A 7" tablet SHOULD run at the exact same resolution at the 10" iPad - 1024 x 768. That way developers wouldn't have to developer a third size. If the iPhone 4 can run 960 x 640 they can squeeze 1024 x 768 on a 7".
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Steve Jobs Criticizes 7-Inch Tablets, Says 10-Inches Minimum
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I don't always agree with Steve but on this occasion I agree 100%.
The other issue is that a 7" iPad would be a nightmare for developers and confusing for users. Let's assume a 7" had a 1024x768 screen so can it just run the 9.7" iPad versions of apps? I would suggest no, those apps have been deliberately designed for a 9.7" screen and so all the finger targets (buttons, sliders, tick boxes, etc) would be uncomfortably small and display panes crushed up. Should it run the iPhone version of the app in full screen mode, or maybe make the resolution 960x640 and run iPhone 4 retina-display capable apps? Again I would say no to both these because we all know how odd most iPhone apps look when run at x2 on the iPad and again that's mostly to do with the physical size of the UI elements rather than the resolution. So that just leaves the option of the developers needing to redesign their UIs yet again for a 7" iPad and having to sell and support 3 different versions of their app, or at least three different modes that the app might run in if they decide to make it a universal app. For an app that isn't universal then an iPad user would need to be very sure that they were buying the right sized version of the app they want.
All in all it would have been a mess for developers and users so I for one am glad that it seems to have been kicked into touch.
Now, which publications were reporting on reliable sources suggesting a 7" iPad? We need to mark their scorecards accordingly to reflect a false rumour.
- Julian
The other issue is that a 7" iPad would be a nightmare for developers and confusing for users. Let's assume a 7" had a 1024x768 screen so can it just run the 9.7" iPad versions of apps? I would suggest no, those apps have been deliberately designed for a 9.7" screen and so all the finger targets (buttons, sliders, tick boxes, etc) would be uncomfortably small and display panes crushed up. Should it run the iPhone version of the app in full screen mode, or maybe make the resolution 960x640 and run iPhone 4 retina-display capable apps? Again I would say no to both these because we all know how odd most iPhone apps look when run at x2 on the iPad and again that's mostly to do with the physical size of the UI elements rather than the resolution. So that just leaves the option of the developers needing to redesign their UIs yet again for a 7" iPad and having to sell and support 3 different versions of their app, or at least three different modes that the app might run in if they decide to make it a universal app. For an app that isn't universal then an iPad user would need to be very sure that they were buying the right sized version of the app they want.
All in all it would have been a mess for developers and users so I for one am glad that it seems to have been kicked into touch.
Now, which publications were reporting on reliable sources suggesting a 7" iPad? We need to mark their scorecards accordingly to reflect a false rumour.
- Julian
This was one of the more ridiculous rumors that was inexplicably being taken seriously. If there's one thing Apple is about, it's distinct products.
Do I want an iPod touch or an iPad - this is a clear choice, with "both" being a common answer.
Do I want a 7" iPad or a 10" iPad? Not at all clear, and difficult to justify buying both. The 7" is maybe a little cheaper, a little more portable. It would presumably do everything the iPad does, only worse. It's a terribly difficult product to hype. Nevermind all the technical issues and forcing every single app to design yet another UI for another screen size. You can't just scale down, as it would shrink already-small UI elements to the point where they're hard to see and press.
Do I want an iPod touch or an iPad - this is a clear choice, with "both" being a common answer.
Do I want a 7" iPad or a 10" iPad? Not at all clear, and difficult to justify buying both. The 7" is maybe a little cheaper, a little more portable. It would presumably do everything the iPad does, only worse. It's a terribly difficult product to hype. Nevermind all the technical issues and forcing every single app to design yet another UI for another screen size. You can't just scale down, as it would shrink already-small UI elements to the point where they're hard to see and press.
As has been pointed out in other threads, this would make all the controls in existing iPad apps too small, and so wouldn't work well as an option. Even if the resolution was the same as the current iPad, apps would need to be redesigned.
jW
They could do that but it would mean all the ui elements would be 45% smaller which would make iPad apps difficult to use on a 7" screen (which is the point steve jobs was making!). The ui elements on the iPhone retina display have kept the same physical size despite the resolution increase.
Really? No one wants a stylus?
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/858985/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/900577/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/877706/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/887049/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/964511/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/934383/
7" iPad with a Retina Display solves the issues Steve-O is getting at. Problem solved.
This is typical Steve-O talk, say one thing, then do an about face and a year or so later release a product that you just admitted was no good due to XYZ reason. Steve is a marketer king, plain and simple. One cannot believe anything he says, other than earnings and such.
In the months following
will release a 7" screen with a 10" Retina Display resolution and the 10" iPad will have some higher Retina Display resolution. Problem solved for app developers and he does not look like the two-faced clown when he makes such comments, as he has been know to in the past.FlashBack:
Intel x86 is a dead end road, PPC all the way. Years later...you know how the story goes.
