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Why Apple's 7.85-Inch 'iPad Mini' Isn't a 7-Inch Tablet

I remember when people argued that no one wanted a tablet and it was a dumb idea and look how many they have sold. so my opinion on the smaller is no matter what people say they would sell a crapload of them and thats what matters. I know i would buy one for at least 4 family members that enjoy the simplicity of tablets compared to computers. on an ipad if they get confused or dont understand whats going on they can just press the home button and all is right with the world again. my parents are afraid of computers because they are always afraid they will screw them up or delete the wrong thing. not so with tablets. being able to just press the home button when they get lost is huge.
 
GREEN4U said:
I hate Apple's bezels with a fervent passion.
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How do you hold onto it without activating a feature while touching the non-benzeled display? There's not enough benzel on the iPad the way it is. I'm constantly unintentionally triggering something while holding it.
 
perfect size for auto mount

I'll buy this just to use in my car - gps etc. - cd slot mount
the iphone is TOO small
and the current pad to huge.
 
koolmagicguy said:
I agree. The new iPads, iPhone 4 and 4S, iPod touch (4th gen) and now MacBooks (Retina Pro and upcoming 13" MBPs?) sport Retina displays. It would be the easiest thing in the world for Apple to make iPad mini with a Retina display as well.
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Certainly, apple could make it, but with the price of the display being the biggest cost of the current iPad, I think apple would be more inclined to keep the cost as low as possible to be have a competitive price against the Kindle Fire and Nexus 7, whilst maintaining their typical >50% profit margin from cost of production to retail price, most likely with an 'iPad Mini' at $299, with apple "pixel doubling" to 2048 x 1536 a year or two down the line (much greater than "retina" on a 7.85in display) in order to prevent fragmentation for screen resolutions.
 
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I'm still not sold on the idea; if portability is the main concern then I think an iPod Touch is the better option since it's (sort of) pocket-sized. Anything bigger requires a bag so you may as well just use a normal iPad.
 
7" iPod Touch

I'm still pretty sure that any 7" device Apple makes will be marketed as an iPod Touch.

iPod and iPhone apps, wifi only, focus on e-reading, gaming, music and movies.. I think they'll optimize the display, processor/graphics and battery to make the best possible use of that 7" for these tasks..

I don't see it being an iPad..

7" iPod Touch 8GB $249, 16GB $299, 32GB $399

I'll be glad to be wrong, but I don't think I am.
 
GREEN4U said:
Why do you defend poor design?

They wouldn't touch the screen necessarily. That's just what everyone thinks. Most likely, you'd adapt and find a way to make it work. In the end, you'd have a lighter/smaller product or a bigger screen.

Same goes for the iMac 'chin' and everything else.
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laughable.. its an ergonomic issue, has nothing to do with design. So i guess if they made one with a thin bezel and everyone started bashing apple because their fat fingers kept triggering the screen, we be back to the big bezel. Do you own an ipad? if so, next time you use it put your thumbs and fingers over past the bezel onto the screen and see how long you can stand it, if you can even use it at all..
 
I've been wanting an iPad for a year or two now, mainly to read digital comics through Comixology. I'm sure once I get one I'll use it for other things, but that's my main desire. $500 for a comic reader is insanely expensive, which is why a $199-249 price point would probably get me to grab that one instead. I'm leaning towards a Fire, but if Apple could get one out less than $300 I'm sticking with Apple.

EDIT: Actually, I've been reading that DC isn't even on the Kindle anymore, so if that's true, it's pretty much Apple or nothing for me.
 
GREEN4U said:
I hate Apple's bezels with a fervent passion.
Click to expand...

When the original iPad was released, I completely agreed with you. I wanted the mock up 9.7" display with bezel around the entire device the size of the bezel on the side of the iPhone.

It was not until I used the Kindle Touch that I realized why Apple has the bezel as it does: it is maddeningly difficult to hold the device with one hand with such little bezel on the sides. Perhaps you don't use the iPad for reading, to which I say I hope such a bezel-less iPad is released one day for you (it would be quite stunning, in my opinion)
 
Steve taught them well, I still don't see this rumor coming in my lifetime which is a good thing. :) Android people if you want a toy. :rolleyes:
 
jwdsail said:
I'm still pretty sure that any 7" device Apple makes will be marketed as an iPod Touch.

iPod and iPhone apps, wifi only, focus on e-reading, gaming, music and movies.. I think they'll optimize the display, processor/graphics and battery to make the best possible use of that 7" for these tasks..

I don't see it being an iPad..

7" iPod Touch 8GB $249, 16GB $299, 32GB $399

I'll be glad to be wrong, but I don't think I am.
Click to expand...

iPod is all about songs in your pocket. Well it became more than that with the introduction of the iPod touch. But regardless, an iPod will never be something you cannot put into your pocket.
 
flipnap said:
do you seriously think they had retina tech ready to go on the ipad 2 but they "held out" so youd have to upgrade the next year? look at all the beef about the rMBP for gods sake, everyone saying they released it before the tech was ready (ridiculous as well).

man, theyre damned either way
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Did I say they had it ready for the iPad 2? It is no secret that each iteration has been small, but significant. Like no front facing cameras in the first, etc.

And sure, there is much needed R&D for any new tech, but they are pretty experienced with Retina tech at this point, especially with iDevices, that I don't see how making a screen that is smaller/larger than already existing Retina displays could be *that* hard.
 
I don't get why everyone is making excuses for Apple. There's demand for a 7'' budget tablet, they don't care if Jobs once said no one needs one. The extra .85''? I'd blame that on the aspect ratio. 4/3 and 7'' would feel pretty small.

boy-better-know said:
If Apple do release this iPad mini, I would bet all the money I have that it WILL be retina.
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Yes and no. It will feature the same resolution as the iPad 2. Since the iPad Mini will have half the screen size of the original iPad, it will also have double the DPI, the same DPI as the iPad 3. According to Apple that's a retina display.
 
laxic said:
When the original iPad was released, I completely agreed with you. I wanted the mock up 9.7" display with bezel around the entire device the size of the bezel on the side of the iPhone.

It was not until I used the Kindle Touch that I realized why Apple has the bezel as it does: it is maddeningly difficult to hold the device with one hand with such little bezel on the sides. Perhaps you don't use the iPad for reading, to which I say I hope such a bezel-less iPad is released one day for you (it would be quite stunning, in my opinion)
Click to expand...

Hi - I'm just curious what hand size you have -- as in glove size.

I have a Kindle Touch too, and don't have a bit of trouble holding it -- I actually consider the side bezels much wider than needed.
By the way, the Kindle device is just about exactly the same width as the 7.85 mini screen.
 
miniroll32 said:
It's only a daydream, but I'd love an iBooks device... thing... that only had the iBooks App and the store to go with it. Instant on to the bookshelf, instant off.

That to me would be a good excuse for a mini-iReading device, and it would no doubt be cheaper too.
Click to expand...

I still prefer the Kindle e-ink reading over the iPad screen. So much so I bought one for my book reading, and have the iPad for my magazine and everything else
 
better just to admit Steve Jobs was wrong to say 7 inch tablets were DOA and move on with it.
 
People saying it's the relaunching of the iPod touch are a bit off IMO. The iPad would have a screen totally different ratio to the iPhone, 4:3 is very different to 3:2! (I believe that's what they are).

That's the reason why they wouldn't call a smaller iPad shaped device an iPod touch XL or w/e.

I predict it'll be $250 for 8gb.
 
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