They might continue selling the iPad 2 at around the $350-$400 price point once the iPad 3 is released.
One way for sure. That's already been (highly successfully) done with the phones. Costs for older components continue to drop, engineering, tooling and line costs become fully amortized, the device is still great. Refurbed and used markets already exist. Etc.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tharsman
I can actually see a $299 iPad 2 with 8GB of memory and no cammeras, or at least only with a front facing cammera, existing alongside the iPad 3.
This is also already being done - except it would cost more to strip the "cammeras" off and change the case and innards than to leave 'em. But reduced RAM in the iCloud age fits a value equation.
Quote:
Originally Posted by irnchriz
iPad mini = iPod Touch.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Shaun, UK
May get iPod Touch with a larger screen next year to combat the Fire, PSP, etc. Hope so.
And this is the other - or another - way.
Apple already (brilliantly) ignored my suggestion to make the iTouch into their P&S camera killer, leaving that role to the iPhone - but they have, as noted by Alfiejr (partially quoted below) used it to make inroads into the highly lucrative mobile gaming market. And a bigger screen (and A5 CPU) could help here.
I think pixel count/density is the key. If they want to go "retina all the way" with new models (or at least "retina-like,"), the main price/value/margin question is the price of an appropriate 5" (or less likely 7") screen next year that scales to the dimensions of iPhone apps while not giving developers another incremental res to write to. And following Steve's "sandpapered fingertips" dictum, as also noted by Alfiejr, I agree with those who say this device size would run phone and not pad apps (based around a 960-by-640 ratio), but I suppose a 7-8" 1024x768 screen-size is not impossible to imagine).
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alfiejr
..as several have noted, the iPod touch has always been Apple's mini-tablet. the iPod name was just a marketing ploy to get it launched successfully when "tablets" still could not be readily marketed. and it has gone on to assume a majority of the iPod market.
...at a $299 starting price, a "Big Touch" would compete well in the lower-end tablet market. especially given it would be far, far more powerful and capable than the Kindle Fire and its stripped-down cheap looking ilk from other OEM's.
and with a maximum 160G SSD it could also finally replace the iPod Classic.
what is definitely not going to happen is a "cheapo" 10" iPad. Apple does not join any commodity price race to the bottom.
Agreed on the last two points!
Quote:
Originally Posted by AjitMD
Anybody here who has been around and remembers the IBM PC Jr with the chicklet keyboard?
I see there are several besides me. I just want to add that it wasn't just the KB that made this such a loser - it even had crippled capacity to run PC apps! (This was, I believe, an attempt to avoid cannibalizing PC sales.) Truly a classic "horse designed by a committee."
History is often, not always, a good basis for predicting the future. If so, then the Kindle Fire will help grow the tablet market. It will not steal current market share from iPad, but will limit the ceiling on the ultimate growth of iPad.
For example, there was never an adequate competitor to the iPod family, thus allowing Apple to corner 70%+ of the music player market.
Android emerged as an adequate "competitor" to the iPhone, and became the *dominant* platform by % share. But iPhone sales has grown unabated. There's no evidence of this changing even though you can now find smartphone form factors at every 0.1" increment between 3.5" to 5". Without Android, however, imagine how many iPhones would have been sold.
All to say, if history is indeed a reliable predictor, the Kindle Fire (and/or others) will limit but not stop growth of sales of iPad as it exists.
Spurred by the recently announced Amazon Kindle Fire and its $199 price, Apple is rumored to be exploring a new low-cost iPad for release in the first few months of 2012.
Analyst Brian White with Ticonderoga Securities has been touring China and Taiwan and meeting with component suppliers, where he has heard rumblings of a so-called "iPad mini" arriving next year. The "mini" name doesn't necessarily refer to the size of the device, he said, but a lower entry-level price.
He said such a device is expected to arrive in the first few months of 2012, allowing Apple to tap into a "more price sensitive consumer segment," and also fend off the Amazon Kindle Fire, the retailer's first entrance into the touchscreen tablet market.
"We believe this lower priced iPad could be priced in the mid-to-high-$200 range," White wrote in a note to investors. "We expect this will be followed by a much more powerful, feature rich standard-priced iPad 3 in (the second quarter of 2012)."