No ones watched or needs video on an iPod, then releases an iPod Video. Same thing went for a smartphone and tablet and here we are today. Plenty more of Steve-O comments that I am not going to list.
Moral of the Story, Do Not Trust Anything Steve Jobs Has to Say About Future Products Today. Take it with a grain of salt.
I think his argument is we currently have two scaled models of iOS, one that works for phones and one that works for tablets. Shrinking the iPad UI would suck and blowing up the iPhone UI would suck (which is why they made the iPad UI extensions in the first place). So a 7" tablet might require a third UI model, which really starts getting unwieldy, it's just the sort of fragmentation problem Android is starting to have and Apple wants to minimize that.
Great news! A 7" iPad would take away one of the main features it has going for it: the size. Glad to hear they're DOA.
I think that's what he meant when he said "Crunched down tablet apps that don't run touch very well because of the squeezing?"
Half the size of screen, but the same stuff to fit on it won't work properly - everything would be too small.
No 7inch Tablet, but how better to compete with the 7inch Tablets than a 7inch iPod Touch. With the bulk componet savings that a big iPod Touch could bring, Apple could undercut on price the 7inch rival Tablets.
I think it's possible he was being sarcastic (always hard to tell on the internet of course).
I think it's true, though, that people don't want a stylus for regular use. What would be nice would be a best of both worlds situation, where you could use your fingers for most usage and grab a stylus for art or other situations where a fine point is better. Unfortunately, the multi-touch screens don't support a fine point stylus, so that's not an option currently. I'd love to see it become an option at some point though.
jW
Resolution Independence, knocks on the door. Hopefully we finally see this in OS 10.7 Lion and iOS.
Yes, and on the iPhone the screen size stayed the same. The elements scaled up, so they were just the same size as on the lower resolution display. If you had a 1024 x 768 screen scaled from 10" to 7", the on-screen elements would be too small to touch accurately. The text would be too small to read too, and you'd need to scale it up. Then you'd be back to square one, where you don't have enough screen real-estate to include all features that are on the 10" tablet.
And BTW, there's really no need to make your whole post bold.
I want 7" iPad. Yes, the experience won't be as immersive as 9.7"" iPad, but I suspect portability (both size and weight) and higher density screen would be preferred by many.
Aside from typing, which won't be as effective as 9.7", I find 7" to be perfectly usable.
In additional, tablets are typically held at longer viewing distance than iPhone, about 3/4 arm length vs. half-arm length. So Galaxy Tab (1024x600 on 7.0", or 170 PPI) and 6" Kindle (800x600 on 6.0" or 167 PPI) go a long way toward achieving "retina display" effect than 9.7" iPad (132 PPI).
That said, I am not against Apple sticking with 9.7" for the time being, especially if they can improve portability while adding more features (e.g., front facing camera, additional RAM and storage capacity, micro-USB and/or SDXC slot).
Aside from typing, which won't be as effective as 9.7", I find 7" to be perfectly usable.
In additional, tablets are typically held at longer viewing distance than iPhone, about 3/4 arm length vs. half-arm length. So Galaxy Tab (1024x600 on 7.0", or 170 PPI) and 6" Kindle (800x600 on 6.0" or 167 PPI) go a long way toward achieving "retina display" effect than 9.7" iPad (132 PPI).
That said, I am not against Apple sticking with 9.7" for the time being, especially if they can improve portability while adding more features (e.g., front facing camera, additional RAM and storage capacity, micro-USB and/or SDXC slot).
I want a 7 inch ipad. I bought the 10 inch for my girlfriend. She loves it. But i don't. I prefer the 7 inch because its easier to carry. i just want one for reading ebooks, watching movies and listening to music. And I also want the 7 inch because its a perfect size so that people around you dont notice it. When you take out the 10 inch out of your messenger bag people thats around you stare. With a 7 inch you don't have that effect. Its small enough to be concealed in your hands. Do your thing and put it into your jacket pocket. And on the train I can take it out to read or watch movies.
Problem is
does not manufacture screens, they are at the mercy of the industry and if the industry says higher resolution smaller displays then so be it. could custom order displays, however that will drive up costs and that means higher cost to the consumer, which might mean not a great acceptance rate by the market due to cost and smaller profit margin for or the product just failing. Plus IEEE standards for other various devices. Its a bag of hurt for .At the end of the day
is at the mercy of the industry producers and manufacturers.I'd laugh if Samsung sold 3 million galaxy tabs in the first month.
But if Steve says they'll be DOA they will be (just like the iMac's).
Obviously that was a pun of the connotations, infered by the reader, of the acronym DOA (just in case anyone says: "Steve means that the 7 inches won't catch on...")
But if Steve says they'll be DOA they will be (just like the iMac's).
Obviously that was a pun of the connotations, infered by the reader, of the acronym DOA (just in case anyone says: "Steve means that the 7 inches won't catch on...")