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Who is the target iPad Mini buyer? (And does non-Retina make sense?)

duggram said:
I don't understand this discriminating attitude. Would a non-retina display make text look so bad you couldn't read it? Would you get a 7" screen for watching movies? What would you be doing on a reading device that you just couldn't accept without a retina display?.
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Im curious what iOS devices you use that makes you so dismissive of the retina screen quality difference. I use an iPad 2 and its a fine reading device, but recently Ive been using an iPad 3 more and the retina display makes a huge difference in terms of comfort, readability and eye strain. So if this product will appeal to the EDU, Readers market then it seems odd to not make it Apples best reader. (But then withholding a key feature has always been Apples way to get you to upgrade so maybe in March we'd get an iPad Mini revision with retina)

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Candlelight said:
I think it will outsell the iPad the same way the 13" MacBook Pro beats the 15".
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Me too. Price point alone will get many people, including current iPad owners, to purchase an impulse buy.
 
KittyKatta said:
Im curious what iOS devices you use that makes you so dismissive of the retina screen quality difference.
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I mainly use an rMBP, but I also have a 2011 13" MBP and the 4S iPhone. The difference between the MBP and the rMBP isn't that great for reading, writing code or messages. Pictures look nice but I don't use my computers for that.
 
I'd buy the mini over the regular iPad, provided that it has new hardware. I don't think I'd buy it if it was an A6 and had retina. Otherwise I'll wait and save the extra money for the iPad 3.

Right now, money is the reason. If I already had an iPad I'd have no reason to buy.
 
Non-retina isn't necessarily a deal-breaker for me, though if it is promoted as retina, I'll buy one in a heartbeat. It's one of those things you have to experience over time to truly appreciate. When I go from my iPad 3 to my Nexus 7, it's sorta disappointing (despite the price point) - and is a huge reason why I use my iPad 3 for everything (even though I think the 7" form factor would be better for general reading and browsing).

I might look to sell my iPad 3 32 GB LTE, buy an LTE iPad mini and then wait for the iPad 4 and go wifi only 64 GB. I could see carrying the mini around a lot more.
 
jrswizzle said:
Non-retina isn't necessarily a deal-breaker for me, though if it is promoted as retina, I'll buy one in a heartbeat. It's one of those things you have to experience over time to truly appreciate. When I go from my iPad 3 to my Nexus 7, it's sorta disappointing (despite the price point) - and is a huge reason why I use my iPad 3 for everything (even though I think the 7" form factor would be better for general reading and browsing).
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FWIW, I'm fine with the Nexus 7 resolution despite it not being iPad-level retina. But if the iPad Mini isn't retina, then it'll be worse than the N7 from what I understand. And that's basically where the deal breaker lies. The Nook Tablet has a pretty high quality screen in other respects but I see the difference in resolution (1024x600) compared to the N7 easily, even without my glasses.
 
Lara F said:
FWIW, I'm fine with the Nexus 7 resolution despite it not being iPad-level retina. But if the iPad Mini isn't retina, then it'll be worse than the N7 from what I understand. And that's basically where the deal breaker lies. The Nook Tablet has a pretty high quality screen in other respects but I see the difference in resolution (1024x600) compared to the N7 easily, even without my glasses.
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Ya - the difference would be about 50 ppi (1280x800 7" N7 vs. 1024x768 7.85' iPad mini). For comparison:

iPad (3rd gen.) - 264 ppi
Kindle Fire HD (8.9") - 254 ppi
Nexus 7 - 216 ppi
iPad mini - 163 ppi
iPad 2 - 132 ppi

For me - it doesn't necessarily have to be retina, but I'll need to see it before making a decision (advances in the iP5 screen prove they can enhance the screen without adding more pixels). If the screen were retina quality and marketed as such, I'd be sold.
 
duggram said:
I mainly use an rMBP, but I also have a 2011 13" MBP and the 4S iPhone. The difference between the MBP and the rMBP isn't that great for reading, writing code or messages. Pictures look nice but I don't use my computers for that.
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Interesting. For me, the greatest difference a retina screen makes is in reading, and by extension, writing text. I had the iPod touch from the first gen to the fourth gen, and I never did much reading on them. They were basically for music, games and some PDA functions. Then I got the iPhone 4S, and started using it more to read, and now I have the iPhone 5, and I'm starting to read on it almost as often as on my iPad. I think I'd jump on it when they finally come out with a retina MacBook Air, because I do my writing on the Air, and I think having a retina screen on my laptop will greatly decrease my eye fatigue. Sure, videos and pictures look prettier on retina screens, but for me, that's not the main benefit at all.
 
ANMA dojo said:
medical students, residents, physicians, and other health professionals.

there are lots of great medical apps (as well as EMR access) available for the ipad, but the ipad is simply too large and inconvenient to carry around. a 7-8" ipad mini on the other hand would be perfect for the white coat pocket.

not fitting in my white coat was the reason I ditched my ipad for a smaller 7" android tablet, so I've been really looking forward to an ipad mini for quite some time! :)
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pilots, engineers, photographers .................... all kinds of pros.

