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Why does the iPad mini have to be 'cheap'??

M

mcman77

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Dec 22, 2011
522
1
Everyone is assuming the the ipad mini has to be $200 or so?

Why?

Apple does not care about the rival price range, they never have.

Personally I wouldn't mind a iPad mini priced a relatively less than the new ipad with the same specs.

-High res screen
-same processor ( or same as the new iphone )
-5mp camera

I don't need a 10inch ipad as much as a need a mini....there is a market for consumers like me.
 
mcman77 said:
I don't need a 10inch ipad as much as a need a mini....there is a market for consumers like me.
Click to expand...

You know what one of the big advantages of being gay is? Every single day of you're life you're reminded that "Hey, not everyone thinks and acts exactly like I do."

Against everything that seems logically and emotionally true to me, the overwhelming majority of men not only have sex with women, they even seem to ENJOY it. Crazy, but true.

So what I'm getting at is that the fact that you want to buy something is not in of itself evidence that there's a mass market for it... and that's what Apple is interested in.
 
NewbieCanada said:
You know what one of the big advantages of being gay is? Every single day of you're life you're reminded that "Hey, not everyone thinks and acts exactly like I do."
Click to expand...

Lol ... looking at the bigger picture, being straight has that advantage too! Since everyone is not straight hence 'not thinking like I do too' ;)

But my point was that there is a market bigger than just me and a few thousands...I see MANY people carrying ipads on their comute to work looking uncomfortable that can easily benefit with a mini ipad instead.

I've said this before and that is that if this is indeed the post pc era, why aren't there different versions (sizes) just like the mac range?
 
I think that the iPad Mini is a waste. A 9.7" display is not much bigger than a proposed 7.85" iPad Mini screen. I understand a iPad Mini having a 5" screen but then it would be more like a iPhone or iPod Touch.
 
tonyr6 said:
I think that the iPad Mini is a waste. A 9.7" display is not much bigger than a proposed 7.85" iPad Mini screen. I understand a iPad Mini having a 5" screen but then it would be more like a iPhone or iPod Touch.
Click to expand...

Have you tried the 7 inch form factor before? It's quite nice.
 
rhinosrcool said:
Yes, I totally agree. If you are an avid reader, the 7" form is preferable. Yes, my iPad 2 is great, but for reading, not so much.
Click to expand...

I don't like it for anything even gaming, but that's preference for you. Just too heavy for my taste.
 
mcman77 said:
Everyone is assuming the the ipad mini has to be $200 or so?

Why?

Apple does not care about the rival price range, they never have.

Personally I wouldn't mind a iPad mini priced a relatively less than the new ipad with the same specs.

-High res screen
-same processor ( or same as the new iphone )
-5mp camera

I don't need a 10inch ipad as much as a need a mini....there is a market for consumers like me.
Click to expand...

Because Apple doesn't care about you.

Sorry, but its the truth.
 
It's going to be cheap.

To release a 7" iPad at the same, or nearly the same (100, even $200 difference) price would be a horrid business decision. Horrid.

Here's why:
People willing to buy an apple tablet for $500+: 10000
People willing to buy a smaller apple tablet for $400+: 15000 (A very, very small increase. Not nearly enough to turn a profit. Extremely limited exposure to new customers)
People willing to buy a smaller apple tablet for $300+: 40000 (A reasonable increase, maybe a break-even on profits/expenses, an average exposure to new apple customers)
People willing to buy a smaller apple tablet for $200+: 120000 (Huge increase, probably still not a huge profit, but more than the other two, and it would include a massive exposure to new customers)

The further apple manages to reduce the price, the more people willing to buy it (obviously). However, it's not going to be a device meant to collect insane profits, it is going to try and reel in customers to the apple ecosystem, and make them want to experience what the full iPad would be, hence making them buy the more expensive model.

