It’s the rumor that just won’t die, Apple is said to be actively testing an iPad with a smaller 8″ screen, according to a new report from Wall Street Journal.

Officials at some of Apple’s suppliers, who declined to be named, said the Cupertino, Calif.-based company has shown them screen designs for a new device with a screen size of around 8-inches, and said it is qualifying suppliers for it.

The smaller screened iPad is said to feature the same display resolution as the existing iPad 2 at 1024×768 pixels. The Wall Street Journal cautions that “Apple, which works with suppliers to test new designs all the time, could opt not to proceed with the device”, but suggests that Apple is continuously looking at the smaller iPads as a way to expand the product line in an increasingly competitive market.

Many competing Android tablets have opted for smaller displays, most to limited success, although the Kindle Fire has become quite popular since it’s launch late last year. Rumors of Apple working on smaller iPads, or “iPad Mini“, have existed for quite some time, with a recent report from DigiTimes stating such a device could ship in the fourth quarter of this year.

For the time being, the only new iPad you should expect is iPad 3, which is expected to be announced on March 7 with a retina display, 4G LTE, and a quad-core CPU.

Apple is said to be working on a smaller iPad with a 7.85″ display, according to a new report from Digitimes. Citing sources in the supply chain, the “iPad Mini” is suggested to debut late in 2012, not alongside the expected iPad 3 release earlier in the year.

Digitimes sources suggest that Apple decided to produce the smaller iPad to handle increasing competition in the tablet marketplace, specifically from the Kindle Fire:

However, in order to cope with increasing market competition including the 7-inch Kindle Fire from Amazon and the launch of large-size smartphones from handset vendors, Apple has been persuaded into the development of 7.85-inch iPads, the sources indicated.

Getting more specific, the display panels for the device are said to be supplied by LG and AU Optronics, and that production will begin at the end of the second quarter of next year.

This isn’t the first time a report of an iPad with a smaller 7.85-inch display has surfaced. Last month, an analyst report also suggested that a smaller iPad would be released sometime in 2012, in addition to the iPad 3 with a retina display.

Apple will release an iPad 3 with a retina display running at 2048×1536 resolution next year, and the production of the IPS QXGA display is already underway by Samsung, Sharp, and LGD, according to a new report. Citing a confident analyst from DisplaySearch, CNET quotes “It’s happening–QXGA, 2048×1536. Panel production has started“.

Talk of an iPad 3 with a retina display isn’t anything new, theoretical discussion of such hardware started before the iPad 2 was even announced in 2011, with various pieces of evidence and conjecture surfacing early on.

Current iPad 3 rumors indicate the following possibilities:

• Retina Display – persistent rumors and reports suggest a high resolution display is all but guaranteed
• Quad Core CPU – references to a quad-core ARM CPU were found and quickly removed from Xcode earlier in the year, igniting speculation that a quad core chip could make it to the next generation of iOS hardware
• Siri – the hit AI assistant agent from iPhone 4S is likely to make it to other Apple hardware in the future, perhaps starting with iPad 3
• Dual Mode CDMA/GSM Support – it’s very likely the next iPad will include the same dual mode GSM and CDMA chip from the iPhone 4S, allowing Apple to produce a single 3G equipped iPad rather than separate CDMA and GSM devices
• Release Date – presumably the iPad 3 release will follow past iPad footsteps, with a release sometime around March or April of 2012

There are also some rumors suggesting the iPad 2 may stick around as a lower cost model, with the iPad 3 becoming a “Pro” addition that would turn the iPad into more of a product family. Apple offering a lower cost iPad may very well depend on the success of competing lower priced tablets, which thus far have struggled to gain traction in the marketplace.

iPad Mini with a 7.85″ Display to Debut Later in 2012?

Later in the aforementioned CNET report is a reference to an “mini iPad” that would include a 7.85″ display. Such a device would supposedly come in the second half of 2012, but only if there’s adequate market interest:

“If there’s demand there. There’s no reason they wouldn’t build a 7.85-inch iPad,” Shim said.

Demand for smaller screened tablets may end up depending on the success of the low priced Amazon Kindle Fire. A recent report indicated that Apple’s iPad maintains a dominating lead in tablet market share, but suggested the newly released Kindle Fire will place direct pressure on the iPad. Amazon’s tablet could be a motivating factor for Apple to be exploring an iPad with a smaller display.

While rumors are fascinating to ponder, it’s wise to take all Apple rumors with a grain of salt, especially considering how incredibly inaccurate and imaginative the iPhone 5 speculation ended up being. In other words, don’t believe it until it’s announced by Apple.

Every day there’s a new set of rumors around Apple products, yesterday it was about the new cheaper iPhone with wireless syncing and today it’s about the MacBook Pro 2011 refresh and iPad 3.

MacBook Pro 2011 refresh prices, launch due on Thursday, February 24?

Up until now the rumors of a MacBook Pro refresh have been mostly speculation, much based on the recent Intel ad that showed a nice looking Mac-like laptop. Now several rumor sites are claiming that the Thursday February 24 will be the release date (which just so happens to be Apple CEO Steve Jobs birthday).

Adding some credibility to this claim is that BestBuy is apparently showing the following new MacBook Pro SKU’s and prices in their inventory:

• MC724LL/A-SKU# 9755395 – $1499 – 13 inch
• MC700LL/A-SKU# 9755322 – $1199 – 13 inch
• MC725LL/A-SKU# 1535918 – $2499 – 17 inch
• MC723LL/A-SKU# 1535845 – $2199 – 15 inch
• MC721LL/A-SKU# 1535836 – $1799 – 15 inch

Assuming these numbers are accurate, the pricing for the 2011 MacBook Pro’s will be the same as existing models. Some have took this to suggest the 2011 refresh may not feature the dramatic redesign that has been hotly speculated about (including the cool mockup shown above out of Italy).
Read more »

It’s safe to assume that iPad 2 will have dual cameras, shed some weight, and likely even have a higher resolution screen, but that’s not enough for the rumor mill. The latest claim surrounding the popular tablet is that an unspecified smaller iPad will soon be offered alongside the regular 10″ version. This rumor comes from Reuters, who cites several hardware manufacturers in Asia as their source.

The idea of a 7-inch iPad isn’t particularly new, the rumor circulated earlier in the year and then was publicly shot down by Steve Jobs. This doesn’t mean much, as Reuters notes; “Jobs has a history of throwing Apple watchers off the scent of a good rumor — most famously when he derided the idea of iPods that play videos.”

The Reuters article also cites dual cameras coming to the iPad, which isn’t a surprise when recently leaked iPad 2 case designs clearly show a rear port for a camera.

Does a smaller iPad make sense? In many ways you could argue that the iPod touch is already a mini-iPad, and this feels even more true when you use the iPhone or iPod touch in landscape mode thanks to a jailbreak hack that realigns the iOS GUI to function horizontally. Will Apple create a device that fits between the two devices in screen dimensions? Why not just increase the screen size of the iPod touch and iPhone to 4″ instead? Several Android phones have proven it’s possible to maintain a slim design while achieving a 4″ screen, and just looking at an iPhone and iPod touch you can see where there is room to expand the display. Just a thought.

I generally trust Reuters as a reporting agency, and they certainly have better sources than your average rabbit-in-a-hat Apple rumor fabricator. Nonetheless I am skeptical of this claim, I think it is more likely that the 10″ iPad model will be reborn in a slimmer and lighter enclosure, rich with the features that everyone is now expecting, and some that we aren’t. With an expected early 2011 release for iPad 2, we’ll find out soon enough.