IpadMini
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iPad mini demand high in China
Apple's shrunken tablet is selling just fine here at home, but the iPad mini already has a worldwide audience. As AllThingsD reports, the mini is selling fantastically in China, with the tablet selling out nearly universally in all its various colors and storage options. In a country notorious for counterfeit versions of Apple gadgets, it's good to see that the genuine offering is getting its share of the pie. Of course, if the new, tiny iPad is leading to empty shelves, it might be a good time for Cupertino to examine its retail supply chain in the region to capitalize on the apparent feeding frenzy that is taking place.
Production lines running through Chinese New Year to meet iPad mini demand
As you celebrate this holiday season with a game of Angry Birds Star Wars on that new iPad mini, take a moment to consider the workers in China who are about to forego their traditional two-week Chinese New Year break. According to United Daily, at least two of Apple's suppliers in the country are planning to run their production lines right through the holiday to meet Chinese demand for the iPhone 5 and iPad mini. Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd. will run at least some of its lines, while Flexium Interconnect, which makes Apple's printed circuit boards, is keeping its factory in Kunshan, Jiangsu Province open with the help of students. While it appears that iPhone 5 supply has finally met demand in the US, the iPad mini continues to be hard to find here despite ship times from Apple's online store shrinking to one week earlier this month. [Via Apple Insider]
Apple releases iOS 6.0.2 update for iPhone 5 and iPad mini, promises fix for WiFi bug
It doesn't look to bring with it any major changes, but Apple has just released its latest iOS update, which takes things up to version 6.0.2. According to the company, this one primarily addresses a bug that "could impact WiFi." An issue that, incidentally, has been at the center of a number of previous iOS updates. You should be able to find the update now or in the near future in either iTunes or Software Update on your iOS device. Update: As MacStories notes, this particular update appears to only be for the iPhone 5 and iPad mini.
Morgan Stanley: iPad mini cannibalization "overblown"
A survey of over 1,000 U.S. consumers was published today by Morgan Stanley and AlphaWise, showing that although sales of the iPad mini are cannibalizing sales of some of the full-size iPads, concerns over the trend are "overblown." That was the opinion of Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty, who said that the numbers show that Apple's risk over cannibalization by the mini is "manageable." The numbers she's referring to indicate that 47 percent of iPad mini purchasers are new to Apple, which is slightly less than the 56 percent number for the full-size iPad. There were other positive signs for Apple; the survey showed that about the same percentage of potential buyers -- 50 percent -- plan on purchasing an iPad over other tablets as they did in December 2011. The news isn't as rosy for Amazon's Kindle Fire, which saw a 5 percent drop in respondents planning a purchase. Microsoft's new Surface tablet is apparently interesting to 12 percent of the respondents, while Samsung's tablets showed a 7 percent rise in purchase intentions over December 2011. Google's Nexus tablet also showed a solid rise of 6 percent, while all other tablets saw a huge drop in interest from 24 percent last year to only 5 percent in 2012.
BookBook arrives for iPad mini, delivers a novella-sized tablet disguise
If Twelve South's BookBook for iPad is War and Peace, its new BookBook for iPad mini case is The Old Man and the Sea: a lot smaller, but no less appreciated. The black, brown or red shell protects Apple's tiny tablet with real leather in much the same way as its larger cousin, including a signature support frame for lifting the iPad to more natural angles. Photographers can also briefly peek the tablet out of its shell to snap photos. While there's only a $10 discount versus the full-size BookBook, we'll live with the $70 price if we can pretend we're engrossed with some light reading while we play Letterpress.