The cheaper the iPad mini is, the more barebones it will be. Like cigarettes. If you got hooked on the cheap, low quality ones (iPad mini), you would want to upgrade to the expensive ones (9" iPad). But if you were already hooked on the expensive ones, and you tried to downgrade to the cheap ones, they would suck in comparison, and the large majority would go back to the expensive ones.

Apple doesn't want to sell less full sized iPads, because that's where the big profit is. People who go from the iPad to the iPad mini are going to complain and complain at the lack of performance, but people who go from the iPad mini to the iPad will have nothing but good things to say.

Buy an iPad (+100$ for apple), sell it and buy an iPad mini (+50$ for apple), realize it sucks in comparison then sell it and buy another full sized iPad (+100$ for apple and another $100 for each furture generation upgrade)

Rather than: Buy an iPad (+100$ for apple), sell it and buy an iPad mini (+50$ for apple), realize the iPad mini is awesome and only buy upgrades for it (+50$ for each furture generation) The additional $50 would make a world of difference with the size of apple's audience. An additional 50 million dollars every million customers.

They make more money off of the expensive device, they don't want people downgrading. After the keynote they want this to happen:
People who own a current iPad: "Those are terrible specs, i'm sticking with my expensive iPad"
People who do not own an iPad: "It wouldn't hurt to try it out at that price"
 
Not trying to play devil's advocate (quite the opposite in fact), but apple doesn't really care about 'mass market' at all. Shoot, a lot of their moves would seem boneheaded and foolish, but they usually manage to come out ahead in the end.

That wasn't always the case, mind you - and no doubt there's still the possibility of flops in the future.

Perhaps the future iPad Mini will replace the current iPad 2's place and sell for around $300-400 On the other hand, it wouldn't surprise me if Apple decided to sell it for $199 to really trash the market.

I don't see the big deal, we're all geeks here right?
 
I see it being $299, at most. Probably closer to $249.

I tried the new iPad a while ago and was really surprised by how heavy it was. It's an amazing device, don't get me wrong. I think I would much prefer a 7.85" tablet.
 
I would pay $249 for a mini iPad. I paid the same for a Nexus 7 and I'm enjoying the very light, very portable form factor. I can see myself taking it with me more places than I would my large iPad simply due to the increased portability.
 
Redjericho said:
Here's why:
People willing to buy an apple tablet for $500+: 10000
People willing to buy a smaller apple tablet for $400+: 15000 (A very, very small increase. Not nearly enough to turn a profit. Extremely limited exposure to new customers)
People willing to buy a smaller apple tablet for $300+: 40000 (A reasonable increase, maybe a break-even on profits/expenses, an average exposure to new apple customers)
People willing to buy a smaller apple tablet for $200+: 120000 (Huge increase, probably still not a huge profit, but more than the other two, and it would include a massive exposure to new customers)

The cheaper the iPad mini is, the more barebones it will be. Like cigarettes. If you got hooked on the cheap, low quality ones (iPad mini), you would want to upgrade to the expensive ones (9" iPad). But if you were already hooked on the expensive ones, and you tried to downgrade to the cheap ones, they would suck in comparison, and the large majority would go back to the expensive ones.

Apple doesn't want to sell less full sized iPads, because that's where the big profit is. People who go from the iPad to the iPad mini are going to complain and complain at the lack of performance, but people who go from the iPad mini to the iPad will have nothing but good things to say.

Buy an iPad (+100$ for apple), sell it and buy an iPad mini (+50$ for apple), realize it sucks in comparison then sell it and buy another full sized iPad (+100$ for apple and another $100 for each furture generation upgrade)

Rather than: Buy an iPad (+100$ for apple), sell it and buy an iPad mini (+50$ for apple), realize the iPad mini is awesome and only buy upgrades for it (+50$ for each furture generation) The additional $50 would make a world of difference with the size of apple's audience. An additional 50 million dollars every million customers.

They make more money off of the expensive device, they don't want people downgrading. After the keynote they want this to happen:
People who own a current iPad: "Those are terrible specs, i'm sticking with my expensive iPad"
People who do not own an iPad: "It wouldn't hurt to try it out at that price"
Click to expand...

