I stand corrected, but for anyone wanting a smaller phone the Mini might be the phone for them. I'm all for 'bigger is better' and will be getting the Nexus 4 when it comes out - at that list price, you can't really go wrong.
That's not totally true. Early, early android phones (HTC magic) had mini. The Nexus One and beyond were micro IIRC. You are 99% on the nose I believe.
Well I will avoid further speculation then! That makes sense and I hope that is the case, the mini seems like a cool device and I hope it's part of their lineup next time I need a new phone.
The issue with the Mini is that you'd usually expect it to be the budget option (since it has a smaller screen), but it's more of an Air with a smaller screen in terms of hardware and features, with a price to match.
Mini is way better, depending on what you do with it. The 7's screen is nicer, but lack of LTE and the 16:10 aspect ratio was deal breaker for me (I was looking for a "work" device).
With their announcement speech so full of contradictions, it seems like they're struggling to differentiate the Mini from the cheaper Nexus 7. The major appeal is its small size, but in comparison to the Nexus 7 they emphasize how much larger it is (albeit lower total resolution). Seems to be a clear case of presenting weaknesses as strengths, which will, unfortunately, probably succeed with many existing Apple customers. The two compelling advantages over the Nexus 7, the presence of a second camera and the availability of cellular capability, were barely mentioned.
Also, the smaller you make it, the smaller the battery is. The mini already has battery life complaints. This product would likely be doomed if it was any smaller and didn't compromise on other things.
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