If Apple were to address a lower cost market in 2012, it would come around the same time that Amazon is expected to introduce a more powerful touchscreen tablet with a larger form factor. The forthcoming Amazon Kindle Fire sports a screen size of 7 inches, compared with the 9.7-inch display of the iPad.
In October of 2010, late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs slammed rivals who were building 7-inch tablets, saying the screen size was too small for users. He said that manufacturers of those devices would need to ship sandpaper with their 7-inch tablets so users could file down their fingers to the point where they could hit smaller targets on the screen.
Still, rumors that Apple plans to release a new device with a screen size between an iPad and an iPod touch have cropped up on occasion. But White said Apple's goal in addressing the lower end market may be to build a cheaper device, rather than a smaller one.
He said a low-cost iPad could result in big sales in China and other developing parts of the world. he also believes there is a major market opportunity in developed areas like the U.S. and Europe.
Leading up to last week's iPhone 4S announcement, many analysts, including White, expected that Apple would build a new, low-cost iPhone model that could be sold contract-free, allowing Apple to tap into a huge prepaid smartphone market worldwide. Instead, Apple decided to keep the iPhone 3GS in its lineup, offering the GSM phone for free with a two-year contract, or for $375 unlocked.
My prediction for Tim Cook's Kindle Fire killer strategy: Basically the same as keeping the 3GS in the iPhone lineup-offer the original iPad with 8GB only free on contract. No discount on wifi only iPad 1; no 3G means no carrier subsidy.
Some current first gen iPad owners I know are quite ok with having no camera. A smaller 8GB storage offering can leverage iOS 5 and iCloud. And there's no way Amazon can get a comparable tablet down to $199.
1. iPad 1 wifi + 3G~$199 with contract [hypothetical iPad Cheap, only 8GB storage; A4 or even A5]
Price drops are a no-brainer (look at the Mac, iPod and iPhone over time). New sizes? Well, touch is the future, so eventually that too will make sense. (Eventually. It’s not good for app developers!)
But Apple’s not going to be “spurred” by anything recent like cheap Kindles. Apple doesn’t just react (like every other touch device vendor does)—they plan ahead and lead the way. Apple invented the Kindle (as more than an e-reader) and Android, for all practical purposes. Not because of the Newton, but because those exist only as imitations of the iPhone/iPad, and would not otherwise exist. Not in anything like their current form.
And I don’t see why Apple would feel the need to attack the Fire anyway. Different market, not a true competitor (as any buyers who expect it to be one will find out the hard way).
I've only read the first page of comments but I'm surprised at the negativity here. Now I'm somebody that loves his iPad but also somebody that is open minded enough to see the value in a paper back book sized pad.
Such a device would be an excellent "reader" and even a game machine. However I suspect the big draw would be in industry where iPad can be found to be rather large. What we need is something that provides more screen real estate than a Touch but also reasonably pocketable.
They might continue selling the iPad 2 at around the $350-$400 price point once the iPad 3 is released.
Think they might even lower further. First, they might switch to eg 8 GB. Second, if indeed economy is moving towards shaky waters, Apple will react. That happend some 2 years ago as well. However, I completely agree, most likely they will simply continue selling iPad 2.
I would definitely like to know how that works. Take the iPhone 3GS. Are they still manufacturing that? Who is still producing all those chips? Or have they simply bought a few more mio of eg the ARM chip and only purchase more expensive parts (screen, flash memory) later? I am sure it is true that a big part of Apple's success is supply chain.
It is very very unlikely that Tim Cook is going to spit on Steve's grave if you will and release a different form factor (i.e. the 5 or 7 inch iPad) BUT when the iPad 3 comes out they might keep one model of the iPad 2 and drop the price in a move similar to how they do the iPhones. Say keep the 16GB iPad 2 in wifi only and knock $100 off the price and then have the iPad 3 in 32GB, 64GB and 128GB. or even drop the 'mini' down to 8GB and knock the price down $200
It is very very unlikely that Tim Cook is going to spit on Steve's grave if you will and release a different form factor (i.e. the 5 or 7 inch iPad) BUT when the iPad 3 comes out they might keep one model of the iPad 2 and drop the price in a move similar to how they do the iPhones. Say keep the 16GB iPad 2 in wifi only and knock $100 off the price and then have the iPad 3 in 32GB, 64GB and 128GB. or even drop the 'mini' down to 8GB and knock the price down $200
I don't think they will either, but keep two things in mind: (1) Steve often misdirected in public comments, so the fact that he once said that smaller tablet form factors were not useful does not mean that Apple would never release one; and (2) any product Apple releases over the next few years will have Steve's posthumous fingerprints all over it.