LOL this is a good post...made me laugh. What are the :1000 and 4000 figures ? and where did you get them from :)

Apple has never catered for consumers on tight budgets so why do they want them to come in?

You said its to get them into the eco system but why do they want someone who won't fork out another $70 for a better product as a customer? Have you seen the price of all their other products?
I'm not sure they want such customers.

Another thing is that they have Never done this tactic before, why start now? They could have done the same with the iphone but it remained the same price throughout and sold well.

Lastly when you say people will use the mini and think its not so good and go buy a full ipad don't you think that they might change brands in the end? :)

I mean if I tried a mini and it sucked, I wouldn't buy an ipad, i'd get a nexus 7.

JoeG4 said:
I don't see the big deal, we're all geeks here right?
Click to expand...

A true geek doesn't want 2007 tech in 2012 :)


xraydoc said:
I would pay $249 for a mini iPad. I paid the same for a Nexus 7 and I'm enjoying the very light, very portable form factor. I can see myself taking it with me more places than I would my large iPad simply due to the increased portability.
Click to expand...

But would you pay $320 for a retina screened ipad mini?
 
xraydoc said:
I would pay $249 for a mini iPad. I paid the same for a Nexus 7 and I'm enjoying the very light, very portable form factor. I can see myself taking it with me more places than I would my large iPad simply due to the increased portability.
Click to expand...

I feel exactly the same way. There's a good reason to offer both the current size and a 7". They will both sell well & only increase Apples bottom line.
 
As sad as it may sound. There are without doubt many Apple users who simply don't want to see everyone with an Apple product in their hands.

Many or even most humans was to feel special, they like being successful and having nice things.
A big part of this, even if you don't know it, is having people see your nice things. After all why dress in fur, gold and wear expensive perfume if you were on the moon with no-one around to see you.

Some people do get a kick out of having something the majority don't have, be that fancy suits, cars, perfume etc etc.

Having everyone wearing high end suits, all driving ferarri's, etc etc would spoil it for them and they would no longer feel special, and that other people were giving them attention.

As I say, It would strike horror into some people's minds to see everyone, from the lowest street life to the highest royalty all using the same iPhone, the same iPad then same iMac.

There are people who simply don't want Apple to be, being owned and used by the "mass population" as it should be reserved for only those who can afford it.

It's just the way the world works. Something is seen to be better if there is not so much of it around, or it's out of the financial reach of the masses.

And the owners of these items love it this way.
 
mcman77 said:
Everyone is assuming the the ipad mini has to be $200 or so?

Why?

Apple does not care about the rival price range, they never have.

Personally I wouldn't mind a iPad mini priced a relatively less than the new ipad with the same specs.

-High res screen
-same processor ( or same as the new iphone )
-5mp camera

I don't need a 10inch ipad as much as a need a mini....there is a market for consumers like me.
Click to expand...
The things people will say behind an Apple product. SMH. So you are pretty much asking them to price it high? :confused::confused: Im just sooooo confused as to why anyone with knowledge of most of the rumors (which I assume you have) wouldn't mind if it where above the average cost of other 7" tablets.

"Hey Apple.... just since its you, please price this as high as you can get away with as I like to pay a premium for Apple products. Plus I want to tell all my friends that don't have an iPad that mine is better because I paid more and as weird as it sounds... was glad doing so."
 
I think the iPad mini will work as a kind of "entry level drug" and direct fight against Nexus and MS Slate. So it will need to be aggressively priced. Apple moved away from the more high price pro-level computer to a consumer level. Here lots goes over price.
 
The lower price point is must, even if it doesn't match Nexus 7 pricing.

The way I see it - if someone wants to buy an iPad at £399/$499, they'll buy it. If they're not looking to buy an iPad, there's a possibility that they'll buy a cheap Android tablet at £159/$199 to see what the fuss is about, or as an impulse buy.