iPad mini online ad views outpace Kindle Fire
Here's some impressive (if anecdotal) evidence that consumers are going gaga for the iPad mini. Mobile advertising platform Millennial Media says that the tiny tablet has seen a big increase in the interest level surrounding it since launching last month. According to the company's data, views of ads for the iPad mini increased by 28 percent every day in November, something that's lead Millennial Media to declare the device a "game changer." To provide some perspective, the company noted that following its launch in November 2011, the Kindle Fire -- no slouch in terms of popularity itself -- saw a 19 percent increase in ad impressions on its network each day during its release month. The comparison prompted Millennial Media to predict a strong holiday 2012 season for Apple, but we don't think you need an MBA to know that's a given. [Via AllThingsD]
Waterfield's CitySlicker is a luxurious home for your iPad mini
The iPad mini hit at the perfect time. There are a growing number of cases available for the holiday season, and after an initial dearth of decent iPad mini cases, many are now available. Waterfield Designs' CitySlicker falls on the high end of the spectrum. It's a luxurious sleeve that can easily be customized into a shoulder bag and look professional and stylish. Design The CitySlicker is styled like a small messenger bag, with a butter-soft leather flap that secures to the sleeve with two snaps. The main interior pocket is made of three layers: impact-resistant plastic, high-grade neoprene and a padded liner. There are two mesh pockets in the front of the sleeve and a zipped mesh pocket that shares the liner with the inside of the case. Additional options from the Waterfield Designs' site allows you to customize the color of the leather flap, add on a carrying handle or strap or just have the D-rings installed so you can use your own strap. %Gallery-173137% Functionality The CitySlicker does one thing really well, and that's hold an iPad mini. Once you start loading items in the pockets, then you start adding issues with bulk. Waterfield's site suggests that you can put pens, your iPad charger and iPhone in the pockets. You can, but the iPad mini's wall charger creates a noticeable bulk when the case is closed. Depending on the case on your iPhone, you might have to remove it before stowing it in the CitySlicker or the bag won't snap shut. Because of the tight sleeve, you can't keep a regular case on your iPad mini in case you fancied a stand for your iPad. Filling the pockets makes the CitySlicker pretty heavy quite quickly, and you might find you want to add that carrying handle or strap if you're using it on its own. It easily tucks into larger bags, such as my backpack and messenger. Still, you're not going to be able to get a lot into the CitySlicker without creating unsightly bulges or a lot of weight. At the most, I'd suggest adding an iPhone (sans case), the Lightning USB cable without the wall charger and a couple of pens to these pockets to save on weight. The protection for the iPad mini is fantastic though. This bag can easily survive an accidental fall off the desk -- kids, don't try this at home. The liner is plush and very soft. You won't have to worry about the front or back of the iPad mini getting scratched up in this case. Conclusion The CitySlicker is a beautifully built case, and you can't dispute the quality. All of Waterfield's bags are made in San Francisco, so nothing is outsourced. The CitySlicker is the Rolls-Royce of iPad mini sleeves. However, if you plan to pack a lot of accessories, it's not the right sleeve for you. You might want to check out Waterfield's iPad Travel Express, which is more geared toward carrying a lot of accessories with your iPad. Or, if money isn't an issue, check out a Muzetto. The CitySlicker for the iPad mini is $89. A model for the third- and fourth-generation iPad is available for $99. Given the materials used and the fact that it's produced in the US, I think this is an excellent price for what you're getting. Pros Extremely high quality. Built in the USA. Looks fantastic. The sleeve for the iPad mini is plush and provides a lot of protection. No worries about getting scratches while using this case. Easily fits in larger bags. Cons Have to carry a separate stand if you need one for your iPad. Not a lot of room for accessories. Creates a lot of bulge and weight if you add too much. Who is it for? People who want a stylish iPad mini sleeve with a lot of protection. Giveaway And now, you get the chance to win a Waterfield CitySlicker for the iPad mini! Please be sure to read the rules: Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older. To enter, fill out the form below completely and click or tap the Submit button. The entry must be made before December 14, 2012, 11:59 PM Eastern Standard Time. You may enter only once. One winner will be selected and will receive a CitySlicker iPad mini case valued at $89. Click Here for complete Official Rules. Loading...
Griffin's take on charge and sync Lightning cables now up for grabs
Sure, Belkin and Scosche have already offered up Lightning accessories, but now Griffin has its own solutions up for sale: Lightning charge and sync cables, which it says are the first of their kind from a third party (authorized by Apple). Ringing up at $25, the four-foot coiled USB to Lightning cable aims to put the kibosh on kinks and tangles. Those who prefer a more straightforward solution, however, can pick up a two-foot cable without the curls for $17, or a three-foot flavor for two additional greenbacks. There's also mention of a 9.8-foot-long version, but it doesn't appear to be available on Griffin's site just yet. To snag the wires, give the neighboring source link a jab.
Scalpers greet iPad mini launch in Beijing
In the past when new Apple products have been released in mainland China, near-riots have taken place at Apple Stores when crowds of legitimate customers and groups of scalpers have descended upon the stores to grab the limited stock of new product. Apple instituted a system called iReserve to quell the crowds and make sure that legitimate purchasers can get their new goodies -- but a Wall Street Journal China Real Time Report post shows that scalpers are still getting the bulk of newly released products. A Wall Street Journal reporter saw a herd of scalpers (see picture above) standing by collecting iPad minis -- which went on sale today in the mainland -- from Chinese customers in exchange for cold, hard cash. The reporter was trying to film the scene, and was then surrounded by angry scalpers who were upset with the "invasion of their privacy." The reporter responded that they were doing business in a public place, after which point they began to "kick, swat and push him as Apple and mall security stood by." Despite the action at the Sanlitun Village mall in Beijing, many iPad fans were able to get their hands on the new device. Apple currently has a 71.4 percent market share in China, with Samsung -- makers of the rival Galaxy Note -- at a distant 3.5 percent share.
