I think the current size is the sweet spot for tablets, but I think a 7 inch and a 12 inch would also sell. I say give people what they want. Let them choose.

No No and No. After using the 7" tab for a few weeks it wasnt a very good experience. I found myself always having to use pinch to zoom on webpages, not a problem on the ipad. I felt like I was always wanting more with the tab. More screensize, more room to play games, more room to read my documents etc.

If you see the ipad as just a really big iphone which it is, I don't see a problem with have a 7 inch ipad. All the money still goes to apple and apple charges way more than it cost them so it's only a win for them.

Apply might do this is the next 10 inch ipad is just as heavy as this one. The ipad is too heavy. Hold a galaxy tab and tell that doesn't feel good.

I think iPad 2 will be smaller in size, maybe not 7 inch, but probably 8 or something similar. This is because the samsung tab has sold 1 million already, thus there is room in the Market for a small size. 8 inch would actually be perfect : smaller and lighter but sill a good size to produce stunning apps and would still make a good size to watch movies.

Due to the fact that a smaller iPad will cut into the sales of the regular iPad I can't see them creating another product....just improving on this one.

A 7 inch pad isn't much more portable than the current size. Neither fits into your pocket. I think the screen real estate is one of the Ipad's greatest strengths.

After reading a few Galaxy Tab reviews I really don't see Apple releasing a 7" iPad anytime soon.




Michael

We've been thinking the 7" vs. iPad question a lot. We think that 7" will always be a purely personal device, so it's competing with mobile phones.

Surprisingly iPad is more than a personal device. It's almost something like super-portable TV: you can consume media on iPad together with other people. It's better for this kind of shared media consumption than a laptop, because iPad's effective view angle is much better than laptop's. We have been play testing our upcoming iPad game and in addition to 2 players, there has been audience of over 5 people, all seeing and enjoying the game same time. This is not something that you see happening with laptops.

Thus, in our opinion, iPad is a totally new kind of device, while 7" tablets are a continuum of personal mobile devices.

We might be wrong, but we see Apple making a larger iPhone (5"?) than a smaller iPad.

I thought I would jump back in here because many are missing my point. As I said I agree that the current iPad is the perfect size. I also agree that the 7 inch is too small. My point is there are 1,000,000 people that disagree. The key to their purchase of the Galaxy Tab is that size was their top priority. The reason why I feel I can make such a definitive conclusion is the Tab has sold even though 1) effectively cost more than an iPad 2) not ready for prime time OS which Google even agrees 3) a lot less available apps.

My reasoning for Apple to release an iPad mini is to thwart the competition's foothold in the tablet market. Understand, that Apple has spent many, many years developing the tablet. It would be nice to see Apple reap more than just being the one to start the revolution. Look back at Apple's own history. If Apple had paid attention to the market and made sure they didn't let IBM develop a foothold, things could be quite different now. You all know the old saying, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it"

Steve Jobs is an elitist and he would probably cringe at the idea but this is a strategic move. This is to delay the competition so Apple can further unravel their master plan. I believe Apple has an overall plan that involves the iPhone, iPad and Apple TV. Look at the iPad mini as being like the iPod Touch. The iPod Touch is not a game changer device, but it fits a niche and will spread this user family experience to more people

Originally Posted by Alanfujii

I thought I would jump back in here because many are missing my point. As I said I agree that the current iPad is the perfect size. I also agree that the 7 inch is too small. My point is there are 1,000,000 people that disagree. The key to their purchase of the Galaxy Tab is that size was their top priority. The reason why I feel I can make such a definitive conclusion is the Tab has sold even though 1) effectively cost more than an iPad 2) not ready for prime time OS which Google even agrees 3) a lot less available apps.

My reasoning for Apple to release an iPad mini is to thwart the competition's foothold in the tablet market. Understand, that Apple has spent many, many years developing the tablet. It would be nice to see Apple reap more than just being the one to start the revolution. Look back at Apple's own history. If Apple had paid attention to the market and made sure they didn't let IBM develop a foothold, things could be quite different now. You all know the old saying, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it"

Steve Jobs is an elitist and he would probably cringe at the idea but this is a strategic move. This is to delay the competition so Apple can further unravel their master plan. I believe Apple has an overall plan that involves the iPhone, iPad and Apple TV. Look at the iPad mini as being like the iPod Touch. The iPod Touch is not a game changer device, but it fits a niche and will spread this user family experience to more people

As I stated in another thread the reason we won't see a smaller iPad is the simple fact that most of the market a 7in device would cut into would be iPad.....meaning profits would be a wash not counting the millions it would take to design it. Aside from all that Apple is known for creating a product and sticking to them (example the MacBook line).