The iPad Mini Is Now Available for Purchase
The iPad mini is finally here!
Apple's brand new device went on sale this morning at 8:00 a.m local time. Even areas that were devastated by hurricane Sandy, like New York City, will have the iPad mini in stock at authorized retailers.
The tablet carries a starting price point of $329 and has a smaller 7.9-inch display. It will run on the the same iOS 6 software and has the full capabilities of the iPad. However, only the WiFi version goes on sale today. Customers will have to wait for the 3G / 4G versions, which are expected to go sale in the coming weeks.
Sources have reported long lines of eager consumers ready to get their new tab, but also say they are much shorter than for the original iPad release.
Obviously, the lines in New York were shorter in the wake of superstorm Sandy. At Apple's iconic Cube store on 5th Avenue, only one person stood in line late Thursday night. By Friday morning, there were many more. Fortune reports that there were over 300 in line by 8:00 a.m. ET. Apple's stores in Soho and on 14th Street will be closed due to power outages in the city.
However, according to Twitter there were substantial lines of enthusiastic fans in China. There were also lines building in Ohio and Irvine, Calif., overnight. At 8:00 a.m. ET, the store on the Upper West Side in New York City had close to 50 people in line. However, when the iPhone launched at that store there were hundreds of people camped out.