Make text more legible on iPad mini
While the iPad mini is smaller, lighter and cuter than the regular 9.7-inch version, some people find text on the smaller screen to be hard to read. Some apps -- Kindle, Instapaper, iBooks and more -- have their own controls for making text larger, but what do you do for those built-in iOS apps? Macworld's Lex Friedman supplied an easy solution to the mini's small text problem today that we're passing along to you. Pick up that iPad mini, fire up the Settings app, then tap on General > Accessibility. You'll find a button that says "Large Text" on it. Tap it, and select a font size from one of the many that are displayed. Once this is accomplished, text in apps like Messages, Notes, Mail and Contacts are all much easier to read in the larger font size. Friedman warns that this doesn't work in all iOS apps, of course. For example, Apple's Calendar app still displays text in the usual tiny font, and many third-party apps ignore the accessibility settings anyway. There's one more thing you can do to read those tiny letters on your iPad mini screen -- use the handy reverse-pinch gesture to magnify the text. While that's only a temporary solution, it may make it possible to read that message from your girlfriend and figure out if it says "I'm leaving you" or "I'm loving you"...
iPad mini ship times improve to 1 week in US
Good news for those of you hoping to get (or give) an iPad mini this holiday season: shipping times for the smallest iPad have improved to just one week. That includes all models of the iPad mini -- 16, 32, and 64 GB in black or white and of the WiFi or cellular variety. Right now the one-week ship time is only showing in the US Apple online store. There's a chance that international stores may see similar ship times soon, however when shipping times improve globally the reduced times usually show up in Asia Pacific regions first. The fact that the reduced times are currently only showing up in the US online store could signify that Apple is allocating a significant portion of their stock to give priority to US market holiday sales. As of the time of this writing Apple is promising US customers that orders placed before midnight on December 12 will arrive in time to put under the tree on Christmas.
iPad, iPad mini win battery life shootout among tablets
UK consumer watchdog site Which? has tested the world's leading tablets to see how their battery life compares and both the iPad with Retina display and the iPad mini came out on top by a large margin. To be fair to all tablets, Which? took into account the screen size and brightness of each one. First, testers divided the tablets into two categories: those with screen sizes of 9.4-inches and larger and those with screen sizes of 7.9-inches and smaller. Then the company used a light meter to set the screen brightness of each tablet to 200 nits. For its tests, Which? measured the battery life of the tablets while using WiFi and 3G connections (if applicable) for web browsing and while watching videos. Out of the seven tablets tested in the 10-inch category for WiFi browsing, the iPad with Retina display handily beat out the rest of the competition. It tallied up a total of 811 minutes of WiFi browsing (that's 13.5 hours). The iPad 2 came in a distant second place at 590 minutes (9.8 hours). By comparison, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 came in at 532 minutes (8.8 hours) and the Microsoft Surface RT came in at 501 minutes (8.3 hours). The Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime came in at the bottom with a mere 335 minutes (5.5 hours). Of the five tablets tested in the 7-inch category the iPad mini was the big winner -- and by a wide margin. It came in at 783 minutes (13 hours) while the runner up, the Amazon Kindle Fire HD, came in at 591 minutes (9.8 hours). The Nexus 7 scored third at 550 minutes (9.1 hours) while the Amazon Kindle Fire came in at 437 minutes (7.2 hours) and the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 came in last at 425 minutes (seven hours).
Apple confirms iPhone 5 coming to China on December 14th, iPads due December 7th
Tim Cook may love secrecy, but those pesky government notices always seem to rain on his classified parades. Apple has confirmed that the fourth-generation iPad and iPad mini will arrive in China on December 7th, while the iPhone 5 turns up a week later on December 14th. Customers eager to reserve the devices can do so the day before launch, and while the company hasn't detailed which networks the hardware is coming to, we're reasonably sure that China Unicom and China Telecom will be making some announcements of their own very soon.
Making third-party Lightning connectors
Apple's new Lightning connector means big business for officially licensed accessory makers, but even for third-party manufacturers without the support of Cupertino, production marches on. As MacRumors reports, one such unauthorized accessory company called iPhone5mod is offering a glimpse inside its new production facility where dozens of hands are busy mimicking the Lightning standard. The company already offers a host of accessories for the iPhone 5 and iPad mini, using what it claims is now a nearly identical copy of Apple's own Lightning connectors. You can check out a short video tour of iPhone5mod's production line below, or see the full gallery of images on the company's website.
