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Hope for a 5-7 incher?

F

feflower

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jun 25, 2009
145
0
I'm reposting this here after someone suggested I move it from the Touch forum.

Well I knew there was no chance of a smaller iPad yesterday, but I'm still hoping for the rumors to come true in the next event or so.

What do you think? Any possibility of these coming true? I know it is speculation, but I'd like to hear what people think.

I know a lot of people wonder why 5-7 incher is necessary and question the demand for one. But I'm sure that it would be a hit with people who want something the size of a paperback to comfortably read pdfs, books, but small enough to hold in one hand, thumb type, and store away in a purse, jacket pocket, etc.

--basically the smallest size possible that makes reading comfortable and convenient.

Please Steve, I want one before I go away for fieldwork next May
 
Me too. If there's a 7 inch iPad, I'd buy it so long as it has all the capabilities of the current one .... for the time being, all we can do is hope.

A retina display would be nice too - but I doubt it. Too costly. I don't care about a camera although for Skype it might be good - but I do care about size, speed, and storage.
 
7" possible - maybe before Christmas, probably when the whole iPad line refreshes in Spring 2011.

However IMHO a 5" too close to iPod touch & iPhone.
 
My guess is that if there is going to be a 7" iPad it will be introduced in November along with iOS 4.2. I don't see anything smaller than 7" though. And to make it attractive it should have all the perks of the iPod touch (front and rear cameras, high res screen maybe not as good as retina) plus 3G connectivity. We'll see...
 
GadgetAddict said:
My guess is that if there is going to be a 7" iPad it will be introduced in November along with iOS 4.2. I don't see anything smaller than 7" though. And to make it attractive it should have all the perks of the iPod touch (front and rear cameras, high res screen maybe not as good as retina) plus 3G connectivity. We'll see...
Click to expand...

Agreed except i would expect it to be announced in january like the original. Im just wondering wether the commercial success of the galaxy tab will play any part in apples decision. If that sells well does anyone think apple would be more inclined to produce a 7-inch ipad?

Off topic engadget has done an excellent preview on the
Galaxy tab.
 
7 inch would be perfect for taking photos. If Apple ports a decent version of iMovie to the iPad and 5megapixel, 720p video camera to the iPad then you will have a device that can edit video with a decent size screen; iPhoto (which can edit photos) would be cool especially with a 5 megapixel camera.

The screen real estate on an iPad would be a brilliant combination.
 
5 or 7 inch iPad will only be produced if Jobs personally sees its need. I don't think he sees it yet.
 
To me I think that the current size is perfect and if they were to change the size of the iPad they should make it a little bigger not smaller.
 
I have a theory that 90% of folks on this board kvetching for a 7" iPad would never buy one even if it did ever come out, which it probably won't, anyway.

And 7" at 16:9 ratio? There's a vaporware Acer Android tablet out there somewhere with your name on it waiting to be picked up. :)
 
gatearray said:
I have a theory that 90% of folks on this board kvetching for a 7" iPad would never buy one even if it did ever come out, which it probably won't, anyway.

And 7" at 16:9 ratio? There's a vaporware Acer Android tablet out there somewhere with your name on it waiting to be picked up. :)
Click to expand...

There is also a real Samsung Galaxy Tab (7", 16:9) with absolutely superior hardware to iPad.
 
MacRumorUser said:
7" possible - maybe before Christmas, probably when the whole iPad line refreshes in Spring 2011.

However IMHO a 5" too close to iPod touch & iPhone.
Click to expand...

It's not really. Apple made it clear that the Touch would not have GPS or 3G since that would raise the cost past their price points. That didn't mean that there was not still a market in the 5-7 inch range for such a device. It's just that it would cost more than a Touch. iPad users are willing to pay a premium for those features so the market is there.
 
gatearray said:
I have a theory that 90% of folks on this board kvetching for a 7" iPad would never buy one even if it did ever come out, which it probably won't, anyway.

And 7" at 16:9 ratio? There's a vaporware Acer Android tablet out there somewhere with your name on it waiting to be picked up. :)
Click to expand...

I would expect a 7 inch iPad to have the same resolution and aspect ratio as the current iPad so that all programs would run naturally.
 
MindsEye said:
Agreed except i would expect it to be announced in january like the original. Im just wondering wether the commercial success of the galaxy tab will play any part in apples decision. If that sells well does anyone think apple would be more inclined to produce a 7-inch ipad?

