Hasta La Gadget!

This week another release list has been shown with the SKU numbers of each of what appear to be 24 different iPad mini models coming rather soon to an Apple store near you. This listing shows that there will be two different colors – white and black (A and B), four different storage capacities (8, 16, 32, and 64GB), and three different kinds of wireless internet connectivity. These models will likely come in wi-fi only, 3G, and 4G LTE capability configurations right out of the gate.

The source for a new listing of SKU numbers (as shown below) delivered this image along with information about supply number to Apple Insider. They noted that the smallest device – that being the 8GB wi-fi only model, will be produced in the greatest numbers, while each model on its way up the scale will have different supply numbers based on capacity and connectivity. White and black, it seems, will be produced at the same levels as one another.

The retail lists shown so far – real or falsified as they were – have suggested that the 8GB wi-fi version of this next-generation iPad will cost around $249. At this price, the device would undercut the iPod touch in some cases, this leading skeptics to hold reservations about the final pricing scheme. With this many models of the iPad mini ready in the system already, we must assume Apple intends to sell quite a few of them, one way or another.

The iPad mini will likely be shown for the first time officially at the Apple event that will be taking place on October 23rd. This event will be covered live by SlashGear and will be appearing in full in our main news feed as well. Stick around our Apple portal for the whole show!

iPad mini release list clarified: two colors, three sizes is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

If you’re following along with the iPad mini and its imminent release, there are a collection of details you can readily assume to be true – even without Apple revealing the release date, the models, and the specifications in each device. This release will be primarily a filing of a market hole: where there’s no tablet in the market other than the iPad to placate the masses addicted to the idea that Apple’s solution is best, there will soon be two – or three, depending on how you look at the situation. If you want an iPad that costs less than $399 and you want it soon, you’ll only have to wait until November 2nd – if several sources saying the same thing are accurate.

With rumors abound that 24 models of new iPad-like devices have appeared in the Apple SKU listing in the sky, it would seem that there are two kinds of iPad mini on the way. You’ve got two different color combinations (black and white) up front, three different internal storage capacities (16GB, 32GB, and 64GB), and the option to have wi-fi-only or a mobile data connection. There being four different distinct code combinations (P101, 3, 5, or 7), we might be seeing four different color combinations instead of just two.

So that’s black, white, red, and green, six iPad minis in each category, three for wi-fi, three for mobile-data-equipped, with each of the three being 16, 32, or 64GB capacities. How does that sound to you? Another possibility is a fourth internal capacity size: 8GB.

With the iPad mini appearing to be looming with an October 23rd event date now on the books, it’s not out of the question that each of these units could be coming out on the 2nd of November. With a tablet made with the specifications that’ve been tipped many times over, we can assume we’ll have a device with a 7.85-inch display, a screen resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels and the same ratio as each iPad on the market today, and a bezel that’s significantly smaller than the current model.

These devices will appear larger than the Amazon Kindle Fire HD (the 7-inch version, at least), and will be larger than the Google Nexus 7 as well. With a price point somewhere between $200 and $300 based on estimations done with component costs, we’ll likely be seeing a competitor for the 7-inch tablet market that doesn’t beat their cost, but certainly does beat their desirability for the Apple-loyal fans in the world today. Expect a device that’s not going to rock the tablet world to its knees like the original iPad did, but one that fills the gap for Apple users who want to work with a slightly smaller device on a regular basis.

You’ll get the full lowdown when we hit up the main event on the 23rd – expect live updates from us right here on SlashGear from morning until night – you shall know all!

iPad mini release date and details splatter is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Apple has just invited members of the press to attend a product launch on October 23rd, where we assume the long-rumored iPad mini will be unveiled. The event will go down merely weeks after Apple took the wraps off of the iPhone 5 (and strangely enough, the Foo Fighters played their last show for the foreseeable future). It’s quite unlike Apple to throw two product parties in the fall, but if an entirely new iPad is being revealed, it may be a scenario that becomes more familiar in years to come. At this point, we’re left with far more questions than answers: will the iPad mini really ship with a Lightning port, while the Retina iPad — which was only introduced in March — continues to ship with the “old” Dock Connector? Will Apple really continue to refresh its two iPad products at different intervals? Will the (presumed) AT&T iPad mini actually include mobile hotspot functionality?

