Apple announces iPad Air, iPad mini with Retina display

Justin Kahn

Posts: 752   +6

At today's Apple event, the company announced the new retina iPad mini as many of us had expected, but even more notably, the new iPad Air.

iPad Air features a 9.7 inch Retina display while coming in at 20% thinner than the previous generation full size iPad and features a 43% thinner bezel. Weighing in at only 1 pound, it is the "lightest full size tablet in the world" Apple's Phil Schiller said at today's event.

It will house the 64 bit, A7 chip Apple just launched for the iPhone 5s, along with the M7 motion coprocessor. It doubles the graphics performance of the previous generation model, which Apple noted during the event as being 72x faster than the original iPad. It will also come with a 5MP camera that shoots HD video, an improved front facing FaceTime camera, Siri and dual microphones, all while maintaining the same 10 hour battery life as the previous model.

It will come in silver/white and black/space gray at $499 for the 16GB Wi-Fi model and $629 with cellular technology. The iPad Air will be available in a large number of countries including China on November 1st.

apple ipad air ipad retina ipad mini with retina display

As many of us expected, Apple unveiled the 7.9 inch iPad mini with Retina display today as well. It will also run in 64 bit with Apple's A7 chip, while boasting 4x faster CPU performace and 8x faster graphics, according to Apple. Like the newly introduced iPad Air, the new retina mini will feature a 5MP camera, improved front facing FaceTime camera, 10 hours of battery life and a similiar expansion to its LTE support.

The iPad mini with Retina Display will start at $399 for the 16 GB Wi-Fi model and $529 for the cellular version. There will also be a 128GB configuration for the first time, priced at $699 for the Wi-Fi model. The retina mini also comes in silver/white and black/space gray, but won't be available until late November.

Apple has sold 170 million iPads making it "one of the most successful products in Apple's history," said CEO Tim cook at today's event before inviting Phil Schiller to the stage to introduce the new iPad lineup.

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The iPad Mini for $399? Eh. Not sure how good that will be. The iPad Air is great. I am probably gonna pick one up.
 
I forgot Apple was releasing new tablets today. That explains all those 60 second Samsung Tab commercials I saw on TV this past weekend.

Tablets look good, Apple, except for one thing. 16GB baseline is fast becoming a thing of the past. And charging $100 for the boost to 32GB is even more inexcusable. We're supposed to believe the cost of flash storage has gotten cheaper everywhere except Apple products?

They keep making the thing thinner and faster, but putting in cellular connectivity and some more storage for a reasonable price is what would make it more useful. I'd much rather have an iPad 3 with LTE and 32GB for $500 than a 16GB wifi only iPad Air.
 
"...same crap different day. ...put in it what you want, its still just an expensive toy to play crappy apple-store games on, browse mobile webpages, and read email on. I can do more on an android tablet that is 2 years old. but I'm sure the sheep will jump all over it."​
If you're invested into the Apple ecosystem it doesn't make a lot of sense to switch. And, yes they are expensive but they work and they work great. Just as I'm sure that your 2 year old Android does. Stop with the Apple hate. You sound like a...fandroid!
 
Apple is evidently not aiming to compete in pricing and if people end up paying what they're asking, then there's nothing they need to worry about.

The updated thinner iPad, with upgraded internals for the same $500 and above makes sense. Memory upgrades are uber expensive, I agree, but that's what you call a cash cow.

Now, the Mini retina seems excessively priced considering there are options like the Nexus 7 that carry an equally impressive panel and smaller footprint for a fraction of the price. It's up to the consumer to vote with their wallet.
 
Apple is evidently not aiming to compete in pricing and if people end up paying what they're asking, then there's nothing they need to worry about.

The updated thinner iPad, with upgraded internals for the same $500 and above makes sense. Memory upgrades are uber expensive, I agree, but that's what you call a cash cow.

Now, the Mini retina seems excessively priced considering there are options like the Nexus 7 that carry an equally impressive panel and smaller footprint for a fraction of the price. It's up to the consumer to vote with their wallet.

The 64bit iPad makes sense for $500. Imagine when they add in a built in file explorer (maybe iOS 8). Since it comes with the iWork suite for free, it will be a great combo. It needs more RAM then it can be a powerhouse.
 
Apple is evidently not aiming to compete in pricing and if people end up paying what they're asking, then there's nothing they need to worry about.

The updated thinner iPad, with upgraded internals for the same $500 and above makes sense. Memory upgrades are uber expensive, I agree, but that's what you call a cash cow.

Now, the Mini retina seems excessively priced considering there are options like the Nexus 7 that carry an equally impressive panel and smaller footprint for a fraction of the price. It's up to the consumer to vote with their wallet.

Totally agree. Cash cow to the max. Apple has never been known for its value so they'll never compete on pricing... ever.

