Earlier this week, Apple unveiled the next-generation iPad mini, which brought the biggest update to Apple’s smallest tablet yet. But there is one new feature for the iPad mini that some people may have overlooked.

This new iPad mini now supports extended display mode, according to an excerpt from the official press release from Apple:

With iPadOS 27.2, iPad mini also supports extended display mode when connected to an external display, great for users multitasking with windowed apps.

This feature has been supported on M-series iPad Air and iPad Pro models for years, including:

  • iPad Air (M1, M2, M3, and M4)
  • iPad Pro (M1, M2, M4, and M5)

This feature allows you to connect a supported iPad to an external display such as Apple’s Studio Display models, and you can utilize that secondary monitor to expand your workspace by opening different windows or apps on that larger display and controlling both the built-in and external displays independently. This setup would further enhance your iPad experience by transforming the iPad into more like a traditional desktop setup. All you would need is both the latest iPad mini and an external display (of course) as well as a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse/trackpad, and you would have the most versatile iPad mini setup that resembles Samsung’s DeX mode.

This feature wasn’t made available for iPads with an older A-series chip such as the A16 on the base iPad or the A17 Pro on the previous iPad mini. Whenever you connect those iPads to an external display, you’d be limited to only mirroring. But when the MacBook Neo came out earlier this year, it features an A18 Pro chip, and it does support extended display mode besides mirroring. So bringing this feature to Apple’s smallest tablet is a huge win for iPad mini fans who want to use it like a traditional computer setup, similar to how laptops are hooked to external monitors for more expandability.

The iPad mini is available to pre-order right now starting at $699, and it will be available to customers starting on Friday, November 6.

Will you be taking advantage of this feature when you pick one up? Let us know in the comments below.