Reuters reaffirms 'iPad mini' expected to debut at Oct. 23 special event

The "new iPad Mini"?  The "iPad Mini"?  The "iPad 7"?  

 

Ok so maybe what Apple will call it will be iPad.  Concept here.  One goes to the Apple.com web site.  They want to buy the 7" iPad.  So they click on store then iPad then Apple says select type of iPad.  You then have the selection between the 10" and the 7" model.  There is no label calling it iPad Mini on Apples web site.  Just merely iPad the selection is the 7" model.  Isn't that what the rumor people have called it "iPad Mini".   

 

Myself.  I think Apple should release an iPad called "The Steve Jobs Edition".  Black in color, 8 Megapixel Camera, A6 Quad Core, 128GB storage and a carbon fiber case.  It would sell in the millions easy.

 

Troll!!!

Edited by tylerk36 - 10/13/12 at 10:46pm

Whether this happens or not it's all very safe as the pieces line up nicely. I do hope the name isn't iPad mini though.

to retail at $1200

The main problem will probably be... shortages galore. I can already envision the news media constantly going on about iPad Mini shipping delays as Apple quickly runs out of inventory. It will be one more reason for Wall Street to downgrade Apple shares for the holiday season. Apple had better start building some factories where everything is assembled by robots because human labor isn't going to be enough to keep up with demand for Apple products.

If apple is going to focus on ebooks ...

Get ebooks working on macbooks and pros, if I've got the screen I want to use it!!!

Seriously if I had one question to ask apple management it would be "when am I going to be able to read ebooks on my mac?"

So, sounds like reuters just "ran" with All Things D's take. I'm not sure thats technically a "reaffirmation". Just standard internet based "news reporting".

I'm not one of the people who said they wouldn't call the original the "iPad". 13-year-old boys might snicker for a week or two, but everybody else would just say "Grow up!" and it would be a non-issue very quickly.

 

There's no way, though, that they're going to call this the "iPad Mini". "You bring your Mini Pad and I'll bring my Maxi Pad"? No way in Hell.

 

That sounds like a pretty inconvenient way to read a book. Just use your iPad.

 

If I'm reading an e-book, I prefer to read it the same way as I would read a paper book, reclining on a couch or relaxing in a comfy chair. I'd never bother to read a book on a desktop machine or laptop, no matter how high res the display was. Sure, Apple can add the option to read iBook books on Macs, I don't have any objections to that, I just don't think that it's a feature that many people would bother to use.

 

If it is a big issue for you, then you could always use Kindle books, if you're looking to actually read books on a desktop or laptop Mac. Or, you could wait for Apple to release iBooks for Mac, and who knows when that will be, or if it'll even happen at all. It's obviously not a big priority for them, and there may even be a strategic reason for not releasing such an app.

So you don't read your email or browser webpages between iDevices and a Mac? I do both?

I also use Reminders and Notes on both, among many other apps including being able to organize iOS apps and folders within iTunes. It's all very convenient. There is nothing wrong with having an option to do both.

You can already store and open PDFs within iTunes in Preview but when it comes to EPUB books there is no way to quickly and easily grab text from your notes, bookmarks or anything else you've stored in iBooks.

So why is inconvenient to have this as an additional option for users? He clearly didn't say he wants iBooks removed from the iPad and only made into a Mac app.

Of course I read email and browse the web from Macs, I'm writing this post from a Macbook which is hooked up to an external monitor. As I wrote, I suppose that it's a matter of personal preference, but I do see a big difference in viewing a webpage for a few minutes or even seconds compared to reading a book for many hours. I also wrote, that I don't have any objections if Apple does release iBooks for OSX. If somebody wants to read a 500 page book on their Mac Pro, hunched over a computer desk, then go for it, it doesn't affect me personally.

 

As for your last question, I added a sentence at the end of my original post, where I stated that there might be strategic and deliberate reasons for Apple to not release it. They've had years to do it, and I doubt that making an iBooks app for OSX is a huge undertaking, so I'm guessing that they deliberately don't want to.

And seriously, if that's your one question, then it's a good thing you're not running Apple.

 

With due respect, and I know you're not taking it too seriously, I kinda wish whoever *IS* running Apple these days (Tim? Jony?) *WOULD* take it just seriously enough to make it work.  Unlike Apple II, who apparently suffers with an awkward computer position, my Mac setup is the most comfortable reading spot in the house.  It is MUCH easier for me to read a book on a comparatively big computer screen than a tiny little phone.  I was surprised and disappointed to discover I can't.  Amazon and Kobo do it, why not Apple?

 

I'm tickled that I can use my phone to read a book on the train, but I don't understand why I can't use my bigger screen when it's practical.  I've already told Apple via the feedback page that I won't buy any more iBooks until that changes.  http://www.apple.com/feedback/ibooks_ios.html

I read on a laptop all the time. It's great because unlike an iPad, you can have the page full-width and scroll down—you don't have to have it right in your face. More importantly, you can have more than a few books in a file structure—not a dozen or so in a flat file on a fake shelf.

