iPad mini iPad Mini at $399? Really??

[Medic311]

am i one of the few who thinks that the iPad Mini Retina at $399 is fine? i don't get the people who are complaining about the price point as you sit there on your $2,100 Macbook Pro with your prior gen $499 or more iPad 3 or 4.

i have an iPad 3, it's heavy as F for reading. i briefly had an iPad Mini 1st gen and didn't like the screen and wanted to wait for it to get Retina. Apple gave the Mini a Retina and increased the price by $70. that extra $70 is worth it to me so i can have retina-sharp quality text at or near the same weight of the 1st gen mini (.68 lb vs .74 lb) and the same size. it allows me to slip it into whatever bag i'm carrying and not even notice. it's just an extra $70 for a device that you will own for 2 years before you flip it for the next one and only pay an incremental amount to get the latest and lightest and fastest thing.

the level of whining about the price increase has gotten out of control. i understand that forums like these give whiners a podium to cry from, but jeez. you are the same people who begged for Retina. you got it. you got what you want. this time you need to pay a little bit extra to get what you wanted which wasn't available before. if you don't want to pay extra then keep whatever you have and wait for something else.

who knows, maybe that extra $70 you pay will get wiped out from the fact that Apple is giving you the iWork suite for free and OS X Mavericks for free. maybe those were things you would have paid for which you don't now. so please, just be quiet

 

[BSDanalyst]

Apple is a premium brand, and they have never marketed to the unemployed or welfare population. Same as Mercedes, Audi etc. Think of the iPad mini as a B or C class Mercedes.

 

[Ieo]

The previous mini was a step below the full sized iPad, using an outdated set of hardware from the iPad 2 (Two generations behind the iPad 4). This revision makes the new mini just as powerful as the full sized ipad, making the only difference the screen size. Some would argue the mini is actually the overall superior product due to the lighter weight and greater pixel density with otherwise identical specs.

I think an additional $70 is justifiable seeing as the Mini has been taken from a budget model to just a different, smaller form factor for the premium hardware.

$70 is NOT that big a deal. If $70 is going to break you, you should be focusing on other things than buying the newest iPad. You get your money's worth for that $70, so it's not like they're cheating you.

 

[gentleman00]

What makes you think all the new gen products have to cost the same as the old one did? Components don't depreciate at the same rate over the same time.

The fact that the cost to produce the retina 2 years after the release was the same as the non-retina screen the same as that year. Price of components go down over time. Read the report that the new retina minis will be scarce until 2014? Do you know why? they weren't ready to release the retina mini this year, it was a rushed addition because of market competition, and the extra cost apple is paying they will pass along to you. Also for the first time the iPad mini has the same internals as the current gen iPhone.

Apple is in the business to make money, do you think they are selling the first gen iPad mini's at $300 and taking a loss? As components become cheaper to produce, they can reduce the price. will they? not always, but because the screens and components of the first gen iPad mini are cheaper to produce, they can reduce the retail price without affecting their profit margins.

The price of the new retina MacBooks went down, so does that mean they put in worse components than before? Did the price of the same retina screen go change after a year of production?

Learn how business work and the price hike would make sense to you. They can't keep prices the same "just because," whether you think the components and additions are "worth" it or not doesn't affect the actual cost to make them, nor apple's margins...

A. raw materials and components = constant capital

B. labor costs=variable capital

C. It's labor power which produces value ( cost of reproduction of labor power + surplus value)

D. profits=surplus value

E. Cheaper raw materials and components are not the source of corporate profits.

 

[Medic311]

The previous mini was a step below the full sized iPad, using an outdated set of hardware from the iPad 2 (Two generations behind the iPad 4). This revision makes the new mini just as powerful as the full sized ipad, making the only difference the screen size. Some would argue the mini is actually the overall superior product due to the lighter weight and greater pixel density with otherwise identical specs.

I think an additional $70 is justifiable seeing as the Mini has been taken from a budget model to just a different, smaller form factor for the premium hardware.

$70 is NOT that big a deal. If $70 is going to break you, you should be focusing on other things than buying the newest iPad. You get your money's worth for that $70, so it's not like they're cheating you.

very valid point. the iPad Mini Retina is identical in performance now to the full size iPad. the $100 price difference is plenty fair.

