iPad Mini 6 Review
Hello everyone, it’s been a long time since we’ve done a review, the last time being a purely video based review over on our YouTube channel and as I’ve got some awesome new gear I figured it’d be a good time for a new review.
Today we’re going to be looking at the iPad Mini 6.
I have always been a fan of the iPad, I was fortunate enough to get the 1st gen, 2nd gen and I believe 3rd gen iPads growing up but ended up selling them when I moved away from Apple products about 10 years ago. Since then the iPad has come along way from what was already a device perfect for productivity and content consumption, the iPad has evolved to the point where when Apple posed the question of whether an iPad can be replace a laptop, the answer might just be yes but we’ll come back to that question later.
To start off with I want to talk about why I chose the mini over the air. Size. I wanted something as close to as portable as my phone as possible but with the maximum screen size I could get and the mini fit the bill perfectly, especially since my fiancée and I intend to get a 12” iPad Pro down the road anyway. For some things, the Air would definitely be a more suitable size but for ultimate portability, it’s gotta be the Mini.
The iPad mini 6 is fast, light and makes for a great note-taking tool since it’s about the same size as an A5 notebook. It’s also great for content consumption, being imo the perfect size for watching YouTube or Netflix in bed if you don’t have a TV (or just don’t want to turn it on).
The screen is more than bright enough for indoor use and is adequate for outdoor use as long as you’re not in super harsh direct sunlight. When indoors though, the iPad Mini’s screen is gorgeous, it’s super sharp, super vivid and supports the full P3 gamut so is great for viewing your photo and video work with accurate colour too.
Where the iPad Mini really shines is when you team it up with some fantastic accessories that turn it into a portable powerhouse.
Apple Pencil
I debated a lot whether to get the Apple Pencil when I was ordering my iPad as I didn’t know how useful it would be to me since I have the drawing ability of the average 5 year old but I bit the bullet anyway as I figured it’d likely be useful if I did any Photoshop work on my iPad and my fiancée is an illustrator so if I didn’t end up using it a lot she could at least use it with ProCreate for digital art.
Oh boy how I was wrong. The pencil has become a fundamental part of my workflow for note taking and planning projects using the GoodNotes app allowing me to easily jot down ideas and plan stuff out like I would in the paper notebooks I never ended up using a lot because I didn’t want to lug them around everywhere. I also like thought have used it a lot in Photoshop since Photoshop for iPad is for all intents and purposes desktop photoshop with a more touch-friendly interface.
ESR iPad Mini 6 Case
This is a fairly broad one as you could go for this or the Smart Folio case from Apple or any other similar case you can find on Amazon. Just any similar style case that gets a half decent review for build quality and you’ll be golden. I particularly like this one over Apple’s as it has this flap that keeps the Apple Pencil secure. This is a style of case that has been done to death by Apple and 3rd parties since the original iPad and is highly functional allowing you to prop the iPad up easily on most surfaces such as your lap or a table.
Logitech Keys To Go Keyboard
The Logitech keys to go keyboard is a surprisingly good and Uber-portable Bluetooth keyboard that works brilliantly with iPad. It is super thin, super light and is water resistant too so if you spilled your coffee while you’re typing up you’re next best-selling book in Starbucks or had to run to the car in the rain with it in your hand, you should be absolutely fine.
It even has a home button!
And no, it’s not the best typing experience ever, especially when I’m very used to a mechanical keyboard at my desk, but it is an awful lot better than typing on the screen for two key reasons. 1) It doesn’t fill up half the screen like the on screen keyboard and 2) it is tactile enough that I was able to type this part of the script/am currently typing this part of the review in a pitch black room and there isn’t any backlighting on the keyboard (with some help from auto-correct).
The keys are well enough defined that anyone who spends enough time typing should be able to get into a decent flow of touch typing without too much difficulty and especially for students in class or aspiring writers in a coffee shop, this keyboard will quickly be your best friend.
Sandisk Dual USB-A/C 64GB Thumb Drive
This may seem like nothing more than a usb drive that with two ports but it has made my like easier in so many ways already for the simple task of transferring files between my desktop and my iPad. It is plug and play with the iPad and while I haven’t measured the actual transfer speeds, it has been really fast to transfer even some of our short films in full 4K.