Well, I guess now that the iPhone 4S has been revealed and is out, we must kickstart a whole new round of entirely madeup rumors about the next most likely product update from Apple.
If I may try my hand at it:
You blew one thing that will keep folks from believing it might happen.
Apple puts the creative apps in iLife NOT iWork. Unless you want to try to convince folks that they are also launching an new collection of iPro apps that target the professional audience.
Also, what artist is going to want to create on a 15 inch pallet. Anything less than 20 inch is too small AND it has to double as a display for your computer (to destroy Wacom of course).
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dr Millmoss
I don't think they will either, but keep two things in mind: (1) Steve often misdirected in public comments, so the fact that he once said that smaller tablet form factors were not useful does not mean that Apple would never release one;
True, but I don't think they would do it this fast. Too many folks would be morally outraged over it so soon as Steve's death. And frankly I think that Steve was genuine with the comment. Consider the awesome flood of sales that the less than 10 inch models that have gone to market have had. That's a sign right there that Steve is basically right.
Quote:
and (2) any product Apple releases over the next few years will have Steve's posthumous fingerprints all over it.
All the more reason why a smaller form factor is unlikely because many know that tech isn't created overnight and Steve's thoughts and designs for the next 3-5 years if not longer have already been put in the pipeline, thus again it will hit the rumor mill as spitting on his grave. If there is one thing we can count on, the rumor mill will beat that horse for years because references to Steve Jobs will get hits
That said, the idea of a 'cheap' previous model iPad isn't really a new product and for all we know if it is going to happen, it was Steve's idea
Quote:
Originally Posted by al_bundy
next year or 2 years from now expect the kindle fire or water or air or whatever it's going to be called to be 10 inches and $199. apple needs to release a cheap ipad just to keep amazon at bay
Are we auditioning to be an analyst? Because that prediction of how Apple will react to a competing product that hasn't been released yet is classic analyst talk.Lets wait until the Fire is actually released and we have real sales to end user numbers before we start the false rumors that Apple will do anything but be a "honey badger" about the Fire like they have about all the other tablets, phones etc
Did people even read the article? They are saying "mini" in price NOT size! I take this to mean they will do as they have with the iPhone - cut the iPad2 price by $100 or more to make it more affordable since the iP2 is still a top-notch product and many would love to buy it for less money.
Why is this such an unacceptable and impossible thing for Apple to do?? To me it make sense.
Look at what happened with the iPhone. Apple started selling it unsubsidized for a high upfront price. That plan did not work. Apple changed tactics and succumbed to the subsidy model for the iPhone.
Perhaps not the best example since the subsidy issue was as much if not more ATT then Apple.
Quote:
Apple's history -- and Jobs' history -- is full of examples of pragmatic decisions like that.
If you really look at the history, especially of the last few years you will find more examples of Apple and Jobs not really giving a hsit about what the competition was doing or what the loud mouth geeks, blog "experts" and analysts were demanding simply MUST be in this or that product. A real pragmatist would say that ignoring those things isn't very pragmatic. And Steve did it over and over and over. Which is why we still don't have Mac OS or iOS licensed to cloners, still don't have the iPhones unlocked across the board. Still don't have that 60 inch Apple TV, still don't have blu-ray in our computers. Don't have that matte screen on everything. don't have that wacom competing screen or even just stylus and so on
I'll be the heretic. Without giving any credence to "analysts" or any speculation about this being a response to the Fire, I can see a market for a 7" iDevice.
But Steve's comments noted here already are well taken. Meaning the iOS that runs such a device would need some specific things in it to keep the need for sandpaper to a minimum.
The iPad is a hard cover books sized device. The iPod touch a pocket sized one. I saw someone with a 7" tablet and thought it kind of nifty. No idea what it was or what it was doing, but the size seemed somehow...right. And as we all know-size matters.
And my prediction on these eBook thingies is this: it is simply a matter of time before they are free. Yes, free. You've got a device that takes a credit card and at the touch of a button charges a customer anywhere they are. Think about that. Would you want *everyone* to have that? Give them away with 10 book purchases or something.
I can see Mr. Cook showing off His Stuff with a plan like this.
