In possible last gasp for iPad mini, Apple increases capacity to 128GB for $399

13

Comments

  • Reply 41 of 63
    jasenj1 said:
    Lot of uneducated arguing going on here.

    Couple of things are pretty clear:

    1. Apple thinks 7.9" iPad is a poor user experience, and having had one of them in my house to observe over time, it is in fact a terrible iPad. They would rather you get a real iPad for $329 and actually enjoy the product.

    2. Apple has no interest in $299 price points or lower because it is not [as] profitable [as other products]. They tried it. Didn't work. And the 8 people who bought and love the iPad mini are not factors, sorry.

    3. Today's change to the lineup tells you all you need to know. The mini is nearly done, and is only being kept around to appease the few that insist upon the usefulness of the form factor, but only at a price point they feel comfortable with. Hence the change to 128 GB, which doesn't cost them much more, but justifies the pricing at $399.
    Point 1 is pure personal opinion. Many other people think the mini is a great iPad.

    Point 2a: Apple (and many other companies) sell plenty of products for less than $299. So point #2a is invalid.

    Point 2b, that the mini did not sell in large enough quantities to justify continued manufacturing, is something that requires insight into Apple's sales info - which I doubt anyone here has. Anecdotal evidence in this thread is that there are many happy owners (my family is one) and many usages where the mini is felt to be superior to a full-sized iPad or iPhone.

    IMHO, Apple has made a mistake here. They are going to lose purchases of minis to Android tablets. It may well be that Apple wasn't selling enough minis to warrant the continued manufacturing costs, and they are content to lose those purchases. It's their business to run. And my option as a consumer to complain that I liked the product they're killing off (an entry level iPad mini).
    So you understand why I can't possibly take you seriously right? They know exactly what they're doing, having sold iPads of varying sizes and varying prices over several years now.

    Reducing the mini lineup to a SINGLE offering at $399 tells you everything you need to know. Ignoring it, is to be dense.
  • Reply 42 of 63

    sog35 said:
    jasenj1 said:
    Lot of uneducated arguing going on here.

    Couple of things are pretty clear:

    1. Apple thinks 7.9" iPad is a poor user experience, and having had one of them in my house to observe over time, it is in fact a terrible iPad. They would rather you get a real iPad for $329 and actually enjoy the product.

    2. Apple has no interest in $299 price points or lower because it is not [as] profitable [as other products]. They tried it. Didn't work. And the 8 people who bought and love the iPad mini are not factors, sorry.

    3. Today's change to the lineup tells you all you need to know. The mini is nearly done, and is only being kept around to appease the few that insist upon the usefulness of the form factor, but only at a price point they feel comfortable with. Hence the change to 128 GB, which doesn't cost them much more, but justifies the pricing at $399.
    Point 1 is pure personal opinion. Many other people think the mini is a great iPad.

    Point 2a: Apple (and many other companies) sell plenty of products for less than $299. So point #2a is invalid.

    Point 2b, that the mini did not sell in large enough quantities to justify continued manufacturing, is something that requires insight into Apple's sales info - which I doubt anyone here has. Anecdotal evidence in this thread is that there are many happy owners (my family is one) and many usages where the mini is felt to be superior to a full-sized iPad or iPhone.

    IMHO, Apple has made a mistake here. They are going to lose purchases of minis to Android tablets. It may well be that Apple wasn't selling enough minis to warrant the continued manufacturing costs, and they are content to lose those purchases. It's their business to run. And my option as a consumer to complain that I liked the product they're killing off (an entry level iPad mini).
    So if the Mini isn't a poor experience for many why is Apple killing it?

    When did Apple ever kill a product that was great?

    IMO, the Mini is a compromised product like the Microfat Surface. Not a good enough tablet or laptop. The Mini is too small to be a real tablet and way to big to be pocketable. 
    This is an absolute fact. The iPad mini is in every way an inferior iPad. Apple knew it back when they refused to make one, they knew when they succumbed to market pressure to release one ("Hey ours is better because it is 7 POINT NINE inches!"), and they continued to know it when they gave poor attention and upgrades through its life cycle.

