iPad Mini 5 Teardown: A12 Chip, 3GB RAM, True Tone Sensor, & Same Battery Capacity

Apple updated the iPad mini this year. As a fifth-generation product, it has a little change in appearance, but it comes with the power mons...

Apple updated the iPad mini this year. As a fifth-generation product, it has a little change in appearance, but it comes with the power monster - A12 bionic chip. However, iFixit is aiming to find out what exactly has Apple updated inside the device beside the new processor, well, here is what they have come up:


iFixit says that it's just an updated version of the iPad mini 4 rather than the smaller version of iPad Air. The battery is the same size and is rated at 19.32Wh. The front camera module has been upgraded to a 7MP sensor with a new ambient light sensor to accommodate True Tone display technology, whilst the back camera retains an 8-megapixel sensor.

Other findings include the 3GB of RAM, True Tone sensors, two speakers for stereo sound, Bluetooth 5.0, WiFi 802.11ac, Gigabit-class LTE on cellular models, three-axis gyroscope, an acceleration sensor, barometer, as well as support for MIMO and eSIM technology, alongside M12 coprocessor.

As in the past, iFixit posted a repairability score, the site noted that although many parts are replaceable, some parts like the Home button and battery replacement being “unnecessarily difficult,” resulting the site only gives the iPad mini 5 with 2 out 10 repairability score, despite many components are modular and can be replaced independently.