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ArcaneDevice

macrumors 6502a
Nov 10, 2003
766
186
outside the crazy house, NC
This isn't true. The magazine that you would be looking at on the iPad mini isn't a actual scanned version from the magazine. It is actually recreated to fit and work for the iPad. When you zoom into the text on any article, reading, and similar text documents on an iPad or iPhone, it auto focuses the text and clears it out for readers.

That's what you think. Read more Newsstand magazines and you'll encounter quite a few that are badly optimized and just the PDFs thrown into a mobile template. Some don't even render the text correctly even when they are just dumped on there like that.

I for one already think the iPad is not large enough for magazines as it is, which is another reason why I think the Mini is a dumb device purely to fill a marketing niche.

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I'm sorry, but that is idiotic reasoning. Everyone who has ever used a tablet, especially an iOS tablet knows that the text on the tablet is resizable, and will morph via smart zoom while retaining its original clarity and sharpness. Paper text is one size, and never changes.

And that size is readable without any extra effort.

Until every magazine on Newsstand is made specifically for an iPad the majority consist of having to zoom and pan around the screen just to read a paragraph at a time.

Not only is it bad formatting and presentation but it makes a less than user friendly experience. Imagine if iOS books had to be zoomed and panned on every page of text.
 
M

Mr.damien

Guest
If you order one of those grand-spanking-new $3000 iMacs on Friday, they should at least throw in a free iPad Mini.

But Apple doesn't do stuff like this.

Yeah, just as you get a free small car when you buy a Mercedes.

Ho wait ....
 

iGrip

macrumors 68000
Jul 1, 2010
1,626
0
Too small!

To me, it looks like the iMini has too small a screen to properly express great tablet apps. There are clear limits of how close you can physically place elements on a touch screen before users cannot reliably tap, flick, or pinch them. I think that the 10-inch screen size is the minimum size required to create great tablet apps.
 

illutionz

macrumors 65816
Oct 2, 2007
1,339
49
Rhode Island
Like that's a positive thing?

Yes actually. For many people, they'd rather get Nexus 7, Kindle Fire, or iPad Mini rather than full scale 10" tablets myself included. I actually sold my iPad 3 (The New iPad) with retina display to go with the mini for portability sake.

Apple is trying to reach a different segment of the market with the iPad mini.


To me, it looks like the iMini has too small a screen to properly express great tablet apps. There are clear limits of how close you can physically place elements on a touch screen before users cannot reliably tap, flick, or pinch them. I think that the 10-inch screen size is the minimum size required to create great tablet apps.

The mini is targeted towards ebook reader for its portability and lower price relative to the 10" iPad. With the Mini, for example, you can get the version with data capabilities for $450 as opposed to $630. For this market, they value portability a lot more than capabilities. I've been using my iPad 3 to read and frankly while the big display is fantastic, it is really aggravating to hold with one hand.

Regarding the screen size, 7" is indeed too small and while I think 8.5" would be a perfect size for iPad mini, I think 7.9" that Apple chose is portable enough yet it is also usable.
 

tdream

macrumors 65816
Jan 15, 2009
1,094
42
Yeah people really want to squint their eyes when reading. The magazine was designed to be read at that size. If you're zooming in, you're doing it wrong.
 

moxxey

macrumors regular
Feb 27, 2011
220
19
For me the ad highlights why I'd prefer to read a mag on the full sized iPad.

For me it reminds me of why it's a better and more enjoyable experience to purchase a magazine and read it at your leisure. No idea why someone wants to read a magazine on their iPad. I get the feeling we do it, simply as we can. It offers an inferior experience to reading a proper printed magazine.

Couldn't think of anything worse than reading a printed magazine on an iPad mini screen!
 

Lesser Evets

macrumors 68040
Jan 7, 2006
3,527
1,294
While I won't deny the absolute brilliance of the ad, I will question the market placement.

