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Tim Cook: iPad Mini Priced 'Aggressively'
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All good points, and in the mini's favor. I was obviously too lazy to do the detailed comparison.
So it's an even better deal compared to the iPad 2 than it first appears.
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I personally think it is a bit of overpriced, because of all the speculated price points below 300. But eventually when it hits market, what will matter most is how much it appeals to consumers and how affordable it is. For these reasons, I think it will be ok. That's like all the other expensive merchandise like mb, BMW... People will get over the initial frustration.
Betting you own a Nexus 7 and your favorite TV show is "Breaking Bad".
You are only correct about Breaking Bad.
No Nexus 7. I'll take a look at the iPad mini and the new Windows tablets and see what I like.
Hah, right. Pass up the 5th gen iPod touch?
Too late, already went there! White and silver, 32GB on order since Tuesday. I figure it's like getting to know an iPhone 5 ahead of time, for those of us glued into 4S land for another year of contract. Not that I don't like my 4S. I went for the original 8GB iPhone at full retail on launch day, so 5th gen iPod touch pricing seems like a bargain. There are SOME advantages to having been an early adopter of stuff. You can feel like you are paying a bit too much for what you can do with it, but then you are totally awestruck by the later spinoffs and improvements at lower prices. I pick up that ol' iPhone 1 (now just a WiFi device) for a little music-fest about twice a week now, and smile when I remember unboxing it in the car on that hot September afternoon. I wanted to teleport myself instead of driving that 90 miles back home, so I could sync that iPhone up instantly!
It's been a great journey to buy, use and so support the further unfolding of iDevice tech and the software and content that go with them ever since that day in 2007. The iPod touch has been a special stroke of genius in my opinion. Not everyone needs that cellphone option but the device has so much to offer as a smart-almostPhone.
I just recently sold my Nexus 7 and it was good device but it definitely does not hold a candle to Apple's build quality. Nexus 7 has screen lift and spongy feeling on the left side, crappy speaker, crappy camera and screen being washed out after watching a video, multi touch lags at times. iPad 2 screen is much better than the HD screen of the Nexus 7.
I liked the Nexus 7 but I'll like the iPad mini even more.
Browser issues can be as much to do with your Wi-Fi network as the device you use. I haven't noticed any issues with my iPad in Safari. I wouldn't assume that the iPad is at fault.
Of course, a faster processor will load pages faster, but it still has to deal with the speed of your network. I had some terrible Wi-Fi slowdowns before, and found it was due to a slowly dying modem. It still connected, but everything was very slow. Replaced it with a new modem, and my download speeds increased dramatically. It was night and day.
iPad mini + iPad 2
I am glad I am not the only one that will own one in both sizes. I have a MBP set up at home, I stay away a week at a time for my job, and use my iPad 2 as a laptop replacement and plan to purchase the iPad mini for use at work (fits in my lab coat) and for travel. At some point, may stop using the iPad 2 or its equivalent, but that may mean reconfiguring my whole Apple ecosystem. Hmm, like an iMac 21" with a fusion drive at home, an Air or 13" rMBP for the road and the iPad mini for work.
One last point I'd like to make is that every one keeps harping Apple on the pricing of the iPad minis. I think they recognized the need for this size, but did not want to compete in the $149-199 budget tablets. It is odd that they presented the Nexus 7 as a comparison, I don't remember Apple ever formally comparing their products with competator's products.
Ultimately, my take is that the iPad mini is in a class by itself. As usual, the pundits will compare its specs with Android and Windows 8 devices, just like they compare Macs to PCs, but again its the apples to oranges arguments. I hope most of the public will be smart enough to know the difference.
I am glad I am not the only one that will own one in both sizes. I have a MBP set up at home, I stay away a week at a time for my job, and use my iPad 2 as a laptop replacement and plan to purchase the iPad mini for use at work (fits in my lab coat) and for travel. At some point, may stop using the iPad 2 or its equivalent, but that may mean reconfiguring my whole Apple ecosystem. Hmm, like an iMac 21" with a fusion drive at home, an Air or 13" rMBP for the road and the iPad mini for work.
One last point I'd like to make is that every one keeps harping Apple on the pricing of the iPad minis. I think they recognized the need for this size, but did not want to compete in the $149-199 budget tablets. It is odd that they presented the Nexus 7 as a comparison, I don't remember Apple ever formally comparing their products with competator's products.
Ultimately, my take is that the iPad mini is in a class by itself. As usual, the pundits will compare its specs with Android and Windows 8 devices, just like they compare Macs to PCs, but again its the apples to oranges arguments. I hope most of the public will be smart enough to know the difference.
There are likely people that would pay $499.99 for an iPad mini with the same specs as the iPhone 4Th generation 16GB just because they want that size. The pricing would not make sense, some would because having a smaller device would be worth it to them.
How much money a company has or doesn't have has absolutely no bearing on the need to sell products for a profit. Saying "we've got a lot of money in the bank so we don't need to make a profit anymore" isn't how it works.
All good points, and in the mini's favor. (I was obviously too lazy to do the detailed comparison.
So it's an even better deal compared to the iPad 2 than it first appears.
And the iPad Mini has a IGZO display..... the iPad 2 does not.
You are only correct about Breaking Bad.
I stand corrected.
Well, it's all true.
I'm just pointing out that people are quick to blame the device whenever there's an issue, and many times there are other reasons for the perceived problem.
Browsing speeds are very dependent on your network.... just a fact.
I bought a refurbished iPad 2 a couple of months ago. I was very happy with my purchase then, and I am very happy with my purchase now.
But the iPad mini and the iPad 4 are also great values.
I've bought most things Apple has put out and was thinking about this for my wife. $329 16GB Wi-Fi only? Forget it. Apple could have crushed... CRUSHED...the competition with a product in the $275 range. Just don't get the logic.
How does it smell, having your nose that far up Apple execs' a**es?
My mother has a Kindle Fire HD and loves it. Just because it doesn't have an Apple logo on it, doesn't mean it's crap.
People like this really piss me off.
It's really a matter of what you want to spend and what else you are planning to buy. A $500 investment isn't huge, but after tax it is considerably larger than the $330 with tax for what is still a very similar product. For some people, saving and spending $300 on what is essentially an unnecessary product for most people, is a big deal.
Tim Cook quote:
"When we set out to build it, we didn't set out to build a small, cheap tablet. We set out to build a smaller iPad that offered the full iPad experience. <snip>
That's what we've done, the iPad mini has higher costs and gross margin is significantly below our corporate average. Height of the cost curve, but we want to make a large number and we're going to work to try to get down the cost curve and get more efficient with manufacturing as we've done with our other products."
Translated...
"Now that we've taken all this heat, we are working overtime to bring the price down."
Ah yes, the trials and tribulations of being Apple CEO.
Perhaps now is _not_ the time to buy... LOL
No..Not at all. He is referring to the production costs going down over time and thus the margin increasing. He's essentially telling investors the margins are thin now but will level out.