Teardown experts iFixit this week went Apple picking and found an iPad mini 4.
Announced earlier this month, the tiny tablet has “the power of an iPad Air 2 in a smaller form factor,” according to the teardown experts. Thinner, lighter, and more powerful than its predecessors, the new mini also has fewer speaker holes and dual rear-facing microphones surrounding the iSight camera.
Cupertino’s latest petite product also boasts the same fully laminated screen tech as the iPad Air 2—allowing it to shave off 18 percent of its girth, but also making it most expensive to fix.
Once inside, the iFixit team noted a missing metal shield plate, traditionally hidden behind the LCD screen for more sturdy assembly. Like the iPad mini 3, the mini 4 comes with the same easily disconnected battery, as well as clumps of glue holding down the Touch ID button. The attached cable, on the plus side, is now integrated into the display cable, similar to the Air 2.
Also different in the new model: a single-cell battery (instead of two), a repositioned antenna, slimmed-down FaceTime camera assembly, and plastic space fillers between gaps in the Wi-Fi logic board.
There’s also the 8-megapixel iSight camera from the iPad Air, as well as the 1.2-megapixel FaceTime cam.
Overall, the iPad mini 4 is not meant for DIY improvements, though. The teardown team rated it a measly two out of 10 in terms of repairability, citing issues like the fused LCD and front panel glass, the Lightning connector soldered to the logic board, and “gobs of adhesive” holding everything in place.
For more, see PCMag’s Hands On With the iPad Pro and iPad Mini 4, as well as our unboxing below.