Apple iPad mini 7.9" 5th Generation 2019, A12 Bionic, 3GB, 64GB, Cellular, Space Gray

The A12 Bionic still lands in the 90th percentile for CPU performance, which is wild for a 2019 tablet. But 3GB of RAM at the 11th percentile and 64GB storage at the 30th percentile hold it back hard. Great for reading and light use, rough for anything more demanding.

The A12 Bionic is the star here, and it's not close. Our database puts this chip in the 90th percentile for CPU and 91st for GPU among all tablets, which means it still outperforms a lot of newer budget and mid-range hardware. Apple's silicon ages well, and the Neural Engine keeps things like photo processing and basic AI features snappy. Apps open fast, iOS runs smoothly, and even some light gaming holds up better than you'd expect from a tablet this old.

But that 3GB of RAM is a real bottleneck. It's in the 11th percentile, and you'll notice it when you try to keep more than a few apps alive at once. Safari tabs reload, creative apps stutter under pressure, and multitasking with Split View feels cramped both in memory and on that 7.9-inch screen. The 64GB storage doesn't help either, sitting at 30th percentile. For a device marketed partly for drawing and note-taking, that fills up fast once you start saving projects and offline media.

Stacked against the Lenovo Idea Tab Pro TB373FU or the Xiaomi Pad 7 Pro 62751, the iPad mini 5 wins on portability and sharpness but loses almost everywhere else. The Lenovo and Xiaomi both offer more RAM, larger storage options, and better battery life in our rankings. The Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 FE+ brings a bigger screen and modern connectivity, though it's heavier and pricier. The Microsoft Surface Pro 8 is a different beast entirely, a full Windows machine that crushes the iPad mini on productivity but costs significantly more and weighs nearly twice as much. The BESTTAB T60 is the budget wildcard, cheaper but with far weaker internals. If you want a small tablet specifically for reading and light note-taking, the mini 5 still makes sense. For anything else, the newer Android options give you more headroom.

At 182 USD for a renewed Wi-Fi + Cellular model, the value proposition is interesting but complicated. That price puts affordability at the 54th percentile, so it's not a screaming deal, it's just average. The cellular capability adds real utility if you need data on the go, but you're paying for a 2019 modem in a 2025 world. The CAD listing at 373 and MXN at 3,685 are harder to justify when newer Android tablets with more RAM and storage sit in similar price ranges. If you find one closer to 150 USD, the math gets friendlier. At full renewed asking price, you're paying a premium for the Apple logo and that still-impressive A12 chip.

The iPad mini 5 is a weird little product in 2025. On paper, the A12 Bionic chip still lands in the 90th percentile for CPU performance in our database, which is frankly absurd for a tablet that launched back in 2019. The 7.9-inch Retina display hits 97th percentile for sharpness thanks to that 2048x1536 resolution crammed into a small panel, so text and images look crisp even by today's standards. But the cracks show fast: 3GB of RAM puts it in the 11th percentile, and the 64GB storage option sits at 30th percentile. This is a renewed unit too, so you're buying into aging hardware with a fresh coat of paint.

For reading, it scores 64.1 out of 100, which makes sense given the compact size and sharp screen. Art and design land at 59, and student use at 57.5. The weakest area is productivity at 44.1, and that's not surprising when you're working with 3GB of RAM and a screen that's smaller than most modern phones. If you want a pocketable iPad for casual browsing, note-taking with the Apple Pencil, and light media, this still works. If you want to multitask or push creative apps, you'll feel the ceiling quickly.

Skip this if you need to actually get work done. The productivity score of 44.1 is the weakest area, and that's driven by the 3GB RAM at the 11th percentile and the 64GB storage at the 30th percentile. Battery life at the 32nd percentile means you'll be hunting for a charger more often than you'd like. And if you want modern connectivity, the 43rd percentile ranking here means no Wi-Fi 6 or other recent standards. Anyone who multitasks heavily, edits video, or keeps dozens of apps open should look at the Lenovo Idea Tab Pro or Xiaomi Pad 7 Pro instead.

The iPad mini 5 is a niche pick in 2025. The A12 Bionic keeps it surprisingly capable for basic tasks, and that 97th percentile display sharpness makes reading a genuine pleasure. But the 3GB RAM ceiling, 64GB storage cap, and below-average battery life mean this is not a device for power users or anyone who wants to keep it for more than a couple years. If you're deep in the Apple ecosystem and want a compact tablet for casual use, note-taking, and media, it's a reasonable buy at the right price. If you need real multitasking or creative performance, look elsewhere.