Original URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/03/01/apple_receives_sample_7_inch_ipads_say_moles/
Apple 7.85in 'iPad Mini' on course for Q3 intro
Reduced size, price
Posted in Phones, 1st March 2012 10:13 GMT
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The 8in iPad seems a runner. Component makers have begun sending samples of the 7.85in tablet to Apple for its approval, moles say.
If correct, the claim suggests Apple would be in a position to enter full-scale production of the 'iPad Mini' in Q3 [1], DigiTimes reports.
Last month, whispers from Asia had Apple touting the 7.85in design around component companies [2], but the claim that the Mac maker is planning a smaller gadget to compete more directly with Amazon's 7in, $199 (£125) Kindle Fire goes back to October 2011.
Think of the 'iPad Mini' as a straightforward scaled down iPad 2 [3], the moles suggested at the time.
Steve Jobs was famously against smaller tablets, but then he was against Flash-based music players… right up until the moment Apple announced the Flash-based iPod Shuffle. Never say never, in other words.
The 'iPad Mini' should sit under the 8GB iPad 2 some other sources are claiming Apple will announce next week alongside the iPad 3 [4]. The lower capacity tablet will come down to $349 (£219), it's claimed, with the Mini price at $299 (£187). ®