 

Also you can utilize various formats, although I've only got four—HTML, PDF, DjVu, and a few Epub*. All free from Project Gutenberg, Internet Archive, Google Books, etc. An iPad could read how many of these? Epubs and HTML in the browser, I suppose—but how in the world would you find anything?

 

*Of course, to read Epubs you have to either use the Epub Reader Firefox extension or Adobe Digital Editions, which sucks rope.

 

Edit: Ironically, Adobe Digital Editions doesn't suck quite as bad reading Epubs as it does reading PDFs—Adobe's own format.

Edited by Mac-sochist - 10/14/12 at 12:52am

Ok, so are we agreed that if we get to less than a week prior to Oct. 23 with no invitations issued, we can put this puppy to bed.

Basically if it gets to this coming Thursday with no invite this will go down as one of finest practical jokes a company pulled off on the media.

The leaks in Apple's supply chain are now quite evident if this product quite simply does not exist and imagine the credibility hit Apple will have engineered. It could be quite useful for Apple to deeply weaken faith in those serving up rumours of impending Apple products.

In a few days we'll know if there's a new iPad or just a great feat of engineering of a different sort.

If you are VIP then you get invitation

 

If it doesn't happen on the 23rd then the probability drops dramatically but it is somewhat viable as long as they launch before black friday.

 

 

If it is announced the it will happen... That would cost Apple too much if the launching wont be realized

Announcing a smaller iPad a month before Black Friday will be more than enough time for folks to plan to buy it as a holiday gift and for Apple to ship it on time. 

 

And, as mentioned upthread, invitations will go out to a relatively small number of journalists. No major product event will happen, but the advertising blitz will be HUGE! I can see standalone 8" iPad ads as well as ads where the 8" and 10" models are marketed together. The latter message would highlight the idea that there's an iPad for everyone-not a tablet for everyone (I'm talking to you Amazon and Google)-but an iPad for everyone.

 

 

Either a premium $349 8"iPad or a premium $499 10 incher would an awesome standalone holiday gift. Look around. What holiday gadgets are people going crazy over right now? You got me a $199 Nexus 7? Oh, you got me a $199 Kindle? Oh......thanks.

All of them. Plus the formats used by Kindle, Nook, Kobo etc.

and then that will go by and the analysts will be trotting out their 'production issues forced delay' rumors and folks will expect it with the next gen iPad. Etc etc. and before we know it they will be saying that it will be due in 2015 with the 'real' Apple TV

Still waiting for them to announce a product that is not derivative of past success. No new ideas anymore?

All their ideas are built upon foundations of their past success which is why they are so successful and can still turn a healthy profit when competing on equal ground. If you want something radical and different just for the sake of being radical and different then Apple is not a company you should be following.

And that select group would leap at the chance to let the rest of the world know they had been invited to such an exclusive event. In other words, what does it matter. Big event, exclusive event. Either way, us regular folk would know about it the instant invitations were issued. There is no reason to conclude that this is a done deal. Rather the opposite holds. For all the chatter, where's the logic in this claimed addition to Apple's product line. Despite many claiming otherwise, this tweener tablet would be the least loved of Apple's Touch devices. It lacks the portability of the iPhone/iPod Touch and the screen real estate of the regular iPad. It's not something that would be attractive in terms of price, either, consideirng bang for the buck. It's claimed this device would be great for a school setting but the tweener form factor is not ideal for such a setting where a larger screen offers the flexibility to accomplish more different tasks with a wider group of kids of varying ages and needs. Children donor have a problem handling the current iPad. They take to the device instantly. No complaints from them. No, to serve the education market, Apple would gain more traction by dropping the price of the iPad 2by a few dollars more and now and again refreshing the internal components, while retaining the perfectly adequate, lower resolution screen. For commuters, the iPhone/Touch with the larger screen works extremely well. The bigger screen does make a difference. Picked up my new iPhone the other day and I find the new taller screen is more enjoyable to use than the previous 3.5-inch screen.

Basically there is likely a weak market for such a tweener tablet among those who have one of the smartphones with larger displays, including the millions like me who already own the iPhone 5. If you already have a portable device like the iPhone, especially the larger new edition, how likely is it that you'd also bring along the Tweener tablet. And how many smartphone owners leave home without their smartphone.

Around and about when you're not on the road wiith your smartphone, doesn't an iPad with the larger screen make more sense? The biggest complaint is weight but that will soon be addressed. If Apple devoted a lot of engineering effort into making an already light iPhone even lighter, guaranteed the next iPad is going to be significantly lighter than the current model. If anything, a slightly larger tablet would seem more viable than the rumoured tweener, once the technology allows for a lighter device.

Then again, maybe the invitations go out this week after all. Or maybe Apple really pulls a fast one by holding the event to unveil not the iPad Mini by the long awaited TV.

