iPad mini Does anyone else wish the iPad mini doesn't get Retina too soon?

wrkactjob said:

Have to say it wouldn't bother me, I have tried it out and really only want it for watching films, checking mail and casual web browsing.

If retina means heavier and thicker then I'd rather stick with the light and thin version!

Unless your doing a lot of reading I think Retina is overrated...its nice to have that little bit more clarity but its really not the end of the world if you havn't got it.

I think we are going to see some extraordinary screen technology in the near distant future that will produce massively lighter and slimmer devices.

So this will do in the mean time!

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This is just ridiculous! "A little bit more clarity"??? I just don't understand why people cannot admit that the mini screen is pure garbage.

I love Apple, I love my iPad 4, I love my MBP, but the Mini is an EPIC fail. Not an epic fail for Apple because they'll sell the heck out of them, but an EPIC fail for the consumer who is getting hosed by a substandard product.

SiPi said:

Ipad mini is useless to me until it goes retina.

Waste of space in its current form imo

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Agree. Waiting for retina mini. And with rapid advances in screen technology, it should come within next 2 years

WilliamLondon said:

I wouldn't agree they compromised at all, and I definitely wouldn't agree this is old technology, as if they went into their barn of crap they threw out last year and cobbled something together and called it a mini. That's just simply not true.

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But that's kind of what they did, didn't they? They took old chips, substandard screens and created a really sexy place to put them together. But the mini is in no way, revolutionary or evolutionary - it's old (yes, old) tech gussied up and put into a shiny wrapper. It works - and it's a tribute to how far iOS has developed that they can tout the app platform as reason enough to buy this device - as opposed to any evolved tech.

ljmjag said:

But that's kind of what they did, didn't they? They took old chips, substandard screens and created a really sexy place to put them together. But the mini is in no way, revolutionary or evolutionary - it's old (yes, old) tech gussied up and put into a shiny wrapper. It works - and it's a tribute to how far iOS has developed that they can tout the app platform as reason enough to buy this device - as opposed to any evolved tech.

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Perhaps it's how you're characterising the components that I can't agree with. Not current in tech used to always mean, outdated and most importantly, can't perform the required tasks any longer. That's a problem I have when you characterise the tech in it as "old". There has never been this technology in a package so thin, lightweight and with such great battery life, running such a wide array of apps - this is the amazing advancement. It hasn't been done before. You can say they are using some chips that aren't the fastest or latest, but I contend that's done so that someone can declare, "it's old technology" without ever even acknowledging that the whole package does such an amazing job and itself is an amazing advancement. The chips are more than adequate to run all the apps really well, so why should they put something else in there other than to bump up the price, increase the power requirements and give tech geeks a boner when they talk about the machine that doesn't need this much power inside? Would it even be able to be housed in the same shell?

This device is a package, a total package, it's not just the display and not just the main chip, and one that hasn't been done before. Sometimes you don't need the latest component and not having one doesn't mean it can't perform well, sometimes the advancement is in other areas, which I think people (meaning those who are tech-oriented or tied to a feature or spec from which they refuse to budge) ignore and refuse to acknowledge.

For me, I guess the bottom line (beyond the form factor being the big wow), is that this device runs every single application I've put on it, and none I've heard of that it won't run, and I'm not a patient man regarding lags and delays, so my view is that it runs these apps well, really well. Isn't that what this is all about? Does the device perform the tasks at hand, and when it's in hand, how does it feel? What (other than retina display) does it need that it doesn't do so well already? Pointing at a component and saying, "well that's old so I'm not buying the package" but not acknowledging what it does do, and how well it does it I think is a bit silly and misses the whole point of a consumer electronics device.

I'm not sure we'll agree on these points (that's fine, it's a fun discussion about a fun subject), but one other thing I am most interested to know when they do upgrade the display is how retina will affect the current form factor - I'm hoping & praying that it doesn't become a little "pregnant looking" with a retina screen. Is it possible to get the retina and keep the form factor? Is that an issue for other people? They won't lose battery life, so will tech advance such that form factor and battery life don't have to be compromised?? Can't wait to see.

cardinalryan said:

This is just ridiculous! "A little bit more clarity"??? I just don't understand why people cannot admit that the mini screen is pure garbage.

I love Apple, I love my iPad 4, I love my MBP, but the Mini is an EPIC fail

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These sort of posts have provided much humor and amazement for so many people that then went to look at the iPad mini and found the screen to be perfectly acceptable for their needs and proceeded to buy it.

It falls into the same category of comment which tried to convince people that words were unreadable and pictures hard to make out!