Quote:
Originally Posted by minderbinder
I guess I'll be the one dissenting voice.
Personally I think the iPod touch is a decent competitor to the Fire (and better in a number of ways) except for people who want a larger screen.
If the Fire sells well (and particularly if it cuts into sales of iOS devices) then the question is whether it's selling based on price, or if there really is demand for the midsize screen. Apple can definitely keep the iPad 2 available and even cut it down a bit to bring it in at $299. But they could also make a 7 inch model by just slapping a bigger screen on the iPod touch. Really, if they can afford to sell the touch for $199, if they thought there was a market for it, wouldn't it make sense that they could make a model with a bigger screen but similar internals for not much more than that?
I'll be one more of the foolish ones here. I know the story was pointing us away from mini-size and toward mini-price, but that makes no sense on its face. "Mini" never refers to cost, only to form.
Amazon is testing the market by essentially taking over the production lines of the Playbook, we are told, and they're not making anything at $200. How is Apple supposed to compete with that?
It's worth thinking about because the 7" size really is nice as a handheld media player, especially for kids and for trips, where the iPad is a bit too big. Would it be possible to beat Amazon with a better screen than the Playbook's 169 ppi IPS and sell it for around $350? If they put an aluminum shell on it and focused it as a piece of HD eye candy that you can't live without, maybe, just maybe . . . I'd buy it, and use it for carrying around movies in my coat pocket.
And sometime soon they have to start addressing the 3D problem that Pixar is handing them.
A cheapo iPad? No way. A smaller one? Yes, please! Even if it was the same price, I'd be first in line for a 7" iPad.
I find I'm using my 7" Android eReader a lot more than my iPad, for no other reason than the size. I'd ditch it in a heartbeat if I could get an iPad in that size.
Even if they marketed it as a large iPod Touch, I'd be all over it. I have unlimited data with unlimited tethering on my iPhone plan, so I'd be buying a wifi-only version anyway.
Comments
They won't do this.
They will probably do it the same way they're doing it with the iPhone (without anyone noticing). They're selling both iPhone 3GS, 4 and 4S now.
The iPad 2 will become the iPad mini when the iPad 3 comes out with retina, updated specs and world chip.
Obviously garbage.
Maybe. There are ways you even see yourself.....
They might continue selling the iPad 2 at around the $350-$400 price point once the iPad 3 is released.
One way for sure. That's already been (highly successfully) done with the phones. Costs for older components continue to drop, engineering, tooling and line costs become fully amortized, the device is still great. Refurbed and used markets already exist. Etc.
I can actually see a $299 iPad 2 with 8GB of memory and no cammeras, or at least only with a front facing cammera, existing alongside the iPad 3.
This is also already being done - except it would cost more to strip the "cammeras" off and change the case and innards than to leave 'em. But reduced RAM in the iCloud age fits a value equation.
iPad mini = iPod Touch.
May get iPod Touch with a larger screen next year to combat the Fire, PSP, etc. Hope so.
And this is the other - or another - way.
Apple already (brilliantly) ignored my suggestion to make the iTouch into their P&S camera killer, leaving that role to the iPhone - but they have, as noted by Alfiejr (partially quoted below) used it to make inroads into the highly lucrative mobile gaming market. And a bigger screen (and A5 CPU) could help here.
I think pixel count/density is the key. If they want to go "retina all the way" with new models (or at least "retina-like,"), the main price/value/margin question is the price of an appropriate 5" (or less likely 7") screen next year that scales to the dimensions of iPhone apps while not giving developers another incremental res to write to. And following Steve's "sandpapered fingertips" dictum, as also noted by Alfiejr, I agree with those who say this device size would run phone and not pad apps (based around a 960-by-640 ratio), but I suppose a 7-8" 1024x768 screen-size is not impossible to imagine).
..as several have noted, the iPod touch has always been Apple's mini-tablet. the iPod name was just a marketing ploy to get it launched successfully when "tablets" still could not be readily marketed. and it has gone on to assume a majority of the iPod market.
...at a $299 starting price, a "Big Touch" would compete well in the lower-end tablet market. especially given it would be far, far more powerful and capable than the Kindle Fire and its stripped-down cheap looking ilk from other OEM's.
and with a maximum 160G SSD it could also finally replace the iPod Classic.
what is definitely not going to happen is a "cheapo" 10" iPad. Apple does not join any commodity price race to the bottom.