That means technically, Apple haven't lost a sale - the customer was never going to drop several hundred on the 9.7" model. However, this does present an opportunity - if someone's willing to drop £159/$199 on an Android tablet, they'll probably see a £200/$249 iPad and it'll make them think twice about the Android purchase. Apple gains a sale it would never have without this model.[/QUOTE]

Good post!
but looking at the apple product range, what is priced at a competitive level?
Have they ever done this to justify them doing so with a ipad mini?


Kblakeshot said:
The things people will say behind an Apple product. SMH. So you are pretty much asking them to price it high? :confused::confused: Im just sooooo confused as to why anyone with knowledge of most of the rumors (which I assume you have) wouldn't mind if it where above the average cost of other 7" tablets.

"Hey Apple.... just since its you, please price this as high as you can get away with as I like to pay a premium for Apple products. Plus I want to tell all my friends that don't have an iPad that mine is better because I paid more and as weird as it sounds... was glad doing so."
Click to expand...

Lol you misunderstood my post and you even decided to be a smart arse over it :rolleyes:

Let me break it down in laymen's terms for you then...

What would you rather get out of these two options:
$250
16gb - iPad mini
1GHz Apple A4
3mp camera
1024x768

$320
16gb ipad mini
Dual-core Apple A5X
5mp camera
higher resolution that would give you 200+ dpi

Which would you chose out of those two options? :)



ChristianJapan said:
I think the iPad mini will work as a kind of "entry level drug" and direct fight against Nexus and MS Slate. So it will need to be aggressively priced. Apple moved away from the more high price pro-level computer to a consumer level. Here lots goes over price.
Click to expand...

Again apples computers are not priced to compete with other products, why would they do this now?
Windows have a cheap version of their phone, computers and everything else they sell. So does android. Why would apple magically decide now to do so?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Rodster said:
Yes I have, a Kindle Fire and Nexus 7.


It is ! Until you use it to surf the web and then the whole "quite nice" experience falls apart. :p
Click to expand...

Well, i guess because your surfing in protrait mode, everything is raher small that way. Landscape is more reasonable.
 
JoeG4 said:
Not trying to play devil's advocate (quite the opposite in fact), but apple doesn't really care about 'mass market' at all. Shoot, a lot of their moves would seem boneheaded and foolish, but they usually manage to come out ahead in the end.
Click to expand...

I disagree. With the iPod, and now with the iPad, they want to make it impossible to purchase anything else by making their product more desirable than any other - even if it means bringing out models that are less desirable than others.

Sure, Apple would be happy if there were only $500+ iPads, but if other people are going to sell $250 tablets they need to dominate that market segment too, or risk the high end.
 
mcman77 said:
Everyone is assuming the the ipad mini has to be $200 or so?

Why?

Apple does not care about the rival price range, they never have.

Personally I wouldn't mind a iPad mini priced a relatively less than the new ipad with the same specs.

-High res screen
-same processor ( or same as the new iphone )
-5mp camera

I don't need a 10inch ipad as much as a need a mini....there is a market for consumers like me.
Click to expand...


I think you're right and wrong. Yes, they traditionally haven't needed to compete "apples to apples" in price in the laptop/desktop arena. It's been "apples to oranges" enough that it's been unnecessary.

However, I think iPods/iPads are a different story. If you recall a not-so-long-ago introduction of an iPad that most analysts were predicting to be sub-$1000; then it turned out to be almost 1/2 of that. Severely undercutting other tablet makers (who are still struggling to keep up with Apple's quality & price in this arena.)

Apple's mere entry into the mini tablet market indicates that they think there is money to be made and that they want to be competitive there, which means in regards to price.
 
I think they would go along the lines of:
$199.99
A5 Processor
5 MP iSight camera (maybe)
512 MB RAM
16 GB Memory
Non retina display

Pretty much a smaller iPad 2 with a newer processor.
 
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