{"id":63784,"date":"2012-11-02T07:50:03","date_gmt":"2012-11-02T05:50:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/?p=63784"},"modified":"2012-11-02T14:05:35","modified_gmt":"2012-11-02T12:05:35","slug":"ipad-mini-makes-debut","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/gadgets\/63784-ipad-mini-makes-debut.html","title":{"rendered":"iPad Mini makes debut"},"content":{"rendered":"

The iPad mini made its debut on Friday as Apple<\/a> takes on rivals Amazon<\/a>, Google<\/a> and Samsung<\/a> with a smaller version of its coveted tablet computer, but it was a low-key start as sales began in Australia.<\/p>\n

While gadget lovers queued for days to get their hands on the new generation iPhone 5 at the tech giant’s flagship Sydney store, far fewer were on hand to snap up its latest offering.<\/p>\n

“Looks like most ordered it online,” one person in the small queue told reporters, in stark contrast to the thousands of faithful who camped out for the iPhone.<\/p>\n

The iPad mini will be launched in about three dozen countries in Asia and Europe in addition to the United States Friday.<\/p>\n

Analysts had forecast a smaller turnout than at other product releases as the starting price of US$329 might seem steep to budget-minded shoppers open to Google Nexus or Amazon Kindle tablets available for $199.<\/p>\n

\"iPad<\/a>

iPad Mini<\/p><\/div>\n

“Devotion to Apple products has been compared to a religion,” said Gartner<\/a> analyst Van Baker in the United States.<\/p>\n

“But, I don’t think Apple will be as dominant in the seven-inch tablet space because they let the Kindle Fire and the Nexus get a foothold in the market at a considerably lower price.”<\/p>\n

However Sterne Agee<\/a> analyst Shaw Wu downplayed concerns about the iPad mini price, reasoning that the high-quality tablet will bite into sales of Windows<\/a>-powered personal computers and Microsoft<\/a>‘s new Surface tablets.<\/p>\n

“This controversy reminds us of what happened with iPod mini and iPod nano,” Wu said in a note to investors.<\/p>\n

“Both predecessors were criticized as being overpriced but went on to do much better than expected.”<\/p>\n

Apple’s senior vice president for marketing Phil Schiller helped unveil the iPad mini last week, saying that it was an entirely new design and not “just a shrunken down iPad.”<\/p>\n

The iPad mini’s touchscreen measures 7.9 inches (20 centimeters) diagonally compared to 9.7 inches on the original iPad.<\/p>\n

Schiller said the iPad mini weighs 0.68 pounds, less than half the original, and is 7.2mm thick — thinner than a pencil.<\/p>\n

The top-of-the-line 64GB iPad mini with Wi-Fi and cellular connectivity will sell for US$659. Like later versions of the original iPad, the new Apple tablet also features rear- and front-facing cameras. It also has stereo speakers.<\/p>\n

People began pre-ordering the iPad mini on October 26.<\/p>\n

Related articles<\/h3>\n

iPad 4 and iPad Mini LTE support in SA<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

iPhone and iPad LTE support in SA<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

iPad Mini 7.9-inch Apple tablet PC announced<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

iPad 4 with global LTE support<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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