The new Apple iPad mini has a smaller battery — but that's a good thing

• The 8th-gen iPad mini has a 4,900 mAh capacity battery
• It's a slight reduction on what we saw with the previous model
• However, actual battery life hasn't been reduced

Apple is always rather coy when it comes to the battery capacities in its devices, but European Union regulations mean it has to now publish this data publicly: and we just learned that the new 2026 iPad mini has a battery capacity of 4,900 mAh.

As Notebookcheck points out, that's lower than the 5,034 mAh battery capacity we saw with the 7th-generation iPad mini, which launched in 2024. It's about 97% of what it was previously, so it's not a huge reduction.

That capacity drop needs to be balanced against everything else the new iPad mini brings with it, including an OLED screen for the first time, and a speedy A20 Pro processor (the same as you'll find in the latest iPhone 18 Pro).

Preorders for the smallest Apple tablet are open now, with shipping expected on Friday, November 6. Prices start at $699 / £699 / AU$1,099 for the Wi-Fi only model with 128GB of storage on board, and Midnight (gray) and Starlight (cream) are your color options.

Capacity downgrades can be good, actually

At first glance it might seem disappointing that the new iPad mini has a smaller battery than the old one, but that's only part of the story. As with any modern-day gadget, the battery capacity is only one of the factors affecting battery life.

Apple says the actual battery life on the new tablet hasn't changed: 10 hours between charges for surfing the web on Wi-Fi or watching video, or 9 hours of surfing the web if you're connected to the internet via a cellular connection.

So you're not losing any battery life at all — and because the capacity is smaller, the new iPad mini is slightly thinner and a little lighter than its direct predecessor. The reduction in capacity is actually a benefit.

Apple has long managed to squeeze out more battery life from smaller batteries, compared to Android manufacturers, on its phones and tablets, and the trend is continuing on the 8th-gen iPad mini.

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