New iPad Mini and MacBook Pro 2026: Apple's October Launches

The new iPad mini is official. Apple announced it on October 26, 2026, with an 8.5-inch OLED screen and the A20 Pro chip, from $699, with pre-orders opening October 28 and deliveries from November 6. For anyone searching "MacBook Pro 2026", Apple followed on October 27 with a 14-inch MacBook Pro and an iMac, both using the M6 chip. The touchscreen OLED MacBook Pro is not announced yet; Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports Apple will unveil it at its "Pro and Tell" event on October 28.

This guide separates what Apple has confirmed from what is only reported. It is current as of October 28, 2026, before the 10 a.m. PT event, and the specs and prices below come from Apple Newsroom unless another source is named.

What Apple has announced so far

Apple has put out press releases for three products this week. All three open for pre-order on Wednesday, October 28, and reach customers and stores on Friday, November 6.

• iPad mini (A20 Pro): announced October 26, from $699 for Wi-Fi and $849 with cellular.
• 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6: announced October 27, from $1,999.
• iMac with M6: announced October 27, from $1,499.

MacRumors reports that MacBook Pro pre-orders open at 10:10 a.m. PT (17:10 UTC, 10:40 p.m. IST) on apple.com and in the Apple Store app. Apple's own release gives the date but not the time.

The new iPad mini: specs, price and release date

Apple calls this the iPad mini's "biggest update ever" in its announcement. These are the main changes:

• Display: 8.5-inch OLED, up from 8.3 inches, thanks to bezels Apple says are 24% slimmer. Peak brightness reaches 1,200 nits, contrast is 2,000,000:1, and nano-texture glass is an option for the first time on the mini.
• Chip: A20 Pro, built on a 2nm process, with a 7-core GPU. Apple claims up to 4.5x faster AI, up to 2.7x faster graphics and up to 60% faster multithreaded CPU performance than the previous model.
• Design: 5.4mm thin and rated IP67 for water and dust. A new "Acoustic Display" plays sound through the screen instead of speaker holes.
• Cameras: the 12MP front camera moves to the landscape edge; the 12MP rear camera gains a flash.
• Wireless: Apple's N1 chip adds Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and Thread; cellular models use Apple's C2 modem.
• Options: midnight or starlight, with 128GB, 256GB or 512GB of storage.

US prices start at $699 for Wi-Fi, $849 for Wi-Fi + Cellular and $649 for education. Apple lists UK prices from £699 and £849 and India prices from ₹82,900 and ₹1,00,900. Pre-orders open in 36 countries and regions, and the tablet ships with iPadOS 27.

Outlets describe the price rise differently. Engadget notes that $699 is $200 more than the 2024 model cost at launch. MacRumors measures against the $599 price Apple set in June, a $100 rise. Both are correct. MacRumors adds that colour choices drop from four to two and the new TechWoven Smart Folio costs $79, up from $59.

MacBook Pro 2026: the 14-inch model with M6

The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 keeps the current design, notch and mini-LED display; the upgrade is the chip. M6 debuted in the Mac mini on August 25 as Apple's first 2nm chip. It has a 12-core CPU (two super cores, four performance cores and six efficiency cores) and a 12-core GPU, two more of each than M5.

• Performance (Apple's claims against M5): up to 30% faster graphics and up to 25% faster AI workloads.
• Memory and storage: 16GB of unified memory as standard, up to 32GB. MacRumors and BGR report that storage still starts at 1TB.
• Battery: up to 24 hours, which Apple calls the longest ever in a Mac.
• Ports: HDMI, MagSafe 3, three Thunderbolt 4 ports, an SDXC slot and a headphone jack.
• Price: $1,999, or $1,899 for education, in space black or silver.

One detail differs between sources. Apple quotes memory bandwidth of up to 170GB/s, and TechCrunch repeats that figure, but MacRumors and BGR report it applies only to 24GB and 32GB configurations, with the 16GB model at 153GB/s.

