莫博士测评iPad Mini
IPad创造了真正的科技奇迹。尽管有许多人并不确定自己是否需要一台售价500美元、介于智能手机和笔记本电脑之间的设备，但苹果公司(Apple)在短短两年半的时间里卖出了一亿台iPad平板电脑。没有任何竞争机型像iPad这样在市场上产生了如此之大的吸引力。
不过iPad也存在一个问题。尽管它比笔记本电脑要小得多，仅重1.44磅（652克），厚0.37英寸（9.4毫米），但如果用手拿很长时间（比如阅读电子书的时候），还是会感觉太重。iPad一般要用两只手拿。它9.7英寸的显示屏用起来虽然很舒适，但很多手提包都装不下。
因此，苹果于11月2日推出了一款尺寸小得多的iPad Mini，这款平板电脑用起来与原先的版本完全一样，并且运行完全相同的应用程序──有275,000个平板电脑专用程序外加逾70万个供iOS操作系统（iPad和苹果iPhone均使用该操作系统）使用的应用程序。
iPad Mini重量0.68磅（308克），厚度仅为0.28英寸（7.2毫米），比标准尺寸iPad轻53%，薄23%。这款平板电脑宽5.3英寸（134.7毫米），而标准尺寸iPad宽度为7.31英寸（185.7毫米）。
为了缩小明星产品iPad的尺寸，苹果做出了一项引人注目的壮举。它成功地开发出一款平板电脑，比主要竞争对手的七英寸屏小型平板电脑要轻薄得多，但却采用了比竞争对手大得多的7.9英寸显示器。此外，苹果没有像尺寸较小的竞争产品那样使用塑料材质，而是保持了iPad较为结实的铝和玻璃机身。
与两家顶级竞争对手的小型平板电脑不同的是，Mini配有后置摄像头。此外，作为Wi-Fi的补充，Mini提供蜂窝数据连接供用户选择，这项功能是Kindle Fire HD不具备的。Mini的电池续航能力也非常不错。
不过，与谷歌(Google)的Nexus 7和亚马逊(Amazon)的Kindle Fire HD这两款主流七英寸竞争产品相比，iPad Min存在两个缺点。首先，iPad mini的售价为329美元起，而两款竞争产品为199美元起（不过Fire HD的无广告版售价为214美元起）。第二，iPad Mini屏幕分辨率较低──为1024x768，而那两款产品为1280x800。
我对iPad Mini进行了几天的测试，发现它与苹果公司的承诺完全相符：它把iPad的使用体验带到了较小的设备上。在我的iPad上运行的所有应用程序都能在Mini上完美地运行。我能够用一只手操作iPad Mini，拿很长时间也不会累。我唯一不满意的地方是，它稍微宽了一点，我大多数衣服口袋都装不下，此外，与现有新款iPad采用的Retina显示器相比，iPad Mini的屏幕分辨率有很大退步。
但iPad Mini比谷歌Nexus 7和亚马逊Kindle Fire 7这两款主流七英寸竞争产品要薄30%左右。此外，它比Nexus轻9%左右，比Fire HD轻22%左右。iPad Mini比Fire HD略窄，但比Nexus宽11%左右。我用一只手就可以很容易地拿住iPad Mini，但对一些手比较小的人来说，iPad Mini可能还是有点太宽了。
尽管Mini比主流七英寸平板电脑更加轻薄，但其显示屏较大，使阅读书籍和网页等内容的空间多出了35%左右。无论是在显示屏上看和阅读材料，还是进行轻触和滑动操作，感觉都很舒服。唯一的问题是，使用纵向模式时键盘感觉有一点局促，但使用横向模式时还不错。（我发现自己更多时候是竖着拿Mini，和iPad的拿法不同。）
我对电池的续航能力进行了严格的测试。我把屏幕亮度设置为75%，连着Wi-Fi接收电子邮件，并连续播放视频，结果iPad Mini的电池续航时间超过了苹果公司声称的10小时，达到了10小时27分钟。这一时间比Kindle Fire HD长一个小时左右，但比Nexus 7约了短17分钟。
我发现iPad Mini的摄像头效果很不错。我用120万像素的前置摄像头进行的几次视频聊天都很清晰，而500万像素的后置摄像头可以拍摄很棒的照片和视频。立体声扬声器我听起来感觉音质不错。
那么，苹果为什么要选择为Mini配置分辨率较低的显示屏呢？（该公司的新款iPad和新版Mac都以极高的屏幕分辨率为卖点。）苹果公司称，这样做的原因是，只有两种解决方案能使其平板电脑应用程序照原样运行。一种是采用目前新款iPad的极高分辨率，这样会推高成本并减弱Mini的电池续航能力。另一种（也就是苹果为Mini选择的方案）是采用与第一代iPad和iPad 2这两种热门款型相同的分辨率。iPad 2市场仍然有售，售价为399美元。
这种做法是有道理的，但这意味着Mini无法像竞争产品那样播放高清视频。苹果坚称，如果视频是通过iTunes服务获得的话（因为iTune会针对该设备缩放视频），那么Mini的播放效果要比标清好，所以它是介于标清和高清之间的。苹果称，其他一些服务也有同样功能。但iPad Mini无法播放真正的高清视频，因此对爱看视频的人来说，Nexus和Fire HD是有优势的。在我的测试中，iPad Mini视频播放效果不错，但不如标准尺寸iPad好。
有蜂窝连接功能的iPad Mini机型售价为459美元起，将在几周之内开始销售。
329美元的价格可能会吸引一些精打细算而又渴望购买iPad产品的消费者。但苹果认为iPad Mini的关键卖点在于较小的尺寸和较轻的重量，而不是价格。
如果你很喜欢iPad，或者想买一台，但又觉得它太大或者太重的话，那么iPad Mini是你的最佳选择。
Sizing Up The New iPad Mini
The iPad has been a true tech phenomenon. Apple has sold 100 million of the tablets in just 2½ years, even though many people doubted they needed a $500 device that's in between a smartphone and a laptop. No competing model has gained significant traction in the market.
