The smaller 7-inch tablet landscape could soon see a push towards higher resolution displays, much like recent trends among both smartphones and larger 10-inch tablets. Paul Semenza, an analyst from DisplaySearch, predicts that production of higher-resolution Retina displays for the next-generation iPad mini could start during the third quarter of this year. Estimates from Semenza and Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities places the 2nd generation iPad mini launch some time during the third or fourth quarter, based on available data for Apple’s supply-chain.
The iPad mini currently sports a 7.9” 1,024×768 resolution display, which has a pixel density of 163 ppi; decidedly below par for the 7-inch market. Guesses put the future display at a resolution of 2048×1536, amounting to 324 ppi. LG Display, AU Optronics, Japan Display (who produces the Retina display for the iPhone 5) and Sharp are all strong contenders to manufacture the display panels for the new iPad mini. Apple has long marketed its Retina displays as the veritable peak of display technology across almost all its product lines, from the MacBook Pro to the third and fourth-generation iPads as well as the iPhone and the iPod Touch.
Apple’s competitors in the mobile device market have risen to the implied challenge, with industry heavyweights like Samsung, HTC and Google cranking out devices that match or, in some cases, beat Apple’s Retina display. To put a display of this resolution on a device like the iPad mini may compromise the slimness and the high battery life that characterise it now. Newer technology like IGZO (Indium Gallium Zinc Oxide) transistors could help Apple and its partners avoid having to face that compromise though. The Google Nexus 7 is also likely to receive an upgrade sometime in the middle of the year, with analysts predicting a second or third quarter update.
The slightly smaller Nexus 7 is Google’s budget-friendly alternative in the 7-inch market. The current edition has a display resolution of 1,280×800, which gives it a density of 216 ppi, easily beating the current iPad mini. Asian parts suppliers have given indications that Nexus 7 displays with an increased resolution of 1,920×1200 could begin being produced in the second quarter of the year. This new resolution would give the Nexus 7 a pixel density of 323 ppi, matching the expected Retina display of the next-gen iPad mini.
