FARK.com: (7397484) Want a signal that the the iPad Mini isn't worth it? Even Gizmodo can find faults and recommend Amazon over it in most criteria

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		Want a signal that the the iPad Mini isn't worth it? Even Gizmodo can find faults and recommend Amazon over it in most criteria (gizmodo.com)		239
		More: Obvious, Kindle Fire, iPads, Amazon, Fire HD, Kindle, iPhone, signals, standards

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Abe Vigoda's Ghost		2012-10-24 08:53:15 AM

Farktastic: I've got a Samsung Galaxy Note phone and it does everything I need a tablet to do when I am on the go. For bigger tablet stuff, I got the Galaxy Note 10.1, which kicks ass over any tablet I have tried. Photoshop works great with the pen and so does S-note. It's one of if not the most powerful tablets on the market right now with a quad core 1.4 gHz processor, and I paid $499 for the 32 GB wifi version. The Ipad 3 is, what? $500 for only a 16GB?

Now that Apple has abandoned the ipad 3 months after shipping I hope some people see the light and quit buying apple. Ipad 3 and ipad mini are the biggest customer rape jobs in recent history.

/Hope Samsung sues the nads off apple for copying the Galaxy Note series with the Mini

Upgrading the processor does not equal abandoning the iPad 3.
When Samsung released the Galaxy S3, I did not feel abandoned or betrayed because I bought a Galaxy S2 six months earlier. That's just the way tech rolls.

ColSanders		2012-10-24 08:53:24 AM

It's so cute that so many people think price and specs matter. The iPad mini will have one thing that no other 7" tablet has: a shiny Apple logo on the back.

Leeds		2012-10-24 09:04:20 AM

I think it's pretty clear that Apple doesn't really want to sell into the 7" market- It just put this turd out there to silence investors who point out that they're getting clocked in that segment.

So what did Apple do? They put out a tablet to "compete" in the 7" arena, but they gave it a processor with half the power of the competition, they gave it a screen with 30% fewer pixels to make it look crappy and then just to really piss people off they made it slightly wider so that unlike the competition, you can't put the "iPad mini" into your pocket.

This was just one big "f you" to the people who wanted a 7" tablet with an apple logo on it.

It's pretty clear that they will discontinue this turd in 6 months, which seems to be their M.O. these days anyway.

// I own AAPL and GOOG

way south		2012-10-24 09:05:15 AM

ColSanders: It's so cute that so many people think price and specs matter. The iPad mini will have one thing that no other 7" tablet has: a shiny Apple logo on the back.

That and the app store.
Fact is its the software that sells a console, so what you've got to decide is which store has what you want.

/Aside from that, I'd tend to disregard a blog review of a thing no ones seen.

jakrabit		2012-10-24 09:05:33 AM

Kate Gosselin's Pap Smear: drjekel_mrhyde: I am getting a Surface Pro and RT when the Pro is ready to pre-order , by then the RT version should be $350ish. I will buy the type cover and just swap them between both devices.
/Pro for work, downloading x86 programs and old drivers(for other people)
//RT for games and Xbox smart glass

I need to see the MS tablets run legacy software before I am sold on it. If it will run Autocad, ArcGIS Desktop, Revit, or basically run any windows software then I am sold. The thing is I can not find a definitive answer on whether the MS tablets will run legacy software whether it be the RT or the pro. They need to put up or shut up.

The pro will...

Leeds		2012-10-24 09:06:52 AM

Leeds: I think it's pretty clear that Apple doesn't really want to sell into the 7" market- It just put this turd out there to silence investors who point out that they're getting clocked in that segment.

So what did Apple do? They put out a tablet to "compete" in the 7" arena, but they gave it a processor with half the power of the competition, they gave it a screen with 30% fewer pixels to make it look crappy and then just to really piss people off they made it slightly wider so that unlike the competition, you can't put the "iPad mini" into your pocket.

This was just one big "f you" to the people who wanted a 7" tablet with an apple logo on it.

It's pretty clear that they will discontinue this turd in 6 months, which seems to be their M.O. these days anyway.

// I own AAPL and GOOG

Oh- and one more thing- They priced it at a 65% premium over the faster, smoother better models they are pretending to compete against in this form factor. That's the biggest "f you" they gave everyone yesterday.

At least with previous apple toys you could pretend that you were getting something better and/or unique when you paid double what something was worth. Not so much with this under performer.

SVenus		2012-10-24 09:11:09 AM

drewsclues: book it, the iPad mini will get a gigantic overhaul in less than 9 months. It will get a double resolution screen using the shrunken 32nm guts of the now completely discontinued iPad 3. Price will be $299. Apple loves making the first adopters of new product lines pay out their ass.

The next iPad will have a phone to compete with the giant phones currently for sale. Farkers will then remind Apple about the stupid "Your thumb... goes from here... to there..." commercials about the last iPhone.

