Credible Reports of a 7.85 Inch iPad Mini Emerge 193
An anonymous reader writes with this excerpt from Network World: "For months now, rumors of an iPad with a 7.85-inch screen have been circulating through the blogosphere. And though Steve Jobs once said that 7-inch tablets are 'dead on arrival,' the relative success of the Amazon Kindle Fire and other smaller tablets suggests that consumers are more than willing to accept a smaller screen size in exchange for a cheaper buy-in point. Indeed, you might remember that Apple CEO Tim Cook recently said that Apple saw a tremendous uptick in overall iPad sales once it lowered the price of the iPad 2 down to $399. That said, a chorus of credible reports over the past few days have all claimed that Apple is currently working on a slimmed down iPad and that it may be set for release as early as this Fall."
Are they copying Samsung's IP (Score:3, Insightful)
Or do they have different shaped corners than the Samsung models?
Cause really, what they need is more lawyers involved. its legal stimulus in a crappy economy.
Apple better not get rid of the Home button (Score:2)
Because Android was there first. Samsung ICS devices have no home button.
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The galaxy tabs don't have home buttons.
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getting rid of them is a construction simplicity thing.
it sucks, simply because then you can't have anything onscreen at the bottom of the screen - same problem if you have capacitive buttons. it's a huge design issue and affects numerous android and windows phone products.
it isn't that big of an issue on big screen devices like the tabs, or kindle fire, because there's more space around the bottom and the home, back etc keys only take a small portion.
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Or do they have different shaped corners than the Samsung models?
Regardless, there many be some people who choose to suspend buying Samsung or other South Korean products now that the country has announced that they'll be doing "research" whaling. (Of course they should be told why business is going elsewhere) Calling it research whaling exploits a loophole to engage in a banned practice.
I don't suppose political researchers use harpoons? They can end up traveling to places like the Cayman Islands though.
http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/2012/08/investigating-mitt-romn [vanityfair.com]
Makes sense. Somebody is buying Nanos still. (Score:3)
Nano's not as good as an Ipod touch, but Apple sometimes sees the utility in going for the lower end market.
If Apple brings a 7-inch pad to market that outperforms Fire and Nexus 7 I'd be interested.
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I'd guess an 8" tablet would have to be $300. Argument for it over the Nexus and Fire is "larger screen" and "access to the best apps through itunes, blah blah blah".
iPod Touch starts at $200.
iPad Mini starting at $300.
iPad 2 starting at $400.
Plugs the hole, fields a device to stop any potential competitor's beachhead in tablets, and they still get the premium over the alternatives.
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Argument for it over the Nexus and Fire is "larger screen" and "access to the best apps through itunes, blah blah blah".
These are both reasons NOT to buy it. Everyone seems to assume that people get smaller screens because they are cheaper, but some of us actually just like smaller devices that can fit in a (large) pocket and are paperback novel sized. It is just a nice size for reading and typing. Larger screens are particularly bad for typing because the keyboard becomes too big to comfortably use.
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What measure of performance are you interested in? Whetstone? Dhrystone? Linpack?
Does anything other than the software library really matter? Assuming it hits the same $200 price point that Google and Amazon have hit, then the iPad wins hands-down.
I ordered a Nexus 7 because, at $200, I'm not risking much. If the iPad Mini comes in at $200, it will easily own the 7" market.
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", then the iPad wins hands-down."
Why would the less diverse library win?
Re:Makes sense. Somebody is buying Nanos still. (Score:4, Interesting)
I'm speaking about normal people who account for most tablet computer sales. Slashdot readers may find the RIM Playbook / Windows Surface / Kindle Fire / other Android tablet to be have a more compelling software library and that will make those tablets a better buy.
I have both iOS and Android devices in my house and the holes in the Android library (for normal users) are slowly being filled, but app quality still lags. For now, I still can't recommend anything other than an iPad to people who ask me what they should get.
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An Ipad mini needs to be ~ $200-225. If they get too close to $250-275 there are 10 inch screens that begin to compete.
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I agree on the price point, but for a different reason. Apple would need to hit the $200-$225 price point because the iPad isn't better than a decent Android tablet. If they get too high above the price of the Kindle or the Nexus, most people won't buy it.
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Yeah, I've actually been holding out hoping for a smaller iPad. It's not about money - I just prefer the smaller size. And, having used various iOS and Android devices (mostly phones, but stiill) - I decided I wasn't interested in the Android options out there.