    I don't get why some people bother with their own opinions on the subject as if they matter. Apple's own actions are all you need to know about the state of the iPad mini, past, present, future.

    P.S. Let's just get this out of the way: Some people like it, Some people bought it. Enough that it does still exist, if even as 1 outdated model. Just not enough to warrant any serious attention, and clearly they are done losing money on it, with $399 being the new minimum price.
  • Reply 43 of 63
    macplusplusmacplusplus Posts: 2,112member
    sog35 said:
    jasenj1 said:
    sog35 said:

    or you could buy a phablet and have both.

    exactly my point
    And end up with a phone that is too big to fit in a shirt/pants pocket and is therefore a pain to carry. And a screen that is a bit too small for reading books, playing games, or doing other things while at home. The use cases for phones & tablets are different. They overlap some, but there are plenty of places where they don't. 

    How about you just go buy an MS Surface and have a PC, tablet, & phone all in one convenient package?
    And you can fit your iPad Mini in your pocket? LOL

    Just stop.

    Apple has spoken.
    The market has spoken.
    The Mini is a niche product and will be cancelled next year.
    So, a product with 28% market share is a niche product?

    So, Apple will cancel a product with 28% market share?

    LOL... just LOL.

    See the graph here:
    http://forums.appleinsider.com/discussion/199261/
    80s_Apple_Guyewtheckman
  • Reply 44 of 63
    macplusplusmacplusplus Posts: 2,112member
    sog35 said:
    sog35 said:
    jasenj1 said:
    sog35 said:

    or you could buy a phablet and have both.

    exactly my point
    And end up with a phone that is too big to fit in a shirt/pants pocket and is therefore a pain to carry. And a screen that is a bit too small for reading books, playing games, or doing other things while at home. The use cases for phones & tablets are different. They overlap some, but there are plenty of places where they don't. 

    How about you just go buy an MS Surface and have a PC, tablet, & phone all in one convenient package?
    And you can fit your iPad Mini in your pocket? LOL

    Just stop.

    Apple has spoken.
    The market has spoken.
    The Mini is a niche product and will be cancelled next year.
    So, a product with 28% market share is a niche product?

    So, Apple will cancel a product with 28% market share?

    LOL... just LOL.

    See the graph here:
    http://forums.appleinsider.com/discussion/199261/
    Yes it is niche. The past is the past. This is about the future.

    Mini has a high market share because Apple was selling them for dirt cheap. That's the only reason.

    But now the regular iPad is cheaper than the Mini. There is no reason to even sell the Mini now.

    Mini is not the future of Apple. If you can't see this from the past 2 years of Mini 'upgrades' then you are blind.
    The regular iPad with its poor 32 Gb storage does not appeal to kids. Kids download a lot of games and when they run out of space they invade their parents iPhones/iPads. With its 128 GB the iPad Mini is a killer game machine for the kids.
  • Reply 45 of 63
    wigginwiggin Posts: 2,265member
    sog35 said:
    cincytee said:
    sog35 said:

    they can use an iPhone Plus then.

    or next year the 6+ inch iPhone X1 Plus
    You miss the point. Apple will not earn a phone sale from me if the iPad mini is discontinued. I don't want a phone; I want a tablet. The choice is sale or no sale, not sell one product instead of another.
    You are going to need to buy a phone eventually
    Doesn't that pretty much blow your cannibalization theory out of the water?

    And if that was a main driver for Apple to take the actions you seem to have inside information on, wouldn't that also mean that the iPod touch would have been discontinued many years ago? Why would Apple continue to sell cheap iPod touches when they could sell you an much more expensive iPhone instead (as if the huge price difference between the two, in your mind, is of no consequence to the consumers).
    ewtheckman
  • Reply 46 of 63
    entropysentropys Posts: 4,152member
    It is pretty cleart apple execs dislike the iPad mini. Old processors, slow upgrades, that nearly a third of iPads sales (I saw 29% upthread) are thought to be minis is interesting. Jobs seems to have hated that size tablet.

