The iPad mini is perfect proof why listening to internet rumors can backfire
In a few days, the iPad mini will have been out for about 7 months. According to internet rumors that have been going on since the thing launched, Apple should have launched at least one updated version of this thing by now, and probably closer to 20 if you start summing up all the rumored dates for such an upgrade. Yet, here we are, 7 months in, and no iPad mini 2 is in sight. When are people going to stop listening to rumors?
People still haven’t gotten over the fact that the iPad mini has a “low res” 1024×768 screen. The fact that it was revolutionary in its combination of screen size, weight, thickness, and battery life didn’t seem to matter as much as the fact that Apple didn’t cram a uselessly high resolution screen into the thing, and that is perhaps why the rumors of an iPad 2 with a higher resolution display were so quick to hit the web after launch. Because of this, I’ve seen and talked to a lot of people who say they’re waiting for an updated version, since that’s apparently right around the corner. They’ve been saying that for 7 months, and they’re still waiting. For some of them, it wasn’t even that they couldn’t go back to a lower resolution screen, since they had iPad 2s already, it was just that “someone said a new one will be out soon”.
I’m going to share something of an insider secret with everyone: there will always be a newer device. I can understand waiting a few weeks if you know the release date of a successor to a product and the price difference doesn’t put you off, but other than that, you can essentially wait yourself to death trying to ensure that you don’t end up regretting your purchase. Why not wait for the iPad mini 3? Or 4? You’ve already waited 7 months to get an updated version of a product that you wanted when it first came out, so why not wait a few more years and get an upgrade to an upgrade of that product?
I went out and traded my iPad 2 for an iPad mini the moment I got a chance to test one and realized what it meant for the things I use my iPad for, which is more or less exclusively productivity. I haven’t regretted it for a second, and now that the iPad mini is jailbroken, I probably won’t even get a future iPad mini 2 until that’s jailbroken too.
Obviously I’m not suggesting that everyone should run out and buy new products the moment they want one. Doing research, thinking about whether you actually need it, and finding something that fits well for you are all very important when looking for a new device. Heck, my Galaxy S II is proof that I’m not one to run after the latest and greatest. All I’m saying is that if you know you’re going to get a device, but fear that there will be an upgrade out so soon after you buy it that you’ll regret not waiting, then you might as well get a chair and some refreshments, because you might just end up waiting a while.
