Want to buy a new case for my older iPad Mini and am confused by the four possible model numbers. How do I know which model Mini I have?
While Apple generally avoids the Byzantine naming conventions of a lot of PC companies, skipping RX-4353B and similar names, the actual model numbers can end up being a bit obscure nonetheless, and to make things more confusing, the product keeps its name: “iPad Mini” refers to four different models, and if you count wi-fi versus cellular, it’s 8 different models. Add memory and we’ve quite a few to choose from.
But wait, there’s a model number and a product number too, so each Apple iPad also has two names anyway. But I’ll explain it all!
The easiest way is to look on your original box if you still have the packaging from when you bought the iPad Mini: It’ll say right there what model number it is. Look for something like A123.
Failing that, the back of the iPad should have the model number in the small print (though it can be darn hard to read).
Here are a few examples:
That one is an A1490, which is the rightmost item of information on the first line of information.
And this one:
This second one’s a bit easier to read. See the A1550? That’s its model number.
Can’t read what’s on back because it’s faded or you have a sticker covering it? You can get the part number from the Settings app in iOS 9 instead. Go to General > About:
In this instance, the iPad Mini is model number MD529LL/A (which you can see about 2/3 of the way down the list).
Whether you get the product number or part number, you still don’t know whether it’s an iPad Mini 1, 2, 3 or 4.
There’s a search for that:
Which offers up this discussion from the Apple site:
There’s the part number. When in doubt, check the Web because someone else has probably already asked the question! In this case, a quick read of the discussion reveals that MD529LL/A is a first gen iPad:
So there’s your answer. Dig up your part number or model number, then use a quick Google search to ascertain exactly which model number you have. And good luck with the new cover!