And while we’re at it, is Apple really going to throw a “one more thing” into the mix by bumping its 13-inch MacBook Pro into Retina territory? After all, tossing “little” into the invite could allude to a smaller iPad and an update to an already-small laptop. We’ll be there to bring you the blow-by-blow as it happens, so feel free to go ahead and take next Tuesday off. We’ll sign the approval form.

Filed under: Laptops, Tablets, Apple

Apple announces ‘Special Event’ for October 23rd — we’ll be there live! originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Oct 2012 12:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Most event teasers have at least some kind of grandiosity; we’re not under illusions that they have to be modest. At the same time, ASUS may have crossed a humility barrier with a teaser for an October 23rd event launching its upcoming Vivo Tabs and (possibly TAICHI- or Transformer Book-linked) Vivo Books. In the space of 42 seconds, ASUS likens the New York City announcement for its touchscreen Windows 8 devices to the Apollo moon missions, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and having a child — a bit much for slabs of aluminum and glass, we think. There’s not much to see of the systems themselves beyond what we already know, although Notebook Italia has noticed at least one reseller listing a Vivo Book S200 laptop with an 11.6-inch touchscreen, a Core i3, 4GB of RAM and a 320GB hard drive for €499 ($647). That price would go a long way towards ASUS’ promise of making touch “available to everyone…” we’re just not convinced it’s as important as Elvis.

Continue reading ASUS teases October 23rd Vivo Book and Vivo Tab event, likens it to world history (video)

Filed under: Laptops, Tablets, ASUS

ASUS teases October 23rd Vivo Book and Vivo Tab event, likens it to world history (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Oct 2012 09:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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When word first started trickling out that Samsung planned to make a mini version of the Galaxy S III, it had the air of plausibility — we’ve heard from many a person about the too-large size of that phone for their hands. Then, a press invitation confirmed that “something small” was in the works, and finally mobile chief JK Shin confirmed that a smartphone of that name would be announced today in Frankfurt, Germany.

Now Samsung’s spilled all the beans, and revealed the new Galaxy S III mini, a slightly paler version of its bigger brother in specs as well as screen size. Our own short time with the phone certainly revealed that its pushing all the same “inspired by nature” buttons of the original Galaxy S III (and the Galaxy Note II), with the same exact rounded pebble shape and layout. The German marketing rep we spoke to said his company’s research found that users wanted the same phone design as the 4.8-inch Galaxy S III, but in a smaller form factor — to more easily fit smaller hands and pockets. Samsung said those folks don’t necessarily need or want the most powerful phone they can get their hands on and are content to have mid-level specs — so the mini carries a 1GHz dual-core processor, 1GB RAM, a 4-inch, WVGA AMOLED screen and 32GB max of memory.

It remains to be seen if those specs will dilute the Galaxy S brand, but in any event, we found the phone certainly doesn’t cramp our regular-sized hands like its older brother can (let alone the Note II), and the comfortable shape of the original works even better in a mini size. The button placement is identical to the larger handset, and the phone will come out of the box with nearly identical Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean functionality — with the added Samsung TouchWiz twist, of course. That includes new niceties like the multi-screen option, and a brief play with the phone shows the same butter factor, even with the lesser dual-core processor. So might this mini-me Galaxy S III model sway you over to the Samsung Galaxy family if you disdain the giant screen of its predecessor? Check out the gallery below to see how the size compares with the rest of the family, and a hands-on video and interview with Samsung Germany rep Mario Winter, both after the break.

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy S III mini pops up, we go hands-on (video)

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Samsung

Samsung Galaxy S III mini pops up, we go hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Oct 2012 13:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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