As can be seen by the truly extraordinary sales figures which I believe have taken even Apple by surprise the iPad mini is not an "EPIC fail" far from it, it has become an outstanding success.

won a mini at work

Oh my, how comes it does NOT bother me at all without retina display!!

Using the mini last night, I browsed the net, read IBook and watched videos!

Well, i always have retina display on every little mac gadgets, i.e. iPhone 4, 4s, 5, IPad 3, iPad 4, & etc; but this mini does NOT bother me!

Now, i am very very confused lol

nerdybooboo said:

Oh my, how comes it does NOT bother me at all without retina display!!

Using the mini last night, I browsed the net, read IBook and watched videos!

Well, i always have retina display on every little mac gadgets, i.e. iPhone 4, 4s, 5, IPad 3, iPad 4, & etc; but this mini does NOT bother me!

Now, i am very very confused lol

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Nice win! Congrats. I am looking forward to Christmas morning so that I can judge the screen myself. Playing with it at Best Buy I thought it looked good. Hopefully will look as good as in the store.

What are you confused about exactly?

syd430 said:

Text. That is the main advantage of retina.

/thread

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This

maflynn said:

• Cost - a retina display will be more expensive for apple to use, and so that cost will be passed on to us. The current mini is expensive enough as it is.
• CPU, will we keep using the A5 or will it have the A6. The retina display means it will need a more powerful GPU
• Battery life, the retina display will need more power, but also the A6
• Size, will the thickness of the mini increase to accommodate a larger battery

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Those are some of the concerns I have as well. I'd rather see better specs *without* a retina screen in the next gen. mini. To me, the whole appeal of the machine is that it's thin, light, fairly cheap, and has good battery life. If you put in a retina screen, the recipe just won't be the same any more.

I want it to go retina asap then i'll buy one.

I've been in to my local stormfront every day for the last 2 weeks playing with the Mini, 99% of me is saying buy it but that 1% of me knows that the next version will probably be retina.

Until then, the iPad 3 will do just fine.

cardinalryan said:

This is just ridiculous! "A little bit more clarity"??? I just don't understand why people cannot admit that the mini screen is pure garbage. .

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Really? Garbage? Substandard? What makes people go so crazy over this? Every review I have seen noted this screen is better than the nexus 7. Its comparable to ipad 1 and 2, but with 25% higher resolution. Its a great product.

rowspaxe said:

Really? Garbage? Substandard? What makes people go so crazy over this? Every review I have seen noted this screen is better than the nexus 7. Its comparable to ipad 1 and 2, but with 25% higher resolution. Its a great product.

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This!

It is perfectly fine. I do own a retina MacBook Pro and an iPhone 4S. I sure would love retina but think about what this would actually mean: it would be higher DPI then on the iPad 4 getting it close to the iPhone DPI. That would actually make the iPad mini and superior product but people would still expect Apple to sell it at a cheaper price point...doesn't add up. I expect Retina on the mini at some point in the future, but it think Apple will wait until component prices come down far enough that they can still keep their usual product margin.

I don't know about most of you guys, but I prefer to watch a lot of media and content on my tablet -- because of this, I'm more than willing to give up a little bit of portability for a myriad of screen real estate. 1 pound makes virtually no difference to me... I find it kind of ridiculous that, for some people, 1 pound or so makes the difference between a device that you can or cannot bring outside of the house...

Justification of making a purchase at it's finest. You're over-thinking it.

rowspaxe said:

Really? Garbage? Substandard? What makes people go so crazy over this? Every review I have seen noted this screen is better than the nexus 7. Its comparable to ipad 1 and 2, but with 25% higher resolution. Its a great product.

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Because, Apple has a tablet on the market with a lower price point? This excites people who perhaps weren't as willing to dish money out for a tablet prior to this. Otherwise - a majority of the people would have invested in other small tablet devices a while ago. I've tested both devices extensively -- even if the iPad mini was released with a retina display, I'm not willing to compromise or give up screen real estate. The iPad mini, in my opinion, is closer to my iPhone than my iPad is to, say, my notebook computer.

rowspaxe said:

Really? Garbage? Substandard? What makes people go so crazy over this? Every review I have seen noted this screen is better than the nexus 7. Its comparable to ipad 1 and 2, but with 25% higher resolution. Its a great product.

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It's called hyperbole and exaggeration. The screen is not (as we alone think, it seems) garbage, and this device is so much more than merely a display (which some think or imply can run without a battery, without a wonderfully small shell, without a huge price tag, without apps designed for this resolution, etc.). This device is so much more than just a screen.

