iPad Mini was “dead on arrival” say tech critics
Despite iconic late CEO Steve Jobs dismissing smaller tablets, Apple has released a scaled down version of the iPad. Are they right to be disregarding his advice?
Despite iconic late CEO Steve Jobs dismissing smaller tablets, Apple has released a scaled down version of the iPad. Are they right to be disregarding his advice?
When Apple released the original iPad in early 2010 they were hailed for revolutionising portable computing. In the wake of the iPad’s success, many rival organisations rushed out their own takes on touchscreen tablet computers, many with little difference from Apple’s much-praised device.
However, due to the success of true eBook readers like Amazon’s Kindle, many firms began offering smaller tablets that could do much of what a larger device could do, but adding increased portability and considerably lower prices. Steve Jobs, Apple’s iconoclastic late CEO, famously described the rival devices from manufacturers like Samsung and Blackberry as “dead on arrival,” claiming their seven inch screens didn’t provide a satisfactory viewing experience compared to the just under ten inch iPad screen.
Since his death last year, Apple has maintained his vision for producing sleek devices that gain colossal media coverage. However, yesterday the firm, now led by the more reserved CEO Tim Cook, went against their ex-bosses beliefs in launching the iPad Mini, a scaled down model designed to compete with those seven inch devices that Jobs derided so much.
Unfortunately for Apple, the new version is unlikely to make a significant dent in the lower-cost, smaller tablet market. Firms like Samsung and Amazon have carved out a decent section of the market by offering devices for around $200, catering for casual users, commuters and young people. Apple’s entry level, wifi-only version of the iPad Mini comes in at just under $330, considerably higher than the alternatives that offer much of the same capabilities.
The standard ten inch iPad model is not significantly more expensive, starting at $399, and offers everything the smaller version does but with the considerably larger screen that Jobs so loved.
Although Apple manages to sell their products to the wildly enthusiastic public, regardless of any significant merit, by pricing the iPad Mini so high, the company may not grab back a lot of the market share stolen by their rivals. Although Jobs may have been overly dismissive of smaller tablets, the reason why they’ve been relatively successful has been their low cost.
It’s unlikely the iPad Mini will be “dead on arrival”, but it certainly isn’t as compelling a device as the original iPad was when it first launched.
