Apple to host Oct 23 event, iPad mini expected

MINI TABLET CONTENDER: Journalists testing the new Kindle Fire HD 7in during Amazon's Kindle Fire event in Santa Monica, California on Sept 6, 2012. There is talk that Apple will be launching its own mini tablet to directly compete with Amazon's device on Oct 23. - Reuters

SAN FRANCISCO: Apple Inc will host an event on Oct 23 where it is expected to unveil a smaller iPad that will take on the less expensive devices offered by Amazon.com Inc and Google Inc, a source familiar with the matter said.

Wall Street analysts have predicted for months that Apple was planning a smaller, less costly version of its popular iPad to take on cheaper competing devices, a move that analysts say might hurt its margins, but prevent its rivals from dominating an increasingly important computing segment.