Malcolm_Sex		2012-10-24 09:13:42 AM

Ess_Aytch: Ghastly: Too big to be a phone...

Not a Samsung phone...

In all seriousness, my wife is a non-techy, average computer user. She's been running a piece of shiat LG netbook for a few years. She saw the iPad mini and immediately wanted one. For what she wants, it's perfect. She's going to buy one with her Christmas money.

As a teacher, I can tell you that the iPad mini will kill in the education market. My school division has already begun equipping schools with iPads; my school has a cart, plus three in each classroom. For about $75,000 we could purchase enough iPad minis to get us to a 1:1 ratio. Meanwhile, we're fundraising to buy a playground - which costs $250,000 and I find completely asinine.

You sound fat and it sounds like the school you work at will also be fat in the not too distant future

gmoney101		2012-10-24 09:16:28 AM

Abe Vigoda's Ghost: Fade2black: Its been said a million times, but...

I have a mini, it's called a goddamn iphone.

Desktop, laptop, smartphone. And all that jargon about watching movies on these minis? Really? You're telling me people really enjoy watching a movie on 7 inches instead of plopping in a blu ray to your flatscreen or computer at home?

Fool, money, etc.

/and this from a "fanboi"

I'm guessing you don't get out of the house much.

What a lovely day, I think I will go for a walk whilst watching a film...

Abe Vigoda's Ghost		2012-10-24 09:20:53 AM

gmoney101: Abe Vigoda's Ghost: Fade2black: Its been said a million times, but...

I have a mini, it's called a goddamn iphone.

Desktop, laptop, smartphone. And all that jargon about watching movies on these minis? Really? You're telling me people really enjoy watching a movie on 7 inches instead of plopping in a blu ray to your flatscreen or computer at home?

Fool, money, etc.

/and this from a "fanboi"

I'm guessing you don't get out of the house much.

What a lovely day, I think I will go for a walk whilst watching a film...

I'll be on a very long flight over the holidays. Having a tablet loaded with movies or television shows, or just reading an e-book helps pass the time.

Carth		2012-10-24 09:27:04 AM

Malcolm_Sex: Ess_Aytch: Ghastly: Too big to be a phone...

Not a Samsung phone...

In all seriousness, my wife is a non-techy, average computer user. She's been running a piece of shiat LG netbook for a few years. She saw the iPad mini and immediately wanted one. For what she wants, it's perfect. She's going to buy one with her Christmas money.

As a teacher, I can tell you that the iPad mini will kill in the education market. My school division has already begun equipping schools with iPads; my school has a cart, plus three in each classroom. For about $75,000 we could purchase enough iPad minis to get us to a 1:1 ratio. Meanwhile, we're fundraising to buy a playground - which costs $250,000 and I find completely asinine.

You sound fat and it sounds like the school you work at will also be fat in the not too distant future

Yea, we need to improve our playground gap! Fark things that might help kids better understand math and science, teachers are better utilized watching kids on monkey bars. There is no way for kids to play sports after school to stay healthy.

theurge14		2012-10-24 09:38:13 AM

farkeruk: jayhawk88: But everyone is losing their shiat over the new iMac, because it's so thin. You know, because all the countless hours you looked at your computer from the side have really taken their toll.

THIS

Thinner desktop PCs are a bad thing, because it means that more and more of it is wired to the motherboard, for little gain. I can't dig all-in-one PCs at all. I've got a space under my desk where a tower can happily live and I get lower maintenance costs.

I've had an all-in-one since right before Vista came out and the thing is still running strong. I recommend one to everyone who asks.

change1211		2012-10-24 09:42:16 AM

Ess_Aytch: moothemagiccow: smart board is a 4x2.5 ft touch screen from 1998. Like a digital chalkboard. Never took off because of the price. Schools with too much money would buy one for the whole campus. I suppose they're still going.

Uhhh....just about every school in my province has installed a Smart Board in just about every classroom. They're quite popular, actually.

Which province is this?

theurge14		2012-10-24 09:42:20 AM

Critatak: gizmodo

They also pulled a "prank" at CES a few years ago by shutting all the displays off via remote. They then argued that because Woz was a prankster back in the day that the industry now is too uptight.

farkeruk		2012-10-24 09:44:26 AM

Leeds: I think it's pretty clear that Apple doesn't really want to sell into the 7" market- It just put this turd out there to silence investors who point out that they're getting clocked in that segment.

Apple have their Q4 2012 Earnings Call tomorrow. Coincidence?

Apple's problem is that everything they do is mature. It's like where PCs reached a few years ago. My father has a 6 year old laptop because he simply doesn't need a newer laptop for his needs.

GameSprocket		2012-10-24 09:48:27 AM

change1211: Ess_Aytch: moothemagiccow: smart board is a 4x2.5 ft touch screen from 1998. Like a digital chalkboard. Never took off because of the price. Schools with too much money would buy one for the whole campus. I suppose they're still going.