Still, there's been a problem with the iPad. Though it's much smaller than a laptop, at just 1.44 pounds, and 0.37 inch thick, it can be too heavy to hold for long periods of time, such as when you're using it to read an e-book. It typically takes two hands to hold. Its 9.7-inch screen, while a pleasure to use, makes it too large to carry without a thought in many purses.
So, on Friday, Apple is introducing a much smaller variant, the iPad Mini, which works exactly like the original and runs all the same apps -- the 275,000 tablet-optimized programs plus the rest of the over 700,000 apps available for the iOS operating system the iPad shares with Apple's iPhone.
The iPad Mini weighs just less than 11 ounces, and is only 0.28 inch thick. That's 53% lighter and 23% thinner than the standard iPad. It's 5.3 inches wide versus 7.3 inches for its larger sibling.
In shrinking the iconic iPad, Apple has pulled off an impressive feat. It has managed to create a tablet that's notably thinner and lighter than the leading small competitors with 7-inch screens, while squeezing in a significantly roomier 7.9-inch display. And it has shunned the plastic construction used in its smaller rivals to retain the iPad's sturdier aluminum and glass body.
Unlike its two top small tablet competitors, the Mini has a rear camera. And unlike the Kindle Fire HD, it offers optional cellular data connectivity to supplement Wi-Fi. It has very good battery life.
However, there are two downsides compared with the leading 7-inch competitors, the Google Nexus 7 and the Amazon Kindle Fire HD. First, the iPad mini starts at $329, versus $199 for its two main rivals (though the Fire HD costs $214 without annoying ads). Second, it has a lower screen resolution -- 1024x768, versus 1280x800 for the other two.
I've been testing the iPad Mini for several days and found it does exactly what it promises: It brings the iPad experience to a smaller device. Every app that ran on my larger iPad ran perfectly on the Mini. I was able to use it one-handed and hold it for long periods of time without tiring. My only complaints were that it's a tad too wide to fit in most of my pockets, and the screen resolution is a big step backwards from the Retina display on the current large iPad.
But it's about 30% thinner than the leading 7-inch competitors, the Google Nexus 7 and the Amazon Kindle Fire 7. And it's about 9% lighter than the Nexus and about 22% lighter than the Fire HD. It's very slightly narrower across than the Fire HD, but about 11% wider than the Nexus. I found it easy to hold with one hand, though the width might be a bit too much for some people with smaller hands.
Even though the Mini is thinner and lighter than the leading 7-inch tablets, its larger screen provides about 35% more room for viewing content like books and Web pages. I found it easy to see and read material on the screen and to tap and swipe. My only complaint was that the keyboard, in portrait mode, felt a bit cramped, though it was fine in landscape mode. (I found that, unlike with the big iPad, it was more common for me to hold the Mini in portrait mode.)
In my harsh battery test, where I play videos back to back with the screen set at 75% and the Wi-Fi on to collect email, the iPad mini exceeded Apple's battery life claim of 10 hours and lasted 10 hours and 27 minutes. That was about an hour better than the Kindle Fire HD, but about 17 minutes less than the Nexus 7.
I found the cameras did a very good job. I conducted several clear video chats using the 1.2 megapixel front camera, and the 5-megapixel rear camera produced very good photos and videos. The stereo speakers sounded good to my ears.
So why did Apple, whose large iPad and new Macs boast extremely high screen resolution, choose a lower resolution for the Mini? The company did so because it says there are only two resolutions that allow its tablet apps to run unmodified. One is the extremely high resolution on the current large iPad, which would have boosted the cost and lowered the battery life of the Mini. The other, the one Apple chose for the Mini, is the same resolution on iPad models consumers have snapped up: the original iPad and the iPad 2, which is still on the market at $399.
This makes sense, but it means that, unlike its closest competitors, the Mini can't play video in high definition. Apple insists the device does better than standard definition, if you are obtaining the video from its iTunes service, since iTunes scales the video for the device, so it will render somewhere between standard definition and HD. It says some other services will do the same. But the lack of true HD gives the Nexus and Fire HD an advantage for video fans. In my tests, video looked just fine, but not as good as on the regular iPad.
The cellular models, which will start at $459, will be available in a couple of weeks.
The $329 price may well tempt some budget-conscious buyers who have lusted for an iPad. But Apple believes the lower size and weight, not the price, are the key attractions.
If you love the iPad, or want one, but just found it too large or heavy, the iPad Mini is the perfect solution.
WSJ
2012-11-10
WSJ
403次
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