Agreed on the last two points!
Anybody here who has been around and remembers the IBM PC Jr with the chicklet keyboard?
I see there are several besides me. I just want to add that it wasn't just the KB that made this such a loser - it even had crippled capacity to run PC apps! (This was, I believe, an attempt to avoid cannibalizing PC sales.) Truly a classic "horse designed by a committee."
For example, there was never an adequate competitor to the iPod family, thus allowing Apple to corner 70%+ of the music player market.
Android emerged as an adequate "competitor" to the iPhone, and became the *dominant* platform by % share. But iPhone sales has grown unabated. There's no evidence of this changing even though you can now find smartphone form factors at every 0.1" increment between 3.5" to 5". Without Android, however, imagine how many iPhones would have been sold.
All to say, if history is indeed a reliable predictor, the Kindle Fire (and/or others) will limit but not stop growth of sales of iPad as it exists.
Us cheap old people are the fastest growing demographic.
If the iPhone is an example, Apple may very well drop the price of the iPad2 when the 3 arrives.
PS. Us old people don't want a dinky little 7 inch screen. The current 10 incher is barely big enough.
A demographic i will never join, because "old" is, by definition, 15 years older than I am.
But I agree with all the rest. Now get off my lawn you whipper snapper!
Spurred by the recently announced Amazon Kindle Fire and its $199 price, Apple is rumored to be exploring a new low-cost iPad for release in the first few months of 2012.
Analyst Brian White with Ticonderoga Securities has been touring China and Taiwan and meeting with component suppliers, where he has heard rumblings of a so-called "iPad mini" arriving next year. The "mini" name doesn't necessarily refer to the size of the device, he said, but a lower entry-level price.
He said such a device is expected to arrive in the first few months of 2012, allowing Apple to tap into a "more price sensitive consumer segment," and also fend off the Amazon Kindle Fire, the retailer's first entrance into the touchscreen tablet market.
"We believe this lower priced iPad could be priced in the mid-to-high-$200 range," White wrote in a note to investors. "We expect this will be followed by a much more powerful, feature rich standard-priced iPad 3 in (the second quarter of 2012)."
If Apple were to address a lower cost market in 2012, it would come around the same time that Amazon is expected to introduce a more powerful touchscreen tablet with a larger form factor. The forthcoming Amazon Kindle Fire sports a screen size of 7 inches, compared with the 9.7-inch display of the iPad.
In October of 2010, late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs slammed rivals who were building 7-inch tablets, saying the screen size was too small for users. He said that manufacturers of those devices would need to ship sandpaper with their 7-inch tablets so users could file down their fingers to the point where they could hit smaller targets on the screen.
Still, rumors that Apple plans to release a new device with a screen size between an iPad and an iPod touch have cropped up on occasion. But White said Apple's goal in addressing the lower end market may be to build a cheaper device, rather than a smaller one.
He said a low-cost iPad could result in big sales in China and other developing parts of the world. he also believes there is a major market opportunity in developed areas like the U.S. and Europe.
Leading up to last week's iPhone 4S announcement, many analysts, including White, expected that Apple would build a new, low-cost iPhone model that could be sold contract-free, allowing Apple to tap into a huge prepaid smartphone market worldwide. Instead, Apple decided to keep the iPhone 3GS in its lineup, offering the GSM phone for free with a two-year contract, or for $375 unlocked.
[ View this article at AppleInsider.com ]
My prediction for Tim Cook's Kindle Fire killer strategy: Basically the same as keeping the 3GS in the iPhone lineup-offer the original iPad with 8GB only free on contract. No discount on wifi only iPad 1; no 3G means no carrier subsidy.
Some current first gen iPad owners I know are quite ok with having no camera. A smaller 8GB storage offering can leverage iOS 5 and iCloud. And there's no way Amazon can get a comparable tablet down to $199.
1. iPad 1 wifi + 3G~$199 with contract [hypothetical iPad Cheap, only 8GB storage; A4 or even A5]
2. iPad 2 wifi + 3G~$399 and up with contract
3. iPad 3 wifi + 3G~$499 and up with contract
But Apple’s not going to be “spurred” by anything recent like cheap Kindles. Apple doesn’t just react (like every other touch device vendor does)—they plan ahead and lead the way. Apple invented the Kindle (as more than an e-reader) and Android, for all practical purposes. Not because of the Newton, but because those exist only as imitations of the iPhone/iPad, and would not otherwise exist. Not in anything like their current form.