Uhhh....just about every school in my province has installed a Smart Board in just about every classroom. They're quite popular, actually.

Which province is this?

My kid's school in MN has a bunch of them. I think the PTA buys a couple a year or something.

gmoney101		2012-10-24 09:57:15 AM

Abe Vigoda's Ghost: gmoney101: Abe Vigoda's Ghost: Fade2black: Its been said a million times, but...

I have a mini, it's called a goddamn iphone.

Desktop, laptop, smartphone. And all that jargon about watching movies on these minis? Really? You're telling me people really enjoy watching a movie on 7 inches instead of plopping in a blu ray to your flatscreen or computer at home?

Fool, money, etc.

/and this from a "fanboi"

I'm guessing you don't get out of the house much.

What a lovely day, I think I will go for a walk whilst watching a film...

I'll be on a very long flight over the holidays. Having a tablet loaded with movies or television shows, or just reading an e-book helps pass the time.

And makes you feel special

Leeds		2012-10-24 10:00:27 AM

farkeruk: Leeds: I think it's pretty clear that Apple doesn't really want to sell into the 7" market- It just put this turd out there to silence investors who point out that they're getting clocked in that segment.

Apple have their Q4 2012 Earnings Call tomorrow. Coincidence?

Apple's problem is that everything they do is mature. It's like where PCs reached a few years ago. My father has a 6 year old laptop because he simply doesn't need a newer laptop for his needs.

I'm all for keeping older hardware around and I do the same myself. If you want to be a hero, put Ubuntu on your Dad's laptop, add an SSD and that simple $100 upgrade will quadruple his laptop's speed.

But as for Apple's iPad mini, it's disturbing that they had such a failed launch of a failed product- that's not happened for Apple since the late 80's.

Some people are willing to pay twice the going price for a device simply because it's from Apple. But the unspoken contract is that they pay twice what it's worth and for that money they get something that can be considered better than the competition in some way. It's lighter, thinner, more cores, etc. But this release is a massive departure from that.

The price point for this device was basically set in stone based on the price points of the larger iPads and the smaller iPods. The gap from $300 to $450 was where this tablet was always going to be positioned. But for that money people expected it to be as good or better than the much less-expensive competition. In this respect Apple failed miserably. The Nexus 7 has a better form factor, has a better processor, has a much better display screen and it costs $200 vs $330.

#iFail

machoprogrammer		2012-10-24 10:03:07 AM

Like that is going to stop Apple fanbois from buying it. Apple could put out an iRock or an iTurd and they would buy it.

snowshovel		2012-10-24 10:03:41 AM

Carth: snowshovel: Ess_Aytch:
As a teacher, I can tell you that the iPad mini will kill in the education market. My school division has already begun equipping schools with iPads; my school has a cart, plus three in each classroom. For about $75,000 we could purchase enough iPad minis to get us to a 1:1 ratio. Meanwhile, we're fundraising to buy a playground - which costs $250,000 and I find completely asinine.

Given the price point, you could buy the same amount of Kindle Fires for $45,000 -- which you could them put $30,000 into the playground equipment fund.

You just need to convince textbook publishers to also make android versions. Right now they are releasing ibooks only versions.

I'm sorry, but if you really believe that textbook companies are ONLY making iBook versions, then you haven't looks hard enough past your iPad. And again, I own an iPad and a Mac Mini, so this isn't really about Apple hate, it's about using school funds wisely.

In my few minutes of searching, here's what I've come up with:

Here's the entire Follett library of ebooks.

Pearson claims that their e-texts are "Now for iPad and Android Tablets"!

Scholastic's Storia system is good for iOS, Android tablets, and Windows computers.

Abe Vigoda's Ghost		2012-10-24 10:19:37 AM

gmoney101: Abe Vigoda's Ghost: gmoney101: Abe Vigoda's Ghost: Fade2black: Its been said a million times, but...

I have a mini, it's called a goddamn iphone.

Desktop, laptop, smartphone. And all that jargon about watching movies on these minis? Really? You're telling me people really enjoy watching a movie on 7 inches instead of plopping in a blu ray to your flatscreen or computer at home?

Fool, money, etc.

/and this from a "fanboi"

I'm guessing you don't get out of the house much.

What a lovely day, I think I will go for a walk whilst watching a film...

I'll be on a very long flight over the holidays. Having a tablet loaded with movies or television shows, or just reading an e-book helps pass the time.

And makes you feel special

My Nexus 7 is hardly is a status symbol.

Cinaed		2012-10-24 10:20:46 AM

Okay...