    thing is, it has a place in the market. Not having a product in that space does leave room for android tablets. Also, it could be the replacement for the iPod touch gaming machine at a decent price point. heck with an appropriate dock or similar it could outdo a Nintendo switch.



    edited March 2017 ewtheckman
  • Reply 47 of 63
    wigginwiggin Posts: 2,265member
    sog35 said:
    cincytee said:
    sog35 said:
    I don't want a phone; I want a tablet. The choice is sale or no sale, not sell one product instead of another.
    You are going to need to buy a phone eventually
    You, Schrödinger-like, presume simultaneously that I don't already have a phone and that I don't want one. I say only that, if I buy a mini, it's because I want a tablet. If I want a phone, I'll buy a phone.
    or you could buy a phablet and have both.

    exactly my point
    Only if you are willing to carry a phablet around with you everywhere you go. Since the vast majority of smartphone owners take their phones with them pretty much everywhere they go, if you have a phablet you have no choice but the carry that size device around with you. Ever see someone out running with an iPhone 7 Plus strapped to their arm or stuffed in their tights. It's pretty funny looking. Heck, I know of guys with phablets who ask their wives to carry them for them in her purse because they can't put it in a pocket. Sad! If one sits around on the sofa eating Cheetos all day, it's probably not a big deal. But step outside of your bubble and consider that many folks might, just maybe, have needs that are different from yours. Where portability of the phone is the priority and the option of a bigger screen when needed, without having to carry a full-size iPad, is highly desirable.

    But let's go with what you think is the only viable option. And discontinue the non-Plus iPhones while we are at it because clearly that is the only usable size device and price is no object for consumers.  smh
  • Reply 48 of 63
    macplusplusmacplusplus Posts: 2,112member
    sog35 said:
    sog35 said:
    sog35 said:
    jasenj1 said:
    sog35 said:

    or you could buy a phablet and have both.

    exactly my point
    And end up with a phone that is too big to fit in a shirt/pants pocket and is therefore a pain to carry. And a screen that is a bit too small for reading books, playing games, or doing other things while at home. The use cases for phones & tablets are different. They overlap some, but there are plenty of places where they don't. 

    How about you just go buy an MS Surface and have a PC, tablet, & phone all in one convenient package?
    And you can fit your iPad Mini in your pocket? LOL

    Just stop.

    Apple has spoken.
    The market has spoken.
    The Mini is a niche product and will be cancelled next year.
    So, a product with 28% market share is a niche product?

    So, Apple will cancel a product with 28% market share?

    LOL... just LOL.

    See the graph here:
    http://forums.appleinsider.com/discussion/199261/
    Yes it is niche. The past is the past. This is about the future.

    Mini has a high market share because Apple was selling them for dirt cheap. That's the only reason.

    But now the regular iPad is cheaper than the Mini. There is no reason to even sell the Mini now.

    Mini is not the future of Apple. If you can't see this from the past 2 years of Mini 'upgrades' then you are blind.
    The regular iPad with its poor 32 Gb storage does not appeal to kids. Kids download a lot of games and when they run out of space they invade their parents iPhones/iPads. With its 128 GB the iPad Mini is a killer game machine for the kids.
    Even better is a128GB phone. Kids have phones now days
    Smartphones for kids have constraints: 1) Age 2) Budget 3) Sharing. You can easily share an iPad Mini.
  • Reply 49 of 63
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 7,624member
    sog35 said:
    avon b7 said:
    sog35 said:
    avon b7 said:
    sog35 said:
    sog35 said:
    blastdoor said:
    sog35 said:
    wood1208 said:
    Apple knows better but would have been good to keep ipad mini at 32GB or 64GB and reduce price under $300
    No.

    Apple hates the iPad Mini. That is a fact. Why?

    1. Margins suck. Really does. Shrinking the ipad does not make it cheaper to make
    2. Don't sell enough units. So costs go up
    3. It canibalizes iPhone Plus - this is the main reason. Apple does not want the Mini at $399 to canibalize iPhone Plus at $769. It just isn't good business

    If sales of the Mini drop again this year, I will not be surprised if they just drop the Mini altogether.