This iPad mini ad in Time is pretty fantastic
With its Newsstand initiative, it would seem that Apple is seeking to speed the decline of traditional print publications. In the case of its latest print ad, however, the company partnered with one of the industry's biggest names with results that can only be called perfect. We're talking about the iPad mini ad Apple ran on the back cover of Time Magazine's latest issue, which you can see above (larger version here). A similar cover-clone ad appears on this week's New Yorker. Posted on Reddit by redditor Royale-w-Cheese, the ad features an actual-size iPad mini on a white background. On its screen is the cover of the same Time issue, just as it would appear on the real device. The only text is the official iPad mini logo. It's a great example of minimalist design sometimes being best, and gets across the point that iPad mini is capable of delivering magazine content -- even showing what it will look like. It's worth noting that historically, such tight alignment between advertising and editorial probably would have fallen afoul of Time Inc.'s legendary church and state separation, but in this case it appears that Apple (a major Time advertiser) managed to overcome any objections. In a way, it's a win-win for Apple and Time, as the cover is technically promoting Time's own presence on the iPad Newsstand. What do you think of the ad? Share your thoughts in the comments!
Korg's iPolysix synth app takes your iPad back to the '80s (video)
Synthesizers are notoriously expensive, especially some vintage models, but how'd you like a Korg Polysix for the bargain price of $14.99? Well, as long as you've got an iPad (or a mini), that's now possible with the iPolysix app released today. The '80s-era analog polyphonic synth is "fully replicated," with plenty of additional tools for tablet composers -- the new Polyseq step sequencer, dual Kaoss Pads with chordal support, and a "production environment" with two synths, a drum machine and mixer. You can also publish your creations and remix tracks with other users via the SoundCloud-integrated Polyshare feature. If you're hemming and hawing about a purchase, make up your mind soon, as the app's price doubles on January 1st. You won't find it in the Play store, but the Android Polysix app we saw running on Miselu's Neiro prototype leads us to believe Google's OS won't be excluded from the jam session entirely. Advert / app demo after the break. [Thanks, fsk1138]
Samsung adds new iPad, iPad mini and iPod to lawsuit, will peek at Apple / HTC settlement
Ready for some more legal mumbo-jumbo? We're happy to oblige: Samsung is asking Judge Paul Grewal to amend its patent infringement allegations to include Apple's latest 4th and 5th generation iPad and iPod Touch, as well as the 7.9-inch iPad mini. Sammy says it's arguing on the side of efficiency, noting that the new hardware is up against the very same claims as the iPhone 5 it added to the case last week, asserting that their inclusion wouldn't be a burden to the court. Grewal, who was expecting this motion, is also being asked to decide if older iPod hardware is covered by Samsung's original infringement contention, which vaguely described "all Apple products including a built-in speaker and an external audio output port," as violators. The Judge also recently approved Samsung's request to sneak a peek at HTC and Apple's recent settlement agreement. The proceedings seem to keep Grewal and his gavel busy, but at least your legalese loving uncle will have something to drone on about over Thanksgiving dinner.
The Daily Roundup for 11.21.2012
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
iPad mini (Verizon LTE): what's changed?
Well, what's this, then? Another little tablet from Apple? We surprised ourselves by being quite fond of the first iPad mini, which crossed our desks just a few weeks ago. It strikes the perfect blend of size, performance and capability, but without a proper wireless connection its usability on the road is definitely hampered. Thin and light devices like these were meant to come with you when you leave the house, and you shouldn't leave high-speed data behind. So, we're very glad to now be testing the $459 LTE version of that very tablet, this one Verizon-flavored. It's every bit as thin and very nearly as light as its WiFi-only predecessor but can send and receive your precious (and also your more disposable) data with way more oomph than before. Is such freedom of connectivity worth the $130 price premium? And, just how bad is the hit to battery life? Let's find out, together.
JFK worker who helped steal 3600 iPad minis nabbed by FBI
Justice has prevailed! The FBI has arrested a worker at New York's JFK airport who acted as a lookout for a pair of accomplices who stole 3,600 iPad minis last week. Renel Rene Richardson (not to be confused with René Ritchie of iMore.com) was arrested after co-workers told Port Authority detectives that he had made inquiries about when the iPad minis were supposed to arrive, as well as where he might get a forklift. The New York Post stated that after being arrested, Richardson accompanied Port Authority detectives on a search for the getaway truck on Long Island. It's not known whether the stolen iPads have been recovered, or if they're in the process of being fenced. Apple 2.0's Philip Elmer-DeWitt noted that Apple probably has the serial numbers of the heisted minis on file, but won't be able to trace their location until they are activated. Elmer-DeWitt also pointed out that dozens of new iPad minis were being listed Sunday morning on Craigslist (see listing at the top of this post). While this might not be associated with the JFK iPad heist, the advertiser is certainly trying to move the merchandise...