Price? It's an Apple product. You're going to pay more. Thinking otherwise is... quaint.
Books/Movies? Display better on the Fire, fair enough. Stereo speakers are nice to share the experience.
Kids? Going back to price is idiotic. It's covered. If the iPad store has greater offerings for the lil rugrats, then just come out and admit it. (Nevermind that giving a kid a tablet to play with just rings of 'bad decision' all around, and having a $200 broken toy vs a $330 broken toy seems like splitting hairs)
Digital Packrat? The 'cloud' and subscription services exist for a reason.
Students? I have huge difficulties looking at tablets as having even a modicum of value for a student at any level. These are toys. A student needs standardized productivity capacities and I daresay the Kindle and iPad both fail in this regard.
On the Go? I'd be more interested in battery life than Verizon/AT&T network possibilities.

Verdict: I don't care, I'm not buying either.

Abe Vigoda's Ghost		2012-10-24 10:20:53 AM

Abe Vigoda's Ghost: gmoney101: Abe Vigoda's Ghost: gmoney101: Abe Vigoda's Ghost: Fade2black: Its been said a million times, but...

I have a mini, it's called a goddamn iphone.

Desktop, laptop, smartphone. And all that jargon about watching movies on these minis? Really? You're telling me people really enjoy watching a movie on 7 inches instead of plopping in a blu ray to your flatscreen or computer at home?

Fool, money, etc.

/and this from a "fanboi"

I'm guessing you don't get out of the house much.

What a lovely day, I think I will go for a walk whilst watching a film...

I'll be on a very long flight over the holidays. Having a tablet loaded with movies or television shows, or just reading an e-book helps pass the time.

And makes you feel special

My Nexus 7 is hardly is a status symbol.

dammit

bazzanoid		2012-10-24 10:29:59 AM

I'm getting a kick out of this thread - i had a spare couple of hundred a couple of weeks back and seriously thought about buying the Nexus 7. After much deliberation and boring the wife with details, I actually decided that besides portability, which doesn't concern me since i normally lug my 17" laptop about with me, so anything smaller is a bonus, I would be kicking myself for buying a 'mini' tablet. Decided to put the money to one side, wait till i've got another couple of hundred to add to it and buy an Asus Transformer (TF300) instead. 15 hours of battery with the keyboard dock attached, high res, gorgeous screen and the lovely Tegra 3 processor. And since I want to load it with ebooks in pdf format, along with movies in formats other than those supported by the iPad, it was an easy choice......

tanman1975		2012-10-24 10:30:22 AM

Khellendros: Bought a Nexus 7 about two months ago. There has been zero reason to regret this decision. Love it.

I got a Nabi 2 for my kid, but it has the guts of a Nexus 7 inside.

Best. Kids tablet. ever. We've converted 5 other children from wanting iPads to wanting the Nabi2. (and at $200, pricepoint is a no brainer)

In adult mode, it has quite a bit more oomph than my Galaxy Nexus

/quadcore Tegra3 ftw

TNel		2012-10-24 10:40:54 AM

Ess_Aytch: Ghastly: Too big to be a phone...

Not a Samsung phone...

In all seriousness, my wife is a non-techy, average computer user. She's been running a piece of shiat LG netbook for a few years. She saw the iPad mini and immediately wanted one. For what she wants, it's perfect. She's going to buy one with her Christmas money.

As a teacher, I can tell you that the iPad mini will kill in the education market. My school division has already begun equipping schools with iPads; my school has a cart, plus three in each classroom. For about $75,000 we could purchase enough iPad minis to get us to a 1:1 ratio. Meanwhile, we're fundraising to buy a playground - which costs $250,000 and I find completely asinine.

That's $75,000 per building then you have to replace them in 3 years so there's another $75,000 but you could have bought $350 laptop that lasts 5 years and saved a ton of money. $250,000 for a playground that lasts atleast 20 years, is $12k a year those mini's are costing $25k a year yeah that's a much better investment.

Carth		2012-10-24 10:52:24 AM

snowshovel: Carth: snowshovel: Ess_Aytch:
As a teacher, I can tell you that the iPad mini will kill in the education market. My school division has already begun equipping schools with iPads; my school has a cart, plus three in each classroom. For about $75,000 we could purchase enough iPad minis to get us to a 1:1 ratio. Meanwhile, we're fundraising to buy a playground - which costs $250,000 and I find completely asinine.

Given the price point, you could buy the same amount of Kindle Fires for $45,000 -- which you could them put $30,000 into the playground equipment fund.

You just need to convince textbook publishers to also make android versions. Right now they are releasing ibooks only versions.

I'm sorry, but if you really believe that textbook companies are ONLY making iBook versions, then you haven't looks hard enough past your iPad. And again, I own an iPad and a Mac Mini, so this isn't really about Apple hate, it's about using school funds wisely.

In my few minutes of searching, here's what I've come up with:

Here's the entire Follett library of ebooks.

Pearson claims that their e-texts are "Now for iPad and Android Tablets"!

Scholastic's Storia system is good for iOS, Android tablets, and Windows computers.

It is good to see andriod is catching up. Does andriod support MathML and LaTex yet? I can upgrade my recommendation list for next semester's students if so.

ColSanders		2012-10-24 10:52:57 AM

tanman1975: I got a Nabi 2 for my kid, but it has the guts of a Nexus 7 inside.