    Now look at next year. Apple will be releasing the iPhone X1 Plus. That will have a screen size over 6 inches. At that point the Mini is not needed at all.
    Tim Cook used to say that "never fear canibalizaiton" was part of Apple's core philosophy. That is, they wouldn't cancel a product because it was taking sales from another Apple product. 

    If you're right, then that means a core part of what makes Apple has changed, and in a way that I don't think is good. 
    Apple does not fear canibalization in general. But there comes a point where having 2 similiar products becomes more destructive than good.

    Its a clear pattern. Since the Plus phones came out the Mini has fallen out of favor. You cannot deny that. Since the Plus came out the Mini has gotten crappy pricing and crappy upgrades. Its pretty obvious that Apple is steering people away from the Mini.
    That's not indicative of Apple fearing cannibalization. It could very well be that the mini isn't selling as well so they're backing off it. Very different than suggesting they're causing the decreased sales. 
    Tim Cook himself mentioned that the Plus Phones have cannibalized ipad sales.

    So its not such a big leap to think cannibalization can happen in the reverse....

    Bottom line is the Mini is obsolete.  Just like the 3.5 inch iPhones of the past.
    Take what Tim says with a grain of salt. The only way an iPad can take sales away from a phone is if it has cellular capacity and even then it's highly unlikely to be a reason. My guess is that the vast majority of iPad sales are Wi-Fi only. A phone is a phone and a tablet is a tablet. A phone can do some tablet tasks acceptably well but tablets have to jump through hoops to pull off phone functionality.

    In my case, I decided to form a duet. Decent Android phone for phone, web and text communication and iPad Mini 2 for the heavy lifting tablet work.

    The Mini is an excellent form factor and its biggest enemy is Apple itself. Since the Mini 2 it has been given a rough ride in terms of specs and pricing. Most Mini 2 owners are still perfectly happy with their devices. 

    No large screen phone can fully compete with a Mini type tablet in terms of comfort for certain tasks. In the same way that the small form factor iPhones are useless for many large fingered users who will always prefer a larger (but manageable) phone screen.

    There are workarounds but they are compromises in one way or another.
    So why did Apple get rid of 3.5 inch iPhones?

    Its the exact same reason why they will get rid of 7.9 inch iPads.  

    You can argue all you want, but its clear as day that Apple has been phasing out the Mini the last 2 years. And I expect it to be totally gone next year when the 6.8 inch iPhone comes out.
    The phones were already too small. The only way to make them more comfortable to use for more people was to up the size. They did. Then they said that even larger screens would fail. They didn't and Apple jumped on board larger screens too (a move that pushed the last quarter results to new highs - Apple doesn't always know best).

    The iPad Mini is not too small. It is perfect for many users and use cases.
    The 3.5 inch screen is not too small. It is perfect for many users and use cases...........yet it gone.  And so will the Mini.
    And so was its replacement. The difference was that the replacement also appealed to people who would have struggled with the smaller phone.
  • Reply 50 of 63
    I see lots of people stating that the iPad Mini is doomed because it cannibalizes iPhone 7 Plus sales.  But I have both an iPad Mini and an iPhone 7 Plus and in real use they don't overlap at all.  The 7 Plus is a phone that resides in my pocket.  I'd have to gain about 20 pants sizes before I could dream of stuffing an iPad Mini in a pocket.

    The Mini is a great device -- I had a full-sized iPad and when it was stolen replaced it with the Mini.  While there are definitely some uses where a full-sized iPad would be superior, there are just as many where I greatly prefer the size of the Mini.  The Mini is great for reading, holding with one hand easily while the other navigates the web, or even playing games on (Clash Royale!) where I can palm it with one hand and play the game with the other.

