I ordered an iPad mini so that I could see how it might be used in a law practice and compare it to the iPhone and the iPad. It is due to arrive on Friday, so you can imagine my surprise when I received a small package from Apple yesterday. When I opened it I saw my very own iPad mini ... Smart Cover. Oh well.
As I await the iPad mini, this Smart Cover gives me a preview of the size of the iPad mini, plus it was interesting to see what has changed from the Smart Cover for the iPad. Here is what it looks like in the box:
As I held the iPad mini Smart Cover in my hand, I started to get a sense of the size of the iPad mini, and I have to admit that I really liked it. It reminds me of a small 5" x 8" legal pad that you might use to take notes in your office. (The iPad mini is 5.3" x 7.87" according to Apple.) If a size can be "friendly" this is it. Indeed, when my wife saw me holding it, she immediately said: "That's cute. I want one too." She may have only been half-joking. Placing the iPad mini Smart Cover on top of my iPad with Smart Cover gives you a sense of the difference in size:
In fact, I noticed that you can even attach the iPad mini Smart Cover to an iPad. Of course it doesn't cover much, and thus appears to be somewhat risqué:
The back of the iPad mini Smart Cover has a microfiber lining to help keep you screen clean, just like the iPad Smart Cover. Unlike the iPad Smart Cover, the iPad mini Smart Cover doesn't come in leather and only comes in polyurethane. It comes in six colors: dark gray (what I purchased), gray, pink, green and blue.
Select members of the press were given an iPad mini to review last week, and the reviews were posted last night. All of them are pretty glowing, but this paragraph from the review by Scott Stein of CNet struck me as I contemplated the new size:
What's unique about the Mini? Without a doubt, it's the design. It's cute, it's discreet, and it's very, very light. It feels like a whole new device for Apple. It's light enough to hold in one hand, something the iPad was never really able to achieve for extended periods of time. It's bedroom-cozy. Other full-fledged 7-inch tablets feel heavier and bulging by comparison. This is a new standard for little-tablet design. It makes the iPad feel fresh. After a week of using the iPad Mini, it seems to find a way to follow me everywhere. It's extremely addicting, and fun to use.
The size of the iPad mini Smart Cover is starting to get me excited about the size of the iPad mini itself. Of course I knew that it would be smaller, but now I'm starting to think about what that actually means, how I might find myself using an iPad mini in ways that I would never use an iPad.
As for the Smart Cover itself, this is only "sort of" a review because I have not yet had the opportunity to try it with the iPad mini itself. Nevertheless, it looks like another fine Apple product that will become an essential part of using the iPad mini.
Click here to get the iPad mini Smart Cover from Apple ($39.99).