Re:Makes sense. Somebody is buying Nanos still. (Score:4, Insightful)
If Apple brings a 7-inch pad to market that outperforms Fire and Nexus 7 I'd be interested.
It's possible that Apple could bring a better performing 7-inch tablet, but it will not beat the price/performance ratio. You're forgetting Apple's market - they never compete on price. My guess: they charge $250-$300 for something very similar to whatever's going for $200 in Android land at the time, but they add some trivial feature and play that up in the marketing as being worth the price difference. Siri 2, for example.
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Nano's not as good as an Ipod touch,
My iPod Nano is controlled by buttons, not a touchscreen (yes, it's not the latest generation). To me, this makes it infinitely superior to the iPod Touch.
I like buttons too (Score:2)
...but yes, I was referring to the most recent Nano.
Touchscreens are more flexible but I appreciate being able to skip a song without turning on the screen and looking.
I sure Apple will eventually kill the wheel on ipods and I think that will be a mistake.
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Not as good? That really depends on what you need it for. If all you want is to able to play music or listen to audio books why do you need a pocket computer?
Goodbye Amazon. (Score:2)
Since it probably will not have all the limitations of the Kindle Fire it will outperform that one for sure.
I got the KF as a Christmas gift. I live in Mexico. There's a small flaw in the screen that showed up after a month. Amazon is willing to replace the device if I send it to the USA and they ship it to an USA address. After some more pushing they even wanted to refund the shipping cost to the USA (as an Amazon gift card, of course). When I got the KF I had to pay 20+% import duties and other taxes (40
I was way off! (Score:5, Funny)
Re:I was way off! (Score:4, Interesting)
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They aren't. My friend bought a 32" TV. When you read the small characters they actually say it's 31.5". 80 cm just happens to be 31.496".
steve would know (Score:5, Funny)
And though Steve Jobs once said that 7-inch tablets are 'dead on arrival,'
steve jobs knows all about 'dead on arrival', eh?
Re:steve would know (Score:5, Funny)
If it had a cellular modem... (Score:5, Interesting)
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Bluetooth tethering. It works great. Perhaps you need to have a chat with your service provider and express your displeasure that you can't do this for free.
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Bluetooth thethering is slow (some people really use that?). Wifi is much faster and more convenient (on all laptops).
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Yes, I suppose if you have a fast connection you could use wifi. In the city I find Bluetooth is usually as fast as the 3G speed, and BT uses less power.
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Which is why SIM cards are usually removable.
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The iPhone 4S uses a micro Sim card while the iPad (at least iPad 2) uses a standard one. The new mini iPad ... well lets see :D
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iPad 2 has a microsim
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Well, I hold it in my hands right now and it does not look like it has. But when I'm at home I check. Might be you are right, I just don't remember that I broke 2 micro SIMs out of the normal SIM compartment.
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It's so sad that VoIP hasn't replaced POTS and cellular yet...this would be so easy to do with SIP or IAX.
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The cellular modem must not cost more than $20 if integrated to a device. For many people it's worth it. The problem is the Apple tax on the cellular modem.
10" tablets are too big... (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:10" tablets are too big... (Score:4, Interesting)
I find the iPad too small for several uses. I would love a tablet with an 8.5x11" useable screen.
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I find the iPad too small for several uses. I would love a tablet with an 8.5x11" useable screen.
Yep. For a home or office tablet, I would also like something bigger than an iPad.
For full page applications like PDFs/Comic books/Magazines, I would rather have a bigger screen than 10". But using carbon fiber or something to keep weight in check.
For the more portable one-handed/ereader application, I would prefers something even smaller than 7". 5"-6" with minimal side bezels would be fine.
I realize this is in the same range as big smartphones. But big smartphones/plans are extremely expensive.
I really d
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Do you have more than one size of paper?
Tablets have uses for lots of sizes. I love my nook sometimes the screen is too small though.
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I don't get why Jobs would have thought it was 10" or bust.
I have a Nook Color 7" with ICS(pre-CM9) on it and the screen elements are too small for adult fingers with 'tablet' layout apps.
I should really take some video of me trying to use the thing and post some of the more dramatic comedy-of-errors to YouTube.
That said, the large Android tablets don't seem all that great and I'm not buying Apple gear, so instead I wait for better tech (with a working keyboard at that).
Re:10" tablets are too big... (Score:4, Insightful)
The goal was 1024x768 not 10 inches ... (Score:2)
However the retina type displays change that size requirement. That 1024x768 resolution can be offered in a smaller device. A device that could be entirely compat
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Pretty sure they could have made a 8" 1024x768 if they wanted to when they released the first iPad. It could also have been bigger than 10".
