Today, during Apple’s October media event, they unveiled a new iPad mini and announced the 4th-generation iPad. This above video is a summary of the new iPads in less than two and a half minutes.
The fourth-generation iPad is really more of a minor update than anything else. Featuring the same 9.7-inch Retina display with over 3.1 million total pixels and 264 pixels per inch, the new fourth-generation iPad’s design is identical to that of its predecessor.
The new iPad is built with 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi for up to twice the performance and offers support for a broader range of LTE technology. The major difference is the addition of Apple’s all-new A6X chip (if the iPhone 5 has shown us anything, it’s that the A6′s performance is outstanding), couple that with quad-core graphics and the fourth-generation iPad offers absolutely incredible performance. The device’s 30-pin connector has evolved to adopt Apple’s redesigned 80% smaller lightning connector. Also, as far as the cameras are concerned, nothing’s changed.
The brand new iPad Mini will be sold in the same 3 capacities as the full-sized iPad: 16GB, 32GB and 64GB. The new device measures 7.8 inches in height, 5.3 inches in width, .28 inches in depth and weighs just .68 pounds. The display is nearly identical to the iPad 2′s display, but measures only 7.9-inches instead of 9.7 and has a resolution of 1024-by-768. Apple’s iPad mini is powered by a similar dual-core A5 processor as the one found in the iPad 2.
With the same LTE technology as the 4th-generation iPad, the new iPad mini will be sold in cellular-capable variants for AT&T, Verizon and Sprint carriers in the US. 802.11a/b/g/n brings increased Wi-Fi performance. The device is also equipped with a 1.2MP front-facing 720p HD FaceTime camera and a 5MP iSight rear-facing camera capable of recording 1080p video and is equipped with Apple’s lightning connector. The 16GB model starts at $329, a $100 premium is added for the 32GB version and a $200 premium for the 64GB with a $130 premium for the cellular-capable iPad mini models. The fourth-generation iPad models will retain the same pricing structure as their predecessors.
The new iPads will be available for pre-order October 26th and stores should receive stock of Wi-Fi-only models on November 2nd – the cellular-equipped iPads will be available two weeks later.
