Setting the Price Early

Late last October, Apple announced the long-speculated iPad Mini starting at 329 US$ – a price well above the $249 mark many people had hoped for. I was out. There was no way I was going to buy one at that price. Especially without a retina display.

My reaction was something like

pfft…$329 is too much. I’m not getting one, my (7 month old) new iPad (3rd gen) is working just fine.

After the pricing chatter died down, the early hands-on reviews started coming in, I began reconsidering my no-retina=no-ipad-mini thought process.

While the resolution is the same as the non-retina iPads, the display size is considerably smaller. The ppi is greater: 132 for non-retina iPads, 264 for retina iPads, and 163 for the iPad Mini.

Directly related, the smaller form factor was no small differentiator. Often, the full-sized iPad felt a little too big for my taste. I’m certain this feeling was amplified in the weeks leading up to, and immediately following the iPad Mini announcement.

If Apple follows their past behavior on iOS devices, the original iPad Mini will be available for $229 in a few short months. At that price, the iPad Mini should start gaining significant traction with less-devoted Apple consumers. i’d expect a lot of Minis under the trees this year.