iPad mini 8.3" (7th Gen, 2024) vs iPad Air 10.9" (5th Gen, 2022)
71
out of 100
VS
74
out of 100
Here we compared two tablets: the 8.3-inch Apple iPad mini 8.3" (7th Gen, 2024) (with Apple A17 Pro) that was released on October 15, 2024, against the Apple iPad Air 10.9" (5th Gen, 2022), which is powered by Apple M1 (iPad) and came out 2 years and 8 months before. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.
Select the amount of RAM to evaluate performance and value for money more precisely
Key differences
Reasons to consider the Apple iPad mini 8.3" (7th Gen, 2024)
- Newer Bluetooth version (v5.3)
- Uses a faster type of memory: LPDDR5
- 24% higher pixel density (327 vs 264 PPI)
- Much smaller footprint: 40% more compact case (40.8 vs 68.5 square inches)
- More energy-efficient CPU β Apple A17 Pro
- Weighs 168 grams less
- 26% faster in single-core GeekBench 6 test: 2972 and 2361 points
Reasons to consider the Apple iPad Air 10.9" (5th Gen, 2022)
- Comes with 3749 mAh larger battery capacity: 8827 vs 5078 mAh
- Has a 2.6 inches larger screen size
- Shows 29% longer battery life (32:09 vs 24:50 hours)
- 19% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (2123K versus 1788K)
- Supports higher wattage charging (30W versus 20W)
- CPU with a higher amount of cores (+2)
Review
Display
Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness
Camera
Photo and video recording quality
Performance
CPU and memory performance (apps, system)
Gaming
Capabilities for playing modern games
Battery
Battery life, charging type and speed
Connectivity
Networks, ports, data transmission
Select your primary usage scenario to get a more accurate NanoReview Score
Value for money (Beta)
Tests and specifications
Comparison table of technical specifications and testsDisplay
| Type | IPS LCD | IPS LCD |
| Size | 8.3 inches | 10.9 inches |
| Resolution | 1488 x 2266 pixels | 1640 x 2360 pixels |
| Aspect ratio | 3:2 | 3:2 |
| PPI | 327 ppi | 264 ppi |
| Refresh rate | 60 Hz | 60 Hz |
| Adaptive refresh rate | No | No |
| Max rated brightness | 500 nits | 500 nits |
| HDR support | No | No |
| Screen protection | Tempered glass | Tempered glass |
| Screen-to-body ratio | 77.8% | 80.1% |
| Display features | - DCI-P3 | - DCI-P3 |
| RGB color space | 99.4% | 99.5% |
| PWM | Not detected | Not detected |
| Response time | 35 ms | 28 ms |
| Contrast | 1221:1 | 1430:1 |
Screen space comparison
iPad Air 10.9" (5th Gen, 2022)
10.9β³ (3:2 ratio) = 54.8 in2
iPad mini 8.3" (7th Gen, 2024)
8.3β³ (3:2 ratio) = 31.8 in2
~72% more screen space
Peak brightness test (auto)
Design and build
| Height | 195.4 mm (7.69 inches) | 247.6 mm (9.75 inches) |
| Width | 134.8 mm (5.31 inches) | 178.5 mm (7.03 inches) |
| Thickness | 6.3 mm (0.25 inches) | 6.1 mm (0.24 inches) |
| Weight | 293 g (10.34 oz) | 461 g (16.26 oz) |
| Waterproof | No | No |
| Rear material | Metal | Metal |
| Frame material | Metal | Metal |
| Colors | Gold, Gray, Blue, Purple | Gray, Blue, Pink, Purple, Rose gold |
| Fingerprint scanner | Yes, in-button | Yes, in-button |
| Area | 263 cm2 (40.8 inches2) | 442 cm2 (68.5 inches2) |
| Repairability | Average (2.73/5) | - |
| Drop resistance | Average (D) Β· 52 drops | - |
Visual size comparison
Screen-to-body ratio
Tablet Ranking (63rd and 53rd place)
iPad Ranking (17th and 15th place)
Performance
| Chipset | Apple A17 Pro | Apple M1 (iPad) |
| Max clock | 3780 MHz | 3200 MHz |
| CPU cores | 6 (2 + 4) | 8 (4 + 4) |
| Architecture | - 4 cores at 2.11 GHz: Sawtooth - 2 cores at 3.78 GHz: Everest |
- 4 cores at 2.1 GHz: Icestorm - 4 cores at 3.2 GHz: Firestorm |
| Manufacturing | TSMC | TSMC |
| Lithography process | 3 nanometers | 5 nanometers |
| Neural processor (NPU) | Apple Neural Engine | Apple Neural Engine |
| Graphics | 6 core Apple GPU | Apple GPU 8-core |
| GPU shading units | 768 | - |
| GPU clock | 1398 MHz | 1278 MHz |
| FLOPS | ~2147.2 GFLOPS | ~2617 GFLOPS |
Benchmarks
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Compute Score (GPU)
| Compute Score (GPU) | 25633 | 33168 |
| Single-core score | 2972 | 2361 |
| Multi-core score | 7397 | 8704 |
AnTuTu Benchmark 11
| CPU | 571661 | 663743 |
| GPU | 477510 | 683537 |
| Memory | 217930 | 247744 |
| UX | 521861 | 528742 |
| Total score | 1788962 | 2123766 |
| Samples | [3 tests] | [2 tests] |
3DMark Steel Nomad Light
| Stability | 79% | 75% |
| Graphics test | 10 FPS | 14 FPS |
| Graphics score | 1350 | 1872 |
3DMark Solar Bay
| Stability | - | 73% |
| Graphics test | 22 FPS | 24 FPS |
| Section 1 | 27 FPS | 30 FPS |
| Section 2 | 21 FPS | 24 FPS |
