Apple unveils smaller iPad Mini

Apple unveils smaller iPad Mini tablet Tuesday's Apple event starts with MacBook, iMac updates Steve Jobs railed against 7-inch tablets, but customers seem to want the smaller size Editor's note: The Apple event is underway. We will be updating this story as news is announced. For real-time updates, follow @cnntech on Twitter. San Jose, California (CNN) -- Apple on Tuesday introduced a smaller version of its popular tablet, called the iPad Mini. The device is 7.2mm thick, or the thickness of a ncil. Its screen dimensions are the same as the larger iPad, so all apps will work the same on the new, smaller tablet. "It's not just a shrunken-down iPad," Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller told the audience at a media event here. As with other recent Apple events, today's main announcement wasn't much of a secret. Leaks ahead of the event sketched out most of the relevant details, from dimensions of the smaller iPad to what sizes it would come in. The Apple event started off with upgrades to the Mac lineup, and a joke about expectations for the day. "You knew there would be something called 'mini' in this presentation, didn't you?" said Apple senior vice-president Phil Schiller, while presenting an update of the company's smallest MacBook, the Mac mini. Followers were awaiting what the tech press has labeled the "iPad Mini," expected to be a smaller version of Apple's genre-defining tablet. Schiller opened by unveiling the new version of Apple's top-selling MacBook, the 13-inch MacBook Pro. The new version has a high-definition "retina display" screen for the first time and is 3/4 of an inch thick -- 20 percent thinner than the current 13-inch MacBook Pro. It weighs 3.5 pounds, making it the lightest MacBook Pro ever, Schiller said. Price starts at $1,699. The aforementioned Mac Mini starts at $599 for 4 GB of RAM. Both begin shipping today. Schiller also showed off a sleeker, more powerful and otherwise enhanced version of Apple's iconic desktop, the iMac. It starts at $1,299. They start shipping in November. But people also were expecting a smaller iPad to be announced. Apple's full-sized iPad has been a huge success and still dominates the overall tablet market, so why go small now? .cnnArticleGalleryNav{border:1px solid #000;cursor:pointer;float:left;height:25px;text-align:center;width:25px} .cnnArticleGalleryNavOn{background-color:#C03;border:1px solid #000;float:left;height:25px;text-align:center;width:20px} .cnnArticleGalleryNavDisabled{background-color:#222;border:1px solid #000;color:#666;float:left;height:25px;text-align:center;width:25px} .cnnArticleExpandableTarget{background-color:#000;display:none;position:absolute} .cnnArticlePhotoContainer{height:122px;width:214px} .cnnArticleBoxImage{cursor:pointer;height:122px;padding-top:0;width:214px} .cnnArticleGalleryCaptionControl{background-color:#000;color:#FFF} .cnnArticleGalleryCaptionControlText{cursor:pointer;float:right;font-size:10px;padding:3px 10px 3px 3px} .cnnArticleGalleryPhotoContainer cite{background:none repeat scroll 0 0 #000;bottom:48px;color:#FFF;height:auto;left:420px;opacity:.7;position:absolute;width:200px;padding:10px} .cnnArticleGalleryClose{background-color:#fff;display:block;text-align:right} .cnnArticleGalleryCloseButton{cursor:pointer} .cnnArticleGalleryNavPrevNext span{background-color:#444;color:#CCC;cursor:pointer;float:left;height:23px;text-align:center;width:26px;padding:4px 0 0} .cnnArticleGalleryNavPrevNextDisabled span{background-color:#444;color:#666;float:left;height:23px;text-align:center;width:25px;padding:4px 0 0} .cnnVerticalGalleryPhoto{padding-right:68px;width:270px;margin:0 auto} .cnnGalleryContainer{float:left;clear:left;margin:0 0 20px;padding:0 0 0 10px} if (typeof cnnArticleGallery == "undefined") { var cnnArticleGallery = {}; } if(typeof cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList =="undefined"){ cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList = []; } var expGallery141=new ArticleExpandableGallery(); expGallery141.setImageCount(8); //cnn_adbptrackpgalimg("iPad", 1); There were tablets before the iPad, but Apple's tab introduced the concept to millions who had never heard of one. More than 84 million have been sold, dwarfing the competition. With its high-definition "retina display" screen, dual cameras and extensive app catalogue, it's the standard by which other tablets are measured. cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList[cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList.length] = {"currentPicture":true,"x":14,"y":1,"pos":1,"title":"iPad"} With the Kindle Fire, Amazon made a small dent in the iPad's dominance by going smaller and cheaper, with a $199 price tag for the 7-inch tablet. The second-generation HD adds a camera and high-resolution screen, and includes a bigger 8.9-inch model for an extra $100. