A new report is suggesting that increasing the quality of the screen on a Retina Display iPad mini would likely increase the cost of the device by up to $12. The report comes from Digitimes who say that Apple ‘may’ introduce a new version of the iPad mini and that it could carry a Retina Display-ready 2048 x 1536 pixel screen. This would translate to $12 being added to the cost of the device and carrying the component bill over the $200 per unit mark, assuming prices for other components remained the same.
The report further suggests that with the extra costs associated with putting a Retina Display into the iPad mini, including increased backlighting and LEDs, the total cost of the Retina Display iPad mini could increase by around 30%. Interestingly, the mention of LEDs in this report is strange in the context of recent statements by Tim Cook, CEO of Apple who suggested that OLED displays were inferior in color saturation compared to the Retina Displays.
Given that the prices of other materials used in the iPad mini will have likely increased or decreased in the interim period between device launches, it is unclear how a Retina Display would affect cost of the device. Indeed, Apple launched a Retina Display third generation iPad at exactly the same price as the previous generation, so predicting the price of a Retina Display iPad mini would be exceedingly difficult.
Clearly Displayed…