| Section 3 | 16 FPS | 17 FPS |
| Graphics score | 5750 | 6277 |
3DMark Wild Life Extreme
| Stability | - | 72% |
| Graphics test | - | 29 FPS |
| Graphics score | - | 4924 |
Recent User Tests
Apple iPad mini 8.3" (7th Gen, 2024)
| Date | Benchmark | Result |
|---|---|---|
| π 2026-06-17 (Markyhuhu) | AnTuTu 11 | 1679642 |
| π 2026-03-13 (mint.ai) | Geekbench 6 GPU | 25633 |
| π 2026-03-13 (mint.ai) | Geekbench 6 CPU | 2897 / 7192 |
| π 2026-03-13 (mint.ai) | AnTuTu 11 | 1831753 |
| π 2026-02-04 (Helios_Qu) | AnTuTu 11 | 1788962 |
Apple iPad Air 10.9" (5th Gen, 2022)
| Date | Benchmark | Result |
|---|---|---|
| π 2026-04-08 (AL10) | AnTuTu 11 | 2123766 |
| π 2026-03-09 (Arcia) | AnTuTu 11 | 2008514 |
Memory
Configuration
| RAM size | 8 GB | 8 GB |
| Memory type | LPDDR5 | LPDDR4X |
| Memory clock | - | 4266 MHz |
| Channels | 4 | 2 |
| Storage size | 128 GB | 64 GB |
| Storage type | NVMe | NVMe |
| Memory card | No | No |
Software
| Operating system | iPadOS 18 (Can be upgraded to iPadOS 26.5) | iPadOS 15.4 (Can be upgraded to iPadOS 26.5) |
| OS size | 14 GB | - |
| OS updates | 5 years | - |
Battery
| Capacity | 5078 mAh | 8827 mAh |
| Max charge power | 20 W | 30 W |
| Battery type | Li-Ion | Li-Ion |
| Replaceable | No | No |
| Wireless charging | No | No |
| Reverse charging | No | No |
| Fast charging | Yes (80% in 75 min) | Yes (50% in 60 min) |
| Full charging time | 2:00 hr | 2:15 hr |
| Battery cycles | 1000 cycles | - |
| Web browsing | 07:39 hr | 08:29 hr |
| Watching video | 11:07 hr | 11:52 hr |
| Gaming | 04:43 hr | 06:24 hr |
| Standby | 161 hr | 233 hr |
General battery life
Main camera
| Matrix | 12 megapixels | 12 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 4032 x 3024 | 4032 x 3024 |
| Zoom | Digital | Digital |
| Flash | Quad LED | No |
| Stabilization | Digital | Digital |
| 8K video recording | No | No |
| 4K video recording | Up to 60FPS | Up to 60FPS |
| 1080p video recording | Up to 60FPS | Up to 60FPS |
| Slow motion | 240 FPS (1080p) | 240 FPS (1080p) |
| Lenses | 1) Standard: 12 MP |
1) Standard: 12 MP |
| Camera features | - Bokeh mode - Pro mode |
- Bokeh mode |
| Image resolution | 12 MP | 12 MP |
| Aperture | f/1.8 | f/1.8 |
| Sensor size | - | 1/3.0" (β 0.33 inch) |
| Pixel size | - | 1.22 micron |
| Autofocus | Phase autofocus | Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) |
| Stabilization | Digital | Digital |
Selfie camera
| Megapixels | 12 megapixels | 12 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 4032 x 3024 | 4032 x 3024 |
| Aperture | f/2.4 | f/2.4 |
| Sensor | CMOS | - |
| Autofocus | No | No |
| Stabilization | Digital | Digital |
| Video resolution | 1080p (Full HD) at 60 FPS | 1080p (Full HD) at 60 FPS |
| Depth sensor (TOF 3D) | No | No |
Connectivity
| Wi-Fi standard | Wi-Fi 6E (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) | Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) |
| Wi-Fi features | - Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display |
- Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display |
| Bluetooth version | 5.3 | 5 |
| Bluetooth features | LE | LE |
| USB type | USB Type-C | USB Type-C |
| USB version | 3.1 | 3.1 |
| USB features | - Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG |
- Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG |
| DisplayPort | Yes | Yes |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS | GPS, GLONASS |
| NFC* | No | No |
| Infrared port | No | No |
| Number of SIM* | - | 1 |
| Type of SIM card | eSIM | Nano |
| eSIM support* | Yes | Yes |
| Hybrid slot | No | No |
| LTE Cat* | - | 18 |
| 5G support | Yes | Yes |
Sound
| Speakers | Stereo | Stereo |
| Headphone audio jack | No | No |
| FM radio | No | No |
| Dolby Atmos | Yes | Yes |
Speakers test
Max loudness
Other
| Category | Mid-range | Flagship |
| Announced | October 2024 | March 2022 |
| Release date | October 2024 | March 2022 |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $499 | $599 |
| Successor | - | - Apple iPad Air 11" (7th Gen, 2025) |
| Sensors | - Barometer - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint |
- Barometer - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint |
| Keyboard weight | - | 609 g |
| Bundled charger | Not included | Yes, 20 W |
*Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.
Conclusion
If the gaming and battery life are more important to you, then choose the Apple iPad Air 10.9" (5th Gen, 2022). But if the display and design are more of a priority β go for the Apple iPad mini 8.3" (7th Gen, 2024).
Cast your vote
Total votes: 47