New ipad Mini takes aim at tablet competition
Analysts bullish on Apple, even though device is more expensive than competition
VANCOUVER — Apple took aim at its fast-growing competition in the tablet market Tuesday with the announcement of its new iPad Mini, a downsized iPad that fits in the hand and, Apple hopes, will fit consumers’ pocketbooks.
But with a price tag starting at $329 and pre-orders starting this Friday, Apple and analysts watching the company won’t have to wait long to find out if the Mini’s price tag is too rich for consumers who already have a choice of small tablets in the sub-$200 to $250 price range.
Apple’s marketing wizard, Phil Schiller, defended the $329 price tag, saying consumers will be willing to pay for quality not found in less expensive devices from rivals like Google and Amazon.
And despite concerns that the high price tag may curb demand, analysts were still bullish on the company, which will release its fiscal fourth-quarter results Thursday.
“In spite of concerns about the price, we would be buyers of the stock even in front of earnings this Thursday as we do believe that customers will pay a premium for an Apple tablet,” said Shebly Seyrafi, an analyst at FBN Securities.
In an event live-streamed around the globe, Apple surprised viewers by announcing not only the long-rumoured iPad mini but also a completely redesigned iMac desktop computer, a new Retina display 13-inch notebook computer and a revamped Mac Mini.
And the iPad also got a revamp, with a new fourthgeneration iPad announced barely seven months after the release of the third-generation of its predecessor.
Apple’s sleek new lineup is being rolled out in time for Black Friday, the biggest shopping day in the U.S. and the precursor to a busy holiday season.
The new iPad mini, at 7.9 inches on the diagonal, is slightly larger than Apple’s competition in the downsized tablet market but delivers considerably more screen real estate. In a demonstration at the launch event in San Francisco, Schiller did a side-by-side comparison of the new Mini against a seven-inch tablet, showing that the small hike in screen size translates to considerably more viewing area.
In a video showcasing the new Mini, Apple calls the new iPad “a concentration of, not a reduction of, the original.”
But unlike the 10.7-inch iPad, the Mini fits in one hand; it is 23 per cent thinner than the third-generation iPad and 53 per cent lighter.
It also comes with what Apple refers to as a “smart cover,” a wrap that comes in a range of colours, including blue, green, pink, white, grey and red.
Apple also unveiled its newest iMac, an elegant and super-thin redesign of its popular desktop computer that makes its predecessor look almost clunky by comparison.
“There’s an entire computer in here, it’s hard to believe there’s even a display in here,” said Apple’s Schiller as he showed off the newest desktop in a line that has seen the Mac outgrowing the PC market for the past six years, a definite reversal of Apple’s earlier days when it counted its market share first in single digits and then barely into double-digit territory.
Currently, Apple’s Mac lineup accounts for the No. 1 desktop ranking in the U.S. and the No. 1 notebook ranking.