iPad Mini Use a Different iOS to Ignore Accidental Taps

Because of the reduced size of the iPad mini, some customers might be concerned that its narrow side bezels might cause some accidental input on the tablet’s touchscreen display. Apple says not to worry.

In pitching the iPad mini’s benefits, Apple says the device is not merely a scaled-down version of the original, but a “concentrated” effort to get all the features working just as well – some even better – in a smaller form factor. “iPad mini is small. But when you use it, it doesn’t feel small. That’s because it’s designed to give you the maximum amount of screen in the minimum amount of space,” says the company. “To achieve that, we had to rethink the relationship between the screen and the overall shape of the product. iPad has symmetrical bezels around all of its edges,” Apple elaborates. “But for iPad mini, we reduced the width of the bezels on two sides of the display. So although the screen is smaller, it’s even more prominent.” The smaller Pad mini comes with iOS 6 pre-installed, just like most other iDevices Apple ships. But this iOS is not identical to the one that ships with other iPads.

On the marketing pages of the diminutive portable PC, the Cupertino giant explains that “Rethinking the screen meant we also had to rethink the software behind it.” “iPad mini intelligently recognizes whether your thumb is simply resting on the display or whether you’re intentionally interacting with it. It’s the kind of detail you’ll notice — by not noticing it,” reads the literature. The company believes this feature, like many others, is a flagship example of how its hardware and software seamlessly integrates with one another “to give you the best experience possible.” iPad mini is slated to ship in early November in around three dozen countries. Pricing starts at $329 / €250 for the base configuration with Wi-Fi wireless, no cellular capabilities, and 16GB of storage.

iPad mini marketing (resting thumb highlighted)
Image credits to Apple

Posted in: Preview, Software, Tablet