10" was a choice. Just like 3.5" was on the iPhone.
Naturally (Score:5, Insightful)
Well of course credible reports have emerged. The market needs some uncertainty injected into it since the Nexus 7 is soon to be released, and Apple certainly doesn't want anyone to buy that when they could have an iPad in a few short months.
Just a marketing ploy. It's a shame how complicit the media is when Apple wants to do it versus, well, any other technology company ever.
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Well ... considering that io6 will be including a layout manager makes this "marketing ploy" more than just a rumor. There's little reason to use a layout manager on the current hardware since everything scales by 2. Of course, that all changes when a different screen size enters the mix.
Not saying it isn't true, just saying that if there wasn't fear of the competition, they'd keep it quiet.
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Damn right! I'm so sick of Apple manipulating the media by getting them to publish OUTRIGHT LIES about products it has absolutely no intention of ever producing. I mean it seems just like yesterday that Apple duped us all by "leaking" the details of that absolute vaporware called the..
the...
uhh...
Well they leaked it and it was a total sham meant to hurt the market!
FYI: Apple has a history of being notoriously ANTI-LEAK and the rumors usually come from fanboys or pundits, not Apple
The company famous for leak
Re:Naturally (Score:4, Informative)
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No, at $199 it is another tethered media consumption device. No external ports. Add an SD slot (not Micro) and I'd probably have a pre-order in already. Add a USB host port and/or HDMI out and it would be a game changer.
I've been wondering about that too. Apparently USB-on-the-go will work, but you have to root it first.
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I think Surface is meant to compete directly with the iPad (Nexus7 and Kindle less so). I agree with grandparent, this seems like a shot across the Google's nose.
I have the prototype (Score:4, Funny)
It was called the iPad Nano. Mine can make phone calls.
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So you've been hanging out in bars around Cupertino too, eh?
Expiration of Apple's Sheen (Score:2, Informative)
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It suspect it will take a year from his death for is momentum to start to slow significant amount to notice.
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The difference, is that when Jobs left this time, he left someone competent in charge. John Sculley was incompetent at running a computer company.
"Eyes Free" (Score:2)
What if the smaller iPad wasn't intended for end users but for another OEM?
With the announcement of "Eyes Free" and a Siri button for automobiles how great a leap is it to put an iPad in your car too? Instead of those pricey in dash nav screens that all of the auto manufacturers make, what if a few of them designed an in dash dock instead? It could come with a detachable iPad capable of replacing the nav, the entertainment system, and provide a platform for new apps. And you'd be able to take it with you
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Interesting idea but it seems too unlike Apple to get into that kind of business. Methinks they would rather let aftermarket firms license the dock interface and make people buy regular old iPads.
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That being said, I'm guessing it is just an iPad.
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That really wouldn't be much different than BMW's "iPod out" support. On 2011 model year vehicles, you can actually get the iPod app's interface on the iDrive screen, and iPod functionality like the Genius playlist (or whatever it's called).
It would just apply to the whole OS rather than just one app.
7.85? (Score:3)
Why not a full 8?
After buying a nook tablet, I have found that 7" isn't big enough to read a tech manual comfortably, but a 8" isn't bad and is still a bit more portable than a 9.7"/10"
6" e-ink is still good for novels.. but id rather ditch them both and get a 9.7"/10" color e-ink at a reasonable price.
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Twenty centimeters is a nice round figure. Twenty point three cm just sounds imperfect.
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Perhaps, but their largerst market is in the US and we dont use metric on an ongoing basis.
One or the other has to sound stupid. Being from the US, i say the odd fractional inch sounds worse.
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Apple Deutschland sagt
9,7" Multi-Touch Hochglanz-Widescreendisplay mit LED-Hintergrundbeleuchtung und IPS-Technologie (24,63 cm Diagonale)
So. I was wrong. It seems that round numbers do not figure in Apple's design schemes
Height: 9.50 inches (241.2 mm)
Width: 7.31 inches (185.7 mm)
Depth: 0.37 inch (9.4 mm)
Weight: 1.44 pounds (652 g)
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They can recut the 3GS screen to roughly 7.85" and com out at 1024x768.
There will not be a 7 inch iPad (Score:2)
Re:There will not be a 7 inch iPad (Score:4, Informative)
There will not be a 7 inch iPad and there never will be. The form factor will not accommodate a finger properly, and the app library will not work on a 7.85 inch screen.
