As a Kindle Fire owner I have to say the form factor of tablets this size is great. I just wish there was a better fix to the resolution issues. Limiting to low PPI for app compatibility seems like a hack.
>Limiting to low PPI for app compatibility seems like a hack.
What, and give developers another resolution to develop for? No.
The iPad Mini will use the iPhone 3GS LCD pixel density. Then in a year, the iPad Mini will adopt the iPhone 4 pixel density. This means that every "retina" iPad app that currently exists will display natively on the device.
So basically: wait a year and then you'll have that crazy-good iPhone 4+ density.
How will that work without having that other resolution you want to avoid? The issue was avoided on the desktop by not requiring everything be full screen.
I understand the issue, but my personal iPad usage would not be affected by more resolutions (I surf, read and watch video) but the greater PPI would be very appreciated. That's why it's frustrating.
It's only a matter of cutting the iPhone 4 LCD sheets larger. (And having a chipset that can power it more efficiently than the iPad 3.) Since it'll come out 1.5 to 2 years later, that's not far fetched.
I agree with the resolution issue. I don't think I'll be buying one (assuming Gruber is right) because I'd much rather have the retina display.
But he's right about the tradeoffs. The idea of a 7" tablet that weighs as much as my Kindle is pretty amazing. I don't think my Kindle is very heavy, and I keep it in a leather case; without the case it's amazingly light.
As Gruber saidhe retina display would need a bigger battery. Apple touts battery life too much to lower it. My parents (with light usage) can go a week or more without charging their iPad. I don't think an iPad Mini with 4 or 5 hour battery life would be received that well. And the battery requires thickness and weight, not to mention all the additional costs (RAM/VRAM/screen/battery/etc).
$200 or $250 is a pretty great price point. At $350, it's in a different market segment from the Fire and Nexus 7.
