7.85-Inch iPad to Ramp Up Production in September at Foxconn Brazil

[G51989]

What's the point of a smaller iPad? You would truly be better off with th regular iPad size. It seems a little unnecessary to decrease the size of one of your products to compete with another company...

Or, some people want an iPad? But want a smaller one? And Apple knows they can make money off a small tablet?

Rember kids, Apple is just a business. They don't care about you, or your opinions, or what you want them to do. They care about money, and thats all.

If you say you won't buy a smaller iPad, they don't care. 100 other people will take your place and buy one.

 

[JohnDoe98]

If you think that's cheap, you aren't living in the real world and must either be a millionaire or an investment banker that got mega rich from the recession??

Again, Apple do NOT do cheap.

On January 10, 2005, the Mac Mini was announced alongside the iPod shuffle at the Macworld Conference & Expo and Apple CEO Steve Jobs said at the time:

"People who are thinking of switching will have no more excuses," he said. "It's the newest and most affordable Mac ever."

Sounds to me like Steve understood this to be a budget machine.

 

[poloponies]

On January 10, 2005, the Mac Mini was announced alongside the iPod shuffle at the Macworld Conference & Expo and Apple CEO Steve Jobs said at the time:

"People who are thinking of switching will have no more excuses," he said. "It's the newest and most affordable Mac ever."

Sounds to me like Steve understood this to be a budget machine.

"Most affordable Mac ever" is a relative measure. You probably don't recall all the people who were hoping for the discount "pizza box" mac to compete with the $399 Packard Bells of the world. They were all grumbling because by the time they configured it to comparable specs it was less expensive to get an iMac.

 

[apolloa]

On January 10, 2005, the Mac Mini was announced alongside the iPod shuffle at the Macworld Conference & Expo and Apple CEO Steve Jobs said at the time:

"People who are thinking of switching will have no more excuses," he said. "It's the newest and most affordable Mac ever."

Sounds to me like Steve understood this to be a budget machine.

hahahaha, so you are going to believe what is a 'budget' computer because Apple TOLD you it was??

APPLE DO NOT DO CHEAP!! Please understand this, unless you are not capable of thinking for yourself and believe everything Apple tells you? I bet that Mac Mini costs Apple $50 if that to make. It is anything but cheap.

 

[JohnDoe98]

"Most affordable Mac ever" is a relative measure. You probably don't recall all the people who were hoping for the discount "pizza box" mac to compete with the $399 Packard Bells of the world. They were all grumbling because by the time they configured it to comparable specs it was less expensive to get an iMac.

Cheap and cheapen are also relative measures. The Mac Mini is cheap compared to other Apple products, doesn't mean it's cheap compared to Fisher Price toys.

----------

hahahaha, so you are going to believe what is a 'budget' computer because Apple TOLD you it was??

APPLE DO NOT DO CHEAP!! Please understand this, unless you are not capable of thinking for yourself and believe everything Apple tells you? I bet that Mac Mini costs Apple $50 if that to make. It is anything but cheap.

I don't need Apple to think for me. For 500$, yes, it is a very cheap computer. Doesn't mean it's low quality, doesn't mean it isn't worth the price, doesn't mean it's not expensive compared to what it costs then to manufacture it. Do tell though, why are you so touchy about this?

 

[apolloa]

I don't need Apple to think for me. For 500$, yes, it is a very cheap computer. Doesn't mean it's low quality, doesn't mean it isn't worth the price, doesn't mean it's not expensive compared to what it costs then to manufacture it. Do tell though, why are you so touchy about this?

I'm not touchy? Just cannot believe the idiots the think Apple is cheap or that they will sell a 7" iPad for the same price as the starting point of the iPod Touch.

And the Mini is not $500, you forget another $100 PLUS tax, and it is NOT good value Or cheap what so ever. People see Apple as luxury products because of the design AND the pricing and the includes the Mini. It's in the same league as Rolls Royce, Rolex, Omega, their are PLENTY of other far cheaper options out there that do the exact same thing.

You are frankly totally deluded to think the Mini offers a good value 'cheap' computer.