Off topic engadget has done an excellent preview on the
Galaxy tab.
Click to expand...

Absolutely I think that Apple will be pressured to offer a 7 inch tablet just to maintain their market share and compete in that niche. Since it brings all the iTunes features and Apps along it's tablet would be a heavy favorite.
Remember that it was reported that there were 3G versions of the Touch being tested and I believe it was being considered as a candidate
for the smaller tablet market. Steve must have decided that an iPad model was more appropriate for that niche. There are still good things to come before Xmas.
 
WLS said:
Absolutely I think that Apple will be pressured to offer a 7 inch tablet just to maintain their market share and compete in that niche. Since it brings all the iTunes features and Apps along it's tablet would be a heavy favorite.
Remember that it was reported that there were 3G versions of the Touch being tested and I believe it was being considered as a candidate
for the smaller tablet market. Steve must have decided that an iPad model was more appropriate for that niche. There are still good things to come before Xmas.
Click to expand...

That niche, as currently defined by the Samsung Galaxy is a smartphone niche, not a tablet niche. So unless Apple wants to offer a device encumbered by yet another contract it's hard to directly complete. And do people REALLY want a big phone? I love the iPhone 4 at its current size. Double that and it loses a lot of its appeal - for me, at least.
 
poloponies said:
That niche, as currently defined by the Samsung Galaxy is a smartphone niche, not a tablet niche. So unless Apple wants to offer a device encumbered by yet another contract it's hard to directly complete. And do people REALLY want a big phone? I love the iPhone 4 at its current size. Double that and it loses a lot of its appeal - for me, at least.
Click to expand...

No I don't see that as a smartphone niche at all. Even Samsung calls the Galaxy Tab an android Tablet. Plus there is the Toshiba Folio in that market now too. The largest smartphone is the Dell 5 incher and that doesn't seem to be selling all that much because it is still awkward to hold. If you feel like a dork holding it to your ear you are going to not use it as a phone. About 4 inches seems to be the limit in size for a smartphone to be accepted.
Do people really want a big phone? Of course they don't but people do want a smaller tablet, the difference is in the functionality.
 
WLS said:
No I don't see that as a smartphone niche at all. Even Samsung calls the Galaxy Tab an android Tablet. Plus there is the Toshiba Folio in that market now too. The largest smartphone is the Dell 5 incher and that doesn't seem to be selling all that much because it is still awkward to hold. If you feel like a dork holding it to your ear you are going to not use it as a phone. About 4 inches seems to be the limit in size for a smartphone to be accepted.
Do people really want a big phone? Of course they don't but people do want a smaller tablet, the difference is in the functionality.
Click to expand...

Well, it has a phone, so despite calling it a "tablet" it's a smartphone by definition (and Samsung's not the retailer - someone ultimately has to figure out how to best sell this device). The question is, will it be marketed as a phone (i.e. with a contract) in the US? Engadget now says that it's being sold at iPad price points abroad, with no contract. If true, that sounds like a mistake.
 
WLS said:
I would expect a 7 inch iPad to have the same resolution and aspect ratio as the current iPad so that all programs would run naturally.
Click to expand...

Excactly if the the current gen iphone and ipod touch can handle 960 * 640 with a 3.5inch screen i see no reason why apple would need to adopt a different screen resolution for a 7inch compared to the 9.7inch. Still all we can do is hope i think if there is a sizeable niche for 7inch tablets apple will eventually cater to it maybe not in the upcoming refresh but soon enough.
 
lilo777 said:
There is also a real Samsung Galaxy Tab (7", 16:9) with absolutely superior hardware to iPad.
Click to expand...

And then there is Samsung with their lame attempt at an iPad competitor, unfortunately with a lame tiny screen and inferior hardware and software. Nobody would want to be seen with it, not even the trolls posting on MacRumors. :D
 
gatearray said:
I have a theory that 90% of folks on this board kvetching for a 7" iPad would never buy one even if it did ever come out, which it probably won't, anyway.

And 7" at 16:9 ratio? There's a vaporware Acer Android tablet out there somewhere with your name on it waiting to be picked up. :)
Click to expand...

Exactly.

7" isn't going to fit in a pocket any more than a 9.7".
Unless you are Steve Colbert:
http://obamapacman.com/2010/06/step...urnal-ipad-suit-would-look-good-on-my-lawyer/
 
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