If Apple’s invitations are a sign of things to come, then the invitation sent today is a sign that the iPad Mini is coming this month. Apple’s invitation reads “We’ve got a little more to show you”, and the biggest clue would be the word “little”. With rumors swirling for months now about the release of the iPad Mini, a smaller – or little – iPad, it appears October 23 is the date. Further substantiating this would be the recent rumor that Apple will launch an all-new redesigned 13-inch MacBook Pro, again the smallest of the MacBook Pro line.
The rumored starting price of $249 for the iPad Mini puts Apple in direct competition with rivals Amazon with the Kindle Fire HD and Google with the Nexus 7. However, the latest leaks place the specs for iPad Mini as a mixture of iPad and iPad 2 components which puts it in some cases less powerful than its competitors. The major selling feature of the iPad Mini will instead be iOS, and its tight ecosystem built around it.
With the iPad Mini’s release coming just in time for the holiday season, it looks like this may be the “must have” item under the Christmas tree. We will have all the details from Apple when they’re announced on October 23.
