More rumors and speculation suggesting that Apple will release a mini version of the iPad later this year have surfaced today on Taiwanese news site Liberty Times.
Citing "market rumors," the site claims that the long-rumored iPad mini will make an appearance at the end of the third-quarter or sometime during the fourth-quarter of this year.
The site claims that AU Optronics and LG Display will be responsible for the LCD panels, while the backlight units are to be produced by Radiant. It also claims that the reason for Apple's introduction of a mini iPad is market pressure from devices such as the Barnes & Noble Nook and Amazon's Kindle Fire, both of which are smaller and cheaper than the iPad.
Backing up this claim is Barclays analyst Ben Reitzes. He claims that there is "some evidence of this product in the supply chain" but adds that it is likely to wind up "in the iPod touch category if it indeed sees daylight".
What's wrong with a mini iPad? To understand why it doesn't make sense we need to step back and take a look at the bigger picture.
The Kindle Fire is without a doubt a runaway success and now owns over half the Android tablet market. But how much of this success is down to the 7-inch screen, as opposed to the $200 price tag, or the Amazon branding?
If it is low pricing that people want as opposed a smaller screen, then it is unlikely that Apple will be dragged into a price war with Amazon.
While on the subject of pricing, how much would this mini iPad even sell for? This is a particularly important question given that the full-size iPad 2 now retails for $399, and you can pick up an iPad 3 starting at $499.
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