Retina iPad mini To Be Released On November 22nd

The iPad Air was just released at the beginning of November and it keeps being the center of attention, but all that is going to change in the coming weeks as the second generation iPad mini (with a Retina display and a new System on Chip) will be released. As everybody knows by now, the lack of a Retina display was the only major downside of the first generation iPad mini. Now, a year after the first generation iPad mini, Apple decided to finally include a Retina display in the second generation iPad mini, that also feature the latest System on Chip from Apple (the 64 bit A7 SoC, that also powers the iPhone 5S and the iPad Air). The downside now is that the inclusion of the additional specs and features forced Apple to raise the starting price of the second generation iPad mini, from $329 (the starting price of the non Retina iPad mini) to $399. On the other hand, the first generation iPad mini is now $229 from $329.

Last month, on October 22nd, at the iPad media event, Apple unveiled the release date of the fifth generation iPad, the iPad Air, but not that of the Retina display iPad mini, only mentioning that it would be released “in late November”. Since last month’s unveiling tech enthusiasts have been wondering when the Retina iPad mini will release. There were also some rumors about Apple dealing with supply issues for the displays of the second generation iPad mini. The rumors suggested Apple was forced to ask its rival company, Samsung, for help to manufacture additional Retina displays for the second generation iPad mini. However, despite these supply issues, there are rumors hinting that Apple will release the iPad mini 2 on Friday, November 22nd and we believe them. This is why:

• Apple is closed during the Thanksgiving weekend. While Apple has a history of releasing new iOS devices on Fridays, we don’t see Apple releasing the second generation iPad mini the following Friday after Thanksgiving, as November 29th is Black Friday. Almost two months ago, in September, Apple CEO Tim Cook sent an email to all employees announcing it “will shut down with pay on November 25, 26, and 27 so our teams can have the whole week off”. He mentioned that retail, AppleCare and “a few other teams will need to work that week so we can continue to serve our customers [...]”; however, we believe that the release of a major iOS device would require more than just a few teams available, so it is very unlikely that the second generation iPad mini will release on November 29th.
• Hanukkah. Hanukkah will start on the evening of November 27th and it will end on the evening of December 5th. What is unique about this year is that Hanukkah and Thanksgiving most of the time don’t fall on the same week. There are over 6 million Jews in the United States and that gives us reason to believe that Apple will release the second generation iPad mini at the end of the month. A late November release will give Apple time to fix the the supply chain issues, but we also believe that Apple will release the Retina iPad mini before the Hanukkah weekend, allowing consumers enough time to get the second generation iPad mini as a gift before the all important holiday begins on Wednesday, Thanksgiving on Thursday and of course Black Friday.
• Speaking of which, Black Friday is of course the biggest shopping day of the year (and not only in the United States). In 2013 Black Friday falls on November 29th. We don’t see a Black Friday release of the second generation iPad mini possible for several reason, one being that if Apple decides to release the tablet on November 29th, the last working day of the month, the company could be overwhelmed. Apple always discounts its devices on Black Friday and if it releases the Retina iPad mini and also discounts it, there could be serious problems with high demand and supply constraints in many Apple Stores and retailers that sell Apple products, such as Best Buy, Target and Wal-Mart. Not to mention the company shutdown that week that makes a second generation iPad mini release on Black Friday very unlikely. A release of the second generation iPad mini on November 22nd would be the best option really, as customers that don’t like to wait can buy the tablet right away and gift it during the coming holidays, while all the remaining Retina iPad mini tablets will be available for Black Friday a week later.

A product listing at Target.com mentions that it will release the second generation iPad mini on Thursday, November 21st. While a Thursday launch is not out of the realm of possibility, we still believe that Apple will release its new tablet a day later, on Friday, November 22nd, as it always has.

About The Second Generation iPad Mini

The Retina display iPad mini features the same form factor as the first generation iPad mini and the same 7.9 inch display, but it now features a resolution of 2,048 × 1,536 (and a 326 ppi), double than the resolution of the first mini Pad, the same as the iPad Air’s but with a higher pixels per inch density. The second generation iPad mini also comes with the same A7 System on Chip that is being used in the recently released iPhone 5S and iPad Air. The dual core A7 System on Chip is the fastest ever made by Apple. It also makes use of a new 64 architecture and it is the first 64 bit System on Chip to be released on the mobile market. This comes with a few advantages: the CPU has to spend less time accessing comparatively slow system memory, which means it will speed up apps even if they aren’t 64 bit optimized. The new SoC also comes with a better GPU and this means there is more than enough power to run the new high resolution graphics of the Retina display.

The iPad mini 2 also comes with the M7 motion coprocessor (also present in both the iPhone 5S and the iPad Air). All these new technologies included in the second generation iPad mini (the Retina display, the new 64 bit System on Chip) translate into a heavier and thicker tablet than the first generation iPad mini. These differences are not major (the first generation iPad mini weighs 308 grams and is 7.2 mm thick while the second generation iPad mini weighs 331 grams and is 7.5 mm thick) and unless you are already used with the first generation iPad mini you won’t even notice them. The iPad mini 2 will also come with iOS 7 out of the box and it will be released in two color options: white and silver and black and space grey.

You will be able to buy the second generation iPad mini with Retina display starting at $399 and $529 for the WiFi only and cellular models. As we already mentioned, the first generation iPad mini can now be bought for $229 instead of $329. As we concluded in this article, our best bet for the second generation iPad mini’s release date is November 22nd. What do you think of the Retina iPad mini? Are you more interested in the bigger iPad Air or are you more attracted by the smaller form factor of the iPad mini 2?