Earlier this week, I drew attention to Amazon’s ongoing post-Black Friday deal on the iPad mini (2021), which sees Apple’s latest pint-sized tablet discounted to $469 in the US and £531 in the UK (from $499 and £569, respectively). I caveated that piece, however, with a note about the potentially imminent arrival of a new iPad mini model in March 2024.
Now, though, we’re hearing (via Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman) that Apple’s upcoming crop of next-generation iPads won’t include a new iPad mini, with Apple instead set to refresh its tablet lineup with an M3-equipped iPad Pro and iPad Air. Why does this matter? Well, for prospective iPad mini buyers, the potential benefits of this news are two-fold.
Firstly, given the now-presumed absence of a new iPad mini model in March, there’s no reason to believe that Apple and/or Amazon will cut the price of the iPad mini (2021) even further come March 2024 (in the same way that, say, the iPhone 14 became cheaper following the release of the iPhone 15).
Secondly, you needn’t worry about missing out on game-changing tablet features by picking up Apple’s current-gen iPad mini model today because, well, it now looks like there isn’t going to be a new, game-changing iPad mini in 2024. Incidentally, the same is true of the company’s entry-level iPad 10.9 (2022), which is also on sale at Amazon right now.
Of course, we can’t be 100% certain that Apple won’t throw a new iPad mini model (or indeed a new entry-level iPad) into the mix come March next year. However, given Gurman’s impressive track record when it comes to Apple announcements – especially those that are only a few months away – we’re inclined to believe that the world’s best small tablet will remain the world’s best small tablet for at least another year.
Today's best iPad mini (2021) deal
For more holiday and Christmas gift ideas, check out our guides to the best Christmas sales in the US and Boxing Day sales in the UK. Oh, and be sure to follow TechRadar on TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings, and unmissable deals!
More holiday sales
- Amazon: 70% off Kindle, TVs, tablets & clothing
- Apple: AirPods, Apple Watch & iPads from $79
- Adidas: 40% off running shoes & clothing
- Beauty: 51% off makeup, skincare & hair tools
- Best Buy: $800 off TVs, laptops & headphones
- Cheap TVs: big-screen 4K TVs from $269.99
- Christmas: 40% off decor, pajamas & trees
- Dell: cheap laptops and desktops from $259
- DreamCloud: 40% off all mattresses
- Gaming: console bundles from $289.99
- Lenovo: 76% off laptops, desktops & printers
- Lululemon: up to 30% off sitewide
- Nectar: mattress deals starting at $359
- Nordstrom: 40% off Nike, Levi's & UGGs
- Patagonia: pullovers starting at $64.99
- Saatva: $400 off mattresses over $1,000
- Samsung: $2,000 off TVs, $800 off Galaxy S23
- Target: 40% off Christmas decor, TVs & toys
- Toys: Disney, Barbie & Lego from $14.99
- Walmart: cheap TVs, air fryers, PS5 & toys
