Apple’s recent Special Event held merely days ago unveiled a new product into the media consumption tablet market. However, the news wasn’t absolutely shocking to the internet technological community. There were leaked sources of information of the iPad mini months before announcement and even photos merely weeks before the official début.
Just looking at the specifications, I let out a sigh of disappointment. The only redeeming features that I can see is same premium build quality, the thinness and portability. The rest of it is just ugly, there is a lot of reasons not to like this device. I’m going to list out the flaws one by one.
Screen:
Bigger doesn’t mean it’s better,
7.9″ and non-HD doesn’t go well together
The biggest let down of the iPad mini is plainly obvious, the low resolution screen. Many of us has been spoiled and awed by Apple’s stunningly beautiful screens. The Retina display has become synonymous with Apple and it’s biggest feature, not having it here leaves a gaping hole in consumer desire. Pixels can easily be seen at 163 PPI (Pixels Per Inch) in this let down of a display, competitors can laugh with confidence.
These 2 tablets which are arguably the direct competitors to the iPad mini, have displays that are beautiful in their own way. Both of these tablets have a 1280×800 HD IPS display which in every way destroys the iPad mini’s screen for media use. Both these devices also cost about 60% less too.
Hardware:
Last generation specs, high end price.
While other tablets flaunt Nvidia’s Tegra 3 Quad Core or SnapDragon’s S4 Pro Quad Core processor. The iPad mini on the other hand has to run on the
iPad 2’s A5 Dual core processor. Keep in mind that the latest iPhone 5 is using the A6X
2 Generations behind the pack
This isn’t horrible by any means as it still provides a smooth UI experience and run apps just fine. The probable cause for Apple choosing to use this chip might have to do with lowering production costs and power consumption. It is also easier for the A5 chip to keep processes fast when it has far less pixels to power.
However, this doesn’t justify the pricing given. This product could have some success as a dumbed down iPad with lower specs and more portability without sacrificing the Apple ecosystem or the app store selection.
Unfortunately, Apple barricaded this from happening by giving an uncompetitive pricing, in my opinion, it should have been at least 50 USD cheaper but even 279 USD is pushing it. There are speculations that Google is going to push the 16Gb Nexus 7 to 199 USD and bring in a 32Gb version at 249 USD. The future does look grim for the iPad mini.
Summary:
The iPad Mini won’t sell well at all,
probably
What came across me was that the iPad mini was designed to be replaced with a more expensive model, most likely with a retina display. However, unlike the MacBook Pro line of products that are refreshed with the retina display. The iPad mini was an inferior product from day 1.There isn’t really any good reason to buy the iPad mini, the iPad with retina display shines like a gem when compared to this. Furthermore, if one isn’t fixated on getting an Apple device, I would recommend the Asus Nexus 7 over this any day given the price.
However, I do not think Apple is throwing out the iPad mini to compete with Android or other tablets. They are just offering their already built up loyal customer base a different product. There are certainly individuals that feel that the iPad is too large and the iPod touch doesn’t satisfy them.
