The new iPad mini with Retina Display is proving to be a huge hit, with many reviewers and early purchasers finding practically no compromises between it and its larger sibling, the iPad Air. The mini runs the same A7 processor, and is advertised as having all of the performance of the fifth-generation full-sized iPad, just in a smaller package. But there is one area where the iPad mini falls short, and it may be a critical issue for some users: color gamut.
As noted by AnandTech, the new Retina mini maintains the same, relatively unimpressive color gamut of its non-Retina predecessor. This is in contrast to the iPad Air, which has class-leading sRGB coverage. And it’s not just due to the smaller screen size; other tablets in the mini’s size range – such as the Google Nexus 7, NVIDIA Tegra Note 7, and Kindle Fire HDX – offer notably better color reproduction.
AnandTech posits that Apple thinks its “pro” customers will prefer the larger and more expensive iPad Air, while consumers, who are less likely to care about color accuracy, will favor the mini:
I suspect the justification here is Apple likely views the bigger iPad as being a better fit for photographers/those who care about color reproduction, but it’s a shame that this is a tradeoff that exists between the two iPads especially given how good Apple is about sRGB coverage in nearly all of its other displays.
It’s true that average consumers will likely be unaffected by the issue. In our experience with both products, the iPad mini does indeed look a bit dull when compared directly to the iPad Air. But when examined on its own, only photographers and media professionals will notice any flaw in the mini’s display. All others will be focused on the dramatic increase in resolution over the first generation model.
In the end, if you’re set on getting a 7-to–8-inch tablet, the iPad mini is a clear choice, even if it can’t fully cover the sRGB spectrum. But if you’re still torn between the iPad Air and the mini, this may be one small reason that could tip the scales in favor of the mini’s big brother.
