Chinese site claims design of Apple's 7-inch iPad is 'finished'
Citing rumors from production plants in Shenzhen, China, Shanzai.com reported Friday that Apple is in fact working on a 7-inch tablet, though its alleged design is said to be more like an iPhone 4.
"Yes there will be a (7-inch) tablet, yes it's well underway in terms of product development and in fact itâs a finished product," the report said. "Yes 5 plus different designs have been floating around to help Apple protect itself from people discovering its next product look and feel but... the final design will in fact bear more resemblance to the iPhone 4 stylings than the original iPad design."
Rumors began to crop up in April, soon after the iPad launched in the U.S., that Apple was working on a smaller, cheaper version of the iPad. The reports have primarily come from overseas publications citing sources in Apple's supply chain.
In August, the Chinese-language Economic Daily News claimed that Apple was pursuing an iPad with a smaller screen and lighter weight, because the current 9.7-inch device is too big and heavy for some users. That report alleged that the new model will cut its weight from 700 grams to 500 grams.
Though questionable, the persistent rumors have been specific in some cases, with another report claiming the device will feature a Cortex-A9 processor and a screen resolution of 1,024-by-768 pixels. However, that same DigiTimes report also inaccurately claimed that a new Apple TV, powered by the AMD Fusion hybrid processor, would connect to Apple's App Store and go into mass production in December.
113 Comments
I sure hope they wake up and make it 16x9.
I sure hope you wake up and see it's not an Apple product.
And Apple made the iPad 4:3 for a reason. You want 16:9, buy a Dell tablet.
I would welcome such a move because the current iPad is too heavy to hold it for long period of time reading something on it. After a while it feels like its made out of lead. I don't mind the size but it should be lighter! A 7'' light tablet would be great.
Does that mean current model 10'' screen size will be discontinued?
Does that mean current model 10'' screen size will be discontinued?
At 2 to 3 million sales a month within the first 6 months I wouldn?t think so.
Someone please tell me where a 7" iPad would fit in Apple's product line? There's a 64GB iPod Touch for $399 and a 9.7" 16GB iPad for $499. I don't see Apple offering a 7" tablet at $399 - the same price as their top of the line iPod touch, and it makes no sense to price it more than the iPad.
The only thing that would make sense is if Apple added more bells and whistles to the $499 10" iPad - like a Camera/GPS/Gyroscope, and increase the price point by $100, leaving the $499 price point for the 7" iPad. Still, I don't see that happening as the 10" iPad is a runaway success, and I don't see Apple doing anything to tamper with that.