With the imminent release of the iPad Mini and iPad 4 as it has been dubbed, Apple are calling it “iPad with Retina Display”, didn’t “The New iPad” also have a Retina display? I have to ask the question; what’s the point other than to fleece iSheep or another $500; or $330 for the iPad Mini?
I am justified in believing that Apple are simply cashing in; the iPad 4 has a faster processor, a 1.2Mp HD front facing camera and it gets the new “Lightning Dock”; everything else is the same. In the real world; the new features are not worth $500 for the base 16GB Wi-Fi model! But I am sure that many iSheep will rush out to their local Apple store to purchase Apple’s latest and greatest.
The iPad with Retina Display really has no technical reason to use Apple’s new Lightning Dock as space is not an issue in the iPad 4; infact the Lightning Dock is incorporated into an original dock sized plastic surround (read the ZDNet article). This is why I dislike companies like Apple and Microsoft creating proprietary technology instead of using industry standard technology like the Micro USB connector featured in most other smartphones/tablets, it’s blatant profiteering.
The questions you have to ask yourself is; do I really need 720p HD video to talk to my friends on Skype? Do I notice any slowdown on my current “New iPad”? And finally, do I want to give Apple even more money by purchasing the Lightning Dock adapter so I can use my existing accessories?
The only possible reason to upgrade from the 3rd generation iPad is for the 4G LTE data access incorporated into iPad 4 should you wish to spend an additional $130 for the 16GB cellular version.
I’m not going to say “don’t buy it”; but please be informed about what you’re buying and whether you actually need it! I personally wouldn’t buy it if I had just spent a minimum of $500 on The New iPad (3rd generation) less than seven months ago, the upgrade is too small to spend another $500!
Moving onto the iPad Mini, with a screen size of 7.9 inches, it falls between the swath of Android 7.0 and 10.1 inch tablets, but If you own a full sized iPad, is it worth spending out $330 on a slightly smaller version? If it was 7 inches, I could understand as there would be a big enough difference between the 9.7 inch display of the iPad and that of the iPad Mini, which is a shrunken iPad2.
I do own an iPad2 and I am happy with it; I saw no need to upgrade to “The New iPad” (3rd generation), and the same is true for the iPad 4; and I certainly don’t see the point in downgrading to the iPad Mini, spending $330 on an iPad Mini really makes no sense for iPad 2 owners.
