Top 5 iPad Mini Features

The popular Kindle Fire and Nexus 7 are about to enter their biggest challenge yet, the iPad Mini. Apple have sent out invitations telling people that they have “got a little more to show you” – a smaller tablet. Likely to be between seven and eight inches in length, they hope it will help capture even more of the market share.

Already 70% of the April to June quarter was controlled by Apple but the popular one hand tablets still hold some value to the company. Steve Jobs had questioned the idea of a smaller iPad, but with more and more people taking up mobile phone recycling or enjoying a product you can hold in one hand there is a gap there for them. Let’s take a look at the likely features:

• Retina display – This newer iPad will have a smaller and super-sharp screen to enjoy. This needs to be done thanks to newer versions of their competitor tablets having impressive resolutions.
• Smaller screen – Of course, it’s a mini but even still, the 7.85-inch screen that it is likely to be might be bigger than their rivals but it is a refreshing size compared to the 9.7-inch iPad.
• Younger market – Maybe not a great feature for a lot of users, smaller tablets are great for children. Parents like cheaper devices that are easier to look after, and this will fit the void.
• Camera – The casing components doing the rounds so far show that there will be a rear camera on the mini. This will be without flash and the resolution is unknown but we can go by history. First iPhone camera – awful, first iPod camera – rubbish, don’t hold your breath.
• Battery – A leaked photo has shown that the iPad mini is likely to have a battery that is three times more powerful than the iPhone 5. This means that it will be between the new iPhone and new iPad in battery life, a very useful place to be by all accounts.

Before the product is actually launched it can be hard to distinguish what will be the top features. But, with mobile phone recycling on the rise and tablets likely to get better specs and battery it is a step that Apple needs to take. Their halo effect on products will mean that this is useful for market share, especially as the iPod seems to be getting phased out.

Top 5 iPad Mini Features

The popular Kindle Fire and Nexus 7 are about to enter their biggest challenge yet, the iPad Mini. Apple have sent out invitations telling people that they have “got a little more to show you” – a smaller tablet. Likely to be between seven and eight inches in length, they hope it will help capture even more of the market share.

Already 70% of the April to June quarter was controlled by Apple but the popular one hand tablets still hold some value to the company. Steve Jobs had questioned the idea of a smaller iPad, but with more and more people taking up mobile phone recycling or enjoying a product you can hold in one hand there is a gap there for them. Let’s take a look at the likely features:

• Retina display – This newer iPad will have a smaller and super-sharp screen to enjoy. This needs to be done thanks to newer versions of their competitor tablets having impressive resolutions.
• Smaller screen – Of course, it’s a mini but even still, the 7.85-inch screen that it is likely to be might be bigger than their rivals but it is a refreshing size compared to the 9.7-inch iPad.
• Younger market – Maybe not a great feature for a lot of users, smaller tablets are great for children. Parents like cheaper devices that are easier to look after, and this will fit the void.
• Camera – The casing components doing the rounds so far show that there will be a rear camera on the mini. This will be without flash and the resolution is unknown but we can go by history. First iPhone camera – awful, first iPod camera – rubbish, don’t hold your breath.
• Battery – A leaked photo has shown that the iPad mini is likely to have a battery that is three times more powerful than the iPhone 5. This means that it will be between the new iPhone and new iPad in battery life, a very useful place to be by all accounts.

Before the product is actually launched it can be hard to distinguish what will be the top features. But, with mobile phone recycling on the rise and tablets likely to get better specs and battery it is a step that Apple needs to take. Their halo effect on products will mean that this is useful for market share, especially as the iPod seems to be getting phased out.

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Apple loses appeal over tablets in UK courtroom, must publicly apologize to Samsung

Apple and Samsung’s legal fight continued on the world stage this morning, where the Britain Court of Appeal upheld a previous ruling that Samsung’s Galaxy Tab does not infringe on the iPad’s patents because it is not “as cool.” Reuters reported that after losing the appeal this morning, Apple has been instructed by the court to apologize to Samsung by running ads on its website and in newspapers saying Samsung did not infringe on patents in at least Arial 14 font.

[Source: 9to5Mac - Click here to read the full story]

Apple is doubling its built-to-order RAM configurations for new Mac minis, and likely iMacs

Apple will double its current built-to-order RAM configurations for the upcoming Mac minis, and perhaps the new iMacs according to sources familiar with the upcoming product releases. The current version of the iMac includes four RAM slots, and Apple’s top RAM configuration is four 4GB chips for a total of 16GB of RAM. The new iMac, however, will be sold with an options for 16GB of RAM across two chips (2 X 8GB) of RAM. Assuming that the new iMac retains 4 slots, users will be able to buy up to 32GB of iMac RAM from Apple. However, if not, it is still notable that Apple will be selling iMac RAM in pieces of 8GB chips for the first time. Up until this point, you could buy and use 8GB RAM chips from third parties for both the Mac mini and iMac.