 

[sonicrobby]

A. raw materials and components = constant capital

B. labor costs=variable capital

C. It's labor power which produces value ( cost of reproduction of labor power + surplus value)

D. profits=surplus value

E. Cheaper raw materials and components are not the source of corporate profits.

so if raw material and components increases what happens? Apple's profit margins are set at a certain percentage. If any costs increase and profit margins remain constant, what must happen?

 

[ElectronGuru]

You seem to forget that the original iPad got the Retina display and stayed at the same price. What makes the mini so "special" that it warrants a price hike under the same conditions?

I thought the same the same thing, then thinking it through, realized the conditions are not the same. Before the iPad 3 came out in early 2012, the 2 was at the full (original) price. After the 3 came out, apple discounted the 2. When the mini 1 came out, it was based on the 2 (literally) and discounted yet again. The mini 1 was two price reductions away from the 2s original price, for the same components. At 299, the mini 1 (or at least it's components) has now had three rounds of price cuts. Compared directly to the original iPad 2, the mini 2 has a better screen, better antenna, better processor, better camera, and double the ram etc., all for $100 less.

 

[Ohrstrom]

I thought the same the same thing, then thinking it through, realized the conditions are not the same. Before the iPad 3 came out in early 2012, the 2 was at the full (original) price. After the 3 came out, apple discounted the 2. When the mini 1 came out, it was based on the 2 (literally) and discounted yet again. The mini 1 was two price reductions away from the 2s original price, for the same components. At 299, the mini 1 (or at least it's components) has now had three rounds of price cuts. Compared directly to the original iPad 2, the mini 2 has a better screen, better antenna, better processor, better camera, and double the ram etc., all for $100 less.

Are you comparing todays spec of the iPad mini retina with iPad 2's spec when it came and saying "it must be good because its cheaper than what the iPad 2 was when it came" That feels like comparing apples and oranges to me.

 

[gentleman00]

By lowering the iPad mini's current price, Apple can maintain its profit with the sheer number of units it sells.

Also, if Apple's is targeting parents and their children during the holiday season, it would be wise to reduce the price point of the iPad mini. As an example, a parent with two or three children who plans to buy each child a tablet , but on a budget, would probably choose an alternative tablet on the market.

For the individual geek, $399 won't break the bank, but for a parent with two or more kids who is expecting an iPad Mini as a Christmas present, may instead choose a competitively cheaper tablet on the market.

 

[mabhatter]

The unemployed should not be purchasing luxury consumer items. Apple is not a social service.

Reality check is that $399 is barely one weeks pay. The average wage in the USA is about $40k range, which is $760 per week before uncle SAMs 3/4 cut.

We're all just in debt too much with too many extra bills our parents didn't have... Cable, Internet, cell phones, etc.... All chipping away every month.

 

[bbishop93]

am i one of the few who thinks that the iPad Mini Retina at $399 is fine? i don't get the people who are complaining about the price point as you sit there on your $2,100 Macbook Pro with your prior gen $499 or more iPad 3 or 4.

i have an iPad 3, it's heavy as F for reading. i briefly had an iPad Mini 1st gen and didn't like the screen and wanted to wait for it to get Retina. Apple gave the Mini a Retina and increased the price by $70. that extra $70 is worth it to me so i can have retina-sharp quality text at or near the same weight of the 1st gen mini (.68 lb vs .74 lb) and the same size. it allows me to slip it into whatever bag i'm carrying and not even notice. it's just an extra $70 for a device that you will own for 2 years before you flip it for the next one and only pay an incremental amount to get the latest and lightest and fastest thing.

the level of whining about the price increase has gotten out of control. i understand that forums like these give whiners a podium to cry from, but jeez. you are the same people who begged for Retina. you got it. you got what you want. this time you need to pay a little bit extra to get what you wanted which wasn't available before. if you don't want to pay extra then keep whatever you have and wait for something else.

who knows, maybe that extra $70 you pay will get wiped out from the fact that Apple is giving you the iWork suite for free and OS X Mavericks for free. maybe those were things you would have paid for which you don't now. so please, just be quiet

I agree I think apple is a premium brand and they can charge a premium price. HOWEVER, the price to upgrade from 16gb to 32 and 32 to 64 is actually absurd. It costs apple roughly a few dollars for those storages, notice how amazon and google are offering 16gb storage upgrades for 40$? There is no reason for 100$ upgrades at this point let alone the fact that the 32gb should be the norm by now.

