News - Experts believe an iPhone mini is in the pipeline

[Biscuit]

Steve Jobs would be rolling in his grave

Well hes safely in his grave, out of the way of the business operation, and apple are now able to have a crack at more spaces in the market.

Good move for apple IMO

[mikerr]

I think it's the way app devs are forced to code their apps, as every single app has to be updated to be 'iPhone 5 optimised' the black borders are annoying and it would be much better if they were just up scaled but nope, apple likes things done in a certain way, luckily it's slowly becoming a thing of the past as most apps I use now use my i5's full screen

If you're jailbroken there's an app called fullforce that allows apps to fill the screen properly:

http://www.simonblog.com/2010/05/29/...l-screen-mode/

..and that doesn't use pixel scaling - I used it alot in the early days of the ipad.

[HalloweenJack]

Well they can't go much bigger without bumping to ipad mini:

galaxy S4 <> galaxy note 1 (theres less than 0.3" between them apparently)

[JimmyBoy]

If you're jailbroken there's an app called fullforce that allows apps to fill the screen properly:

http://www.simonblog.com/2010/05/29/...l-screen-mode/

..and that doesn't use pixel scaling - I used it alot in the early days of the ipad.

Nice one!
Just need a jailbreak for the ip5 now lol

[Biscuit]

Oh, and a comment on this 'article'. It's a terrible bit of journalism just copying and pasting what some other hack has written before. Nobody knows what Apple will do, and certainly not predict what they 'should' do.

As to an iPhone mini. Pah, crazy idea. Why on earth would Apple want to release a cheaper phone that makes them less profit per unit to sell it to users who are cash strapped and will therefore be spending less in the Apple stores?

When it comes to what Apple could do, should do and would do - it's terrible 'journalism' that continues to spout the idea that Apple need to compete on units sold when every statistic out there confirms the theory that aiming for the low cost mass market will not increase profits.

Market share != Profit.

Apple makes loads of profit, so much more than anyone else in the game. When they are so successful at what they do why would they aim for a different approach?

Crazy talk.

Erm..... IPad mini?!

They didn't need that market share, they make less profit per unit but they did it anyway. With apple its about locking people into their eco system and if they can get people started at a lower initial investment cost they will benefit in the long run.

[TooNice]

Nobody knows what Apple will do [...]

Most leaks and rumours leading up to the release of the iPhone 5 ended up true (much to my surprise). I do take all unconfirmed news with a pinch of salt, but sometime, the leak is real (in the case of the iPhone 5, I would say too many turned out correct to be just one person guessing).

As to an iPhone mini. Pah, crazy idea. Why on earth would Apple want to release a cheaper phone that makes them less profit per unit to sell it to users who are cash strapped and will therefore be spending less in the Apple stores?

It is only crazy IF:
1. The iPhone mini cannibalise the sales of more profitable regular iPhone.
2. Having a cheaper iPhone would somehow damage Apple's image to such extent that customers would give up Apple en mass (I seriously doubt it - Apple products are premium *mass market* products. They are not selling supercars meant for the elites, this is clear by the fact that they even have student discounts for some of their products).
3. (Obviously): The iPhone mini flops and Apple make a development/marketing loss (also doubt this).

The above need to be weighted against:
1. Sooner or later, the market at a given price point will saturate, and the only way to increase profit would be to chase lower market. Less lucrative profit is still profit and so long as they are not cannibalising their main cash cows, it's hardly crazy at all.
2. Switching platform/ecosystem is a pain. Someone who is cash strapped now may become more than sufficiently affluent several years down the line. By then though, s/he may already have committed to a different platform. I probably wouldn't have bothered trying out the iOS if the iPhone 2G wasn't released in it's final days. And now, I do not find it easy to fully migrate, simply because there *are* applications that are simply better on the iOS platform.

Besides, it is not like Apple will suddenly need to settle for a meagre profit on the mini. Not as lucrative does not mean not lucrative at all.

Market share and profit is not mutually exclusive.

[Biscuit]

...simply because there *are* applications that are simply better on the iOS platform.

Just had to throw that in there eh

[TooNice]

I'll also add that vice-versa is also true if you like. Though the biggest thing I would have missed on the iPhone 5 (application wise) at launch would've been Google Maps (silly move to take it out), but that has since been sorted out (by just having it back). With so many apps in each platform that frequently ignored statement is bound to be true, and I am genuinely frustrated by how far behind the best Japanese-English dictionary is on the Android is compared to the iOS*. And even ignoring the dictionary, just typing in Japanese and English (which I do many times a day, sometime several times within a few minutes because I text/email/search online in both languages) is more efficient on the iOS*. When something you use frequently feels unpolished (at least compared to what you've used before), you take note of it. Right now, I still do much of my emailing via an iPod Touch tethered via the Galaxy S3 for this reason.

*I am quite happy to explain in details why if anyone really wants to know.

[samuraiweasel]

I think theyre going to go the other way and make a slightly bigger iphone next, because so far the iphone's biggest competitor has been the S3, and people (men with big hands especially) prefer not to have to squeeze thumbs together on a narrow screen.

[crossy]

As to an iPhone mini. Pah, crazy idea. Why on earth would Apple want to release a cheaper phone that makes them less profit per unit to sell it to users who are cash strapped and will therefore be spending less in the Apple stores?

When it comes to what Apple could do, should do and would do - it's terrible 'journalism' that continues to spout the idea that Apple need to compete on units sold when every statistic out there confirms the theory that aiming for the low cost mass market will not increase profits.

Market share != Profit.

Apple makes loads of profit, so much more than anyone else in the game. When they are so successful at what they do why would they aim for a different approach?

Crazy talk.

You're assuming that every member of the public is going to be willing/able to afford that high end price that the iPhone currently commands (and no this isn't a criticism of Apple's pricing). Look around and you'll see that the iPhone's are on the £30/month+ tariffs.

So what about the folks who either want an affordable PAYG (£400+ ISN'T affordable!) or a £20/month (or less) contract? At the moment Apple has nothing really to offer (the smattering of 3S deals out there aren't official ones, so they don't count) so what's those potential customers to do? Answer - either go Windows Mobile or, more likely, Android.

Then when time comes for those folks to upgrade, they'll be comfortable with something not iOS and/or have an investment in apps that they'll be unhappy to relinquish. Result - those customers are unlikely to consider Apple devices, so they're lost customers.

On the other hand, a reduced device (lower resolution, slower, smaller, etc) gives an entry point to suck in the lower spending customer. And once in the "ecosystem" it'll be a LOT easier to upsell them to a more profitable device and, in the mean time, sell them lots of apps (Apple's biggest plus point being its expansive app store remember!) which in themselves generate revenue for Apple Inc.

This is basic economics and marketing ... at least as far as I dimly remember those high school lectures.

So it's "crazy talk" for Apple to not consider such an entry level device - especially in the current cost-sensitive market and, as the article says, for emerging markets which may not be able to stand the current profit iPhone profit margins. Whether they eventually do actually ship an "iPhone Mini" (or not) is a matter of debate - although personally I hope so, since the increased competition in the low-mid end has got to be good news for us consumers. And might even affect the high end to our benefit.

[Smudger]

Oh, and a comment on this 'article'. It's a terrible bit of journalism just copying and pasting what some other hack has written before. Nobody knows what Apple will do, and certainly not predict what they 'should' do.

To be fair, the 'News' section is usually just that, reporting on things that have been suggested in other sources. And then putting it on here in case it interests the people on here, which it has. Hexus News - trawling the internet for gossip so you don't have to.