[Source: 9to5Mac - Click here to read the full story]

iTunes leaks mention of iBooks 3.0 ahead of next week’s Apple media event

Apple’s iTunes Store has leaked a mention of iBooks 3.0 ahead of Apple’s October 23rd media event. This media event will discuss a smaller iPad, which will likely be education oriented. French site iGen first discovered the listing, and The Next Web snapped the above screenshot in the French iTunes Store. The current version of iBooks is iBooks 2.0, which was announced earlier this year with digital textbook support.

[Source: 9to5Mac]

Photo of tweaked full-sized iPad shell with new, smaller Lightning port?

The authors of blog Apple.Pro have posted a photo of what appears to be the shell for the upcomingt weaked third-generation iPad with a Lightning port. No other changes appear to be shown in this image. That is in line with expectations of this being a very minor refresh. Apple.Pro is known to have a fairly reliable track record when it comes to sharing images of parts for upcoming Apple products.

[Source: 9to5Mac]

Put Google Maps back on your iPhone with Maps+

If you're one of the many who are underwhelmed with Apple's Maps and wish you could get Google Maps back on your iPhone, I highly recommend downloading Maps+. Besides using the Google Maps API, Maps+ offers several features now missing in Apple's new Maps app. The app also adds plenty of features that were never in Google Maps on the iPhone, like bicycling directions, location-based alarms, current location coordinates and altitude and more.

There are pros and cons to consider with Maps+. For one, point-of-interest search results in Maps+ aren't as good as the old Google Maps app, but often better than Apple's Maps. Also, Maps+ lacks public transport directions and Street View. Then again, the app is free, and if you're missing Google Maps on your iPhone, this is the best way to get them back.

[Source: TUAW - Click here to read the full story]

iMac ship times slip at some European Apple Stores

Rumors suggest Apple's upcoming October 23 event will also bring a much-needed refresh of the company's iMac and Mac mini line of computers. Adding some credence to the rumor is the observation from AppleInsider that iMac inventory is declining in some Apple online stores in Europe. Both the German and UK stores now have ship times of 1-3 days on their two iMac models. It's fair to note that this is not a widespread decline in supply, so it's possible this is an isolated incident, and the timing is coincidental.

[Source: TUAW]

Display expert: Microsoft Surface display not superior to iPad Retina display

After the director of research for Microsoft's Applied Sciences group, Steven Bathiche, boasted via Reddit that the company's new Surface RT tablet could offer more screen detail than the latest iPad, an expert decided to weigh in. The verdict? Microsoft's ClearType sub-pixel rending technology does indeed give the Surface RT's 768p display some added clarity, but to say that it beats the newest iPad's 2,048 x 1,536 screen is a stretch, to say the least.

Dr. Raymond Soneira of DisplayMate Technologies performed the comparison using an Asus tablet equipped with a 1,366 x 768 display similar to the Surface RT. Both devices boast Microsoft's ClearType sub-pixel rendering feature. It's important to note that while the two displays are similar, the Asus tablet's pixel density is 130 ppi, compared to 148 ppi on the Surface RT. The iPad's Retina display comes in at 264 ppi.

[Source: TUAW - Click here to read the full story]

Hard drive recall emails going out to owners of 1TB iMacs

Apple's extension of the iMac 1TB Seagate hard drive replacement program was mentioned last Sunday, and late this week customers began receiving email reminders to schedule a drive replacement. If you're an iMac owner but not certain your machine is covered, you can easily check your serial number via the online validation tool.

While the Apple service program covers replacing your potentially problematic drive, it does not include backup or restoration of your OS, applications or data: that is on you. Please take our advice and spare yourself much pain and misery -- back up your drive now.

[Source: TUAW - Click here to read the full story]

You're the Pundit: iPad mini may be the death knell for iPad 2

When it comes to evaluating the next big thing, we turn to our secret weapon: the TUAW braintrust. We put the question to you and let you have your go at it. Today's topic is the iPad 2.

First introduced in March 2011, it's been a brilliant standard-bearer for Apple's tablet tech. Offering a total redesign from the original iPad, it lacks only a few bells, whistles, and pixels compared to the current "new" iPad.

In fact, it's still Apple's budget choice for many consumers with limited discretionary funds. Starting at $399, it offers a hundred dollar break compared to the low-end current generation model.

[Source: TUAW - Click here to read the full story]

YouTube Campaigns lets nonprofits draw our interest without the telethons

Trying to launch a concerted nonprofit video campaign can feel like tilting at windmills: you might have one moment of undivided attention from viewers before they're off to watch cats and Nigerian pygmy goats. Google wants to make the most of that time through its YouTube Campaigns initiative. The strategy brings on-video overlays and channel sections that show viewers both a progress meter for the campaign as well as a handy links to explore and share what they've found. If all goes well, charities and like-minded organizations get more donations and YouTube views, while we in the general public are reminded that there's more to life than K-pop videos. It certainly beats manning the phones for a celebrity fundraiser.

[Sorce: Engadget]