Rumor: iPad Mini will cost $249-$299, 6 million ready to be shipped this year
By Vlad Bobleanta on 16 Apr 12The iPad Mini is the talk of the town again. At least if you replace “the town” with “the rumor mill”. This oft-rumored smaller version of Apple’s successful tablet will supposedly be launched this year – that much we’ve heard over and over again in the past.
One of the more recent rumblings on the matter also claimed a $249-299 price tag, which has been ‘confirmed’ today by another rumor originating from China.
Apparently an initial batch of 6 million iPad Minis will be produced. The iPad Mini will be out around the third quarter of this year as a response to Windows 8 tablets – which doesn’t make any sense, frankly. So far there hasn’t been any indication that any mainstream tablet (or PC) maker will launch an affordable sub-10″ Windows 8 tablet. If that were the case, then yes, the iPad Mini could be Apple’s ‘answer’.
But at the moment the only sub-10″ tablet that’s selling like hot cakes is the Amazon Kindle Fire. So if Apple wants to “counter attack” any product with the iPad Mini, it has to be Amazon’s tablet.
Anyway, the rumor du jour also says that Hon Hai (Foxconn) and Pegatron will be making these small iPads for Apple, and that’s not a surprise at all, the former being Apple’s biggest ODM, and the latter also making some Apple mobile devices in the past.
Of course, you should take all of this with a grain (or more) of salt. It’s just a rumor at this point. Yet judging by how these iPad Mini rumblings are intensifying with each month that passes, we’d be surprised if there was no truth to any of them. We’ll see though.
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- Apple’s iPad Mini could have an 8GB version. October 23 announcement seemingly confirmed
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