How is the speaker on it? I'm shopping for a tablet for my young'un for Christmas, and even though it's low on specs I was considering the Fire because of the dual speakers. I want something that sounds decent without requiring an external speaker.

Leeds		2012-10-24 10:58:36 AM

Carth: snowshovel: Carth: snowshovel: Ess_Aytch:
As a teacher, I can tell you that the iPad mini will kill in the education market. My school division has already begun equipping schools with iPads; my school has a cart, plus three in each classroom. For about $75,000 we could purchase enough iPad minis to get us to a 1:1 ratio. Meanwhile, we're fundraising to buy a playground - which costs $250,000 and I find completely asinine.

Given the price point, you could buy the same amount of Kindle Fires for $45,000 -- which you could them put $30,000 into the playground equipment fund.

You just need to convince textbook publishers to also make android versions. Right now they are releasing ibooks only versions.

I'm sorry, but if you really believe that textbook companies are ONLY making iBook versions, then you haven't looks hard enough past your iPad. And again, I own an iPad and a Mac Mini, so this isn't really about Apple hate, it's about using school funds wisely.

In my few minutes of searching, here's what I've come up with:

Here's the entire Follett library of ebooks.

Pearson claims that their e-texts are "Now for iPad and Android Tablets"!

Scholastic's Storia system is good for iOS, Android tablets, and Windows computers.

It is good to see andriod is catching up. Does andriod support MathML and LaTex yet? I can upgrade my recommendation list for next semester's students if so.

Are you f-ing kidding me? You are a teacher and you haven't even figured out how search engines work? You should be fired, seriously, I mean that.

In the meantime, "Let me google that for you" has your answers.

TNel		2012-10-24 11:02:22 AM

Carth:
It is good to see andriod is catching up. Does andriod support MathML and LaTex yet? I can upgrade my recommendation list for next semester's students if so.

http://caniuse.com/mathml

Somone made a LaTex but I haven't used it, it was done this month.

http://www.latex-community.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=12434

Abe Vigoda's Ghost		2012-10-24 11:03:37 AM

Leeds: Carth: snowshovel: Carth: snowshovel: Ess_Aytch:
As a teacher, I can tell you that the iPad mini will kill in the education market. My school division has already begun equipping schools with iPads; my school has a cart, plus three in each classroom. For about $75,000 we could purchase enough iPad minis to get us to a 1:1 ratio. Meanwhile, we're fundraising to buy a playground - which costs $250,000 and I find completely asinine.

Given the price point, you could buy the same amount of Kindle Fires for $45,000 -- which you could them put $30,000 into the playground equipment fund.

You just need to convince textbook publishers to also make android versions. Right now they are releasing ibooks only versions.

I'm sorry, but if you really believe that textbook companies are ONLY making iBook versions, then you haven't looks hard enough past your iPad. And again, I own an iPad and a Mac Mini, so this isn't really about Apple hate, it's about using school funds wisely.

In my few minutes of searching, here's what I've come up with:

Here's the entire Follett library of ebooks.

Pearson claims that their e-texts are "Now for iPad and Android Tablets"!

Scholastic's Storia system is good for iOS, Android tablets, and Windows computers.

It is good to see andriod is catching up. Does andriod support MathML and LaTex yet? I can upgrade my recommendation list for next semester's students if so.

Are you f-ing kidding me? You are a teacher and you haven't even figured out how search engines work? You should be fired, seriously, I mean that.

In the meantime, "Let me google that for you" has your answers.

You could have just said 'yes'.

Leeds		2012-10-24 11:09:57 AM

Abe Vigoda's Ghost: Leeds: Carth: snowshovel: Carth: snowshovel: Ess_Aytch:
As a teacher, I can tell you that the iPad mini will kill in the education market. My school division has already begun equipping schools with iPads; my school has a cart, plus three in each classroom. For about $75,000 we could purchase enough iPad minis to get us to a 1:1 ratio. Meanwhile, we're fundraising to buy a playground - which costs $250,000 and I find completely asinine.

Given the price point, you could buy the same amount of Kindle Fires for $45,000 -- which you could them put $30,000 into the playground equipment fund.

You just need to convince textbook publishers to also make android versions. Right now they are releasing ibooks only versions.

I'm sorry, but if you really believe that textbook companies are ONLY making iBook versions, then you haven't looks hard enough past your iPad. And again, I own an iPad and a Mac Mini, so this isn't really about Apple hate, it's about using school funds wisely.

In my few minutes of searching, here's what I've come up with:

Here's the entire Follett library of ebooks.

Pearson claims that their e-texts are "Now for iPad and Android Tablets"!

Scholastic's Storia system is good for iOS, Android tablets, and Windows computers.

It is good to see andriod is catching up. Does andriod support MathML and LaTex yet? I can upgrade my recommendation list for next semester's students if so.

