Apple iPad Mini (A17 Pro, 2024) review: a powerful tablet that can still fit in my sling bag

The iPad Mini sits in a slightly strange place in Apple’s lineup and has survived many a rumor about its cancellation. But Apple is still committed to the miniature iPad formula, with the latest model getting a boost up to the latest A17 Pro processor and Apple's latest AI-powered Apple Intelligence.

It’s still the smallest and most portable iPad, and while for years it has felt like the "cute" option for watching Netflix on a flight, rather than a serious creative alternative. But the A17 Pro, ripped from the iPhone 16 Pro, means the iPad Mini might have just become a much more practical field companion for creatives.

Compared with larger iPads and lightweight laptops, the mini brings a different kind of freedom. If you’re browsing the best tablets for photo editing for a travel-friendly device to sit alongside your camera gear, this is the iPad that makes the most sense.

Specifications

Price & Availability

Starting from $499, the iPad Mini costs a premium for a tablet this physically small. And that's before you add more storage, cellular connectivity, or an Apple Pencil. If you want a fully kitted-out Mini, you’re firmly into serious device money, which can feel jarring when you look at the screen size alone.

However, this isn’t competing with budget 8-inch Android tablets; it’s competing with larger iPads and even some entry-level laptops for creative tasks. The inclusion of the A17 Pro chip makes this closer in performance class to high-end mobile devices than to basic media tablets.

For photographers, that does mean smoother editing, faster exports, and fewer compromises than the previous generation of Mini. However, compared to the larger iPad Air and its more powerful M-series chip, you’re paying a slightly unfair portability premium here.

Design

This is one of the best-built small tablets I’ve ever used. The flat-edged aluminum body feels rigid and premium, with no flex or creaks – I've accidentally sat on it a few times, and it's been just fine. The size for me is perfect; the screen is bigger than my phone screen, but I can still hold it one-handed for long stretches while reviewing images, something I’d never say about a larger iPad.

The 8.3-inch Liquid Retina display is sharp and bright, with excellent color. For photo work, it’s more than good enough for culling, editing, and social-ready exports. While it’s not OLED, I’ve found contrast and color consistency strong enough that I trust it for editing on the fly, especially when paired with the wide color support in iPadOS.

Button placement is simple: volume controls and a top power button with integrated Touch ID. The fingerprint sensor is fast and reliable, and I don't really mind that it doesn't have Face ID, as it avoids the awkward notch, although Apple should really start integrating the software-based face recognition common on Android for convenience.

USB-C is a huge win here. I can plug in card readers, SSDs, and camera cables without hunting for adapters, which makes it genuinely practical on shoots.

Apple Pencil support not only makes this the perfect notebook, but for marking up images, sketching, or doing precise mask work in editing apps, the Pencil makes the Mini feel much more like a pro tool. But the downside? It’s yet another cost on top.

Performance

The A17 Pro chip is what makes this iPad mini feel much more pro. It is not nearly the performance gains of the M-Series chips in the iPad Pro range, but app performance all feels very fast, and I rarely hit friction in day-to-day use.

As an 8-inch tablet with a phone processor, expectations should be tempered; this isn't going to become your one-and-only device, but it’s been quick at everything I have thrown at it. In Photoshop and Lightroom, RAW previews pop in fast, and I have edited and exported photos quickly on the fly.

Video performance is similarly good. Quick social edits on CapCut or Final Cut Pro run smoothly. Again, with an 8-inch screen, I wouldn’t choose this as my primary video editing machine, but for social cuts on location and quick turnarounds, it’s excellent.

The interface, as expected from Apple, is slick. iPadOS is intuitive, responsive, and well optimized for touch. Multitasking is fine; you can pin two apps side by side, or the latest version of iPadOS brings windowing to apps – but on a screen this size, I found there is little point as apps become too squished up to be useful. File handling on iPadOS is decent; it's easy enough to find files, but organizing files and folders could be simpler, and is still best managed on a laptop.

Battery life holds up well. Browsing, streaming, and note-taking easily get me through a long day, though sustained heavy tasks do drain it faster than casual use.

The single 12MP rear camera is solid for scanning documents or quick reference shots, but it's not going to challenge the phone in your pocket. There is another 12MP camera on the front, which is good enough quality for video calls. My only complaint is that the camera is positioned on the short edge, which, in landscape orientation, does make you appear to be looking off to the side in calls and not focused on who you are talking to.

Verdict

The iPad mini (A17 Pro) fills a gap between phone and laptop that, for creatives, makes a lot of sense. I prefer it on location more often than larger tablets simply because it’s so easy to carry and slips into my small camera bag.

This is a great media tablet, but for creatives, the display is excellent for field work, the A17 Pro chip keeps everything feeling fluid, and USB-C plus Apple Pencil support turn it into a great option for image review, note-taking, and light editing.

Its main limitations come from perhaps expecting too much, its screen is too small, and its processor is too underpowered for "proper" editing. But its practicality wins out here. If portability matters more to you than being a true laptop replacement, this is an easy recommendation.

Alternatives

The iPad Air isn't that much more expensive, but it packs a larger screen and a more powerful chip, making it better for "proper" editing, but it’s less portable and harder to use one-handed in the field.

Read the full iPad Air review

The iPad Pro offers a bigger, more advanced display and even more power, ideal for serious editing, but it’s heavier, pricier, and less convenient as a lightweight shoot companion.

Read the full iPad Pro review