iPad mini Will Apple update iPadOS specifically for the mini?

[James Godfrey]

After watching tonnes of reviews of the iPas mini one of the main complaints is the amount of padding and weird UI elements of iPadOS on the mini, it’s as if the OS is designed for the previous mini and not refreshed for the larger screen.

It is putting me off the device a bit, as currently I am rocking an 11” iPad Pro, but I don’t feel I am getting the full usage potential out of the device as I never take it out with me, whereas a mini I likely would with how small it is.

So I am planning on selling the 11” and getting the mini as I feel it will more than suit my needs, what are the odds of apple updating the software to take advantage of the screen size?

 

[sracer]

After watching tonnes of reviews of the iPas mini one of the main complaints is the amount of padding and weird UI elements of iPadOS on the mini, it’s as if the OS is designed for the previous mini and not refreshed for the larger screen.

It is putting me off the device a bit, as currently I am rocking an 11” iPad Pro, but I don’t feel I am getting the full usage potential out of the device as I never take it out with me, whereas a mini I likely would with how small it is.

So I am planning on selling the 11” and getting the mini as I feel it will more than suit my needs, what are the odds of apple updating the software to take advantage of the screen size?

Apple has historically treated the Mini differently. I remember 3 years or so ago when Apple revised the widget screen such that the 12.9 Pro only had a single column of widgets but the Mini retained the 2 columns. It looked great on the Mini, but wasteful on the Pro. It remained that way until the next major revision of iOS. That is when the Mini went to a single stacked column to match the rest of the iPad lineup.

In any event, no one knows what Apple will do to address the scaling and placement of the UI elements on the Mini. I recommend NOT purchasing a Mini 6 in anticipation of Apple doing something (if the current behavior is bothersome)... but to wait to see if Apple actually does something.

 

[Realityck]

After watching tonnes of reviews of the iPas mini one of the main complaints is the amount of padding and weird UI elements of iPadOS on the mini, it’s as if the OS is designed for the previous mini and not refreshed for the larger screen.

It is putting me off the device a bit, as currently I am rocking an 11” iPad Pro, but I don’t feel I am getting the full usage potential out of the device as I never take it out with me, whereas a mini I likely would with how small it is.

So I am planning on selling the 11” and getting the mini as I feel it will more than suit my needs, what are the odds of apple updating the software to take advantage of the screen size?

A lot of vendors apps just need to be updated to match the new aspect ratio.

There was thread started to list ones that were.

What apps have aspect ratio problems on the new iPad mini 6?

I’ve only had the iPad mini 6 for a few hours but I’ve already noticed that the HBO Max app doesn’t fill the screen on playback. I assume these issues will get fixed soon but it might be nice to list them here. I made this a wiki post so it can be updated as needed. HBO Max — No full-screen...

forums.macrumors.com

As for some GUI revision of scaling and placement of the UI elements, time will tell. I using iPadOS 15.2 beta now.

 

[sracer]

A lot of vendors apps just need to be updated to match the new aspect ratio.

There was thread started to list ones that were.

What apps have aspect ratio problems on the new iPad mini 6?

I’ve only had the iPad mini 6 for a few hours but I’ve already noticed that the HBO Max app doesn’t fill the screen on playback. I assume these issues will get fixed soon but it might be nice to list them here. I made this a wiki post so it can be updated as needed. HBO Max — No full-screen...

forums.macrumors.com

The OP isn't referring to the aspect ratio but the size and placement of the UI elements. That's a different (but related) issue.

 

[Realityck]

The OP isn't referring to the aspect ratio but the size and placement of the UI elements. That's a different (but related) issue.

I was going by his comment

as if the OS is designed for the previous mini and not refreshed for the larger screen

Its pretty early still getting developers to update their apps that utilize the full screen resolutions properly, hence the comment about most apps not being updated for mini 6 GUI and the thread link. But as you brought up the auto lock positions as you rotate axis's is still way too primitive.

iPadOS is still too iOS based currently, doesn't scaled for larger resolutions correctly. In portrait its a 5 x 5 grid, in landscape its 4 x 6 grid with the mini 6. There is no variable magnifications of GUI elements like MacOS. This is like going back to later versions of that old Classic Mac OS compared to Mac OS X evolution. It has potential because its Darwin based, but does Apple even motivated to take it that far, as its battery limited.