Honey, Apple shrunk the iPad

MANILA, Philippines - It was the world’s worst-kept secret. Given Apple’s penchant for coming out with downsized and miniaturized versions of its products (think Mac mini and iPod nano), it was no surprise that the Cupertino-based company would eventually release a downsized version of its uber-popular and pioneering iPad tablet computer, which first came out in April 2010.    

The move became even more expected given the growing number of seven-inch tablets running on Apple’s arch-rival operating system, Android. It was a burgeoning market that Apple could not take for granted.

After all, despite the first- and second-generation iPads selling over 100 million units, Apple still had a genuine fight on its hands. Apple set the tablet computer market ablaze with the first iPad in early 2010 and stuck with its 9.7-inch screen while rivals introduced lower-priced tablets with screens closer to seven inches.

And now Apple cannot ill afford to let the seven- to eight-inch tablet market take off and risk arriving late to the party already attended by Samsung, Amazon, and Google — not an enticing prospect for the undisputed technology trailblazer.  

So what exactly is the iPad mini?

“This is not just a shrunken down iPad,” Apple’s senior vice president for marketing Phil Schiller said at an Apple event in San Jose, California last week. “It is an entirely new design.”

The iPad mini’s LED-backlit touch screen measures 7.9 inches diagonally compared to 9.7 inches on the original iPad.

The iPad mini weighs just 308 grams — more than half as light as an iPad — and is a mere 7.2-mm thin — just a little thicker than a stylus. It’s 5.3 inches wide and 7.87 inches tall and comes in black and slate, and white and silver.

It runs on a powerful A5 chip for fast, fluid performance and which should make everything feel smooth and natural, whether it’s switching from app to app and swiping from page to page, to the big things like editing photos, watching movies, and playing games.

It’s got FaceTime and iSight cameras and can shoot five-megapixel still images and record videos in 1080p Full-HD.

The new iPad minis are Wi-Fi-enabled but can also be ordered with cellular Long Term Evolution (LTE) connectivity. It also boasts Siri, Apple’s voice-activated intelligent assistant.

The iPad mini runs on the latest iOS 6 and has iCloud built in. It uses Apple’s new reversible digital Lightning connector which is said to be more durable than the old 30-pin cable. 

“We told you early this year that you would see some incredible innovation from Apple across the year,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook. “We think we kept our promise and we hope that you agree.”

According to Apple, more than 275,000 applications are now available for the iPad in Apple’s App Store and that customers have downloaded a whopping total of more than 35 billion apps.

Amazon’s seven-inch Kindle Fire proved popular in North America, and a new version was launched last month.

Meanwhile, a Google Nexus 7 powered by Android software joined the Samsung Galaxy in the now-fiercely competitive seven-inch tablet market.

Apple has always been known to be a master of product launch timing. The unveiling of the iPad mini came a little over a month after Apple released the iPhone 5, the latest model of its iconic smartphone, which was greeted with record sales.

The iPad mini launch also came three days ahead of the release of Microsoft’s new Windows-powered Surface tablet and two days before Apple reports quarterly earnings.

A 16GB version of the iPad mini with Wi-Fi connectivity costs $329 while a 16GB model with both Wi-Fi and cellular connectivity costs $459. The top-of-the-line 64GB iPad mini with Wi-Fi and cellular connectivity costs $659.

The new Apple tablet also features rear- and front-facing cameras like later versions of the original iPad. (No word yet on local pricing.)

Customers began pre-ordering the iPad mini last Friday, and Wi-Fi versions would begin shipping on Nov. 2 to about three dozen countries in Europe and Asia.

Microsoft’s highly touted Surface slate computer has a 10.6-inch screen and starts at $499, challenging the larger iPads.

The market for sub-10-inch tablets is certainly heating up. One thing’s for sure, though; these iPad minis will be outselling them like hotcakes.