It's not iOS. Everything I own, except the fire which will soon be replaced by the Mini, is iOS or OS X. You know everything is going to work together and I'll probably get the most from all of my devices because they're all on Apple OS's.
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Or is it that some people believe that they will get the most from their devices if they're all from a homogeneous source? This is actually a good question.
I think it's an individual question with no right or wrong answer.
When I thought about how I'd use a 7 inch tablet, it was pretty limited. My music is on my phone. It's mostly going to be to surf the net or watch movies, Netflix, Slingbox when I travel. The apps I'd use most on it are free (banking, social media, etc) are free or a buck. There is nothing the Apple ecosystem gives me that I can't get from Google Play.
However, if it I was buying a mini for my mom or daughter, I may keep it in the iTunes ecosystem just to make it easier for them.
If someone planned on sharing music, playlists, video content they've already purchased, etc, then it may be worth it to them.
I just can't bring myself to pay a 50% premium for how I'm going to use it. But I understand there will be people who need to or want to.
This is somewhat new territory. With the iPhone and iPad Apple created markets and had such a headstart that nobody else could compete. The iPod was an average MP3 player (there were much cheaper units with more functionality), but iTunes gave it a huge competitive edge.
Apple is late to the party on 7 inch tablets. And while competitors stubbed there toe out of the gate (original Kindle Fire), the stuff coming out now is pretty darn good. It's a new situation for Apple to just drop in and make a compelling case for why you should spend $329 on an entry level device that has similar specs to a $199 device that's getting great reviews.