 

[gnasher729]

With Americans still recovering from the economic recession, and many still unemployed, one might expect Apple to keep the price point of iPad Minis at $329 or lower.

The unemployed can buy iPad Minis for $299. They'll have to wait for retina displays until they are employed again. Unless you can give me a case where having an iPad Mini with Retina display is a requirement for finding a new job.

Honestly, I have been hearing this story that the USA are now a third world country for the last ten years.

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By lowering the iPad mini's current price, Apple can maintain its profit with the sheer number of units it sells.

1. They can't. You probably have your brain washed by "BOM" numbers that are idiotic when taken out of context, or by huge gross margin numbers. Gross margin isn't profit. They would have to triple their sales.

2. Apple would have to reduce the non-retina price as well. Now they would have to triple the number of non-retina sales as well.

3. There are few people who cannot pay $399 but can pay $329.

4. They can't build as many Retina minis as they could sell anyway, so at a lower price they won't sell a single one more.

You suffer from an afflliction where you somehow think that what is beneficial for you would be beneficial for others and desperately look for arguments to support it.

 

[Medic311]

I agree I think apple is a premium brand and they can charge a premium price. HOWEVER, the price to upgrade from 16gb to 32 and 32 to 64 is actually absurd. It costs apple roughly a few dollars for those storages, notice how amazon and google are offering 16gb storage upgrades for 40$? There is no reason for 100$ upgrades at this point let alone the fact that the 32gb should be the norm by now.

agreed, it is a bit ridiculous. people still pay for it (myself being one of them).

i needed the 64GB of storage and now that there is a 128GB model i will probably spring for that too because it's always good to have more than you need since data storage consumption only increases. now hour long TV show MKVs are ~ 2GB a pop in 720p. if i download a season pack you're looking at 30GB. it's not possible to put all of that in the cloud. wait, correction...it is possible. i could dump it into my 50GB drop box account and stream it from my iPad 3 wifi tethered to my iPhone 5 which can stream HD video over LTE without problem. since i have an unlimited plan that would work. but then again, i would be killing the battery on my iPhone and unnecessarily killing the battery on my iPad as well. so while cloud technology exists, it's not the best way of doing things and i would much rather spend the extra $200 over the life of the product than deal with the constant battery run downs, or streaming hiccups, or whatnot.

apple knows all of this...so they charge the premium lol


a 128GB iPad Mini Retina will be so sick though...i can't wait!

 

[AppleRobert]

As already stated by many, the $70 extra over the first Mini is well worth it.
Don't get mad at the price hike, get mad that the first Mini was overpriced!

 

[whoiare]

As already stated by many, the $70 extra over the first Mini is well worth it.
Don't get mad at the price hike, get mad that the first Mini was overpriced!

EXACTLY!. THE FIRST MINI is what everyone should be mad at. over priced for its 2 year old tech. I held out because i wouldnt spend that much on such an outdated ipad just to have it smaller. I do wish it stayed the same price but at least apple did us a favor in NOT shortchanging the mini vs the air and having to make us choose smaller size vs better specs as they did last year.

 

[spicynujac]

This makes zero sense, a $399 Retina Mini is too expensive but an exact same spec Ipad Air for 499 isn't too expensive. Massive logic fail.

----------
.

It's not illogical to pay an extra $100 for a 25% increase in screen size. The premium paid for larger screen size on, say, the macbooks, is much higher. I like the mini, but its price point is pushing me to buy the ipad air. If the mini were $330 I would have bought one.

 

[AppleRobert]

It's not illogical to pay an extra $100 for a 25% increase in screen size. The premium paid for larger screen size on, say, the macbooks, is much higher. I like the mini, but its price point is pushing me to buy the ipad air. If the mini were $330 I would have bought one.

At first, I thought to get the Air because I have a mini with cellular. I think I probably can trade it in though hopefully and I'd buy the Air.

If not, that is when $100 cost savings for the new Mini will be much appreciated over the Air.

 

[spicynujac]

Recession ended a few years ago. Please learn what a recession is.

On topic, the financially challenged shouldn't be buying Apple products which are luxury goods anyway. The iPad especially, it's a pure luxury device that does not perform a vital task like the iPhone or a laptop. It is for those with significant disposable income.

The government/economist definition of a recession ignores certain economic realities such as in October 2013 we hit a record low of Americans participating in the workforce.