 

[JohnDoe98]

I'm not touchy. Apple's in the same league as Rolls Royce, Rolex, Omega, their are PLENTY of other far cheaper options out there that do the exact same thing.

You are frankly totally deluded.

I see much more clearly now, thanks.

 

[MareLuce]

If it fits into a purse, i bet every woman would prefer it over the bigger size.

If next opportunity for re-charge is uncertain, I'll only use my iPhone 4 if absolutely needed.
(Yes, I bought a Mophie, but it stopped working well about 6 months ago.) But if I had another iOS-device in my purse, I could use that and not care if I kill its battery, because I'd still be able to make phone calls.

So I've come really close to getting an iPod touch to be my in-purse supplement to my iPhone.

However,

1) The screen is just too small to be comfortable enough at using apps or reading etc., for an extended time while out and about.

2) I believe it lacked gps or some other feature my iPhone had that made me think I would still need to use (and wear down the battery on) my iPhone anyway.


Dear Apple,

Please release this iPad Mini before I spent 2 weeks wandering through Austria, the Czech Republic, and Berlin in December.

 

[cdarlington1]

Without Steve Jobs, Apple is falling into the rabbit hole.... This company it's supposed to LEAD not to FOLLOW. Let the small tablets fight with each other and keep improving the iPad in it's form factor. Now we are going to have an inconsistent app ecosystem as Android with apps that will look good on that space and others that wont fit. Why Apple?? Why?

I would guess that this has been in the pipeline long before Steve departed. They have the $ to make all these sizes work. Anyone know approx. ppi would be at 1024x768?

 

[knucklehead]

I would guess that this has been in the pipeline long before Steve departed. They have the $ to make all these sizes work. Anyone know approx. ppi would be at 1024x768?

Here, check this out:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1349884/

When you look at how the iPad's apps scale down to the iPhone's touch target size right at a pretty significant screen size of 7.85", it does seem to well planned right from the start.

 

[Mr. Gates]

I really hope this is true.

So Samsung, ASUS, and all the rest can ban together an SUE THE HOLY HELL out of them for "copying" their form factor.

Seriously, with all this patent B.S. from Apple, I can see all of their stupid lawsuits setting president for counter suits in the future from the same companies they have been bullying.

Go ahead Apple.

 

[ixodes]

Remember kids, Apple is just a business. They don't care about you,

Yes daddy I know, that's why I buy lots of other brands along with the Apple items I have.

 

[fertilized-egg]

And the Mini is not $500, you forget another $100 PLUS tax, and it is NOT good value Or cheap what so ever. People see Apple as luxury products because of the design

I don't know if anybody remembers it, but once a Taiwanese company named AOpen released a direct competitor to Mini. It was actually more expensive than Mac Mini. Also the build quality wasn't as good as the real Mini either.

The tough part in gauging Mini's value is that there isn't really a true alternative to it. But I think it's actually a pretty decent value if you're looking for a well built computer with design that'll blend in, which actually matters if you have family and house hold, and also considering how the used price holds better.

It's really well built, performs well enough, and looks great. Then again, most people arguing these things online often are the types who'll use the most hideous, big and even poorly built cases if the price is right.

It's also designed to dominate the market. I don't see it as apple following their competitors as much as it is simply solidifying their dominant position.

Precisely my thinking too. They now have their big model established with huge success and just as they did with iPod Mini, Nano and Shuffle, Apple will now try to eliminate all the low end competitors with smaller tablets. It'll be interesting where they go with iPod Touch.

 

[gadget123]

It won't happen for the simple reason cheaper smaller tablets are not really suitable as there's smart phones. There might be 7" ones but most go for smart phones or larger tablets.

I reckon this is just a rumour to spin off talk of the Iphone 5. Apple won't release IOS6, Iphone 5, Ipad Mini, Ipod touch refresh all in one event.

Apple like one flagship IOS product. I can't see them making endless smaller versions. If they do that's just copying Samsung and will make the Ipad 3 look less as good if there's cheaper versions.

Ipad 2 is the Ipad mini as it's cheaper. Those who say this must be happening based on what? Rumour after rumour? If you believe these rumours you would believe anything. Hardly any rumour is that accurate really.

