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Apple’s New $200 iPad? Latest Rumor Focuses on Device With Lower Price Tag, Less Storage and Smaller Screen

May 11, 2012  •  Post A Comment

A new version of Apple’s iPad could come with a price tag between $200 and $250, according to the latest in a series of rumors about the device, CNET reports.

The device would have the same resolution as the top iPad model, but would offer less built-in storage, according to the report. It would come with 8GB of internal storage, breaking with the iPad’s three traditional storage configurations — 16GB, 32GB and 64GB.

Furthermore, the size of the screen would be smaller, mostly likely between 7 and 8 inches instead of the iPad’s current 9.5-inch height. It would likely be smaller in width as well.

A $200 price point would put the new iPad at half the price of the current entry-level iPad, and significantly below the 16GB second-generation model, which is still being offered.

The new unit is also rumored to match the latest iPad’s resolution of 2,048 by 1,536 pixels. That detail, CNET reports, “is of particular interest given the notion that Apple would want to keep in step with what it calls ‘Retina Displays’ on its iOS devices. These are displays where the pixels are so closely packed together that you cannot pick them out from one another when viewing the screen.”

The report notes that the high resolution, combined with smaller storage, could cause problems. “8GB on an iPad would fill up mighty fast with HD content, and media-rich games,” CNET notes. “For instance, many 1,080p movies on iTunes go beyond 4GB a pop. There are also games, some of which have stretched in size in the jump to the new iPad. There could be workarounds for it though, particularly if Apple makes some adjustments to its iCloud infrastructure to add streaming instead of downloading.”

Here’s a picture CNET ran with its story, saying this is a mock-up of what the iPad and rumored mini-iPad might look like from the back if placed side-by-side:

ipad-and-mini-ipad_270x221.jpg

One Comment

  1. So it’s a bigger iPod Touch, eh? It’s been done.

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