iPad Mini 2 Release Date and Features Rumors 2013: 7.9-inch Second-Generation iPad Mini Production Volumes 'Similar' to Last Year's Numbers [Report]

By Michael Oleaga / m.oleaga@latinospost.com (staff@latinospost.com) | First Posted: Aug 19, 2013 12:40 PM EDT

Tags Apple, ipad mini, iPad mini 2, iPad

Production for the next iPad mini is reportedly underway and at a volume similar to last year's launch.

According to IHS iSuppli's Director of Mobile and Emerging Displays Vinita Jakhanwal, via CNET, "The volumes are similar to the iPad Mini that we saw in [the fourth quarter] of last year."

Follow the latest Tech news on Twitter: @LatinosPostTech

Jakhanwal based the statement on what they are seeing in the production pipeline.

One current source for the original 7.9-inch iPad mini's displays is AU Optronics (AUO), and according to Jakhanwal, the company is might be set for Retina Display panels for the tablet.

She added, "AUO is supplying a small amount for the Mini. Their technology will have to scale up to do higher resolution. Sharp is always a contender."

LG Display, Sharp, and even Samsung are speculated to be producing display panels for the Apple tablet.

According to reports, the second-generation iPad mini is set to have Retina Display, the same 2,048x1,536 pixel resolution used on the current iPad 4. A Wall Street Journal report also noted the next iPad mini will likely have Retina Display due to competition from smaller tablets with high-resolution screens, such as the Google Nexus 7, which packs 1,920x1,200 pixels.

KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo projected the iPad mini 2 would get a March or April 2014 release date, adding that the iPad 5 would be the only Apple tablet released during 2013.

As Latinos Post reported, Apple's tablet market share is down considerably when comparing the second quarter of 2013 to the same period last year. According to the International Data Corporation (IDC), Apple finished the second quarter this year with 32.4 percent of the market share, down from 2012's 60.3 percent.