 

[xVeinx]

It's possible that we'll see the internals of the iPad 2 fit into a smaller tablet. I've seen them for as low as $350 new, and adoption of die shrinks and some other design optimizations may be sufficient to drop the cost low enough to be palatable. They can certainly get the cost to $300 and still have good margins, but I'm not sure how much lower they can go.

 

[DudeDad]

What's the point of a smaller iPad? You would truly be better off with th regular iPad size. It seems a little unnecessary to decrease the size of one of your products to compete with another company...

According to my wife, she would want one because she can throw it in her purse and take it with her....she really can't do that with the current sized iPad. I do think there'a a market for it....but they didn't ask us!

 

[samcraig]

The reason would be to compete against smaller tablets and their price point.

The hypocrisy would be the "claim" that 9.7" is the optimal screen size and you wouldn't want anything smaller or larger.

I think Apple will eventually produce a smaller tablet. Just like I think they will eventually produce a phone with a screen larger than 3.5" despite all of their research that was done years ago to the contrary.

 

[pysl]

According to my wife, she would want one because she can throw it in her purse and take it with her....she really can't do that with the current sized iPad. I do think there'a a market for it....but they didn't ask us!

My family has an iPad and yet we still want an iPad Mini - depends on where we going, sometimes a smaller iPad suits us better =)

 

[Navdakilla]

No reason why they can't do this. They've got a lot more surface area to spread the components around.

I just don't see it happening though.

That would be amazing though

 

[kylera]

My family has an iPad and yet we still want an iPad Mini - depends on where we going, sometimes a smaller iPad suits us better =)

That's partially why I got a first-gen Galaxy Tab once prices fell like bricks. It isn't iOS, but the form factor is more suitable than that of the iPad at times.

 

[damir00]

I bet that Mac Mini costs Apple $50 if that to make.

That is completely delusional.

 

[gatortpk]

It's unlikely that Apple would go against its principle and make a subpar iPad to its current iPad. Whoever is making the rumor about the smaller iPad is an idiot.

I don't know why people are saying the smaller iPad would be subpar? It's likely to have the exact resolution (1024x768, but with higher pixel density at 163 PPI instead of 132 PPI) same quality case, same quality (and newer) components such as the 32nm A5 SoC.

All this amounts to a iPad that's less than 2 inches smaller, has the same resolution, same performance, and same battery life as the iPad 2, but thinner, and half the weight and cost!

----------

No reason why they can't do this. They've got a lot more surface area to spread the components around.

I just don't see it happening though.

Again, I can see how the smaller iPad could be as thin as the iPod Touch, it's just hard to imagine.

It really does make sense, even the battery can be thinner, and all the individual components in the iPad are no thicker than in the iPod Touch (except for the current battery), so I suppose it's likely.

This is why it could be half the cost and weight.

 

[G51989]

While I doubt the reality of a 7" ipad, how do you explain the mac mini if Apple never cheapens?

The Mac Mini is a pile of garbage. And its a joke. ( Downvote all you want, I don't care ) So don't mention it

Whenever someone asks me to recommend an Apple,and they want a Mini, I tell them to work harder and buy an iMac.

For me anyway, the Mini is an example of a uselessly small form factor, that compromises the rest of the machine.


Apple has every reason to make an iPad " mini ", it won't damage the companies " luxury image " because that image doesn't exist. The only people who really think apple is a " luxury product " are Fanboys.

" Luxury " products simply for the MOST part do not exist in the electronics world, Comparing an iPhone 4S to a Galaxy SIII is nowhere close comparing a Honda to an Audi or Merc.

 

[ucfgrad93]

I hope they do bring out a smaller iPad. Can't wait to see it.

 

[sunspot42]

If they're smart, they'll brand it as an iPod

Apple could instantly make competitors' 7" tablets look like cheap toys by branding this thing as an iPod (maybe call it the iPod HD or something). Then all of the crappy 7" Android tablets will be going up against a flipping iPod (and, no doubt, getting creamed).

How humiliating.