iPad mini slated to be discontinued

BGR with a source stating the iPad mini will be phased out:

Not one to ever be shy about disrupting the company’s own lineup, our source beats the Apple drum and states that there’s "fierce cannibalism of our own products" and that the iPad mini has just been "sized out of its own category."

I think the writing has been on the wall since the 32GB iPad mini was dropped last month as Apple released its new, cheaper 9.7-inch iPad at $329. Apple has also implied on their earnings calls that the long term decline in iPad unit sales is largely attributable to the iPad mini, while sales of the larger models remain strong.

iPad mini debuted to strong sales alongside the 4th generation iPad in October 2012. At 0.68 pounds to the larger iPad's 1.44 pounds, iPad mini had a clear role to fill as the lighter, more portable tablet, while still offering a lot more screen than the 4-inch display on iPhone 5.

The next year, iPad Air debuted and cut the weight down to just 1 pound. And then the following year, Apple released iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. With lighter iPads and bigger iPhones in the lineup, iPad mini's niche has been narrowing.

I recently experimented with using all three sizes of iPad for about a month, and I'll have more to say about their relative merits in an upcoming post on Infinite Bloop.