A smaller version of the iPad has been rumored for quite some time. Recently, rumors have become more concrete: An “iPad mini” might come out before the end of the year, with a screen size of 7.85 inch. The article “ Apple Has 163 Reasons To Release Fabled ‘iPad mini’” (by A.T. Faust III for AppAdvice) provides interesting arguments in favor of that theory.

Highlights:

• A rumored screen size of 7.85 inch is awfully specific.
• Only a 1024x768 screen resolution makes sense, otherwise all existing apps would have to be rewritten. Given that resolution and a screen size of 7.85 inch, the pixel density would be 163 pixels per inch.
  
  
  • That’s exactly the same resolution as the older iPod touches and iPhones, which means that the screen production facilities for those devices are ready to make iPad mini screens, cheaply.
  • At that resolution, user interface elements would still be large enough for touching.

A few more guesses:

• Prices (always “starting at”):
  
  
  • iPod touch: $199
  • iPad 2: $399
  • iPad: $499
  
  That would hint at the iPad mini costing $299. To compare, the Kindle Fire currently starts at $199. Hence, the iPad mini would still be significantly more expensive than the Kindle Fire. However, the iPad mini will have more apps and assumedly a better build quality. Therefore, with $199 being too high for impulse buys, Apple might still make life difficult for the Fire (“if I’m already spending that much money...”).
• Features: Apple could omit the cameras to save money, but if the prices indeed start at $299 then they probably don’t need to. It’ll be interesting to see how aggressively Apple goes after the Fire, price-wise.
• The strategy of not leaving much breathing room to the competition would fit with what Apple has done with the iPod, where it also quickly dominated the market: They started with premium models and then introduced ever cheaper ones (iPod mini, etc.).

Related post:

• Apple’s 2012 iPad event: the highlights