And I don’t see why Apple would feel the need to attack the Fire anyway. Different market, not a true competitor (as any buyers who expect it to be one will find out the hard way).
Such a device would be an excellent "reader" and even a game machine. However I suspect the big draw would be in industry where iPad can be found to be rather large. What we need is something that provides more screen real estate than a Touch but also reasonably pocketable.
9.7" iPad 3 w/retina display & A6 cpu
Yep.
[*]iPad 2 16GB @ $100 less
Sure, why not.
5" iPod touch w/A5 cpu
lolno.
4" iPhone 5 w/A6 cpu
THERE WILL NEVER BE AN IPHONE 5.
3.5" iPhone 4S @ 50% less $
Yep.
3.5" iPod touch w/A5 cpu
Yep.
1.5" iPod nano w/video
Does it come with a magnifying glass? Or a POINT?!
Obviously garbage.
They might continue selling the iPad 2 at around the $350-$400 price point once the iPad 3 is released.
Think they might even lower further. First, they might switch to eg 8 GB. Second, if indeed economy is moving towards shaky waters, Apple will react. That happend some 2 years ago as well. However, I completely agree, most likely they will simply continue selling iPad 2.
I would definitely like to know how that works. Take the iPhone 3GS. Are they still manufacturing that? Who is still producing all those chips? Or have they simply bought a few more mio of eg the ARM chip and only purchase more expensive parts (screen, flash memory) later? I am sure it is true that a big part of Apple's success is supply chain.
They won't do this.
I wouldn't say that.
It is very very unlikely that Tim Cook is going to spit on Steve's grave if you will and release a different form factor (i.e. the 5 or 7 inch iPad) BUT when the iPad 3 comes out they might keep one model of the iPad 2 and drop the price in a move similar to how they do the iPhones. Say keep the 16GB iPad 2 in wifi only and knock $100 off the price and then have the iPad 3 in 32GB, 64GB and 128GB. or even drop the 'mini' down to 8GB and knock the price down $200
Think they might even lower further. First, they might switch to eg 8 GB.
I don't buy that. iPads by definition of their use mean larger required capacities.
Second, if indeed economy is moving towards shaky waters, Apple will react.
lolnope.
That happend some 2 years ago as well.
?Via what?
I wouldn't say that.
It is very very unlikely that Tim Cook is going to spit on Steve's grave if you will and release a different form factor (i.e. the 5 or 7 inch iPad) BUT when the iPad 3 comes out they might keep one model of the iPad 2 and drop the price in a move similar to how they do the iPhones. Say keep the 16GB iPad 2 in wifi only and knock $100 off the price and then have the iPad 3 in 32GB, 64GB and 128GB. or even drop the 'mini' down to 8GB and knock the price down $200
I don't think they will either, but keep two things in mind: (1) Steve often misdirected in public comments, so the fact that he once said that smaller tablet form factors were not useful does not mean that Apple would never release one; and (2) any product Apple releases over the next few years will have Steve's posthumous fingerprints all over it.
Well, I guess now that the iPhone 4S has been revealed and is out, we must kickstart a whole new round of entirely madeup rumors about the next most likely product update from Apple.
If I may try my hand at it:
You blew one thing that will keep folks from believing it might happen.
Apple puts the creative apps in iLife NOT iWork. Unless you want to try to convince folks that they are also launching an new collection of iPro apps that target the professional audience.
Also, what artist is going to want to create on a 15 inch pallet. Anything less than 20 inch is too small AND it has to double as a display for your computer (to destroy Wacom of course).
I don't think they will either, but keep two things in mind: (1) Steve often misdirected in public comments, so the fact that he once said that smaller tablet form factors were not useful does not mean that Apple would never release one;
True, but I don't think they would do it this fast. Too many folks would be morally outraged over it so soon as Steve's death. And frankly I think that Steve was genuine with the comment. Consider the awesome flood of sales that the less than 10 inch models that have gone to market have had. That's a sign right there that Steve is basically right.
and (2) any product Apple releases over the next few years will have Steve's posthumous fingerprints all over it.
