iPad Mini Reviews: Tech Gurus Fairly Pleased with New iPad

Apple's iPad Mini has been unveiled to the public for over a week and if you're hesitant about whether to buy it, here's what some techies are saying:

David Pogue, New York Times: "The iPad Mini is a far classier, more attractive, thinner machine. It has two cameras instead of one. Its fit and finish are far more refined. And above all, it offers that colossal app catalog, which Android tablet owners can only dream about. Over all, the Mini gives you all the iPad goodness in a more manageable size, and it's awesome. You could argue that the iPad Mini is what the iPad always wanted to be. "

Rich Jaroslovsky, Bloomberg: "See, here's the thing about the new iPad mini. It's an iPad, only... smaller. Beyond that, there may not be much more to say about the latest addition to Apple (AAPL)'s tablet family. But I'll think of something. I can tell you the iPad mini is the best small tablet you can buy. The question you'll have to answer for yourself is whether it's that much better."

Vincent Nguyen, SlashGear: "In the end, it's about an overall package, an experience which Apple is offering. Not the fastest tablet, nor the cheapest, nor the one that prioritizes the most pixel-dense display, but the one with the lion's share of tablet applications, the integration with the iOS/iTunes ecosystem, the familiarity of usability and, yes, the brand cachet. That's a compelling metric by which to judge a new product, and it's a set of abilities that single the iPad mini out in the marketplace. If the iPad with Retina display is the flagship of Apple's tablet range, then the iPad mini is the everyman model, and it's one that will deservedly sell very well."

Harry McCracken, TIME: "If your budget's got more wiggle room, the iPad Mini is the best compact-size tablet on the market. Apple didn't build yet another bargain-basement special; it squeezed all of the big iPad's industrial-design panache, software polish and third-party apps, and most of its technology, into a smaller thinner, lighter, lower-priced model. The result may be a product in a category of one - but I have a hunch it's going to be an awfully popular category."

MG Siegler, TechCrunch: "The iPad mini isn't perfect - for one reason in particular (more on that below) - but it's damn close to my ideal device. In my review of the Nexus 7 (which I really liked, to the shock of many), I kept coming back to one thing: the form-factor. Mix this with iOS and Apple's app ecosystem and the intangibles I spoke about earlier and the iPad mini is an explosion of handheld joy."