I was looking for a 7" tablet but at that steep price, time to grab an android 7". That iPad air is sexy thin though!
 
So I was right! Doubtful, but right. :p Mini has a direct screen resolution from bigger brother. I wonder how no one in the tech world found out about this particular screen size/aspect-ratio/density ...

Also, iPad Air weighs 469 grams, 7.5mm thick. Sony Tablet Z weighs 495gram, 6.9 mm thick. Pretty good for comparison.
 
Lighter, thinner, faster....yawn....how many times have we heard that one before.
 
Smaller and lighter, that's always a good thing in my book. Not that I'd buy it.

Also, iPad Air weighs 469 grams, 7.5mm thick. Sony Tablet Z weighs 495gram, 6.9 mm thick. Pretty good for comparison.

Thanks. The main difference I see in size is that the Xperia Z is 266mm wide vs. 240mm for the iPad Air.
 
Wait are they still selling the iPad 2? And they're selling it for $400!?! Apple you really think people will pay a near launch price for a product that is over three years old? Oh wait, it's Apple...
 
"...same crap different day. ...put in it what you want, its still just an expensive toy to play crappy apple-store games on, browse mobile webpages, and read email on. I can do more on an android tablet that is 2 years old. but I'm sure the sheep will jump all over it."​
If you're invested into the Apple ecosystem it doesn't make a lot of sense to switch. And, yes they are expensive but they work and they work great. Just as I'm sure that your 2 year old Android does. Stop with the Apple hate. You sound like a...fandroid!

first off, I dont hate the devices, they are decent devices...again, toys to play little games on, surf mobile web pages, check email. they are built fairly well...minus the 5C which is just junk. I hate the company. if you are invested into the apple ecosystem I pity you. it makes perfect sense to switch. why pay $200 for an ipod when a simple mp3 player will do the same thing? and you don't have to put up with itunes which runs 6-8 processes and slows down most PCs over 2yrs old. article a week or so ago stated amazon is far cheaper than itunes. with apple its pretty much their way or not at all. I'm speaking of course from an IT point of view. frequently users of iphones and ipads come to me with issues where they cannot view a webpage in a non-mobile view and without a jailbreak and useragenttweaker fake I have to use ios chrome which most of the fanboys are against simple because it is google. *sigh* I know apple users bash flash all the time most likely because they cannot use it but it is still a widely used programming language...which apple doesn't support...and I find that hilarious since apple would be long gone if it were not for adobe in the 90's and early 2000's. and I dont care what anyone says java is widely used in nearly every thing and will continue to be used for many years. apple does not support it. many business applications use adobe and java. what I am getting at is the iphone/ipad is an excellent device if ALL you want to do is: play small games, email, view mobile-view websites, and brag you have an apple device. and you pay $500-$900 for this device. for the money, you are getting severely ripped off. from a business standpoint or a tech standpoint it is a complete waste of money. if you are under 16, or deathly afraid of learning anything related to technology then they are perfect.
 
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JC713 said:

Apple is evidently not aiming to compete in pricing and if people end up paying what they're asking, then there's nothing they need to worry about.

The updated thinner iPad, with upgraded internals for the same $500 and above makes sense. Memory upgrades are uber expensive, I agree, but that's what you call a cash cow.
Now, the Mini retina seems excessively priced considering there are options like the Nexus 7 that carry an equally impressive panel and smaller footprint for a fraction of the price. It's up to the consumer to vote with their wallet.


The 64bit iPad makes sense for $500. Imagine when they add in a built in file explorer (maybe iOS 8). Since it comes with the iWork suite for free, it will be a great combo. It needs more RAM then it can be a powerhouse.
Pricing doesn't affect what you're getting for the money. Why would I buy a sub 10" tablet when I can get a larger screen, faster processor, more RAM, more storage, a better warranty (For longer), an HDMI Out, & USB In.

I'm sorry, but why anyone would stand behind a company with such horrible customer values literally blows my mind. And I quote "It doesn't matter if you buy one iPad or 4,000,000 iPads, there's still no discount" - Sounds like a real committed company to me.
 
iPad is the only product of apple I am an admirer of tho I think its a bit expensive on the price side.

Why? It is quite literally a giant iPhone. iPad mini kinda makes sense, but a 10inch tablet should never be hindered by a phone OS. So why do you admire them?

Btw, the hardware is pretty nice, so if you reply with that I agree with you.
 
Why? It is quite literally a giant iPhone. iPad mini kinda makes sense, but a 10inch tablet should never be hindered by a phone OS. So why do you admire them?

Btw, the hardware is pretty nice, so if you reply with that I agree with you.

Yes, I was referring to iPad mini. I never been a fan of 10 inch screen, its too big.
 
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