Where Does the iPad Mini Fit In?

Sep 12 2012

In case you didn’t hear, Apple announced the iPhone 5, new iPod Touch, and new iPod Nano. While I personally didn’t expect the appearance of an iPad Mini at this event, it does leave me wondering exactly where the iPad Mini will fit in.

The new iPod/iPad pricing lineup consists of the following:

  1. iPod Shuffle at $49
  2. iPod Nano at $149
  3. iPod Touch (4th Gen) at $199
  4. iPod Touch (5th Gen) at $299
  5. iPad 16 GB at $499

So, where exactly does the iPad Mini fit in? At $399? That’s not exactly competitive compared to Amazon’s new Kindle Fire HD, which starts at $199. It’d be pretty easy for someone to say, “the iPad Mini is double the price of the Fire and is the same size.” And the larger Kindle Fire HD 8.9", which is closer to the original iPad’s size, is only $300.

But Apple wouldn’t price the iPad Mini at $299– the same price as the iPod Touch–which leaves one price point left: $350. This is still cheap enough in the consumer’s mind (it isn’t “$400”), and yet it doesn’t occupy the price point of the iPod Touch. It also distances it from the regular sized iPad.

In any event, you certainly won’t be seeing an iPad Mini for $299 or less.