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iPad mini [MERGED] The iPad Mini looks beautiful until you turn it on.
- Thread starter Nikos
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Thank you for posting that. This screen is really damn close to having a retina-like quality. Stop holding it an inch from your face and stop splitting hairs over NOTHING.
Oh geezus would everybody stop bellyaching?
The Mini is super light and super thin. The display goes almost to the edges and is nearly an inch bigger than a Nexus. That's what makes the Mini special. They could NOT have pulled this off with a retina display, not yet.
Thankfully, for those who really want a retina display, the Mini is NOT for you. Get an iPad 4. Heck, today you can buy a refurb (basically new) iPad 3 from Apple for only a little more than a Mini.
Just go get what YOU want and stop pissing and moaning about it!
The Mini is super light and super thin. The display goes almost to the edges and is nearly an inch bigger than a Nexus. That's what makes the Mini special. They could NOT have pulled this off with a retina display, not yet.
Thankfully, for those who really want a retina display, the Mini is NOT for you. Get an iPad 4. Heck, today you can buy a refurb (basically new) iPad 3 from Apple for only a little more than a Mini.
Just go get what YOU want and stop pissing and moaning about it!
haha my eyes are nice and relaxed on my retina...everything
Thank you apple for spoiling me on most devices. hehehMaybe he wears Magic Eye Contacts
Such drama/victim issues, man up comes to mind, even if your female.
You measured it with a spectroradiometer? Sounds like you are comparing it to a over saturated Amoled with cartoon looking colors.
I bought my wife an iPad Mini to replace her Nook Tablet. She hates the weight of my iPad 3, which is why she chose a Nook in the first place. So when I told her there was an iPad Mini coming out she got excited, which never happens with electronics.
Having said all that, I was disappointed immediately with the display, and for the first time, I could tell the difference between retina display vs non retina. When I went from a 16gb iPad 2 to a 32gb iPad 3, I couldn't tell a difference. But after using the 3 for 7 months or so, retina is the only way to go. My wife on the other hand, isn't used to the retina display, so she is loving the mini.
Also something that just hit me. If we all knew that the mini did NOT have a retina display and was identical pretty much to the iPad 2, a mistake IMO, then why all the complaining about what we all knew beforehand? If you don't like it, don't buy. If you're reading MacRumors and bought it anyway, quit your whining. Not everyone out there has used an iPad with retina display, therefore, the mini is perfect for them.
Having said all that, I was disappointed immediately with the display, and for the first time, I could tell the difference between retina display vs non retina. When I went from a 16gb iPad 2 to a 32gb iPad 3, I couldn't tell a difference. But after using the 3 for 7 months or so, retina is the only way to go. My wife on the other hand, isn't used to the retina display, so she is loving the mini.
Also something that just hit me. If we all knew that the mini did NOT have a retina display and was identical pretty much to the iPad 2, a mistake IMO, then why all the complaining about what we all knew beforehand? If you don't like it, don't buy. If you're reading MacRumors and bought it anyway, quit your whining. Not everyone out there has used an iPad with retina display, therefore, the mini is perfect for them.
The screen is abysmal, but still not as bad as the OP is saying. It's fine for games, videos, and other non-text based apps. Do NOT buy this thing if you need an e-reader though. It is terrible for that.
I believe they had to choose between bulkier/heavier with retina OR small and light without retina. Probably because of battery issues. Which is probably also the reason why the regular iPad hasn't seen any improvement in thinness and weight since the iPad 2.
So yes, I think they don't have the technology to bring out a 7mm thick, 300g iPad Mini with Retina Display.
That screen is just "normal". It's not bad, it's not high end either. Which probably seemed less of a compromise to them than retina in a bulkier and heavier tablet.
Now, we'll see whether the customers agree witht hat choice or not. I, for one, do. For now
There is no manufacturer out there that currently has the capacity to manufacture a 326ppi screen in the iPad mini's size. But let's pretend that LG or Samsung could.
iPad mini estimated costs:
Display assembly: $57
Battery: $12-13
RAM: $4-7
A5: $14-15
Cost of iPhone 5 display (for baseline comparison at same pixel density): $44
iPhone 5 screen area: 6.7 inches ($6.56 per sq in). iPad 3/4 display cost: $127 for about 45 square inches at 264ppi ($2.82 per sq in). Hypothetical retina iPad mini would most likely have a display more expensive than its big brother, since higher density drives higher costs on multiple levels, but let's be generous and say $5 per sq in since some of display costs won't scale linearly. At 29.6 sq in, that's $148, a $91 increase in components cost just for the display itself (on a device with a total components cost of around $220).
