I personally would put heavy weightage on the Apps. Without good complementary Apps and just cutting edge hardware just wouldn't cut it for me.

If only Apple was to listen to it's customers, but instead it relied on their own personal opinions?, which is OK for those with the same opinions, but what kept me from buying an iPad in the first place was it's size?, that's why I purchased a Mac Air 11"!!, if I was to carry something of that size it had to at least be worthy of the hassle, but I did get an Android 7" tablet to fit my cargo pants, and the Mac air mostly stays at home unless I really need it, but my 7" tablet is always with me!, now Apple had to make it smaller but not small enough to fit my cargo pants!! Arrrrg!... I think Apple made it that size so they did not look as hypocrites for insulting those who made 7" tablets, seems inept to me for them to do such silly things?, But that's Apple for ya!...

"Developers flock to the iPad because of its market share,"
Developers are interested in profit, and the problem with Android is that since their users want to cheap out in the first place, making a decent profit by selling apps to them is extremely difficult. Many people just refuse to pay for apps, while others participate in widespread app piracy.
I just tried an iPad mini at the Apple Store after owning an iPad 2 a while back. Very nice. Feels almost weightless. Books were quite readable despite the smaller screen. But alas, I need something more pocketable that I can have with me all the time, like an iPhone or iPod touch, and don't have a pressing need for a tablet again at this point. Oh, well.

I don't get this thing with "superior library". 90% of the apps on any platform are clones of each other Shouldn't we measure app library based on unique apps, and how polished the best of the category is, instead of sheer number (which generally just reflect the fact that there are a lot of crapware in the world).
For example, my search for Instant Messaging on Google Play Store yielded.."at least 1000 results" is the precise term that Google spat back at me. Why do I care about the 990+ of them that nobody uses?

This obsession with small weight differences baffles me. Some of us wear wrist watches. My watch weighs 76 grams. Do you think it makes any difference to my ability to hold my hand up in front of my face? Nope. Muscles adapt. After a few seconds of wearing it, you don't notice the weight difference. Don't be wimp. The weight differences between iPad Mini, Nexus 7, Kindle Fire, and other 7" pads are irrelevant. Neither is the small difference in screen resolution relevant. They're good enough for their purpose in that size of screen. The big differences are the feature sets: 0, 1, or 2 cameras; battery life; connectivity; software library; openness versus controlled closed ecosystem; etc. Personally, I have several phones and pads, and I like them all for their purposes. My Nook Color tablet with a $20 add-on 3rd party Android operating system on its micro SD card is actually my favorite for reading on the couch and web browsing. With its leather easel case, it weighs 651 grams and that doesn't matter. But when I'm outdoors, I much prefer my Nook Simple Touch (dumb name, nice eBook reader) with e-ink screen -- much easier to read in full sun by reflected light than any backlit tablet with glossy screen.

Will...
What is the size ration between the mini and the 4? And what are the overall sizes?
In other words what are the h and the w of the display and the case so that I can compare.
Sounds to me like the sacrifice in size isn't all that much.
And it sounds to me like there now is an opening for some new cargo pants designs maybe with an apple on the bottom.
bill

The feeling of being "locked into the Apple world", knowing the company pays no Tax in USA and less than 2% overseas and reading how they exploit their overseas staff assures me that I will never ever buy an Apple than one that grew on a tree. My doctor, brain and IQ tells me the important thing of any tablet or computers in general is it's "visuality"! If the screen sucks what is the point of a fab software or x apps? The screen and not what's around it will ruin my eyes or tire them more than a few mm more or less in the material side. So why would I opt for the latest invented Apple that feeds on a social craze? Once you see the latest Samsung really Apple doesn't cut it!

Your closeup of the iPad Mini screen is out of focus. I have used the Mini. Its screen is very sharp, particularly when rendering icons like those shown in the photo. Yes, some jaggies are just visible at the edges of text, but it's hardly noticeable. The screen definitely does not "suck," as Android fans so eloquently put it.
Otherwise, thank you for the informative review.

The iPad Mini is not handicapped in lacking a retina display. That is my opinion and I own all of the other Retina display products available. So am I a freak? Arguably yes, but that apart, the display on the Nexus 7 is only the tiniest bit better, because somehow all those extra pixels available, do not make a whole lot of difference when the screen looks washed out and the brightness is not as intense. And I am only going to compare the Mini to the Nexus since none of the other smaller tablets out there have the speed and fluid user interface for around $300-$350 which take the Mini and Nexus to another level entirely. Initially, after having read on the Mini for an hour or so, I did not find the resolution an issue. I love the retina display, but would rather have amazing battery life with a display that looks significantly better then the iPad 2. That brings me to another point: battery life is NOT the same for Nexus 7 & and the Mini. I own both and used them with exactly the same apps and for the same time to compare: I got 20 hours out of the Mini and 8 from the Nexus 7. Why? And why does the expert testing not bear this out? Very simple: In MY test I left both devices on standby for 5 to 6 hours at a time in between bouts of intensive use. I played itunes videos versus google play videos and noticed twice the battery consumption on the Nexus compared to the Mini. I recorded virtually zero standby discharge on the Mini compared to 1 to 2 % on the Nexus. I played the same games, downloaded the same apps and browsed the same sites. And yes I know some apps drain the standby battery faster. But that's the point isn't it? The iOS is an incredibly power efficient operating system versus Android which means it does not need a quad core processor to be as powerful and efficient. I do not like a lot of the ethics of Apple-namely the libel cases. However, it is the legal system that allows them to get away with it. In my opinion the iPad mini is the best tablet ever made even without a retina display.

Like the man with a wooden leg said. It's a matter of opinion.