Now that Apple has unveil its long - awaitediPad mini , we can see where it match within the full small - tablet market based on facts , not rumors .
There are a slew of Android - based tablets with screens in the 7 - in range . Amazon , Barnes & Noble , Google(manufactured by Asus),Samsung , andToshibaeach have a tablet that sizing .
How does the iPad mini compare with them ? While Apple ’s new 7 - inch tablet entry will likely find emptor because of the iPad name and the strength of the iOS app ecosystem , the iPad mini ’s specs and pricing are in many example uncompetitive with those of other tablets its size .
The screen
In size , the 7.9 - inch iPad miniskirt display is just a turn larger than the one found on the premature leader in this class , Toshiba ’s Excite 7.7 . ( That “ 7.7 ” refers to the blind ’s dimensions . ) Most other Android manufacturers have stuck with garden - variety 7 - inch tablet displays , which may be more economical , but also deliver less concealment area and therefore ( for many ) a less solid experience . I ’ve loved using the Toshiba Excite 7.7 ; that extra bit of display actual land stimulate a surprisingly cock-a-hoop divergence . And Toshiba , like Apple , has pull off to attain the supernumerary space without making the tablet as a whole meaningfully larger in sizing .
Where the mini ’s concealment number up curt is in pixel density . After Apple released its third - generation iPad with a high - closure Retina display in March of this yr , one might have hoped that Apple would stick with a mellow - Re screen on the iPad mini . But it did n’t , going instead with a measure 1024 by 768 video display . Amazon , Barnes & Noble , and Google have all released 7 - column inch tablets with gamey resoluteness .
Put another way of life , the iPad mini ’s screen allow for 163 pixels per inch . That ’s ripe than theiPad 2’s132 ppi , but less than every other 7 - inch tablet in our comparison . The Kindle Fire HD 7 , Nook HD , and Nexus 7 each offer more than 200 ppi . If one of the primary uses for these 7 - in tablets is reading , and if your eyes have develop accustomed to sharper blind , the iPad mini ’s blue pixel denseness could be an issue for you .
Weight, storage, and price
One of the bigadvantages to a 7 - column inch tabletis that its size and weight is conducive to extended use in one hired man ; this do in particularly ready to hand for reading . As note before , Apple now is the lightest of this size class , in most display case by a real amount . ( It ’s lighter than the Nook HD by the narrowest of margins : just 0.01 of a pound . ) The miniskirt is also thinner than most : 0.28 column inch versus 0.4 or more for all but the Toshiba Excite 7.7 ( 0.31 inch ) .
As for storage capacity , the iPad mini ’s 64 GB model has more capacity than any other 7 - in tablet . Other tablets max out at 32 GB . The base model starts at 16 G ; others start at 8 GB . And a span of the other 7 - inchers — the Amazon Kindle Fire and the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2.0 — go to 8 GB and no further .
Then there ’s the issue of price : The 16 GB Kindle Fire HD ( with its high - res concealment ) goes for $ 199 ; the 16 GB iPad mini is $ 329 . Google is expected to introduce a 32 GB version of theNexus 7that could well replace the current 16 GB at the high - end of that product line but still be $ 250 ; the 16 GB adaptation would then bump down to $ 199 . Meanwhile , for $ 230 you could buy the 16 GB translation of Barnes & Noble ’s high - Re Nook HD .
The bottom line
Of course , with any pad , you are n’t just buy a amount of pixels and storage . You ’re also buying into the manufacturer ’s software ecosystem . Amazon ’s and Barnes & Noble ’s tablet plump for only those apps found in their respective app stores ; the Nexus 7 supports every Android app available through the Google Play store . The iPad mini , meanwhile , can take reward of the unbeatable breadth to be find in Apple ’s App Store .
In the goal , of class , none of this may count to you . You may already have made the choice to go with Apple ’s tablet , in which showcase the only inquiry is : Which one ? But if you ’re shopping for a small - screen tablet generally , you ’ll have to press the miniskirt ’s reward on apps against its disadvantages in pricing and screen quality .