Erm. The 3.5" iPhone accommodates a finger properly. And if it has a 1024x768 screen (same was as iPad 1 & iPad 2), it will accomodate the apps fine.
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Yeah, I'm largely a fan of Apple products - but I've never grokked the blind acceptance by some people of whatever Steve said. ESPECIALLY when there was already contradictory evidence available... in this case, the existence of the iPhone and iPod Touch.
It's easy measure the size of the icons on an iPad, then do the math - on a 7.8" screen, they'll still be bigger than the versions displayed on an iPhone! So why people continue to spout this obviously false statement is hard to grasp.
Steve Jobs was, first a
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And if it has a 1024x768 screen (same was as iPad 1 & iPad 2), it will accomodate the apps fine.
Of course, it will have to come with sandpaper so users can file down their fingers. [thenextweb.com]
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Awkward finding myself taking the opposite view (Score:2)
Probably won't happen until we have paper-thin computing devices.... but I can't fa
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Twice the 10" iPad size or twice the 7-8" size of Nook Color/Nook Tablet/Kindle Fire/Nexus 7/rumored iPad Mini/etc.?
The latter -- a 15" 3:4 tablet would be 9"x12", pretty much perfect for letter/A4-formatted content, and right about the limit for what I would consider a tablet useful as a ta
News industry is having an orgaasm (Score:2)
Seriously, the entire news industry is having a shit fit over this rumor.
Is news so slow that this needs to be announced multiple times at each news source I read??
Are cellular chipsets that expensive? (Score:2)
Why is it that Google can release a 7" tablet for $199, but an unlocked Android phone with a 4" screen costs $400 - $800?
Is the cellular chipset (and related testing and integration) really that expensive? is it the miniaturization to make a phone formfactor that makes it expensive?
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Why is it that Google can release a 7" tablet for $199, but an unlocked Android phone with a 4" screen costs $400 - $800?
Unlocking requires a special titanium key that is only manufactured by the monks of one particular abbey, perched high in the Himalayas. And the keys are very fragile, so they have to be carried down the mountains nestled in the breasts of virgins.
So, as with most things, the cost is all related to labor.
Price is a huge factor (Score:2)
Consumers will take a chance and/or forgive a lot of shortcomings in exchange for a lower price.
Take Steam, discounting Left4Dead by 50% led to a 3000% increase in sales: http://www.edge-online.com/features/valve-are-games-too-expensive
That's probably where the Steam Summer Sale came from. BTW, where is it this year?
sceptical (Score:3)
I'm very sceptical, that wouldn't be like Apple at all. I'm half expecting a much cheaper iPad in addition to the existing ones, but not with a different form factor.
Reasons are plenty, one of them is that apps are all designed for this size, from button size to the occasional ruler app. There have been similar rumors for the iPhone several times, and they've all turned out to be wrong.
if it's a smidgen smaller, at 6" diagonal... (Score:2)
...I'll be amused as hell, because that's about the screen size of the Newton MP2000 that was often rejected as way too large (the PalmPilot's tiny size being something of a reaction to this).
A play on the joke about Nietzsche... (Score:4, Insightful)
"7-inch tablets are dead on arrival" - Steve Jobs
"Steve Jobs is dead on arrival" - 7-inch tablets
A step in the wrong direction. (Score:2)
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It's called a desktop monitor. :-P
And smart investors around the world (Score:2)
Smart investors around the world are investing heavily in cargo pants in anticipation of the gadget's arrival on the tech scene. Basement geeks are re-considering their previous decision to abandon trousers altogether, thinking perhaps that decision was a bit 'premature.'
New form factor for developers? (Score:2)
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Galaxy Note 1 has a 16:10, 1280x800 display.
Should be good for this guy (Score:2)
http://techcrunch.com/2012/07/05/is-this-a-thing-a-business-man-carries-ipad-in-his-pants-through-grand-central-station/ [techcrunch.com]
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It signifies that people would like another choice. Many of us like the 8" form factor better than 7.( i have both, and prefer 8" for reading )
1 inch doesn't sound like a lot, but it makes a huge difference without bloating the entire device when you jump to nearly 10".
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No doubt that for a limited subset of peolpe the size of the iPhone was perfect. It certainly wasn't for everyone. I see the same
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For what its worth, i wont be buying one. While i do prefer iOS over android and the quality of the device, i don't like the limitations that come with iOS products so i choose the alternatives instead.