USB-C Card Reader
Again one of those accessories that is a little bit stating the obvious for someone who’s job it is to use a camera but having a card reader that works with my iPad means that during and/or after a shoot I can check over the shots from the day on a significantly better screen than is on the back of the camera and also do quick edits or grab stills via screenshot for getting quickly up onto social media or to the couple at a wedding shoot for them to stick on social media too.
All in all, the iPad Mini has become a vital part of my workflow from pre-production planning using GoodNotes and the Apple Pencil, to writing out scripts/blog posts with the Logiticech Keys to Go Keyboard or even doing some early post-production.
Anker PowerExpand+ 7-in-1 USB-C PD Hub
Surprisingly, the iPad Mini makes a shockingly good desktop. That may sound odd but combined with this fantastic 7-in-1 USB C hub from one of my favourite brands Anker, the iPad Mini (and any other up to date ipad for that matter) can be turned into an incredibly capable desktop when plugged into a monitor especially when used in conjunction with the aforementioned Logitech keys-to-go keyboard (or this next item) and the Logitech MX Master 3 Wireless Mouse.
Logitech G613 Wireless Mechanical Gaming Keyboard
The Logitech G613 Wireless Keyboard certainly isn't something you'd find on most people's list of recommended accessories for an iPad Mini. That's defintitely more up the Keys-To-Go keyboard mentioned earlier but hear me out. As I said previously, the iPad Mini is a surprisingly capable desktop. By combining the USB-C hub, this keyboard and the MX Master 3 Wireless Mouse I'll get to talking about in greater detail in a moment, the iPad Mini becomes something I scoffed at when Apple first made the claim that iPad could replace traditional computers for most people. No, I don't think it's a true replacement for a power user or creative professional who needs a lot of horsepower for things like 3D rendering or video editing but for photo editing? For writing? For casual internet usage with a bit of multitaking thrown in? Yeah I think Apple have convinved me (albeit with the help of these fantastic 3rd party accesories).
Logitech MX Master 3 Wireless Mouse
The MX Master 3 Wireless Mouse is one of the those products I’ve been wanting to get for quite some time and this move to running the iPad Mini as my daily driver computer was the choice that pushed me over the edge to go for it. It’s super comfortable with the thumb rest and angled designed so your hand sits more naturally on the mouse without straining your wrist.
Samsung T7 Portable SSD
The Samsung T7 Portable SSD is the ideal large capacity portable drive for the on the go photographer or videographer and when combined with the iPad Mini extended the functionality of my iPad even further, completely replacing my need/interest in something like the Gnarbox or the WD My Passport Wireless. Now I can take my iPad and the T7 to a shoot and easily backup and view footage from the day on the gorgeous iPad Mini display and due to the super fast transfer speed of the drive I can pull the files straight off of it already in a preset folder structure when I get back to my desk and be ready to dive right in to the edit.
Conclusion
To conclude then, do I recommend the iPad Mini? Wholeheartadly yes. It has completely changed how I work with computers. When Apple said that the iPad can replace a PC, I honestly laughed. I knew iPads had come a long way since the iPad 2 or 3 that I had 10 years ago but I never thought they’d become as capable as they have in so little time. The iPad Mini 6 has become my everyday companion, it’s my primary device for all but the most portable (where I only bring my phone) or my most power hungry (such as proper video editing or gaming) workflows. Is it perfect? No, when using it as a desktop the scaling is odd which I think is mainly down to limitations of the A15 chip vs the M1 chip in the Air and Pro. Do I sometimes wish I had a bigger screen or Magic Keyboard support? Absolutely, but I think it all comes down the what your primary use case of the iPad is going to be and let that influence your decision in which one you buy. The Mini is the perfect day to day companion, it’s size means it can go just about anywhere with you. The Pro is for the hardcore laptop/desktop replacement users, when you just want the bigger screen and the more powerful processor to run everything you would want a PC for everyday. The Air is the perfect in between, it’s size to performance puts it perfectly in the middle, almost as portable as the Mini, almost as powerful as the Pro.