Apple’s next-generation iPad mini will use the A20 Pro chip, according to leaked code spotted last week.
The current iPad mini was released in October 2024 and uses the A17 Pro chip that debuted in the iPhone 15 Pro. By moving straight to the A20 Pro, the new model would skip the A18 Pro and A19 Pro generations.
What the A20 Pro brings to the iPad mini
The A20 Pro debuted in the iPhone 18 Pro models earlier this month as Apple’s first 2nm smartphone chip. It features a 6-core CPU that Apple says is up to 20 percent faster than the A19 Pro and a redesigned GPU that is up to 40 percent faster. The processor’s 32-core Neural Engine offers twice the compute of its predecessor, and Apple calls the A20 Pro ‘the ultimate chip’ for running advanced on-device AI models.
The leak did not reveal the iPad mini’s exact chip configuration. Apple previously used a “binned” (or cut-down) version of the A17 Pro in the current iPad mini, with a 5-core GPU instead of the 6-core GPU found in the iPhone 15 Pro. A similar cut this time could mean a 6-core GPU and reduced graphics gains compared with the chip that powers the iPhone 18 Pro models.
iPad mini configuration, camera and launch timing
The leak also did not disclose memory, but if the new iPad mini has 12GB like both iPhone 18 Pro devices, that would allow it to run Apple’s most advanced on-device Apple Intelligence model. The current iPad mini has 8GB of RAM. The same leak confirmed the front camera will move to the landscape edge, making the iPad mini the last iPad to do so.
Reporter Mark Gurman expects the new iPad mini with an OLED display to launch by the end of October. That timing could correspond to a late-fall event or a press release; Apple also has more products in the pipeline.
