Apple iPad Mini 2 With Retina Display Unveiled: Release Date And Price Points Announced

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) on Tuesday unveiled its second-generation iPad mini, which features the same form factor as its predecessor but now includes a Retina display, in which the individual pixels on the screen can't be discerned with the naked eye; in fact, the new iPad mini will release with the same number of pixels as the new iPad Air. Apple announced the price of the iPad mini 2 with Retina display, which starts at $399 and $529 for Wi-Fi only and cellular, respectively, while the first-generation iPad mini will now release at the $299 price point. And in terms of the tablet's release date, the iPad mini with Retina display will release in late November, while the new iPad Air will release on Friday, Nov. 1.

The sharp quality of the Retina display was the single missing ingredient from the original iPad, and soon after its release date, rumors of the iPad mini 2 with Retina display began almost immediately, and continued throughout the course of 2013. However, it wasn't clear if Apple would actually be able to release its 2013 iPad mini with a Retina display, as AnandTech originally suggested Apple might have a difficult time implementing a Retina display in the iPad mini since the high-density screen would require a more robust battery and processor, which would no doubt lead to sacrifices in the iPad mini’s thinness and lightness.

By May, analysts were flip-flopping over whether or not the iPad mini 2 would release with a Retina display. On the one hand, all Apple needed to do was improve the iPad's screen, but on the other hand, Apple was unable to introduce a Retina display on its full-sized iPad until the third-generation release in March 2012.

Fortunately for iPad fans, Apple was able to produce a Retina display for its iPad mini 2, and the new mini tablet comes with a host of other new features as well. While the first iPad mini ran on a dual-core A5 chip, the 2013 iPad mini with Retina display now features an A7 chip, which was the same chip from this year's iPhone 5s release. The iPad mini 2 will also release with iOS 7 built-in, and will release in two color options: white and silver, and black and space grey.

What do you think of the iPad mini 2? Will you purchase the tablet when it is released on Nov. 1? Sound off in the comments section below.