This device is wonderful and Apple optimised its main feature, the form factor. There were compromises of course but the form factor running a plethora of existing apps on day one is what makes this device so special. Apple did really well and can't wait to see what's in store with gen 2 and 3! I love my mini!!

rowspaxe said:

Really? Garbage? Substandard? What makes people go so crazy over this? Every review I have seen noted this screen is better than the nexus 7. Its comparable to ipad 1 and 2, but with 25% higher resolution. Its a great product.

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I've used both, the nexus 7's screen is the better of the two. Text is so much clearer. Using the mini honestly gave me a headache.

blackhand1001 said:

I've used both, the nexus 7's screen is the better of the two. Text is so much clearer. Using the mini honestly gave me a headache.

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Really? That's serious - devices that cause headaches through normal usage I would think would be of big concern to those in charge of consumer device regulations. Did you use the device *until* you got a headache and if so how long, or did this headache occur *after* your using the device for a particular amount of time? I don't mean to be offensive, just probing.

Forgive me if I find your headache either non-existant, exaggerated or else limited to you and perhaps a few others (on this site ironically, and on the sites that allow Android users to touch Apple devices and discuss their experiences without death penalties being exacted), perhaps those who know the term "retina," perhaps those who are upset the mini doesn't have a retina or finally perhaps limited to those who merely derive self-value from contradiction and negation?

Apologies for my sarcasm, but seriously, getting a headache from a device like this I find lacks credibility and to use your term, "honesty", so either 1) I'm incredibly wrong, 2) you're using this device improperly, or 3) this isn't the only product in the world that causes you to get headaches from using it and your comments regarding the mini is ill-placed blame. Which is it?

I can't believe for a moment that if you get a headache from using this device and you used it correctly that it's the only device that would cause you headaches. If it is, then I apologise and I think you need to report your experiences to the consumer protection bureau, or your nearest Android support forum (sorry, couldn't resist the last snipe). If it's one of many devices that cause you headaches, the problem is you not the mini. If it's not either of those, then based on my personal experience and in my opinion, this device doesn't cause headaches, and until I've seen a study to convince me otherwise, this device doesn't cause headaches and everyone else reading this can judge for themselves what I've already judged regarding comments like yours.

WilliamLondon said:

Really? That's serious - devices that cause headaches through normal usage I would think would be of big concern to those in charge of consumer device regulations. Did you use the device *until* you got a headache and if so how long, or did this headache occur *after* your using the device for a particular amount of time? I don't mean to be offensive, just probing.

Forgive me if I find your headache either non-existant, exaggerated or else limited to you and perhaps a few others (on this site ironically, and on the sites that allow Android users to touch Apple devices and discuss their experiences without death penalties being exacted), perhaps those who know the term "retina," perhaps those who are upset the mini doesn't have a retina or finally perhaps limited to those who merely derive self-value from contradiction and negation?

Apologies for my sarcasm, but seriously, getting a headache from a device like this I find lacks credibility and to use your term, "honesty", so either 1) I'm incredibly wrong, 2) you're using this device improperly, or 3) this isn't the only product in the world that causes you to get headaches from using it and your comments regarding the mini is ill-placed blame. Which is it?

I can't believe for a moment that if you get a headache from using this device and you used it correctly that it's the only device that would cause you headaches. If it is, then I apologise and I think you need to report your experiences to the consumer protection bureau, or your nearest Android support forum (sorry, couldn't resist the last snipe). If it's one of many devices that cause you headaches, the problem is you not the mini.

In my personal experience and opinion, this device doesn't cause headaches, and until I've seen a study to convince me otherwise, this device doesn't cause headaches and everyone else can judge for themselves what I've already judged regarding comments like these.

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Reading text on it with apple way too aggressive font kerning did in fact give me a headache. That kind of kerning works on high resolution displays but on lower dpi something more like microsofts cleartype is vastly superior. The minis display also had terrible pixel walk which bothers my eyes immensely. The nexus 7 didn't have any noticeable pixel walk. I noticed it on the mini without even looking at the test pages.

http://www.lagom.nl/lcd-test/inversion.php

ChristianJapan said:

I still have iPad2 and iPad3. Every time read MR on iPad2 the image looks pixelated; crispy on iPad3. Ok; nothing new with that one.

But that means the web is very capable of providing content for retina. You are right with images which might be stored in 72 dpi. Those would not benefit from retina. Kindle, Safari, eMail, ... lots of other stuff scream for retina.

