closer look at the panel. Unlike other all-screen iPads, the next-gen iPad mini allegedly introduces punch-hole tech.
Alleged CAD-based renders of the iPad mini 6
It’s being used for the selfie camera that’s situated above the display, which is the most obvious use case. But Apple has never used this before and its commitments to uniform bezels and notches make it an odd move.
Of course, it could be the start of a new design language for the company, so the design may well be accurate.
The least believable part of these images can be found on the bottom half of the display. Specifically, the next-gen tablet is depicted with a cutout for a Touch ID fingerprint scanner.
It’s unclear whether this is for illustration purposes to confirm the presence of an under-screen Touch ID implementation, like the one expected in the iPhone 12S later this year, or whether Apple is allegedly planning a large cutout.
But if the latter is what these renders imply, that seems extremely unlikely, especially for Apple which tends to avoid unconventional designs at all costs in favor of something simple.
Of course, it could be the start of a new design language for the company, so the design may well be accurate.
Apple’s next iPad mini could be the first with in-screen Touch ID
The least believable part of these images can be found on the bottom half of the display. Specifically, the next-gen tablet is depicted with a cutout for a Touch ID fingerprint scanner.
It’s unclear whether this is for illustration purposes to confirm the presence of an under-screen Touch ID implementation, like the one expected in the iPhone 12S later this year, or whether Apple is allegedly planning a large cutout.
Expect the iPad mini 6 to arrive in the first half of 2021
The iPad mini 6 is expected to arrive in the first half of this year, potentially at an event in late March alongside the iPad Pro (2021) line and a third-generation iPhone SE, or at WWDC 2021 in June.
It should be powered by the A14 Bionic, currently used inside the iPhone 12 series, and include both a lightning port and 3.5mm headphone jack, both of which are found on the iPad mini 5.
Apple's alleged iPad mini 6 vs the iPhone 12 Pro
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