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Thoughts On the iPad Mini
John Gruber at Daring Fireball has a thoughtful piece about the design of Apple's smaller iPad, which the company is expected to announce on September 12. Simply shrinking the current iPad's dimensions to a new form factor is unlikely, he says, and the bezel surrounding the display is more likely to be a cross between an iPad and an iPhone. He also discusses evidence of Apple's PR team getting the rumor mill going immediately after the announcement of Google's Nexus 7, and how Apple has probably bet on having a thinner and lighter tablet than Google, rather than worrying about a better display. Quoting:
"Apple product designs are true to themselves. Each thing has proportions suited to its own nature. Consider how the iPad doesn’t look like a blown up iPhone. They share a few similar design elements — a family resemblance, if you will — but the proportions are different. The iPad has a thick bezel surrounding all four sides of the display; the iPhone does not. Why? Because you need a place to rest your thumbs while holding an iPad. ... Should not the iPad Mini fall somewhere in between? Not as close to the aspect ratio of its display as the iPad-as-we-know-it, but also not as far away from its display aspect ratio as the iPhone. You might need more thumb-rest room on the sides than you do on the iPhone, but not nearly as much as you do on the full-size iPad. If that assumption is right, the proportions of a 7.85-inch 4:3-aspect-ratio display iPad Mini are likely not the same as the proportions of the 9.7-inch 4:3-aspect-ratio display iPad."
the iPhone is fast retreating to the traditional 10% of the market where overpriced luxury goods normally dwell
this is exquisite bs. a new iphone costs $200 with contract, the same as (or less than) new premium android phones like the Galaxy. There are also models at the $100 price point and free with contract. How can you call it an overpriced luxury good? This is a tired meme that used to be true 5 years ago. Also, sorry, iPad is 90% of the market with no challengers on the horizon, and ipad mini will eat nex7's lunch.
I met Gruber when I was working at Apple a couple years ago. He flat out offered to suck my cock for information. He's not my type (and I don't kiss-and-tell), but some of my former coworkers are bear-lovers so I don't doubt one of them has screamed out the dimensions of the iPad mini (if it exists) while climaxing into his mouth.