I really tried hard to get an iPad mini; and I will get hopefully very soon (but with retina).

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I agree. I want the mini to get retina so. I really tried hard to like my mini. But Apple has worked hard advertising all the benefits of retina. My iPad 3 and iPhone 5 are just a better reading experience FOR ME.

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blackhand1001 said:

Reading text on it with apple way too aggressive font kerning did in fact give me a headache. That kind of kerning works on high resolution displays but on lower dpi something more like microsofts cleartype is vastly superior. The minis display also had terrible pixel walk which bothers my eyes immensely. The nexus 7 didn't have any noticeable pixel walk. I noticed it on the mini without even looking at the test pages.

http://www.lagom.nl/lcd-test/inversion.php

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Gave me headaches too. And I have 20/20. The text was just to small in Safari for me I guess. Short reading didn't bother me. Checking emails and reading iMessages. But extended reading in iBooks or my lesson notes did cause eye strain which caused me headaches. I've owned every Gen of iPads and never had the same trouble with my full size iPads. I hope retina will fix my issues.

cardfan said:

Sounds like you're rationalizing things. There's more benefits to a higher resolution screen than negatives.

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That is completely false. You cannot state your own opinion as fact. There is absolutely no benefit -for me- in having a higher resolution screen on my Mini. I don't need it, I am 100% completely happy with my Mini.

A higher resolution screen would slow down the device while increasing the cost, two things that I would absolutely hate. Couple those facts with less battery runtime and I would hate the device.

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cardinalryan said:

I just don't understand why people cannot admit that the mini screen is pure garbage.

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Because the screen is not "garbage" and I am very happy with it.

I just don't understand why some people can't understand that not everyone else shares their opinion.

I couldn't be happier with my Mini in it's current form

$$$ said:

That is completely false. You cannot state your own opinion as fact. There is absolutely no benefit -for me- in having a higher resolution screen on my Mini. I don't need it, I am 100% completely happy with my Mini.

A higher resolution screen would slow down the device while increasing the cost, two things that I would absolutely hate. Couple those facts with less battery runtime and I would hate the device.

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He's not arguing that retina displays have higher benefit for everyone -- he's just arguing that iPad minis with lower resolution can't, in any possible way, benefit someone more than a higher resolution screen. Higher resolution screens don't slow down the device, can you cite where you got that information from?

People have argued that higher resolution screens damper battery life, but that's been proven false time and time again.

Simply put, can you think of anyways that a lower resolution screen benefits the user? For me, I'd say financially it benefits them -- but not in any sort of practical way.

Well those that don't want their iPad Mini too feel outdated surely due...

Looking forward to it. People are underestimating what Apple can do.

"its too hard", "its too expensive", "they never did this before" are not valid arguments.

SnowLeopard OSX said:

He's not arguing that retina displays have higher benefit for everyone -- he's just arguing that iPad minis with lower resolution can't, in any possible way, benefit someone more than a higher resolution screen.

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I read what he said and his statement is completely false, just like I outlined. You statement is completely false as well. The lower resolution Mini that is available today benefits many of us much more than a retina level model would. Again, I outlined to reasons in my above post.

Higher resolution screens don't slow down the device, can you cite where you got that information from?

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It takes significantly more processing power for a high resolution screen, this is nothing new.

People have argued that higher resolution screens damper battery life, but that's been proven false time and time again.

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No, it has not. You can believe what you want, but that doesn't make it true.

Simply put, can you think of anyways that a lower resolution screen benefits the user?

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For the third and final time, I already outlined these reasons in my above post. Better battery life, less processor intensive, and lower cost. Of course, there are other reasons such as size and weight, but the three I mentioned are more than enough.

For me, I'd say financially it benefits them -- but not in any sort of practical way.

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And you are wrong, as with everything else you said.

$$$ said:

I read what he said and his statement is completely false, just like I outlined. You statement is completely false as well. The lower resolution Mini that is available today benefits many of us much more than a retina level model would. Again, I outlined to reasons in my above post.

It takes significantly more processing power for a high resolution screen, this is nothing new.

No, it has not. You can believe what you want, but that doesn't make it true.

For the third and final time, I already outlined these reasons in my above post. Better battery life, less processor intensive, and lower cost. Of course, there are other reasons such as size and weight, but the three I mentioned are more than enough.

And you are wrong, as with everything else you said.

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Are you simply going to pick my post apart by replying with: "that's not true, no, you're wrong, no, lower resolution benefits more people than higher resolution" or are you going to provide me with sources to your absurd claims/provide logical reasoning for your opinions?

Preferably the latter.