The iphone at $650 is not a vital device. In fact, although I could afford either, I am too cheap to buy a telephone at such a ridiculous price. It is purely a luxury good, when there are plenty of phones for <$100. They just don't check your twitter publicly or obnoxiously post things to your facebook all day long.

Of course people on a tight budget don't need to buy Apple products, but I think the point of hey, we are in serious debt and not facing boom times, makes people much more price conscious than in happy times, and many people will choose a Nexus 7 versus the ipad mini. Personally, I feel the mini is not a great buy, but the ipad air is the premium tablet experience and nothing else comes close.

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Apple is a premium brand, and they have never marketed to the unemployed or welfare population. Same as Mercedes, Audi etc. Think of the iPad mini as a B or C class Mercedes.

They may not market directly towards these groups, but there are a LOT of Mercedes and iphones in the ghettho. And a lot of Toyota Camrys (and ipads) in my upper middle class neighborhood.

 

[jonnyb098]

Everyone complained about no retina display. They get a retina display and complain about the price. You can't get the retina display for the same price as a regular display. If you want improved components, it going to cost more… Plus its now as powerful as a full sized iPad, so you're getting a good deal at 399

The iPad mini is still going to be sold at $299 anyway, why complain about it?

Oh really? Is that why the 3rd Gen iPad was the EXACT same price as the non-retina iPad 2? Check your facts friend. Apple is just artificially amping price the same as keeping a 3 year old iPad 2 at 399.

This is the first time Apple HAS EVER RAISED the price of a new iPad.

 

[jonnyb098]

The previous mini was a step below the full sized iPad, using an outdated set of hardware from the iPad 2 (Two generations behind the iPad 4). This revision makes the new mini just as powerful as the full sized ipad, making the only difference the screen size. Some would argue the mini is actually the overall superior product due to the lighter weight and greater pixel density with otherwise identical specs.

I think an additional $70 is justifiable seeing as the Mini has been taken from a budget model to just a different, smaller form factor for the premium hardware.

$70 is NOT that big a deal. If $70 is going to break you, you should be focusing on other things than buying the newest iPad. You get your money's worth for that $70, so it's not like they're cheating you.

I doubt its going to break the bank for anyone as its still cheaper. However given that this is the FIRST time they have actually RAISED the price of an iPad is kinda weird. As the full size iPads have always added features, speed and retina all while maintaining price. This just proves that either A) Apple is trying to recoup costs of making software for free or B) They were forced by the market to do a retina mini for the sake of being a complete laughing stock. A they really arent gonna have ample supply till after the holidays.

 

[solarguy17]

I had the same thought initially, "wow, $400, that's way to much"
But then I thought about it.

When the iPad Mini released last year it had the same internals and features as the iPad 2 ( expect Siri). But it was $70 less.
The iPad Mini not only has the retina display but also has the internals of the iPad 5 which will drive the price up. So it actually makes sense. Plus with the iPad Mini $100 less then the iPad Mini2 it fits with the iPad 5 and iPad 2 pricing.

While it was a bit of a surprise, it make sense and I understand it now.
And they will sell millions.

 

[TroyBoy30]

very valid point. the iPad Mini Retina is identical in performance now to the full size iPad. the $100 price difference is plenty fair.

how do you know that? chances are the a7 will at least be clocked higher in the full size ipad

 

[eecyclone]

I think the mini with retina is at a great price. The same internals as the ipad air makes it a huge upgrade from the ipad mini 1st gen.

 

[jonnyb098]

I think the mini with retina is at a great price. The same internals as the ipad air makes it a huge upgrade from the ipad mini 1st gen.

Yet if Apple released the 3rd-gen iPad last year starting at 599 after adding retina everyone would be bitching up a storm. Ah the power of Apples marketing is already hard at work.

 

[eecyclone]

Yet if Apple released the 3rd-gen iPad last year starting at 599 after adding retina everyone would be bitching up a storm. Ah the power of Apples marketing is already hard at work.

Yes, but the iPad 3 only went from an A5 to an A5x and quadroupled the resolution. They also dropped the price of the iPad 2 at that time to $399, so your idea of a $599 iPad 3 with retina would have been a $200 price premium.

The ipad mini went from the A5 to the A7, which is a HUGE jump, and also quadroupled the screen resolution. They dropped the price of the iPad mini 1st gen to $299, so $399 is only a $100 price premium.

Makes sense to me.