All the more reason why a smaller form factor is unlikely because many know that tech isn't created overnight and Steve's thoughts and designs for the next 3-5 years if not longer have already been put in the pipeline, thus again it will hit the rumor mill as spitting on his grave. If there is one thing we can count on, the rumor mill will beat that horse for years because references to Steve Jobs will get hits
That said, the idea of a 'cheap' previous model iPad isn't really a new product and for all we know if it is going to happen, it was Steve's idea
next year or 2 years from now expect the kindle fire or water or air or whatever it's going to be called to be 10 inches and $199. apple needs to release a cheap ipad just to keep amazon at bay
Are we auditioning to be an analyst? Because that prediction of how Apple will react to a competing product that hasn't been released yet is classic analyst talk.Lets wait until the Fire is actually released and we have real sales to end user numbers before we start the false rumors that Apple will do anything but be a "honey badger" about the Fire like they have about all the other tablets, phones etc
Look at what happened with the iPhone. Apple started selling it unsubsidized for a high upfront price. That plan did not work. Apple changed tactics and succumbed to the subsidy model for the iPhone.
Perhaps not the best example since the subsidy issue was as much if not more ATT then Apple.
Apple's history -- and Jobs' history -- is full of examples of pragmatic decisions like that.
If you really look at the history, especially of the last few years you will find more examples of Apple and Jobs not really giving a hsit about what the competition was doing or what the loud mouth geeks, blog "experts" and analysts were demanding simply MUST be in this or that product. A real pragmatist would say that ignoring those things isn't very pragmatic. And Steve did it over and over and over. Which is why we still don't have Mac OS or iOS licensed to cloners, still don't have the iPhones unlocked across the board. Still don't have that 60 inch Apple TV, still don't have blu-ray in our computers. Don't have that matte screen on everything. don't have that wacom competing screen or even just stylus and so on
I'll be the heretic. Without giving any credence to "analysts" or any speculation about this being a response to the Fire, I can see a market for a 7" iDevice.
But Steve's comments noted here already are well taken. Meaning the iOS that runs such a device would need some specific things in it to keep the need for sandpaper to a minimum.
The iPad is a hard cover books sized device. The iPod touch a pocket sized one. I saw someone with a 7" tablet and thought it kind of nifty. No idea what it was or what it was doing, but the size seemed somehow...right. And as we all know-size matters.
And my prediction on these eBook thingies is this: it is simply a matter of time before they are free. Yes, free. You've got a device that takes a credit card and at the touch of a button charges a customer anywhere they are. Think about that. Would you want *everyone* to have that? Give them away with 10 book purchases or something.
I can see Mr. Cook showing off His Stuff with a plan like this.
I guess I'll be the one dissenting voice.
Personally I think the iPod touch is a decent competitor to the Fire (and better in a number of ways) except for people who want a larger screen.
If the Fire sells well (and particularly if it cuts into sales of iOS devices) then the question is whether it's selling based on price, or if there really is demand for the midsize screen. Apple can definitely keep the iPad 2 available and even cut it down a bit to bring it in at $299. But they could also make a 7 inch model by just slapping a bigger screen on the iPod touch. Really, if they can afford to sell the touch for $199, if they thought there was a market for it, wouldn't it make sense that they could make a model with a bigger screen but similar internals for not much more than that?
I'll be one more of the foolish ones here. I know the story was pointing us away from mini-size and toward mini-price, but that makes no sense on its face. "Mini" never refers to cost, only to form.
Amazon is testing the market by essentially taking over the production lines of the Playbook, we are told, and they're not making anything at $200. How is Apple supposed to compete with that?
It's worth thinking about because the 7" size really is nice as a handheld media player, especially for kids and for trips, where the iPad is a bit too big. Would it be possible to beat Amazon with a better screen than the Playbook's 169 ppi IPS and sell it for around $350? If they put an aluminum shell on it and focused it as a piece of HD eye candy that you can't live without, maybe, just maybe . . . I'd buy it, and use it for carrying around movies in my coat pocket.
And sometime soon they have to start addressing the 3D problem that Pixar is handing them.
I find I'm using my 7" Android eReader a lot more than my iPad, for no other reason than the size. I'd ditch it in a heartbeat if I could get an iPad in that size.
Even if they marketed it as a large iPod Touch, I'd be all over it. I have unlimited data with unlimited tethering on my iPhone plan, so I'd be buying a wifi-only version anyway.