Retina iPad Mini Has 1.3 GHz A7 Processor With 5X the Performance of the Original Mini

Apple's new Retina iPad mini includes the same 64-bit A7 chip used in the iPad Air and the iPhone 5s, which offers significantly better performance than the A5 chip found in the original iPad mini.

According to new Geekbench 3 benchmarks, the Retina iPad mini is running at 1.3Ghz, much like the iPhone 5s. The iPad Air, however, clocks in at 1.4Ghz, giving it a slight performance edge over both the iPhone 5s and the new mini.

ipad_mini_retina_geekbench
The Retina iPad mini scored a 1390 on the single-core test and a 2512 on the multi-core test, which was similar to the iPhone 5s score of 1399/2523, and lower than the iPad Air at 1466/2856. Compared to the 261/493 score of the original mini, the Retina iPad mini marks an incredible boost in performance speeds.

It is unclear why the mini is clocked at 1.3Ghz instead of 1.4Ghz like the iPad Air, but in terms of real world usage, users are unlikely to notice the small speed differences. It is possible that Apple chose the lower clock speed in the iPad mini to improve overall battery life or to reduce heat within the smaller chassis.

Apple's Retina iPad mini went on sale last night at midnight and is currently still available from the Apple Online Store and in Apple retail locations via Personal Pickup.

Related Roundup: iPad mini
Buyer's Guide: iPad Mini (Don't Buy)
Related Forum: iPad

Popular Stories

iPhone SE 4 Vertical Camera Feature

iPhone SE 4 Rumored to Use Same Rear Chassis as iPhone 16

Friday July 19, 2024 7:16 am PDT by
Apple will adopt the same rear chassis manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 that it is using for the upcoming standard iPhone 16, claims a new rumor coming out of China. According to the Weibo-based leaker "Fixed Focus Digital," the backplate manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 is "exactly the same" as the standard model in Apple's upcoming iPhone 16 lineup, which is expected to...
iPhone 17 Plus Feature

iPhone 17 Lineup Specs Detail Display Upgrade and New High-End Model

Monday July 22, 2024 4:33 am PDT by
Key details about the overall specifications of the iPhone 17 lineup have been shared by the leaker known as "Ice Universe," clarifying several important aspects of next year's devices. Reports in recent months have converged in agreement that Apple will discontinue the "Plus" iPhone model in 2025 while introducing an all-new iPhone 17 "Slim" model as an even more high-end option sitting...
iPhone 16 Pro Sizes Feature

iPhone 16 Series Is Just Two Months Away: Everything We Know

Monday July 15, 2024 4:44 am PDT by
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
Apple TV Plus Feature 2 Magenta and Blue

Apple TV+ Curbs Costs After Expensive Projects Fail to Capture Viewers

Monday July 22, 2024 5:11 am PDT by
Apple is scaling back its Hollywood spending after investing over $20 billion in original programming with limited success, Bloomberg reports. This shift comes after the streaming service, which launched in 2019, struggled to capture a significant share of the market, accounting for only 0.2% of TV viewership in the U.S., compared to Netflix's 8%. Despite heavy investment, critical acclaim,...
bsod

Microsoft Blames European Commission for Major Worldwide Outage

Monday July 22, 2024 11:55 am PDT by
Last Friday, a major CrowdStrike outage impacted PCs running Microsoft Windows, causing worldwide issues affecting airlines, retailers, banks, hospitals, rail networks, and more. Computers were stuck in continuous recovery loops, rendering them unusable. The failure was caused by an update to the CrowdStrike Falcon antivirus software that auto-installed on Windows 10 PCs, but Mac and Linux...

Top Rated Comments

gnasher729 Avatar
140 months ago
Agreed. I don't understand why people keep saying one is better than the other. It simply comes down to an individual's needs/preferences.

Half the people want the Mini because it's smaller.
Half the people want the Air because it's bigger.

And they all think the other half is stupid. :mad:
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
anomie Avatar
140 months ago
Got an Air already ummm
In the end, for me, I think the Air's screen size suits my need more…

I think the mini is great for the girls though!

Nice try to justify what you just bought while you realize you bought the wrong product. ;)
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
citi Avatar
140 months ago
Air > mini

in more ways than one

Why is this even a competition? At the end of the day they are both fantastic devices.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
lincolntran Avatar
140 months ago
It has 1 GB......

Your example only works when the iPad fails to perform. It is performing well at every app that designed for it.

Are you coming from the android or windows camp where stuff are grossly unoptimized and required so much RAM to run?
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ryth Avatar
140 months ago
I just went over to the Apple store and compared the Retina to the non-retina....lordy what a difference.

The Mini Retina is going to sell like crazy if they can make enough.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
darkslide29 Avatar
140 months ago
Hey what's all this Air vs Retina Mini trash talk?? :confused:
What ever happened to bashing Android? :D

There is absolutely no right answer to "Is an Air or Mini better?".

Think about it.. All of the thinking that goes on in making this decision.. Some people own laptops, some own MacBook Airs, while some only own a desktop. Some travel and/or commute a lot, some don't at all. Some like to read a lot, some like to play games instead. Some are used to their iPad 1, or 2. Some are used to their old mini.

There are just so many variables, many more that I haven't even touched on, that it really is such a personal choice.
Not only is there not a right answer, but your opinion doesn't really mean much in something like this because of how personal it is.

To each his own, whichever you choose, it is still an amazing new iPad running iOS 7 :)
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)