Hasta La Gadget!

A little over a week ago, we reported that Apple had been denied the rights to the iPad mini trademark on the basis that “mini” was merely descriptive, rather than a definitive sort of name. However as luck would have it, the USPTO who had initially refused Apple’s claim to the trademark, has reversed their decision and stated that they are now allowing Apple to retain the iPad mini trademark, although there is a condition attached. The condition states that Apple now needs to place a disclaimer to the trademark application in which it states that Apple does not have the exclusive rights to the name, “Mini”.

Basically this allows Apple to protect the term “mini” when used together with the iPad, but it also means that other companies are allowed to use the “mini” term when paired with their own products. Some examples come to mind, such as the Samsung Galaxy S3 Mini, and the rumored Galaxy S4 Mini. This is a good move as we can only imagine how the legal battle between Apple and Samsung could escalate if both sides started suing each other over the “mini” moniker.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Apple Expected To Develop Digital Wallet By 2014 [Analyst], Cablevision’s Optimum for iPad App Starts Rolling Out Live TV Anywhere Update,

This week the folks at the United States Patent and Trademark Office have denied Apple’s first application for trademarking the term “iPad mini“. As it’s noted in the letter that was originally sent out back near the end of January, made public this week, the USPTO has re-stated that the “i” as well as the “Pad” bits of the application are fine, while the “mini” bit of the show needs to be a bit more descriptive. And the April Fools Jokes commence.

One of the more amazing takes on this situation comes from AppAdvice where they’ve falsified a couple of quotes from Apple, saying they’ll be moving forward with the name “iNewton” instead of iPad mini from this point forward. Sound like a reasonable action to you? This situation is odd for more than its subsequent jokes, mind you – while generally Apple has been granted trademarks such as these without fail here in the USA.

As noted by Patently Apple, the original submission of this patent application and the time between then and now, when the documents have been made public, is a real oddity. Also odd is the time between the denial, made on March 27th, and the time it was made public – several days later. That said, it’s certainly not the end of the iPad mini as we know it – Apple has the opportunity to re-submit its application to the USPTO without penalty.

Without a successful application by Apple to the USPTO, they’ll continue to only have a trademark on the name “iPad.” As the USPTO notes, the letter “i” before the name does successfully indicate that Apple is showing the device to work with the internet in their own unique way, much like the iPhone. Their current denial comes in the form of the “mini” which they say only says that the original iPad is being shown in a smaller size – effectively suggesting that Apple’s name isn’t something they can claim as their own naming convention.

No Joke: Apple must resubmit “iPad mini” trademark application is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Apple has been denied the trademark for its iPad Mini devices in the U.S. The United States Patent and Trademark Office denied Apple’s application because it says that the word “Mini” is “merely descriptive” of Apple’s iPad. The reviewer of the application stated, “the applied-for mark merely describes a feature or characteristic of the applicant’s goods.” Apple is able to appeal the decision, however, and will most likely be granted the trademark as long as it addresses all of the reasons why the application was denied.

The rejection letter was sent to Apple back in January 24th. The reviewer stated that the term Mini just described “something that is distinctively smaller than other members of its type or class.” The reviewer referred to other products with the term Mini slapped onto their descriptions as well, and stated that the word is so common, and that Apple’s use of it only describes “a small sized handheld tablet computer.

Apple needs to find a better way to distinguish the iPad Mini from the regular iPad in order to obtain the trademark. Alongside these grounds for refusal, the reviewer also stated that Apple is not allowed to submit images from its product webpages in its trademark applications. Something strange about that refusal is that it’s actually common for Apple to use images from its product webpages, and that this is the first time that USPTO has had a problem with it.

Apple has until July 24th to appeal its trademark application with the appropriate amendments, but Apple should already be well on its way to solving the issue. Apple’s iPad Mini has gained a lot of popularity in the past 6 months, with consumer interest in the device almost doubling from what it was before. You can check out our iPad Mini review in order to see if its a tablet you should get.

[via Apple Insider]

Apple gets denied the iPad Mini trademark is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Apple and Samsung’s relationship is not exactly the best of relationships, no thanks to the flurry of lawsuits that they have thrown against one another in the recent year. In fact, there are whispers going around that the second generation iPad mini tablets that were rumored to feature Retina Display resolution will no longer rely on Samsung to deliver the touch panels, but rather, Cupertino has decided to call upon the assistance of Innolux to help them out.

This outcome is predictable, although it will still cause ripples down the line, considering how both companies are still going up against one another in the court of law. Right now, most of the iPad mini displays are manufactured by Samsung, and this particular contract loss could deal a sizeable blow to the South Korean conglomerate’s bottom line, unless of course, they come up with a best selling tablet of their own to eat into the iPad mini’s sales. Looks like the law of the jungle operates here yet again, and executives at Innolux might want to prepare some bottles of bubbly to celebrate, too.

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Logitech has just released new version of its Keyboard for iPad and IPad mini. Both models work as cover cases and use a design principle that is now pretty successful for iPad keyboards. The Logitech Keyboard Folio for iPad ($99.99) is designed to provide the largest key size that Logitech could come up with, and “high-quality” materials, says Logitech. We haven’t tested one yet, so we can’t vouch for it, but the key travel and the overall design look reasonable, so now it’s mostly about how the key membranes perform. (more…)

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