Now that the iPhone 5 is out, there's just one more thing for Apple nerds to freak out over: The iPad Mini. Rumors have been cropping up like crazy the past few weeks—enough to start putting together what we'll actually see from a 7-inch Apple tablet. And once Apple's event gets started in earnest, you'll be able to follow along in our iPad Mini liveblog.
So let's talk iPads. Small iPads.
What Will It Look Like?
If the accuracy of the iPhone 5 leaks is anything to go by, we've probably got a pretty good jump on what the new tablet will look like. What we've seen so far jibes with previous thoughts that the bezel on the smaller iPad will be thinner than it is on the full sized version, due to ergonomics.
Otherwise, surprise! It reportedly looks like a shrunk-down iPad (as opposed to a bigger iPod touch). There had been decent amount of conflicting speculation, but the rumor-mongers (and, more importantly, leaked images) seem to have settled on the squatter version, to the tune of a 7.85-inch diagonal measurement.
And yes, iOS can pretty easily scale down to a 7.85-inch screen as-is and remain usable. So there shouldn't be any concerns about fragmenting the platform with different versions of iPad apps for the two sizes.
Here's the first photo we've seen of a purported iPad Mini actually working:
We've also seen similar a similar model lined up next to a Kindle Fire HD and the Nexus 7.
Update: A Ukrainian iPhone blog has also claimed to have leaked parts to the iPad Mini, with some new details. Appearance-wise, it's got an anodized black aluminum backplate.
Guts
Chances are, an iPad Mini would look a lot like an iPad 2 on the inside. That means using the die-shrunk 32nm A5 processor, and probably 512MB of RAM. The only big internal departure from the iPad 2, in fact, would probably be the inclusion of a Lightning port instead of a 30-pin connector. And for what it's worth, all of the cases and mockups we've seen have had rear-facing camera.
Stuffing the iPad 2's guts into a smaller iPad Mini makes even more sense after Apple outed the new A5-powered iPod touch. Tim Cook's Apple is all about supply chain efficiency. And having sunk some cash into shrinking down the A5 fairly recently for the upgraded iPad 2 and now the iPod touch, it would make total sense for an iPad Mini to squeeze as much out of that component as possible.
Display
Early on, it was assumed that a small iPad might not have a retina display. As a value proposition—added cost and battery consumption—it just didn't seem to add up. But the $200 Kindle Fire HD's gorgeous 216PPI screen changed that calculus, as did the possible availability of battery-friendly Sharp Izgo displays.
Some photos and measurements (supposedly) of the iPad Mini seem to indicate that it doesn't have an Aspect Ratio of 4:3 like the full size iPads (see link below). Note that Apple just increased the Aspect Ratio of the iPhone 5 up to 1.78 from 1.50 for the iPhone 4, so it isn't unreasonable to assume that the same thing could happen with the iPad Mini, especially if it is positioned for selling TV content, which has 16:9. An Aspect Ratio of 4:3 is great for reading because it has the same Aspect Ratio as content on 8.5x11 inch documents, but a smaller 7 to 8 inch screen with a 4:3 Aspect Ratio will be noticeably Letterboxed with 16:9 content, with reduced image size.
Keeping the 768 pixel height will allow Apps expecting 1024x768 to be displayed with Letterbox borders in the same way as on the iPhone 5.
Here are the possibilities:
1024x768 is 4:3 = 1.33
1152x768 is 4.5:3 = 1.50 <— Most Likely based on photo
1228x768 is 16:10 = 1.60
1366x768 is 16:9 = 1.78
The Kindle Fire HD's gorgeous screen really holds Apple over the coals to nail the display on an iPad Mini. Especially if the latter costs as much as we think it might.
Update: The WSJ reports that the iPad Mini will have a "lower resolution" than the most recent full-sized iPad, which implies no retina for you. Which makes the question of pricing very interesting.
Price
There haven't been too many rumors about the price of a small iPad, but the biggest clue might come from Apple itself. The new iPod Touch starts at $300. It would be kind of nuts if Apple started selling a 7.85-inch tablet for the same price as its iPod, or for less. This year's iPad starts at $500, and the iPad 2 at $400. So the Mini will have to dance around those price points as well.
Whatever it ends up costing, though, it seems like it will be a good deal more expensive than its $200 competitors the Kindle Fire and Nexus 7—despite having an inferior display.
Update: A rumor out of Europe puts the iPad Mini starting at 250 Euros ($330), and scaling all the way up to 650 Euros for a 64GB Mini with LTE. Color us skeptical on that.
Network
There are a few rumors floating around that the Mini will have 3G, but there's no solid evidence either way. The most convincing thing we've seen thus far has been what appears to be a plastic cover on some of the alleged leaked iPad Mini parts for the 3G antenna.
We would note, though, that both the 7-inch Kindle Fire HD and the Nexus 7 only come in Wi-Fi only. And that there may not be enough room in that 7.85-inch frame to squeeze a battery that can handle data suckage with any competence.
Name
While we're all using "iPad Mini" as a working title, it doesn't seem to be based on anything in particular. So it could be called anything. For what it's worth, though, the backplates we've seen have just said "iPad."
Release Date
Apple will hold an event on October 23rd. Apple typically releases products one or two Fridays after its keynotes.
For what it's worth, the 23rd would manage to steal a good amount of thunder from the October 26th Windows 8 release date, and shipping on November 2nd would put the Mini out just a few days before the presidential election.
Update:: The WSJ reports that iPad Mini component production has already kicked into high gear, with LG Display and AU Optronics cranking out LCD screens as early as last month. That reinforces the timeline rumored above, but the one guarantee is that if Apple does put out a small ipad this year, it'll be in time for the holiday shopping season.
Update: The WSJ's now reporting that Apple ordered 10 million iPad Minis from its Chinese suppliers, which means both that a launch is likely soon and that Tim Cook has high hopes for the product's success.
Image by Nickolay Lamm/InventHelp