This is not the touchscreen model. The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M5 Pro or M5 Max and the 16-inch model are unchanged for now, from $2,499 and $2,999 respectively, according to Macworld.

The new iMac with M6

The 24-inch iMac goes from M4 straight to M6, skipping the M5 generation, as BGR points out. Apple claims on-device AI runs up to 5x faster than on the M4 iMac, with ray-traced games up to 2x faster.

It starts at $1,499 with a 10-core CPU and 10-core GPU, or $1,699 for the 12-core version ($1,449 and $1,599 for education). It keeps the 4.5K Retina display and comes in seven colours: blue, green, pink, yellow, purple, orange and silver. The 12-core model gets Thunderbolt 4 on all four ports, 2.5Gb Ethernet and a Magic Keyboard with Touch ID as standard.

Why Apple's new prices are higher

None of these launches lowers a price. On June 25, 2026, Apple raised prices on Macs and iPads worldwide, blaming memory and storage costs driven by AI data centres. Apple told CNBC, as quoted by TechCrunch: "We have never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly."

Bloomberg's report on that rise, republished by The Spokesman-Review, lists the iPad mini moving from $499 to $599, the iMac from $1,299 to $1,499 and the 14-inch MacBook Pro from $1,699 to $1,999. MacRumors counted 14 products affected. The new MacBook Pro and iMac keep those June prices, while the iPad mini adds another $100.

The touchscreen OLED MacBook Pro: what is reported

Apple has confirmed only the event. It invited press to a "Pro and Tell" experience in Los Angeles on Wednesday, October 28, at 10 a.m. PT, which is 1 p.m. ET, 17:00 UTC and GMT, 10:30 p.m. IST, and 4 a.m. AEDT on October 29, as 9to5Mac reported. Apple marketing chief Greg Joswiak posted: "Can't wait to pro and tell next week."

TidBITS says there will be no public video stream. Cult of Mac expects Apple to announce products through press releases and online videos while invited press and creators try them in person.

Everything below is reported, not announced. According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, as summarised by MacRumors and Notebookcheck:

• New 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with touch-enabled OLED screens, which would be Apple's first touchscreen Mac laptops.
• The existing M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, not new M6 Pro or M6 Max chips.
• A Dynamic Island in place of the notch and a noticeably lighter body.
• A macOS interface that adapts to touch, for example by showing a menu around your finger.
• Higher prices than today's models; MacRumors and Notebookcheck say starting prices could be up to $500 above the current $2,499 and $2,999.
• The current mini-LED models staying on sale for a while.

Macworld adds that Gurman said on his Power On podcast that shipping would start on November 6. A rumoured "MacBook Ultra" name has not been backed by Gurman or analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Macworld says. Treat all of this as unconfirmed until Apple publishes it.

Key dates for Apple's October 2026 launches

• Wednesday, October 28, 10 a.m. PT (17:00 UTC): Pro and Tell in Los Angeles, where the touchscreen MacBook Pro is reported to appear.
• Wednesday, October 28: pre-orders open for the iPad mini, the 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 and the iMac with M6.
• Friday, November 6: all three reach customers and Apple Stores; Gurman reports the touchscreen model ships the same day.

Our take

Based on the sources above, this week is more about screens and prices than raw speed. The iPad mini gets the most meaningful change, with OLED, water resistance and a new chip, but it now costs $200 more than its 2024 launch price. The M6 MacBook Pro and iMac are chip upgrades at June's higher prices.

The bigger question is Wednesday's event. If Gurman's reporting holds, pro laptop buyers will choose between three tiers: the M6 model at $1,999, the current mini-LED M5 Pro and M5 Max models, and a pricier OLED touch model. Anyone weighing a high-end MacBook Pro loses little by waiting a few hours for Apple's announcement, since pre-orders for the new models open the same day.

Apple has had a busy October. Its new foldable is covered in our iPhone Duo explained guide, and shoppers hoping for discounts can check our Black Friday 2026 guide, which lists only officially announced deals.