    If I want a bigger iPad I will add the larger iPad Pro someday.  To me the regular iPad is actually the model that is kind of neither here nor there when it comes to being just the right size.


    ewtheckman
  • Reply 51 of 63
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 7,624member
    sog35 said:
    sog35 said:
    jasenj1 said:
    sog35 said:

    or you could buy a phablet and have both.

    exactly my point
    And end up with a phone that is too big to fit in a shirt/pants pocket and is therefore a pain to carry. And a screen that is a bit too small for reading books, playing games, or doing other things while at home. The use cases for phones & tablets are different. They overlap some, but there are plenty of places where they don't. 

    How about you just go buy an MS Surface and have a PC, tablet, & phone all in one convenient package?
    And you can fit your iPad Mini in your pocket? LOL

    Just stop.

    Apple has spoken.
    The market has spoken.
    The Mini is a niche product and will be cancelled next year.
    So, a product with 28% market share is a niche product?

    So, Apple will cancel a product with 28% market share?

    LOL... just LOL.

    See the graph here:
    http://forums.appleinsider.com/discussion/199261/
    Yes it is niche. The past is the past. This is about the future.

    Mini has a high market share because Apple was selling them for dirt cheap. That's the only reason.

    But now the regular iPad is cheaper than the Mini. There is no reason to even sell the Mini now.

    Mini is not the future of Apple. If you can't see this from the past 2 years of Mini 'upgrades' then you are blind.
    Not in my case. I held out for a Mini because the bigger iPad was awkward and heavy in my hands. The screen was too big for my use.

    If I were to watch a video on a full sized iPad on public transport, the image would distract the person sitting next to me. It would look huge. The Mini is far more discrete.

    I use my iPad to listen to music. Having a full sized iPad for that purpose would be overkill.

    I read on my Mini. I don't feel the need to have a bigger screen for that.

    Photos and web pages look great. 

    I just don't need a full sized iPad.
    ewtheckman
  • Reply 52 of 63
    In my house, we have two Minis.  Both of them belong to my kids and they are perfect size for them.  Even more important is that my 13 year old son has special needs and is being trained to use iPads as a communication tool.  He has an iPad that the school gave him but his favorite size device is his personal iPad Mini.  It's much easier for him to handle and take places than the full sized iPad.

    I get the problem of the Mini.  Schools don't buy them since they want the screen real estate of the full sized iPad (or they buy Chromebooks instead).  The people who buy the Mini are very specific for why they buy it, but it's probably not a huge seller.  What puzzles me is that the iPad has left the "Air" form factor and gone back to the thicker form factor of old.  But it did get the processor upgrade. I'm wondering if the A9 just dissipates too much heat for a 6.1mm form factor, which is also the thickness of the current Mini.

    My problem now is that I need to replace both Minis...my daughter's is an original iPad Mini and my son's is a Mini 2.  The Mini 2 is in constant use for him in class and has a battery that's pretty shot after three years.  But I don't want to spend $399 to replace it (but it looks like I might have to).  My daughter wants a new one but her brother comes first in the priority list.  And in six months her school will grant her a MacBook, which may make the whole situation moot.
    ewtheckman
  • Reply 53 of 63
    rcfarcfa Posts: 1,124member
    The iPad mini may not be the hottest seller, but it's a key product.
    e.g. in restaurants as a mobile order entry system, a 9.7" unit is to big, clumsy, and heavy; and a phone too small.

    Similary, for reading in a crowded commuter train, you want something bigger than a phone, but it still needs to fit a coat pocket.
    As a travel map or car GPS: iPad mini is the ideal size.


    ewtheckman
  • Reply 54 of 63
    sog35 said:

    Actually all that would be better with a Plus phone
    Wrong. Period.

    I chose the iPad Mini for much the same reasons. It's the perfect size for reading books. I've noticed that reading web pages is good, but any smaller would be too small. Just because you apparently just want to argue does not mean that our usage has to bow to your demands.