I found the regular ipad to be just too big for most things beyond couch surfing. It's too close to the footprint of an Air and at that point I may as well just go with the full functionality an Air brings.
 
danpass said:
pilots, engineers, photographers
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I dunno, those seem like professions that might appreciate a larger screen size over slight decrease in portability.

What's for sure is there's going to be a lot of dithering over which to get -- people are forever asking which size MacBook they should get, buying one size then exchanging it for another size then going back and getting the first size again... We will be seeing the same behavior as people try to pick between the mini and regular size iPad.

BTW, everyone says children but I disagree. Apps for young children are heavily graphics-based and look better on a larger screen. By the time they get older to actually use an iPad to read text, again, larger size is better for iBooks style textbooks with lots of graphics and other multimedia elements. The only reason why kids might appreciate a smaller size is for games. If I had a kid, I'd feel that getting them an iPad just for games is a waste. I wouldn't be against them playing a game or two on an iPad, but I'd also want them to use it for more than just games -- to read books, to look up stuff, to explore more things. And for that, larger size is definitely better.
 
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I can't slip an iPad into the back pocket of my Levi's.

I will be able to with the new iPad mini/air/nano.
 
wrkactjob said:
I can't slip an iPad into the back pocket of my Levi's.

I will be able to with the new iPad mini/air/nano.
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Since when did Levi pockets get so big? I remember when nothing could get between Brook Shields and her Levi... (totally showing my age)
 
Lara F said:
Agreed - but hopefully the slightly larger than 7'' size won't make the difference between fitting in a white coat and not. That would be a shame. There's a little bit of room left in mine using the Nexus 7 so hopefully it'd still slip inside easily.

No retina display is still a deal breaker for me though. :(
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My coats can fit a kindle fire with a case on it comfortably. Actually, the full-size iPad can almost fit, so this shouldn't be a problem at all. I have big pockets on my labcoats. As for the retina display, that's not as important as the price would be for me. If it is over $299 I will be waiting for the next generation iPad and use my iPhone as the go-to device for work stuff on the fly.
 
jessica. said:
I can see doctors and the like moving to the mini (mine still uses a tablet PC) because it fits in their lab coat pocket and is easy to hold with just one hand.
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Hey, if it will help some of these clowns actually concentrate on what they are doing, then I'm all for it!! Too many, let's just say "not so qualified" people out there pretending to be doctors, so if the iPad mini can cut down on malpractice then this thing will be gold for all people!
 
I'm in the market for an iPad Mini. But my "killer specs" are probably a bit different then yours. I work outdoors. The smaller size would be great. But give me an eInk screen or something that can be read in full sun at the very least. And ruggedize it.

I'll never see it outside of specialized GIS and military companies (like the Trimble Yuma for about $3500).
 
the aim is for people who want an ipad, and dont want to spend $500+ on it. Every kid, mom, dad wants one, may not even know what it can do, but they want one.

With a price tag of about $250-300, prices similar to other tablets, they can purchase now
 
I'd say there is absolutely no way the mini comes out without a retina screen. Apple has proven it is going full blast into retina everything, first iPhone, then iPad, now even MacBook pros, and I'm sure iMacs aren't too far off. Some people didn't even think a retina screen in a laptop made much sense before it came out. How much more sense does it make for a tablet you hold closer to your face?

It would be insane for them to come out with just about any new product and not have a retina screen. I know for me I will not be buying a iPad mini if it doesn't have retina. Everything else just looks blurry anymore.
 
It would seem odd for them to introduce an iPad Mini with no retina and then turn right around and unveil a 13" retina MBP.
 
You have to have experience witha tablet likethe google nexus 7 to appreciate how great a none retina screen can be in that form factor. Its pretty freaking sharp. If apple matches the same screen spec. No problem.
 
I am a potential buyer. I've said this on other theads and maybe this one. I travel a lot, maybe a week at a time, and carry company laptop which has very limited (only for business apps). I also carry paperback books to read. I want something not too big the I can read on, and web stuff and all associated stuff. I might want to carry a movie to watch on flights but that isn't always true.
So retinal display - I'd have to see the screen if not but I certainly can read on my 4s so that level display would be fine. I have music on my iPhone but only listen in my car so I don't care about carrying large amounts of music storage but I'm in the Apple cloud world.
But I wouldn't spend $300 or more for the size and capabilty device I want. I would like to stay with Apple and waiting to see if/what is released but I'm not going to spend and extra $100 for a similar device that I can get from Amazon or Google.
 
I suppose there's a niche but it eludes me.

Nevertheless, it's an Apple and I will buy it as i'm an Apple sheep.

Baaaaaaahhhhh.
 
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