So, I'll be keeping my 8" generic tablet that i replaced my 7" NT with..
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Re:The only real answer: (Score:4, Informative)
> Not to feed the trolls, but where does this idea that monetary wealth = strength come from?
Probably because monetary wealth == power == strength.
> I'd put Billy Gates' fortune against mine that in a one-on-one deathmatch, I'd eat that scrawny fuck for lunch.
That is silly. Billy's wealth counts as much as your gym time or you weapons collection when comparing survival fitness. So pit your pitiful physical strength and possible sidearm against his legion of doom in a deathmatch and see how well you fare. You probably wouldn't even get past the zero level minions at the front gate.
Now a little less silly and more snarky. His monetary wealth represents the labor and assets of a billion or so people willingly traded for his. That is real, and it has value. The better question is who is more of an asset to the species and our civilization. You or Gates in a reality show faceoff to justify your existence to the studio audence and the loser gets deleted from the genepool. Who would the audience keep? Hell, who would be considered the more attractive mate? Should I continue to attack your very existence or have I made the point yet? Being able to physically beat somebody up hasn't mattered all that much since Sam Colt... or more bluntly, since junior high.
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His monetary wealth represents the labor and assets of a billion or so people willingly traded for his.
For certain values of "willingly"...
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So he could have taken pliers to people's fingers the whole time, I bet he feels like an idiot now.
Re:The only real answer: (Score:4, Insightful)
Having all the money in the world won't save you from genetic weakness; just ask Steve Jobs. Oh wait, you can't, because even his vast wealth couldn't make up for the fact that he was, in the evolutionary sense, weaker than, say, you and I.
Which is my point; being able to hire a million people to do your dirty work for you does not make you stronger; in fact, considering that doing so tends to generate a dependence on said army, I would posit that such activity actually weakens the individual.
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In a Darwinian sense the only thing that matters is how many offspring you leave behind. How long you live doesn't count for jack, neither does how many asses you can or cannot kick in a deathmatch. So ask yourself the big question. Billionaires like Gates and Jobs didn't leave a thousand children sired on thousand mothers (each one a smoking hot babe, fittest specimens they could find) behind, all with a free ride through the university of their choice and into a career of their choosing, leaving them all in good positions to spread the royal seed even more; but they COULD if they wanted to. Could you?
Ha, touche, sir! You've got me there!
I mean, maybe a couple hundred, but fuck, not sure I'd be able to stand afterwards...
And I say that a million people will willingly DO your dirty work in exchange for the obligations incurred by virtue of the goods and services you produce makes you stronger and a more fit specimen.
Still disagree, on the merit that you could hand a billion dollars to damn near any human on the planet and see nearly identical result. IMO, if it's something EVERYONE would do, including, say, creationists, then it's not an evolutionary advantage.
And I further point out the clearly evident fact that females of our species routinely make the same judgement in picking a less physically fit but financially capable mate. Hell, even a few males have no problem marrying into wealth.... including one fairly recent POTUS contender.
Well, if that's what passes for evolution these days, then count me out. The way I see it, there's more to life (and the evolution thereof)
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If I am holding a one hundred dollar bill it is because I performed a service to someone else that they valued more than the dollars.
Yeah you did! It's what they like to the 'certificate of satisfaction'. Nothing like a happy ending :).
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In a Darwinian sense the only thing that matters is how many offspring you leave behind. How long you live doesn't count for jack
If you sire 3,000 offspring, but they all die or otherwise end up childless, it's the same thing in the Darwinian sense as having zero offspring.
Issues involved are raising them, training and equipping them so that they can continue on success, how you can protect them during their vulnerable times, or give them a system of security beyond their own solitary struggles. This all ties into whether or not the offspring can continue to be successful even in a survival and reproductive sense.
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Ironically enough it's only through humanity's disconnect from nature's usual evolutionary pressures brought about by "advanced" civilizations that these social darwinists are able to survive. If Darwin really had his way, selfish individuals would be pushed out of / leave the tribe and be promptly eaten by predators. But now that we respect their individual rights and don't rely on safety in numbers, they live long, happy lives masturbating to Ayn Rand and ranting at the rest of us.
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One dimensional thinking (Score:2)
But then, the Playbook I can be bothered to carry around with me everywhere has a definite advantage over the iPad or the Transformer that is really just too big for convenience, either for holding or carrying, given my Euro-weenie size and small hands.
Personally, I have a suspicion that I am going to have helpless bank account leak at the