Apple Inc. (AAPL): Retina iPad Mini Being Delayed? Cheaper Mini On The Way?

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) rarely talks publicly about any new devices coming down the pike – except when it’s tie to make an announcement about a device coming out in the next week. With so much silence on the Apple front in terms of products, and even Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s CEO Tim Cook acknowledging no plans for any new products until at least the fall, the sabbatical gives analysts and tech reporters time to flare up the rumor mill and test their impatience with games of Pinochle and Cribbage until something from the supply chain raises flags of news.

The latest whiff of a rumor of news from the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) ecosystem involves a new iPad Mini, which of course Apple will neither conform nor deny is being produced. The new rumor is that the next-generation iPad Mini would have a Retina display, considered the finest the Apple produces. There was talk that this new device could hit shelves this summer, but some issues involving the screens will likely delay the device until possibly October. The yield issues are reportedly stemming front the challenge of getting the increased pixel count into the screen to match the Retina resolution on MacBooks.

Among some other related, but more unsubstatiated, chatter involving Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is a follow-up ont he talk of a cheaper iPhone coming out soon. In the wake of these reported issues with the new iPad Mini, this is supposedly opening a window for the production of a cheaper iPad Mini for a lower price point – however, this news desk is a little skeptical on that item, as the main reason for the iPad Mini in the first place was to be a lower-budget tablet to get consumers into the space who might otherwise not be able to a the premium price of the iPad daddy.

It would be hard to imagine Apple making a cheaper, $200 to $250 iPad Mini just to compete at lower price points with competitors.

What do you think of this report? What do you make of all these supply-chain issues that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) seems to be having over the last couple of years? And would you be interested in an iPad Mini with a Retina display? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

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