I didn't like that the iPad Mini Retina was looking to be identical to the larger Air, besides the display size of course.
The Air remains the premium Apple tablet, and I also liked that the Air was clocked slightly higher and has a little better performance than the Mini Retina. The Mini Retina is in between the iPhone 5s and the Air, in terms of performance.
The Mini retina remains a great tablet, but if somebody is a photographer or somebody who is looking for the absolute best performance, then the Air is the tablet to get.
Sorry but Apple has never claimed the Air was their premium product. Most likely the mini is clocked lower because of thermal and battery issues, not to give the Air a "premium" edge. Probably the same thing with color gamut.
Sorry but Apple has never claimed the Air was their premium product. Most likely the mini is clocked lower because of thermal and battery issues, not to give the Air a "premium" edge. Probably the same thing with color gamut.
The lower clock rate is for technical reasons imo. In some games the Rmini gets very hot while the air is just warm. It looks like the Rmini already as thermal issues so lowering the clock rate was the way to go.
The difference is significant. The color gamut on the new mini is apparently the same as the old mini, which is about 60-70% od sRGB. Blue and magenta hues will be distorted. Gamut-wise, this is about the same as the iPad 2 and MacBook Air, and slightly worse that the "classic" MacBook Pros.
For most users, this doesn't matter at all. For some, it's very important. I think that the disappointment comes from the fact that since the release of iPhone 5, every display with the "retina" moniker covered 95-100% of sRGB. Now we have a retina display that isn't full sRGB gamut, and in a sense, that weakens the Retina brand.
Give them a pass for what crap? What standard does the LG display panel used in the iPad mini retina display have to live up to before people who say "stop blowing this issue into gamut gate" are not slammed for "making excuses for Apple when there's no possible excuse"?
Please, quantify the minimum gamut that defines the line between "this crap" and "excusable."
How about we take all other companies out of the loops and simply set the standard that the color gamut should be as good as the iPad 4 which to date had the best color gamut followed by the Air. The Mini isn't even remotely close to either.
I can confirm this. I went to the Apple store on Saturday to checkout the New iPad Air and Retina Mini. I did my normal test that I do at all Apple stores when new devices are launched. As a hobby I do photography so Display matters a lot to me. I picked up an iPad Retina Mini and went to my Flickr account and looked at my pictures. I immediately noticed all my pics look a bit washed out (The colors were less saturated). I then went to a iPad Air and the colors looked a lot better. I then looked at them on the iMac and the Retina MacBook Pro. All fine, but Retina MacBook Pro looked amazing, of course. I then went back to the iPad Mini Retina and looked at my photos again and they looked washed out. I was considering a Retina Mina but now I will wait. Accurate colors matters a lot to me. My girlfriend or daughter wouldn't notice a thing, so it can be a good Xmas gift to them.
I was able to make the Air and Rmini looks almost exactly the same by playing with the brightness settings on both devices. That being said you would still probably see the difference.
imo they both work together on specs to see what is doable with a good yield with high volume. imo there is a technical issue at play here. And with the screen retention problems, low yield of the Rmini screens it looks like fine tuning the production line is no picnic.
When they have more experience with IGZO maybe they will be able to ramp up specs.
Last time I check the Air and rMini are both using IGZO screens.
Don't do this man: As long as the iPad DOESN'T have IGZO, the haters can ding the iPad for not having it. If the iPad does have IGZO, then they will have to think of something else in order to maintain the narrative of the iPad as a big disappointment. Gamut, I suppose, is the new IGZO.
The Air is the top of the line iPad. ($499 vs $399)
Why would you expect the MiniR to have the EXACT same quality screen? I've seen both and they look the same. Only some guy with a sharp eye or measuring software can tell the difference. Bottom line is 99.999999% of people never adjust the settings on their television to industry standards. Some of these tv's cost thousands, yet you don't hear people complain about the Blues not being exact. Bottom line is Apple don't give a sheet about you color experts. If you want accurate color go buy a MacBookPro or Lightning display. No one should be doing serious photo work on a $399 device anyway.
indeed. Retina sells a lot better and is a lot more obvious to most consumers than a very small diffence in color accuracy. That being said I think is was still important for Apple to have its more high end product be color accurate since its there trademarks on the macs too.
imo they both work together on specs to see what is doable with a good yield with high volume. imo there is a technical issue at play here. And with the screen retention problems, low yield of the Rmini screens it looks like fine tuning the production line is no picnic.
When they have more experience with IGZO maybe they will be able to ramp up specs.
I don't disagree with you. I 100% believe it is engineering issues and not Apple trying to make the RMini inferior to the Air.
Sorry but Apple has never claimed the Air was their premium product. Most likely the mini is clocked lower because of thermal and battery issues, not to give the Air a "premium" edge. Probably the same thing with color gamut.
I agree that the differences between the two have to do with size, battery and thermal issues.
Don't do this man: As long as the iPad DOESN'T have IGZO, the haters can ding the iPad for not having it. If the iPad does have IGZO, then they will have to think of something else in order to maintain the narrative of the iPad as a big disappointment. Gamut, I suppose, is the new IGZO.
Yeah right, they are not using IZGO...
If those panels are not IGZO then Apple deserved an award for what they did with a-Si LCD panel. Cutting half of the leds on a a-Si LCD and still manage to have a decent screen would be nothing short of a miracle.
Why can't the BMW 325 have as much horsepower as a 335?
Why can't a Merc C-Class have as much horsepower as a Merc S-Class?
Use your brain. The Air cost 25% more than the MiniR.
So a higher clocked A7 chip is more expensive to produce? It has nothing to do with battery life or ensuring the back of the device doesn't get too out under intensive use?