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said the goal isn't to win by going cheap, but to make "the best tablet at any price." Most critics say they're not there yet, but celebrate the competition. cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList[cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList.length] = {"currentPicture":false,"x":14,"y":1,"pos":2,"title":"Kindle Fire HD"} Computing giant Microsoft took its time getting into the tablet game. But the Microsoft Surface, announced in June -- without a release date -- promises to take the space in a different direction. It comes with a "Touch Cover" keyboard and a display screen an inch bigger than the iPad's. It could be key in Microsoft's plans for a single operating system for all devices. cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList[cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList.length] = {"currentPicture":false,"x":14,"y":1,"pos":3,"title":"Microsoft Surface"} Android tablets designed to compete feature-for-feature with the iPad have struggled. But critics have given mostly high marks to the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1. It's lighter and thinner than the iPad 2 and sports a fast, powerful processor. cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList[cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList.length] = {"currentPicture":false,"x":14,"y":1,"pos":4,"title":"Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1"} Google's first tablet took a page from the Amazon playbook -- going small with a price that starts at $199. It features a Tegra 3 quad-core processor, runs the latest version of Google's Android operating system and has been greeted with largely positive reviews. cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList[cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList.length] = {"currentPicture":false,"x":14,"y":1,"pos":5,"title":"Google Nexus 7"} Amazon has expanded its line of industry-leading e-readers. They now range from the basic Kindle, which costs $69, to the new Kindle Paperwhite, which features 62% more pixels than the Kindle Touch and a fiber-optic lighting system that was four years in the works. cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList[cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList.length] = {"currentPicture":false,"x":14,"y":1,"pos":6,"title":"Kindle Paperwhite"} In April, Microsoft sank $300 million into a partnership with Barnes & Noble on the Nook line of e-readers and tablets. The line has a smaller market share than Amazon, but readers like the Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight (the first straight reader to solve the read-in-the-dark problem), which has been reviewed highly. cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList[cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList.length] = {"currentPicture":false,"x":14,"y":1,"pos":7,"title":"Nook"} Kobo isn't as popular in the United States as it is in Canada and some other countries. But the Toronto-based company provides an alternative to the "big two" e-readers at comparable prices. Wired magazine's editors caled the Kobo Touch "the most natural e-ink reader we've ever used." The simpler Kobo Mini sells for $79, just $10 more than a basic Kindle with ads. cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList[cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList.length] = {"currentPicture":false,"x":14,"y":1,"pos":8,"title":"Kobo Touch"} iPad Kindle Fire HD Microsoft Surface Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 Google Nexus 7 Kindle Paperwhite Nook Kobo Touch HIDE CAPTION << < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 > >> Tablets & E-readers Event.observe(window, 'load', function() { //report the first gallery image to ADBP if(typeof(cnn_adbptrackpgalimg) == 'function' && typeof(cnnArticleGallery) != 'undefined') { cnn_adbptrackpgalimg(cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList[0].image, ""); } }); The biggest demand for non-Apple tablets has been for less expensive 7-inch devices such as Amazon's Kindle Fire, Samsung's Galaxy Tab, Google's Nexus 7 and Barnes and Noble's Nook. A smaller iPad would challenge these competitors head on, combining their popular size with Apple's killer features: the iOS operating system, Apple's app and media ecosystem, and quality design. The Kindle Fire is great for buying books, movies and shows from Amazon, and the Nexus 7 has Google's well-stocked Play store for media and apps. However, tablets have proven they can do more than just entertain, and customers might be drawn to the quality and quantity of Apple's App Store selection. Developers have been creating top-notch apps for the iPad for more than two years. The smaller iPad's screen is expected to have the same aspect ratio, so those apps would work the same on the new device. When the iPad came out, it was intended to be a consumption device. Ads for the tablet showed people reclining in various environments, clutching the iPad like a book. The spacious 10-inch screen was ideal for watching movies and TV shows, playing games, surfing the Web and otherwise consuming content. That's how most tablet owners use their devices. Tablets are homebodies, used most often in the living room (30% of the time according to Nielsen) followed by the bedroom (21% of the time). "Fully half the time they're using tablets, they don't leave the couch or the bed," said Forrester analyst Sarah Rotman Epps. "If you can do everything on the smaller iPad you can on the larger iPad -- that plus the added convenience of being able to take it with you more places could take the wind out of the sales of Amazon." A smaller, lighter device is more portable, and people might not be as afraid of taking a cheaper tablet out into the big bad world where it would be less protected. That would also be a boost for Apple in the education market, which it has been courting heavily. if(typeof CNN.expElements==='object'){CNN.expElements.init();}