How to follow it

Apple Newsroom is where confirmed products, prices and dates appear first, and the reported touchscreen MacBook Pro is expected there as a press release. After the event, check each product page on apple.com for final configurations and prices in your country, because prices vary by region. We will update this post once Apple confirms or rules out the touchscreen MacBook Pro.

Frequently asked questions

When does the new iPad mini come out?

Pre-orders open on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, and the iPad mini (A20 Pro) reaches customers and stores on Friday, November 6, in 36 countries and regions. Apple lists the US price from $699, the UK price from £699 and the India price from ₹82,900.

How much is the new iPad mini?

It starts at $699 for Wi-Fi, $849 for Wi-Fi + Cellular and $649 for education in the US. That is $100 more than the $599 price Apple set in June 2026 and $200 more than the 2024 model at launch.

Is the 2026 MacBook Pro a touchscreen?

The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 that Apple announced on October 27 is not a touchscreen model. Bloomberg reports Apple will announce 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with touch OLED screens and M5 Pro and M5 Max chips on October 28, but Apple had not confirmed this as of the morning of October 28.

What time is Apple's "Pro and Tell" event?

It starts on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, at 10 a.m. PT, which is 1 p.m. ET, 17:00 UTC, 10:30 p.m. IST and 4 a.m. AEDT on October 29. It is an in-person event in Los Angeles, and TidBITS reports there is no public livestream, so watch Apple Newsroom for announcements.

How is the M6 iMac different from the M4 iMac?

It moves from M4 to M6, with up to 12 CPU and 12 GPU cores, and Apple claims up to 5x faster on-device AI than the M4 model. The design and 4.5K display are unchanged. It starts at $1,499, the same price the iMac has carried since Apple's June 2026 price rise.

Sources

1. Apple gives iPad mini its biggest update ever, Apple Newsroom
2. Apple gives iPad mini its biggest update ever (UK), Apple Newsroom UK
3. Apple gives iPad mini its biggest update ever (India), Apple Newsroom India
4. Apple introduces the new 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6, Apple Newsroom
5. Apple unveils new iMac with M6, Apple Newsroom
6. Apple introduces M6 and M5 Ultra for a big leap in performance and AI compute, Apple Newsroom
7. OLED iPad Mini Starts at $699 After Second Price Hike This Year, MacRumors
8. Apple Announces New 14-Inch MacBook Pro With M6 Chip, MacRumors
9. M6 14-Inch MacBook Pro: Pre-Orders and Release Date Announced, MacRumors
10. Apple Reportedly Announcing New MacBook Pro With OLED Touchscreen on Wednesday, MacRumors
11. Apple Has Raised Prices on 14 Products, Including MacBooks and More, MacRumors
12. Apple updates the iPad mini with an A20 processor and OLED display, Engadget
13. Apple unveils new 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 chip, TechCrunch
14. Apple raises Mac and iPad prices, spares iPhone for now, TechCrunch
15. After Years Of Waiting, Apple Is Finally Releasing A New iMac, BGR
16. Apple announces special event for October 28: 'Pro and tell', 9to5Mac
17. Apple makes 'Pro and Tell' event official for October 28, Cult of Mac
18. Apple "Pro and Tell" Event Set for 28 October 2026, TidBITS
19. Gurman: Apple to unveil OLED MacBook Pro with touchscreen in days, alongside M6 iMac, Notebookcheck
20. Touchscreen MacBook Pro: OLED, design and release date rumors, Macworld
21. Apple hikes Mac, iPad prices on memory shortage; shares fall (Bloomberg), The Spokesman-Review

How we wrote this

GessyMorgan explainers are built from public reporting and official sources. This post draws on the 21 sources listed above, each linked where we use it. It was drafted with AI assistance and checked against those sources before publishing. We did not test products, attend events or interview anyone for this article. Facts are current as of October 28, 2026, and we update the post when they change.