Are you seriously trying to throw mud at Anand? It's not like he did a separate article calling Apple out, this was included in his comprehensive iPad mini Retina review. And Anand has always been kind to Apple devices; it's not like he's a hater.
Not sure what you mean by mud. I said they wouldn't have a story. Don't know how that translated into "mud" in your mind.
Comments
Sorry but Apple has never claimed the Air was their premium product. Most likely the mini is clocked lower because of thermal and battery issues, not to give the Air a "premium" edge. Probably the same thing with color gamut.
The lower clock rate is for technical reasons imo. In some games the Rmini gets very hot while the air is just warm. It looks like the Rmini already as thermal issues so lowering the clock rate was the way to go.
Ask the display’s manufacturer.
The difference is significant. The color gamut on the new mini is apparently the same as the old mini, which is about 60-70% od sRGB. Blue and magenta hues will be distorted. Gamut-wise, this is about the same as the iPad 2 and MacBook Air, and slightly worse that the "classic" MacBook Pros.
For most users, this doesn't matter at all. For some, it's very important. I think that the disappointment comes from the fact that since the release of iPhone 5, every display with the "retina" moniker covered 95-100% of sRGB. Now we have a retina display that isn't full sRGB gamut, and in a sense, that weakens the Retina brand.
Give them a pass for what crap? What standard does the LG display panel used in the iPad mini retina display have to live up to before people who say "stop blowing this issue into gamut gate" are not slammed for "making excuses for Apple when there's no possible excuse"?
Please, quantify the minimum gamut that defines the line between "this crap" and "excusable."
How about we take all other companies out of the loops and simply set the standard that the color gamut should be as good as the iPad 4 which to date had the best color gamut followed by the Air. The Mini isn't even remotely close to either.
I can confirm this. I went to the Apple store on Saturday to checkout the New iPad Air and Retina Mini. I did my normal test that I do at all Apple stores when new devices are launched. As a hobby I do photography so Display matters a lot to me. I picked up an iPad Retina Mini and went to my Flickr account and looked at my pictures. I immediately noticed all my pics look a bit washed out (The colors were less saturated). I then went to a iPad Air and the colors looked a lot better. I then looked at them on the iMac and the Retina MacBook Pro. All fine, but Retina MacBook Pro looked amazing, of course. I then went back to the iPad Mini Retina and looked at my photos again and they looked washed out. I was considering a Retina Mina but now I will wait. Accurate colors matters a lot to me. My girlfriend or daughter wouldn't notice a thing, so it can be a good Xmas gift to them.
I was able to make the Air and Rmini looks almost exactly the same by playing with the brightness settings on both devices. That being said you would still probably see the difference.
Who sets color gamut to Apple's specifications.
imo they both work together on specs to see what is doable with a good yield with high volume. imo there is a technical issue at play here. And with the screen retention problems, low yield of the Rmini screens it looks like fine tuning the production line is no picnic.
When they have more experience with IGZO maybe they will be able to ramp up specs.
WTH? Why can't they both be top notch?
So people who paid $100 more don't feel screwed.
The Mini Retina remains a good tablet, just not as good as the Air, though the difference is small.
Don't do this man: As long as the iPad DOESN'T have IGZO, the haters can ding the iPad for not having it. If the iPad does have IGZO, then they will have to think of something else in order to maintain the narrative of the iPad as a big disappointment. Gamut, I suppose, is the new IGZO.
The Air is the top of the line iPad. ($499 vs $399)
Why would you expect the MiniR to have the EXACT same quality screen? I've seen both and they look the same. Only some guy with a sharp eye or measuring software can tell the difference. Bottom line is 99.999999% of people never adjust the settings on their television to industry standards. Some of these tv's cost thousands, yet you don't hear people complain about the Blues not being exact. Bottom line is Apple don't give a sheet about you color experts. If you want accurate color go buy a MacBookPro or Lightning display. No one should be doing serious photo work on a $399 device anyway.
indeed. Retina sells a lot better and is a lot more obvious to most consumers than a very small diffence in color accuracy. That being said I think is was still important for Apple to have its more high end product be color accurate since its there trademarks on the macs too.
Sorry but Apple has never claimed the Air was their premium product. Most likely the mini is clocked lower because of thermal and battery issues, not to give the Air a "premium" edge. Probably the same thing with color gamut.
I agree that the differences between the two have to do with size, battery and thermal issues.
Don't do this man: As long as the iPad DOESN'T have IGZO, the haters can ding the iPad for not having it. If the iPad does have IGZO, then they will have to think of something else in order to maintain the narrative of the iPad as a big disappointment. Gamut, I suppose, is the new IGZO.
Yeah right, they are not using IZGO...
If those panels are not IGZO then Apple deserved an award for what they did with a-Si LCD panel. Cutting half of the leds on a a-Si LCD and still manage to have a decent screen would be nothing short of a miracle.
I thought the air was their top of the line full size iPad.
Yes, last year Anandtech said don't hold your breath for a retina mini in 2013.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6429/ipad-mini-review/5
Perhaps all those engineering issues weren't solved and so Apple delivered the best retina mini they could right now.
Well, actually, Apple *solved* the so-called engineering problems by making the mini thicker and heavier.
Why can't the BMW 325 have as much horsepower as a 335?
Why can't a Merc C-Class have as much horsepower as a Merc S-Class?
Use your brain. The Air cost 25% more than the MiniR.
Use *your* brain; it doesn't.
Not sure what you mean by mud. I said they wouldn't have a story. Don't know how that translated into "mud" in your mind.