Then you need the A6X, costing roughly double the estimated $14 of the A5, along with moving from 512MB to 1GB of RAM, or $4 to $8. Then of course there's the battery--the iPad needs 65%+ more capacity just to match battery life with the retina display, so that $12.50 jumps up another $7, easily. That's $25 in cost increases just to make the retina display work.
$116 more in parts. With 30% margin, you're now selling the iPad mini at...$499, give or take. The only cost savings you're looking at compared to the iPad 4 is a somewhat smaller, less expensive battery, maybe a buck or two in aluminum, and you still have to lower your margin overall to compensate for the more expensive screen.
Even in a fantasy land where you could make a 326ppi screen at the right size for $100, you're only pushing the price of the mini down to $429 at best.
What possible motivation would they have to take a loss on the iPad mini and simultaneously compromise the product in other ways? To avoid people whining on online forums?
Apple and Google both make about the same net profits (20-25%). They just go about it in different ways. Should Google just start writing checks to people because they can afford to?
I don't think you get it. It isn't always about the difference in price. My wife would rather have an iPad Mini for $329 over an iPad 4 for the same price or even less. The iPad is just too heavy in her opinion and she's not the only one who feels that way. Two different markets IMO, something for everyone.
Sorry but its not even close to retina. The nexus 7 is close to retina. Compared to the iPad mini text is so much clearer on it. It doesn't matter how far you hold it. It doesn't have enough pixels to render text clearly. Most websites fit within 1280 pixels wide. Many do not fit in 1024. This allows the nexus to render the website much clearer. Not to mention the nexus 7 has nearly 60 more pixels per inch. This means it has 185% of the definition per inch of the iPad mini.
According to Wikipedia, Nexus 7 uses Tegra 3 T30L processor which has been available since Q1 2012. Nexus 7 was announced in June 2012. Mini's panels may be new but their specs are rather old. The display tough is not the worst part here. 512MB RAM is so 2010 as is a dual core CPU based on ARM A8 architecture. Lack of GPU (in WiFi models) is more like early 2000s.
So what's your point? Nexus 7 is awesome? Great, go buy one. None of us Apple fans on MacRumors care how good or bad a google tablet is. We care about iPad.
The Tegra 3 and the A5 are both Cortex A9 CPUs. If you go by package ship date, the current A5 is technically newer, since it didn't ship in volume until Q2 2012. But you see how that would be a specious argument.
No, they're not. It's a brand new touch matrix technology, the assembly process is shared with the iPhone 5, and we'll have to wait and see what the other technical attributes shake out to. But this is a brand-new display. The only spec that's not new is the pixel density, but that doesn't have anything to do with the underlying technology.
A9. Same as Tegra 3.
Wifi models have the same GPU...and it outperforms the Tegra 3.
Oh. Please don't say "we" ok ? I do care about how good or bad a tablet is. Apple or not.
It's fair to compare N7 and iPad mini, schiller had no problem doing so during the event
For all that got it stop reading negative reviews lol! Enjoy it. For us that are disappointed, we will be the first to get the retina version next year. I had the iPad 2 and I was ready to buy the mini today but the display is noticeably bad. I seriously don't remember the iPad 2 being that bad. Maybe because the device is smaller and you tend to hold it closer. I wish it was at lease brighter like the iPhone 5.
I think this is some of the problem I'm having with it too. There's something more than just the resolution. It's almost like it's just a cheaper panel (than the iPad 2) all around.
Gruber was right when he called it 3GS quality.
After using mine pretty much all day I've decided I like the form factor and weight but the screen keeps killing me. It's just annoying looking at text and seeing as how I would mostly be using mine for ebooks, it's bad. I may just return it and go with the 4.
Noticeably bad? I think it's time to stop going to apple stores and visit your local Optometrist. To say it doesn't compare to a retina iPad, fine, to say its bad? You need to get that checked.