This is a common misconception. Apple is more into evolution than revolution. The iPad, after all, is basically a really big iPod Touch. The perception is of the iPad as a revolutionary product in so much that it has caused something of a dramatic change and rather quickly. The reason that the iPad was such a polished product right out of the gate is that it was, more or less, a really big iPod Touch. The underlying software ans technology is somethng Apple already had a lot of expertise in.

I don't think you understand that well how Apple does business. Your arguments are weak, WADR, but I'll hold you to them, nonetheless.  

 

You're saying that price point sensitivity is not viable and sensible as a marketing and sales advantage over the full-sized iPad? We're still in an economic slump and last time I checked $199/$249/$299/$349 < $399.

 

Mark my words, when the smaller iPad launches, it will be a huge hit, sell more than the iPad 2, and the iPad 2 will disappear shortly thereafter. Continuing to sell the iPad 2 was about squeezing value out of legacy production lines and older components and using it as a placeholder device, price-wise, until the 8" is ready. That is a core aspect of Apple's business and operational strategy and is key to their enormous margins; it is a key way for them to maximize profits, all while closing price umbrellas. At $349 or less, the 8" iPad will fill the price/feature space even better than the iPad 2. Personally, I simply do not need a $500 device that does all that, nor do I want to buy a device with components that are 1-2 old. I buy the latest available hardware at the time I am ready to buy. When the 6th gen 2013 iPod touch arrives, the 4th gen touch will disappear.

 

Given reduced keyboard and screen real estate, the "Mini" will be marketed more as a consumption device rather than a general purpose tablet.

 

There also are portability advantages. I ride the subway everyday in NYC and I drive. I'm not small nor am I a weakling by any means, but the iPad is just bigger and has more features than I need. I do not read eBooks on by iPhone; maybe longform articles, but not books. I'm not gonna whip out a laptop on the train for any reason. And I do not need a full-sized iPad to read a magazine or book or edit some pictures or email on the go. On the subway, people appear vulnerable with such an expensive device; thefts on the train are legendary. Also the large size appears awkward on a packed train, especially when you are unlikely to have a seat during the morning and evening rushes (when people will want to use them). If it's lost or stolen, the replacement cost is less. (A secretary at my office had her iPad stolen from her handbag. It's gone for good. She decided to wait on a "Mini" because it's cheaper, more easily replaceable, and better overall for her daily commute and remain connected without using her office desktop.) I think she's a typical price-conscious urban buyer. Use cases in the 'burbs would be a bit different, I imagine, but not dramatically so. In a car, kids and adults will have a more manageable device. Don't underestimate how large and heavy a full-size iPad can be for a kid, or the elderly, or someone with a disability. By design, accessibility options are not-very-much-talked-about killer features of Apple's products.

 

I've said this before elsewhere on AI and have been deafened by the sound of crickets: how does anyone explain the existence of iPods in pretty much every imaginable storage capacity, size, pixel count, connectivity option(s), and so on? There's clear precedence for this in Apple's product offerings. How do you explain the 11" MBA, which I believe currently outsells the 13" MBA? The former is significantly lighter, noticeably smaller and $200 cheaper at base. These things do matter. The 11" Air was too small for me, so I got the 13". The New iPad is too large for me (and my wife already has one), so I'll get the 8" model. I think we'll be switching up in our use; if one day I need a larger iPad and she's ok with the smaller one, it'll be a plus-plus. I'm trying to put my wife's Dell out to pasture and wil get her an 11" Air; she'll have that a full-sized iPad. See the pattern? Mobility means very different things to very different people and very different things to the same people in very different scenarios of use. Appreciating that, especially when design, manufacturing, etc. overlap in a relatively small product lineup. Apple's profitable ecosystem effect is not simply about hardware/software integration, but also about hardware/hardware integration. Satisfaction is not simply about build quality, but also about whether the buyer perceives that a product fill his or her specific needs at a reasonable price.

 

Finally, news organizations on par with the WSJ and Reuters, and bloggers like Dalrymple, to my knowledge, have not recently been wrong about these product announcements. By all accounts, they are directly in communication with senior Apple management. Can we be shocked by an entirely new or otherwise different product? Absolutely. A smaller iPad will arrive, the question is of exactly what it will look like, which components and features it will have, and how it will be marketed and priced.

Edited by Carthusia - 10/14/12 at 9:42am

So what do you want them to sell you? Coffee beans? Toaster ovens? Oriental carpets?

Apple is building a massive ecosystem, every part of which works well with the rest. They expand the ecosystem on a regular basis, adding more products that people can buy to merge with their system at home. A large part of Apple's success is that they don't simply introduce random new products, but rather pieces of a larger system. They're not likely to abandon that. You can call it 'unoriginal' or 'derivative of past success', but it's a very solid strategy. Brand extensions should be handled carefully. When I see some name brand selling totally unrelated products just to take advantage of their name, it's a sure sign of imminent failure.

Besides, they sold iPod socks. I suppose you'll call that 'derivative of past success', too. /s

 

Still waiting for you to understand how foolish a statement that is.

It is already out and they are making another iPAd mini