Are you f-ing kidding me? You are a teacher and you haven't even figured out how search engines work? You should be fired, seriously, I mean that.

In the meantime, "Let me google that for you" has your answers.

You could have just said 'yes'.

True, but if you are a brain dead idiot who doesn't understand how to do a web search, then you do not deserve to be in a position of educational authority.

I am shocked and dismayed that any teacher would be unaware of the internet. It's 2012 after all, not 1987.

Carth		2012-10-24 11:12:19 AM

Leeds		2012-10-24 11:18:03 AM

Carth: Leeds:
In the meantime, "Let me google that for you" has your answers.

I'm just an adjunct who teaches graduate students Data Mining because I enjoy it. I knew there was apps for android but not whether it is easy to actually write papers or take notes in class with it

Do you have experience using android tablets in graduate school? I'd love to talk to someone who does since all my students either use laptops or ipads.

No I do not. When I was in school tablets had not yet been invented. Sorry.

Marine1		2012-10-24 11:23:18 AM

To be honest, I don't think it was the best use of Apple's (admittedly vast) resources.

7-inchers are a budget item... for the guys who want a tablet, but want to spend as little as possible to get one. If people could spend more money than $100-$300 on one, they'd get a regular sized iPad, Android, or WinRT/Win 8 tablet. If they had nailed that price range with the features listed, then they'd have a hit, but it's about $30 too expensive.

That being said, I'm sure they'll sell them, because we're a society of idiots.

Leeds		2012-10-24 11:31:25 AM

Marine1: To be honest, I don't think it was the best use of Apple's (admittedly vast) resources.

7-inchers are a budget item... for the guys who want a tablet, but want to spend as little as possible to get one. If people could spend more money than $100-$300 on one, they'd get a regular sized iPad, Android, or WinRT/Win 8 tablet. If they had nailed that price range with the features listed, then they'd have a hit, but it's about $30 too expensive.

That being said, I'm sure they'll sell them, because we're a society of idiots.

As an owner of a 10" and a 7" tablet I disagree with you completely.

I don't even charge the 10" tablet since I got the 7". The reason is simple- I need a briefcase or a backpack to keep the larger tablet with me whereas I can have the 7" in my pocket at all times. Having it be with me at all times makes all the difference for me.

I suppose if I was a woman and I had a large purse, I would reconsider. But as a man (A man who wears pants. With pockets) I cannot stress enough how great the 7" form factor is.

And of course the quad-core processor makes it faster than any of the 10" tablets, so it's got that going for it too.

burndtdan		2012-10-24 11:31:43 AM

I'd love a tablet of this size for consuming content... watching netflix on the treadmill, browsing fark or reddit on the couch. It would be great.

But I already have a laptop and a smart phone. Even the Nexus at $200 is a bit pricey for a midpoint device, and this thing is just not gonna happen.

Leeds		2012-10-24 11:33:56 AM

burndtdan: I'd love a tablet of this size for consuming content... watching netflix on the treadmill, browsing fark or reddit on the couch. It would be great.

But I already have a laptop and a smart phone. Even the Nexus at $200 is a bit pricey for a midpoint device, and this thing is just not gonna happen.

Wait until Tuesday of next week when the Nexus drops another $50 in price.

And don't consider it a "midpoint" device- There are no tablets of any size that are faster than the Nexus.

BizarreMan		2012-10-24 11:36:52 AM

Whether the Mini turns out to be a success or fail. The big thing that Apple did was completely screw up their customers with the quick turn-around from the New iPad to the iPad 4. The customers that will line up every 12 months for a new iPad won't do it every 6 months. it's turned it from being an event into being a whenever Apple wants to put out a new product they will. So why buy now, when I can wait a few months and get the next version?

snowshovel		2012-10-24 11:42:44 AM

Carth: Leeds: Carth: snowshovel: Carth: snowshovel: Ess_Aytch:
As a teacher, I can tell you that the iPad mini will kill in the education market. My school division has already begun equipping schools with iPads; my school has a cart, plus three in each classroom. For about $75,000 we could purchase enough iPad minis to get us to a 1:1 ratio. Meanwhile, we're fundraising to buy a playground - which costs $250,000 and I find completely asinine.

Given the price point, you could buy the same amount of Kindle Fires for $45,000 -- which you could them put $30,000 into the playground equipment fund.

You just need to convince textbook publishers to also make android versions. Right now they are releasing ibooks only versions.

I'm sorry, but if you really believe that textbook companies are ONLY making iBook versions, then you haven't looks hard enough past your iPad. And again, I own an iPad and a Mac Mini, so this isn't really about Apple hate, it's about using school funds wisely.

In my few minutes of searching, here's what I've come up with:

Here's the entire Follett library of ebooks.

Pearson claims that their e-texts are "Now for iPad and Android Tablets"!

Scholastic's Storia system is good for iOS, Android tablets, and Windows computers.

