Images of iPad mini display leak online

With the announcement of the iPad mini just a few days away, tipsters are not holding back any information pertaining to this 7.85-inch tablet and are aiming to steal all the spotlight away from Apple when it announces the tablet. The latest leak comes courtesy of ETrade Supply and it claims to have received the LCD display that is to be fitted on the iPad mini.

As per the report, the author states, “The iPad Mini LCD Screen is almost 8- inch with about 162mm in length and 124mm in width. The previous exposed iPad Mini LCD is 16:9, but the one we have got is almost a ratio of 4:3 as usual.”

Images of the display surface

Upon closer inspection, we can see that the display is the one that is manufactured by LG. There were reports in the past stating that LG and AU Optronics were the suppliers of the displays for the iPad mini. According to an earlier report, Apple Inc. will use screens from AU Optronics Corp. and LG Display Co. for a smaller version of the iPad to be released in October, according to four people familiar with the plans. TPK Holding Co. and Yeh Cheng Technology, a subsidiary of Foxconn Technology Group, will supply the lamination coating for the device that will measure 7.85 inches diagonally, said sources who declined to be identified because the plans haven’t been made public. This matches up with the markings on the display which shows the LGD markings.

Apple is the market leader when it comes to tablets. However, it has been losing its share in this segment to the likes of Amazon and Google. For Apple to stay in the run and cater to a customer base that would want a smaller tablet, Apple would have to launch a 7-inch tablet to cement its throne as the leading tablet manufacturer. The Google Nexus 7 tablet is faring exceedingly well in the market and rumours suggest that a 3G version of the tablet may also be in the works.

LGD branding at the back

Speculating on the competition at hand, while the prices of the Nexus 7 and the Kindle Fire are similar, the Nexus 7 seems to be the device of choice as it comes with beefier hardware along with access to Android v4.1 (Jelly Bean) as well as future Android releases. However, Apple has its own iOS operating system. When it does announce the iPad mini, it will most likely launch it with iOS 6 straight out of the box.

The earlier report went on to state that LG Display and TPK are already suppliers for Apple’s handheld devices, which include the iPhone and iPad. Yeh Cheng, a maker of touch-screen sensors and lamination, was spun off from Chimei Innolux earlier this year and sold to Hon Hai, the division which began supplying sensors for the iPad 2 last year.