Weighing in here as a person who is on the other side of middle age steadily progressing towards old age.....
I've had an iPad since Launch Day 2010 (first generation). I loved the thing dearly, carried it with me just about everywhere and used it at home and away from home. Ditto with the iPad 2. iPad 3 came into the household this past March, and like her predecessors, has been toted about whenever I've left home. Around home, although I would once in a while use her in bed, most of the time she has been used in situations where I could easily prop her on a stand and have her on a table or desk. Love the retina screen -- it's gorgeous, terrific for showing off my photographs, great for reading, etc., etc.....
Along came the iPad Mini. I cruised over to the Apple store for a look the first week the WiFi-only models launched. It took all of two seconds of handling one to know that this was going to become a part of my household as soon as the models with cellular data became available. Now I've got my iPad Mini and let me just say, the iPad 3 has been sitting lonely and forlorn much of the time ever since. The smaller form factor makes a big difference and I find myself using the iPad Mini so much more than I did the larger one. I play with her in bed in the morning, in bed at night, all around the house, and of course she's an ideal companion to tuck into a purse -- no largish bag needed -- when leaving the house. I don't miss the retina screen at all because I am too busy enjoying being able to really use this device in bed or in situations where the larger iPad was just too big. A touch of the fingers zooms in the print if I need to enlarge something I'm reading, no biggie. Yes, I can discern the differences between the iPad 3 and its retina screen and my iPhone 5 with its retina screen and the new iPad Mini without a retina screen -- it doesn't bother me in the least. Sure, whenever an iPad Mini with retina screen becomes available, I'll be eager to have one but in the meantime I am more than happy with the current version.
This is a situation in which probably it would be a good idea to allow the recipients an opportunity to decide which size and model of iPad best suits them and their needs. For me, in terms of really comfortable use in a variety of situations and great portability, the iPad Mini wins hands-down.