It is good to see andriod is catching up. Does andriod support MathML and LaTex yet? I can upgrade my recommendation list for next semester's students if so.

Are you f-ing kidding me? You are a teacher and you haven't even figured out how search engines work? You should be fired, seriously, I mean that.

In the meantime, "Let me google that for you" has your answers.

I'm just an adjunct who teaches graduate students Data Mining because I enjoy it. I knew there was apps for android but not whether it is easy to actually write papers or take notes in class with it

Do you have experience using android tablets in graduate school? I'd love to talk to someone who does since all my students either use laptops or ipads.

I'm a little confused. I though that this was about having local school systems buying tablets and mini-tablet in for local grade schools. ("Meanwhile, we're fundraising to buy a playground - which costs $250,000"). Or is this another conversation altogether? My impression would be that when you get to graduate level, pretty much all of your students would have computers anyway, and you wouldn't need to pass out mini-tablets to the classroom.

Leeds		2012-10-24 11:50:22 AM

snowshovel: I'm just an adjunct who teaches graduate students Data Mining because I enjoy it. I knew there was apps for android but not whether it is easy to actually write papers or take notes in class with it

Do you have experience using android tablets in graduate school? I'd love to talk to someone who does since all my students either use laptops or ipads.

I'm a little confused. I though that this was about having local school systems buying tablets and mini-tablet in for local grade schools. ("Meanwhile, we're fundraising to buy a playground - which costs $250,000"). Or is this another conversation altogether? My impression would be that when you get to graduate level, pretty much all of your students would have computers anyway, and you wouldn't need to pass out mini-tablets to the classroom.

Wow, I missed that entirely.

What sort of graduate school has recess and/or playgrounds?

tanman1975		2012-10-24 11:53:27 AM

ColSanders: tanman1975: I got a Nabi 2 for my kid, but it has the guts of a Nexus 7 inside.

How is the speaker on it? I'm shopping for a tablet for my young'un for Christmas, and even though it's low on specs I was considering the Fire because of the dual speakers. I want something that sounds decent without requiring an external speaker.

plenty loud. it has dual speakers too. Also, it's built like a tank.

encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com

I caught my toddler standing on it with no ill effects (to the tablet. I did horrify him by revoking tablet privileges the day).

MrSteve007		2012-10-24 12:06:29 PM

Kate Gosselin's Pap Smear: that's a link to "on paper". I want to see ms surface pro running 3rd party windows 7/8 software. I want to believe the "magic". I want a hand held device that runs everything that my bug rig pc does, within the tablets means.

I want hard proof of someone installing any .exe downloaded off the web. I find it more along the lines of "magic" that MS is going to actually put a full blown Windows handheld PC in our hands this month.

I'll give you my gaming rig if it happens.

Now that i'm at the office, I made this screen cap for you. Is this hard proof enough? I'm using a convertible tablet with Windows 8 64-bit with very similar specs to the Surface Pro - running Adobe Photoshop CS6, Premiere, 3Ds Max and Revit. Using the sample Revit model, even with integrated graphics (as you see the model below), you can manipulate the model at about 10 fps, which isn't ideal, but is more than workable. If you're designing large models or renders, then of course a dedicated GPU is best, but for standard BIM models, current-gen integrated graphics have a fair amount of horsepower.
sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net

/I don't want your gaming rig - my Ivy Bridge core i7 home desktop suits me fine

Carth		2012-10-24 12:07:51 PM

snowshovel: Carth: Leeds: Carth: snowshovel: Carth: snowshovel: Ess_Aytch:
As a teacher, I can tell you that the iPad mini will kill in the education market. My school division has already begun equipping schools with iPads; my school has a cart, plus three in each classroom. For about $75,000 we could purchase enough iPad minis to get us to a 1:1 ratio. Meanwhile, we're fundraising to buy a playground - which costs $250,000 and I find completely asinine.

Given the price point, you could buy the same amount of Kindle Fires for $45,000 -- which you could them put $30,000 into the playground equipment fund.

You just need to convince textbook publishers to also make android versions. Right now they are releasing ibooks only versions.

I'm sorry, but if you really believe that textbook companies are ONLY making iBook versions, then you haven't looks hard enough past your iPad. And again, I own an iPad and a Mac Mini, so this isn't really about Apple hate, it's about using school funds wisely.

In my few minutes of searching, here's what I've come up with:

Here's the entire Follett library of ebooks.

Pearson claims that their e-texts are "Now for iPad and Android Tablets"!

Scholastic's Storia system is good for iOS, Android tablets, and Windows computers.

It is good to see andriod is catching up. Does andriod support MathML and LaTex yet? I can upgrade my recommendation list for next semester's students if so.

Are you f-ing kidding me? You are a teacher and you haven't even figured out how search engines work? You should be fired, seriously, I mean that.

In the meantime, "Let me google that for you" has your answers.

