iPad Mini 3 with Retina: Apple Unveils Third Generation of Miniature Tablet PC Series

Apple unveiled the third generation of its iPad mini series in the form of the iPad mini 3 at an event in Cupertino, California, on 16 October.

The iPad mini 3 will be available for £319 for a 16GB version, £399 for a 64GB version, and £479 for the 128GB version. The original iPad mini's price has been dropped to £199.

The biggest update to the iPad mini is the inclusion of the Touch ID fingerprint sensor in the Home button, a feature previously exclusive to the iPhone 5S and both models of the iPhone 6.

This allows users to take advantage of Apple's new NFC payment system Apple Pay, which will feature on iOS 8.1.

The actual design of the device is not a great departure from its predecessors, with the lightning connector, speakers, volume controls and sleep/wake button all still in the same place.

Unlike the iPad Air 2, which was also unveiled at the event, the hardware updates to the iPad mini 3 did not go much beyond the inclusion of Touch ID.

The A7 processor remains the same, while the camera features the same 5MP as last year's model.

Pre-orders for the iPad mini 3, which will be available in gold, silver and 'space grey', will begin from tomorrow, 17 October.