Those magazines are shriveling up for a variety of reasons. The market is shifting on its own, and most everyone that reads New Yorker or Time are completely familiar with the iPads and their capabilities. On the magazine side, their greatest advertising is their physical copy which litters coffee tables, waiting rooms, news stands, etc. Once the shift to digital is complete, they will vanish within years due to their ability to provide last week's propaganda and talking points rather than current content. Unless they catch the eye of on-liners, which they won't, they will be catering to a dying audience. Literally.
 

kemal

macrumors 68000
Dec 21, 2001
1,821
2,172
Nebraska
An excellent ad. No text spoon feeding you a conclusion. You spend a moment exercising your curiosity to form the Apple intended conclusion. The act of deciding whether the device is viable for reading a magazine will draw the consumer into next choosing a color.
 

oldschool006

macrumors member
Sep 15, 2009
46
0
For me it reminds me of why it's a better and more enjoyable experience to purchase a magazine and read it at your leisure. No idea why someone wants to read a magazine on their iPad. I get the feeling we do it, simply as we can. It offers an inferior experience to reading a proper printed magazine.

Couldn't think of anything worse than reading a printed magazine on an iPad mini screen!

I'm with you on that point about half way, as I too love the physical aspect of magazines. Still, digital media offers a couple of benefits beyond the old technology. Hyperlinks are brilliant in that they vastly enhance the experience, reference features are always a tap away, and storage of multiple items makes it more convenient to read what you want when you want it. Also, where I currently live there is not access to western print media, nor books, so it comes down to a case of beggars not being too choosy.
 

Rocketman

macrumors 603
You actually get more content with the digital version because the mailing window is not included and that content is visible.

Big format change on the front page today. It took a minute to figure how they were showing the first couple of articles fully and the remainder in compact mode, but it works. More professional actually.

I plan to buy an iPad Mini when it gets to version 2 and the antennas are improved a bit.

Here's a recent use of white space:

lightning_connector-200x200.jpg


Rocketman
 
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Builddesign

macrumors regular
Sep 14, 2012
100
10
Back on track with a simple elegant message.

I get worried when I see the atnt ads and verizon ads with a "face fireplace". WTF
 

barkomatic

macrumors 601
Aug 8, 2008
4,517
2,809
Manhattan
I'm sorry, but that is idiotic reasoning. Everyone who has ever used a tablet, especially an iOS tablet knows that the text on the tablet is resizable, and will morph via smart zoom while retaining its original clarity and sharpness. Paper text is one size, and never changes.

The text may readable (although its in low resolution) but you'll need to do a lot more scrolling on a smaller tablet like the mini. That's not an issue for some of course, but it makes reading the same length article on the mini a bit more labor intensive. The ad will convince some to buy an iPad mini and some to buy a full sized model for different reasons.

Also, just because someone doesn't think exactly like you do, doesn't mean you should call them an "idiot". The election season is over.
 

izyreal

macrumors regular
Sep 26, 2012
217
806
USA
While I won't deny the absolute brilliance of the ad, I will question the market placement.

Those magazines are shriveling up for a variety of reasons. The market is shifting on its own, and most everyone that reads New Yorker or Time are completely familiar with the iPads and their capabilities. On the magazine side, their greatest advertising is their physical copy which litters coffee tables, waiting rooms, news stands, etc. Once the shift to digital is complete, they will vanish within years due to their ability to provide last week's propaganda and talking points rather than current content. Unless they catch the eye of on-liners, which they won't, they will be catering to a dying audience. Literally.

You are right about the future of the printed magazine. However, we aren't in that future yet. These ads are reaching the audience of the printed magazine AND making a splash as news on the internet. Win - Win for apple.

Off-topic question of the day: What is digital advertising going to look like in 5-6 years? Right now ads are either a completely ignorable bar at the top/bottom of the page, or they are completely obnoxious pop ups that demand your attention. Unlike printed media, I have never seen a digital add that I liked. The person that solves this dilemma will be a billionaire.
 

Mr. Buzzcut

macrumors 65816
Jul 25, 2011
1,037
488
Ohio
This isn't true. The magazine that you would be looking at on the iPad mini isn't a actual scanned version from the magazine. It is actually recreated to fit and work for the iPad. When you zoom into the text on any article, reading, and similar text documents on an iPad or iPhone, it auto focuses the text and clears it out for readers.

Yes, exactly. When you zoom. That makes it a huge pain to flip through a mag if you're looking at more than photos.

My iPad 1 was not usable for mags due to its lousy resolution. The iPad 3 is great.

My point was simply they are showing one of the worst use cases for the mini. It has lots of other uses but staring at large pages of text is less than pleasing. IMO, of course.
 
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