Apple appears to have tipped its hand on an unreleased iPad mini through an overlooked listing on its French regulatory website. A Smart Folio accessory for the iPad mini carrying the model number A3632 has surfaced in the company’s environmental and regulatory disclosures, a number that matches no current or previous case for the compact tablet.
The listing, first reported by MacRumors and dated around early September, sits alongside accessories for the iPhone 18 Pro that Apple added the same month. The current iPad mini (A17 Pro) and its predecessor share the same Smart Folio design; Apple has not introduced a new model number for that accessory since the 2021 redesign. The appearance of A3632 therefore points to physical changes on the device it is meant to protect, which would render existing cases incompatible.
Environmental data in the filing adds further detail. Compared with the existing Smart Folio, the new accessory lists at least 6,610 milligrams of rare earth elements versus 3,947 milligrams previously, and a lower minimum of recycled materials (at least 3 percent versus 9 percent). The jump in rare earth content is consistent with changes to the magnets used to attach the cover, a common indicator that dimensions, thickness, button placement, speaker openings, or camera positioning have shifted.
The listing itself contains no technical specifications for the tablet. Still, it aligns with months of reporting on an eighth-generation iPad mini. Multiple leaks and supply chain reports have described an OLED display (likely a single-layer LTPS panel rather than the dual-layer ProMotion panels used on iPad Pro models), Apple’s A20 Pro chip from the iPhone 18 Pro lineup, a front camera relocated to the landscape edge for better video-call framing, a redesigned speaker system, thinner bezels, Wi-Fi 7 support, increased RAM, and improved water resistance. Bloomberg News’ Mark Gurman has indicated an announcement date of October 28th, potentially alongside OLED MacBook Pro models.
Apple has not commented on the listing or confirmed any product. Regulatory filings of this type are typically prepared well in advance of launch and occasionally surface before official announcements, as happened with earlier Apple products. The A3632 Smart Folio remains the clearest public signal yet that the next iPad mini is in active preparation and that its exterior will differ enough from the current model to require entirely new accessories.
MacDailyNews Take: Ooh, this is going to be a powerful little tablet!
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Too little, too late. We should have gotten this in 2016, NOT 2026. I guess that shows just how effective Tim Cook really was.
WiFi 7, A20 SOC in 2016?
MDN has always been–and continues to be–the go-to place for those who would diss Apple. Ballmer’s Left Nut continues that tradition, ignoring the fact that Apple’s “misguided” leadership (Tim Cook) has placed the company a trillion dollars ahead of Microsloth in company success and evaluation.
Micro$loth was already on its downward spiral by the time Cook came in, literally anyone with any bit of competency could beat them. I think even Google’s Chromebooks are more popular than the sinking ship of failure that Windoze has become.
It’s just that Apple has become complacent during M$’s downfall. Innovation has kept Apple ahead of the game and there is no place for letting their guard down during a transformative time in tech like now. Don’t mistake my skepticism for outright Apple hate. I want to see them do great things without retreating to the world of has-been nostalgia bait like present day Atari or cheap “good-enough” Android electronics that other competitors are putting out.
Maybe applies to Ballmer’s LN, Randi:
“The ability to hold two opposing ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function is often considered a hallmark of high intelligence” F. Scott Fitzgerald
iPad mini “accidentally revealed”, so it AT LEAST has a chance to NOT be completely overwhelmed by the Duo…likely.
Is it really an “accident” if it leads to people talking about it? I seem to recall a saying about how unhinged publicity is still better than no publicity.