Loyal fans of the Apple brand, the Cupertino-based tech giant, were greatly disappointed when the Apple iPad mini 3 was released. So this time, the geniuses at Apple is making sure that the fourth generation of the iPad mini, the iPad mini 4, is packing with enhanced features to make it more appealing.

Leaked information suggested that the new iPad mini 4 will be powered with an A8 processor, an 8MP camera on the back side and will support Wi-Fi 802.11ac connectivity, said The REM. The upgrade in the next iPad mini was a significant improvement from the Apple A7 processor installed in the iPad minis 2 and 3. The chipset is now two generations old, according to Expert Reviews.

Earlier, we reported that Japanese blogger blog Mac Otakara as claiming that the iPad mini 4 will have almost the same features and specifications of the iPad Air 2, including an 8-megapixel rear-facing iSight camera, ultra-thin 6.1mm design and possibly a fully laminated display with anti-reflective coating.

"Compared to iPad Air the height and width of a iPad Air 2 are the same and the thickness is 6.1mm. Similar to this, the iPad mini 4 compared to iPad mini 3 is said to have the same height and width and a thickness of 6.1mm," Mac Otakara said in his blog, and added, "Additionally, the specifications will be the same as the iSight camera of a iPad Air 2 and there is a possibility that Fully laminated display and Antireflective coating will be applicated."

Mac Otakara hinted that Apple might release the new iPad mini series, including the iPad Pro and iPad mini 4 as individual new products together with the A-9-based iPad Air 3, following reports from Apple it would not be changing the shapes of the iPad series. The iPad mini 4 is expected to be Apple's last 7.9-inch tablet as the company wants to focus on tablets with bigger screens, like the iPad Air and the iPad Pro.

Some are even hinting Apple might increase the iPad mini 4's hard drive to 32GB as base model and abandon the old 16GB model which is insufficient to fill those tablets with music and video files.

Speculations also abound that Apple will price the iPad mini 4 at $496.33 that is consistent with its earlier pricing when it launched the previous iPad minis. Although the high-end tablet iPad Air 2 is expected to hit the shelves at $670.20.

Release Date

The most likely release date for the Apple iPad mini 4 is between October and November this year, still consistent with Apple's previous releases. It is likely Apple will release the new mini with the iPad Air in time for the Christmas Holidays.