    Count me among the very disappointed that Apple hasn't actually upgraded it. I've been waiting for the next version before upgrading my Mini 2, and now I'll probably just wait longer. Apple is making "falling market share" a self-fulfilling prophecy.
    edited March 2017 80s_Apple_Guyavon b7
  • Reply 55 of 63
    What I don't quite understand is why the 128 Gb Mini costs the same as the 128 Gb iPod Touch...?
    london11
  • Reply 56 of 63
    Lewis FroeseLewis Froese Posts: 3unconfirmed, member
    From Canada,

    Just ordered a discounted refurb iPad mini 4 128gb today to replace a first gen mini ordered on release day, 4.5 yrs ago. Used daily. Battery still works great.

    Now used for kids games and online kids shows, for which I have only come across one pre-school/kids app that would not work, out of hundreds tried. Slow for browsing so I have moved on.

    As an adult I bought the original for portability and comfort in my hands and was the sole user for 2-3 yrs. I hoped for a speedier update as well, but it is what it is. I am sure the v4 will work well for my browsing/rdg. and my child's games, videos and rdg. for some time to come. When v4 gets old I may use it like I plan to use the v1 - as a storage device for airplay and Bluetooth music as a relay/server. 

    The mini has been and will continue to be the perfect fit for me and my needs looking forward. I hope Apple keeps the physical size and improves on specs down the road.
    edited March 2017
  • Reply 57 of 63
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    This is an absolute fact. The iPad mini is in every way an inferior iPad. Apple knew it back when they refused to make one, they knew when they succumbed to market pressure to release one ("Hey ours is better because it is 7 POINT NINE inches!"), and they continued to know it when they gave poor attention and upgrades through its life cycle.
    Having had a fair bit of personal time with an iPad mini, I'll say that I really do like the size of it for enough use cases that I can understand why someone would buy it. Not everyone has a 9.5" hand span like me, so having a device around the back of which a regular person can get a single hand is pretty tempting.

    "Okay, how do we know that YOU'RE the real Tallest Skil?!"

    Having said the above, the regular iPad does everything that the mini does, but better. The problem with the iPad mini is that the things for which it is well suited aren't enough of a feature set to put alone in a device (an e-reader that just e-reads, for example, isn't even available from Apple's competitors anymore), and when you have the full feature set, you'll want a larger device anyway.
  • Reply 58 of 63
    rsantana said:
    What I don't quite understand is why the 128 Gb Mini costs the same as the 128 Gb iPod Touch...?
    I think because they don't want you buying either... I've been going on about a bigger iPod Touch for a while but Apple wants to kill the iPad mini let alone the iPod Touch!! 
    edited March 2017
  • Reply 59 of 63
    Eric_WVGGEric_WVGG Posts: 966member
    I think I just figured out Apple's strategy for the iPad Mini. It's not the last gasp… it's the iPod Touch.

    We always forget about the iPod Touch; it goes for years at a time without updates, to the point where many assume that it's bound for the graveyard. Then there's a bump in the product line, everyone nods in approval at how highly specced it is for the price, and how there's a particular consumer for whom it'll be a smash bargain, and then everyone forgets about it for a couple years.

    The R&D costs of a new iPod Touch have got to be negligible — throw a couple engineers at it, get the conveyor belts running, and print money for two-three years. Done.

    Same thing with the Mac Mini. Why not the same with the iPad Mini? I bet in a year or two there'll be another spec bump; a lot of folks (including me, who has been dying for a Mini with Pencil support ever since the Pencil was announced) will grouse about "lack of innovation," but consumers who love these for netbooks, e-readers, and computers for children will continue to buy them up.

    The hole in this theory is that the new iPad is weirdly cheaper than the iPad Mini. Perhaps this is Apple's way of testing the waters. They were purportedly surprised by the success of the smaller iPhone SE; if the smaller-screened Mini continues to sell well against the bigger, less expensive iPad (I believe it will), that will inform the future of the line.
  • Reply 60 of 63
    pmcdpmcd Posts: 396member
    Not everyone wants a phone as an all purpose device. The Mini is a great tablet. Perfect for people who want say: lower cost phone, iMac, iPad Mini. The iPad Pro is great but the general iPad is less appealing to me than the smaller Mini. Mind you, there seems to be a lot of demand for those large screen Android phones so perhaps people really do want one device along with, perhaps, a computer.
Sign In or Register to comment.