Mini iPad Rumors Reignite As Half-Size Model Tipped

You'd think Steve Jobs dismissing 7-inch tablets as "DOA", suggesting they'd have to come with "sandpaper, so that the user can sand down their fingers to around one-quarter of their present size," and simply not "sufficient to create great tablet apps" would be enough to put the iPad mini rumor to rest, but when it comes to Apple, some speculation simply refuses to die. Reuters cites Asian manufacturing sources who claim that, despite Jobs' vitriol, Apple is working on a second, smaller iPad "almost half the size of the current model."

Unsurprisingly, details on the smaller slate are in short supply, though we've heard plenty of rumors regarding a mid-range iPad slotting in-between the current 9.7-inch model and the iPod touch before now. Kaufman Bros analyst Shaw Wu suggests that Steve Jobs may have been trying to put the tech industry off the track with his comments – pointing to his track record of denying incoming products, such as a video-capable iPod, which then turn out to be real – but it's hard to see how Apple could satisfactorily address the complaints Jobs raised.

Last week, sources claimed Apple was ramping up for iPad 2 production, tipping a higher-resolution LCD-based slate with dual cameras. Supply chain investigations have tipped the second-generation iPad for release in April 2011.

[via UnwiredView]