Tim Cook says iPad mini is in a different league than 7-inch tablets

In 2010, Steve Jobs minced no words as he expressed his distaste for 7-inch tablets, stating that the size is useless unless users sand their fingers down to a quarter of their size. The iPad’s competition was DOA, he said. Now Apple’s introduced its 7.9-inch iPad mini, and some consumers are pointing fingers.

Apple CEO Tim Cook took a moment during the company’s earning call to address the criticism, stating that Apple would not make “one of the seven inch tablets.” According to Cook, the 7.9-inch iPad mini is in an altogether different league than its competition. “[The iPad mini] is not a compromised product like the seven inch tablets.”

At its event on October 23, Apple revealed the iPad mini, which is 23% smaller than the 4th Generation iPad. The not-quite-a-7-incher tablet has a 7.2mm body, and weighs .68lbs. The display has a 1,024 x 768 resolution, which is the same as the iPad 2, allowing users to run iPad 2 apps on the mini without issue. The gadget has a 5MP rear camera and FaceTime HD front camera.

During the announcement, Apple gave a fairly thorough comparison between the iPad mini and Google’s Nexus 7. One of the differences that Cook reiterated during the call was the size difference between the two aforementioned tablets, with the iPad mini offering 35-percent more real estate than the Nexus 7. Apparently .9-inches means the difference between usability and needing to sandpaper one’s own fingers.

Said Cook:

The comments that I think you’re referencing are comments that Steve had made before about seven inch tablets. And, let me be clear, we would not make one of the seven inch tablets. We don’t think they’re good products, and we would never make one. Not just because it’s seven inches, but for many reasons. One of the reasons, however, is size.

I’m not sure if you saw our keynote, but the difference between just the real estate size between the 7.9… versus 7 is 35 percent. And when you look at the usable area it’s much greater than that… The iPad mini is a fantastic product. It is not a compromised product like the seven inch tablets. It’s in a whole different league.

Story Timeline

• Apple compares the iPad mini to Google’s Nexus 7
• iPad mini hands-on
• Apple Store back up: iPad mini and goodies galore
• Full Apple iPad mini event video available now for replay
• iPad Mini, fourth generation iPad heading to Verizon
• EE confirms LTE iPad mini and iPad 4th-gen headed to UK
• iPad mini pre-orders start tomorrow, most likely at midnight

[via The Verge]

Tim Cook says iPad mini is in a different league than 7-inch tablets is written by SlashGear.
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