If you want a brand-new iPad today, you can either shell out $500 and up for an iPad 3, or go a little easier on your pocketbook and snag an iPad 2. Sales of those start at just $400, and even though the original iPad 2 dates back to spring of 2011, models currently in production use the newer S5L8942 A5 chip, manufactured on a more modern 32nm process. Though that hardware refresh gave the tablet a nice shot in the arm, its days may already be numbered, upon rumors that Apple could end sales of the iPad 2 with the arrival of the iPad mini.

Now, to be fair, this rumor doesn’t come from any source within Apple or its partners, but is the work of a market analyst. While that usually carries a good deal less weight, the idea does make a lot of sense. After all, the iPad mini should measure-up to or exceed the iPad 2 in nearly every way, and as it’s expected to launch slightly cheaper than the iPad 2 is selling for now, it might not make that much sense to continue selling the old model.

After all, the only thing the iPad 2 would have over the Mini would be its form factor – if you prefer larger tablets – and in that case you could always go with the iPad 3. All told, this sounds pretty plausible to us.

Source: Evercore Partners
Via: BGR