1 November 2012 gazette 21
Gazette
GAMING tech: ipad’s ‘tablet-tablet’ challenger finally arrives
Apple’s mini commotion shane dillon
THE biggest story of the tech week, and one of the biggest for the year, had to be the unveiling last week of the long-awaited iPad mini (or mini iPad, as I’d bet my bottom dollar it’ll be called by most people from now on, but I’ll just call it the mini for the remainder of this feature). In a move which surprised precisely nobody, anywhere, Apple finally produced its champion to tackle the growing tablet market. Sure, tablets devices have been around for ages – just look at the bazillion sales of the iPad, and all its iterations, for example – but sales of what I’ll call the tablettablet (or, a more portable-friendly tablet, with a typical screen size around the seven-inch diagonal mark) have grown legs and started making bigger impacts in the past 18 months in particular. So, although it’s coming a little late to the tablet-tablet party, Apple has finally waltzed through the door and immediately grabbed all the attention with the mini – though
shane dillon
sdillon@gazettegroup.com
not necessarily for all the right reasons, as I’ll explain ... Firstly, the mini is very much what it sounds like – a smaller version of the iPad, drawing on many of the legacy elements that made that tablet such a success. Ranging from a very similar physical style to its compatability with all iPad apps (while having beefy enough power under the hood), the mini is, in many ways, “just” a smaller iPad. However, in recognition of markets that don’t necessarily think that bigger is better, its smaller size gives it a greater appeal for some markets, making it a more
portable-friendly device to take off to work. With this launch, Apple has finally moved to tackle rival tablet-tablets, such as the Kindle Fire HD, or the Nexus 7, which have been slowly but surely carving out a reliable market share for themselves in the past year. Indeed, once rarer than hen’s teeth, such devices are now commonplace on Dublin Bus, the Luas, etc, with
eBook readers also quite commonplace, now I could continue, but you get the point – the mini seems like a sure-fire winner for Christmas, and beyond, as Apple prepares to muscle in on Google and Amazon devices. However, despite its charms, there have been criticisms, too – for starters, its price point, which is notably more expensive than rivals, hasn’t impressed many, as analysts and consumers alike
had expected something more budget-friendly. Instead, this premium product retains a premium price. Techheads also noted that there’s little that’s truly revolutionary about the mini, which shares similar specs to the iPad 2, but doesn’t have a dramatic design on its own basis. Still, despite having an air of “me-too”, there’s no denying that the mini should make a big impact when it goes on sale from this Friday, November 2.
SPECS THE iPad mini shares many traits with its big brother, incorporating a number of legacy features that have served Apple so well. Its specifications make for interesting, if predictable reading, including:
• Colours: Black and white • Available in 16, 32 and 64GB models • Wi-fi (with 3G, 4G models to follow, soon) • H: 7.87in (200mm), W: 5.3in (134.7mm), D: 0.28in (7.2mm) • It’s a notable lightweight, weighing in at just 308g • 7.9in (diagonal) LED-backlit touch screen, with 1024 X 768 resolution at 163 PPI (Note: not Retina-quality display) • Full HD recording, with a 1.2MP front-facing camera, and a 5MP rear-facing camera; tap for focus/exposure controls • Rechargable battery offers potential 10-hours of use • Finally, its price – from €339 (16GB model) upwards ...
Despite being seen by some as a bit of a “tweener” device - lying between a smartphone, and a full-sized tablet device - the iPad mini will appeal to a great many consumers, and help Apple attack their rivals’ territory
BYTES&PIECES
meet the new-new ipad
Suprise reveal of an updated platform SINCE this week’s page has turned into something of The Apple Show – and why not, for a change, as tons of people use their tech – at the same launch of the iPad mini, Apple surprised lots of people with the unexpected reveal of the iPad 4. Barely half a year on from the release of the iPad 3, the iPad 4 was also revealed at the mini event, with the main difference from its predecessor being its greatly souped-up power, which will doubtless be exploited by developers soon after its imminent release. While consumers are, by now, used to Apple’s periodic updates of its tech, the swift reveal of a new iPad was not automatically welcomed by everyone, given that the vast majority of people buy such a device in the expectation that it won’t be superseded soon afterwards ...