Mini me: Apple goes small as it unveils new iPad

Apple has unveiled a smaller version of its hit iPad tablet computer, which comes with a screen about two-thirds the size of the full model.

The company will take orders for the iPad mini on Friday. It is priced from €250 and Apple will ship the WiFi-only models on Nov 2, said marketing chief Phil Schiller. “It’s not just a shrunken down iPad, it’s an entirely new design,” he said.

For a year now, company watchers have been expecting Apple to release a smaller iPad to counter cheaper tablets such as Amazon’s Kindle Fire.

In a surprise development, Apple added that it is upgrading its full-size iPad tablet just six months after launching a new model, doubling the speed of the processor.

Previously, the company has updated the iPad once a year.