Apple unveils iPad mini, new generation of iPad
James Delahunty
23 Oct 2012 14:32
Apple refreshes iPad.
Apple showed off two new iPads today. First the company introduced the new fourth generation iPad, which is powered by a new A6X chip, promising double the processing and graphics performance over the third generation iPad. It features a 9.7-inch Retina Display, and adds a FaceTime HD camera. Apple also promises twice the performance from Wi-Fi with the fourth generation iPad, along with broader international support for LTE.
The fourth generation iPad also features the new lightning connector, which can be utilized for TV out via a "Lightning to HDMI" or "Lightning to VGA" cable, and other cables adapters also support cameras and SD cards.
iPad mini
The real star of the show however - and the device we were waiting to cover - is the
iPad mini. It is 7.2 mm thin and weighs 0.68lbs, 23 percent thinner and 53 percent lighter than the third generation iPad, featuring a 7.9-inch multi-touch display. It features FaceTime HD and iSight cameras. It's battery life matches that of its bigger brother, at 10 hours.
The iPad mini is powered with an A5 chip. During the presentation, Apple put the iPad mini up versus the competition, the
Nexus 7, and showed that the iPad mini has 35 percent more screen space and 67 percent more usable viewing area when browsing the web.
iPad mini features dual-band 802.11n Wi-Fi support for speeds up to 150 Mbps, which is twice the Wi-Fi performance compared to previous iPad models. iPad mini is available in Wi-Fi + Cellular models which are world-ready with built-in support for ultrafast wireless standards, including LTE¹ and DC-HSDPA.
Price & Availability
iPad mini with Wi-Fi models will be available in black & slate or white & silver on Friday, November 2, for a suggested retail price of $329 (US) for the 16GB model, $429 (US) for the 32GB model and $529 (US) for the 64GB model.
The fourth generation iPad with Wi-Fi models will also be available on Friday, November 2, in black or white for a suggested retail price of $499 (US) for the 16GB model, $599 (US) for the 32GB model and $699 (US) for the 64GB model.
iPad mini with Wi-Fi + Cellular and fourth generation iPad with Wi-Fi + Cellular will start shipping a couple of weeks after the Wi-Fi models, beginning in the US on AT&T, Sprint and Verizon.
Pad mini with Wi-Fi + Cellular will be offered for a suggested retail price of $459 (US) for the 16GB model, $559 (US) for the 32GB model and $659 (US) for the 64GB model. Fourth generation iPad with Wi-Fi + Cellular for AT&T, Sprint and Verizon will be offered for a suggested retail price of $629 (US) for the 16GB model, $729 (US) for the 32GB model and $829 (US) for the 64GB model.
Additionally, iPad 2 is available at $399 (US) for the 16GB Wi-Fi model and just $529 (US) for the 16GB Wi-Fi + 3G model where they are sold now.