I'm just an adjunct who teaches graduate students Data Mining because I enjoy it. I knew there was apps for android but not whether it is easy to actually write papers or take notes in class with it

Do you have experience using android tablets in graduate school? I'd love to talk to someone who does since all my students either use laptops or ipads.

I'm a ...

It was a different conversation all together. Although a lot of undergraduate and high school are apparently issuing tablet computers to all incoming freshmen.

HeartBurnKid		2012-10-24 12:16:08 PM

bingethinker: Want a sign that Apple's competitors are running scared? Look at headlines like this one.

Right. Apple releases a "me too" product at a higher price than the competition that even the most Apple-biased sites on the web can't recommend over the Nexus 7 or the Kindle Fire HD, and everybody's running scared.

Apple's late to the part on the 7 inchers, and unlike with the iPhone, they didn't even bring anything particularly different. It's just last year's iPad, only smaller, and it is completely outclassed by the cheaper devices.

Tax Boy		2012-10-24 12:17:24 PM

jayhawk88: But everyone is losing their shiat over the new iMac, because it's so thin. You know, because all the countless hours you looked at your computer from the side have really taken their toll.

i'm pretty disappointed with the new model.

I have a 2007-era imac, which continues to work great and runs all my mac software without any issues, but I was thinking of upgrading simply for a more powerful video card for bootcamp games, as my imac's is too slow for most new games.

the new imacs have pretty weak video (only 512M video memory? in 2012?). and the 21-incher doesn't even have user-accessible memory in case I want to upgrade to 32 gigs later.

i'd look at macpros, but they haven't been updated in forever, and cost around $2500.

at this point I'm thinking of just building a separate windows games machine. grumble.

HeartBurnKid		2012-10-24 12:21:19 PM

Tax Boy: jayhawk88: But everyone is losing their shiat over the new iMac, because it's so thin. You know, because all the countless hours you looked at your computer from the side have really taken their toll.

i'm pretty disappointed with the new model.

I have a 2007-era imac, which continues to work great and runs all my mac software without any issues, but I was thinking of upgrading simply for a more powerful video card for bootcamp games, as my imac's is too slow for most new games.

the new imacs have pretty weak video (only 512M video memory? in 2012?). and the 21-incher doesn't even have user-accessible memory in case I want to upgrade to 32 gigs later.

i'd look at macpros, but they haven't been updated in forever, and cost around $2500.

at this point I'm thinking of just building a separate windows games machine. grumble.

Welcome to the club of people whose business Apple does not want. If you're still interested in OSX, you could try building a Hackintosh. Have fun.

InmanRoshi		2012-10-24 12:25:03 PM

Is it an iPad Mini or an iPod Touch Maxi?

InmanRoshi		2012-10-24 12:26:48 PM

Mad_Radhu		2012-10-24 12:35:12 PM

MrSteve007: Kate Gosselin's Pap Smear: that's a link to "on paper". I want to see ms surface pro running 3rd party windows 7/8 software. I want to believe the "magic". I want a hand held device that runs everything that my bug rig pc does, within the tablets means.

I want hard proof of someone installing any .exe downloaded off the web. I find it more along the lines of "magic" that MS is going to actually put a full blown Windows handheld PC in our hands this month.

I'll give you my gaming rig if it happens.

Now that i'm at the office, I made this screen cap for you. Is this hard proof enough? I'm using a convertible tablet with Windows 8 64-bit with very similar specs to the Surface Pro - running Adobe Photoshop CS6, Premiere, 3Ds Max and Revit. Using the sample Revit model, even with integrated graphics (as you see the model below), you can manipulate the model at about 10 fps, which isn't ideal, but is more than workable. If you're designing large models or renders, then of course a dedicated GPU is best, but for standard BIM models, current-gen integrated graphics have a fair amount of horsepower.
[sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net image 850x626]
/I don't want your gaming rig - my Ivy Bridge core i7 home desktop suits me fine

I think a lot of people underestimate just how much power there is in the Core-series integrated graphics, and how much better the OpenGL drivers have gotten recently. This is not the crappy Intel 915 integrated graphics that caused most of the pain when Vista was released.

Plus, not everyone that is using AutoCAD is designing the Freedom Tower with it, and you are especially not going to be doing heavy lifting on a 10.6" device anyway, just because the screen size is so small. Hell, back in the late 90s, I had an internship at a large chemical company in college where all I did with MicroStation was open up drawing files, import in scans of microfilmed drawings that were originally on paper, and then use a despeckle tool to remove crap in the scans that came either from the scanning or poor duplication of the paper drawings when they were originally done back in the 50s and 60s (And yes, it was a crap job, but it was really necessary to get those thousands of drawings loaded in to the backgrounds of the digital files so that when revisions were done, the digital revisions could be overlaid on top of the scans). For that job, there was absolutely no need for a powerful GPU, and I'm sure there are probably loads of people that similarly use AutoCAD on a regular basis but hardly ever do anything that would even begin to stress a HD 4000.

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