text:
7-inch iPad on track for October 2012 release, $200 to $250 price
Apple will be going forward with the 7-inch iPad, currently targeting an October 2012 release alongside the new iPhone, and -- here's the killer -- at a $200 to $250 price point. According to our sources, the reason for such aggressive pricing is to do to the tablet market what Apple did to the MP3 market in 2004 with the expansion of the iPod product line -- leave absolutely no space for competitors.
We haven't gotten a firm read on the exact screen dimensions, so we're using 7-inches generically here. Our sources have indicated, however, that the 7-inch iPad will be identical to the current 9.7-inch iPad, just scaled down. While that might raise hopes for a 2048x1536 resolution Retina display, just like the new iPad, it's more likely Apple would stick with the same 1024x736 display currently found on the iPad 2. If that's the case, Retina display would make an appearance in a future version of the product.
One way Apple will be keeping costs lower is by providing less storage capacity. $200 to $250 will get you 8GB. By way of comparison, the current entry-level iPod touch also starts at $200 for 8GB. (And no, Apple won't be replacing the iPod touch with the 7-inch iPad, both devices will remain in the product lineup -- though it'll be interesting to see what happens with iPod touch pricing and storage capacity.)
While Apple's late co-founder, Steve Jobs, was famously dismissive of 7-inch tablets, calling them terrible and dead-on-arrival, he also said no one wanted to watch video on an iPod and that Apple wasn't interested in making a phone. One of Jobs' chief criticism of the 7-inch form factor was its impact on software -- that competitors stretched out smartphone apps instead of making iPad-class apps. Obviously, Apple's 7-inch iPad would run the same apps as the current 9.7 inch app, though scaled down. While that will affect design elements like touch targets, and may cause some developers to approach iPad apps in different ways, it's better than introducing a 3rd interface size to the mix (in addition to iPhone/iPod touch and 9.7-inch iPad).
Apple previously addressed the lower price point by keeping the 2011 iPad 2 around at $399 following the launch of the new iPad.
Rumors of a 7-inch iPad mini have been around since just after the launch of the original iPad in 2010, and picked up speed when competitors like Samsung, RIM, and Amazon began offering 7-inch tablets. Some, like the Kindle Fire, are already at the $200 price point, using cheap to compete with good. While Amazon won't talk sales numbers, and none of these devices can really be called successful at this point, to a certain segment of the market, cheap is what matters. Apple hasn't chosen to address that segment in desktop or laptop computers, or in phones, but they have in MP3 players and it sounds like they will again in tablets. And they'll do it in the same way -- by being cheap and good. For large scale markets like education, a 7-inch, $200 to $250 iPad would be compelling.
Steve Jobs' tag line for the original iPad was "...our most advanced technology in a magical and revolutionary device at an unbelievable price".
Sound like Apple is getting ready to be even more unbelievable.
Update: This article has been updated to reflect more recent information, namely that Apple will likely start with a standard display and move to Retina display in the future version of the product.
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Rene Ritchie is one of the most respected Apple analysts in the business, reaching a combined audience of over 40 million readers a month. His YouTube channel, Vector, has over 90 thousand subscribers and 14 million views and his podcasts, including Debug, have been downloaded over 20 million times. He also regularly co-hosts MacBreak Weekly for the TWiT network and co-hosted CES Live! and Talk Mobile. Based in Montreal, Rene is a former director of product marketing, web developer, and graphic designer. He's authored several books and appeared on numerous television and radio segments to discuss Apple and the technology industry. When not working, he likes to cook, grapple, and spend time with his friends and family.
My sources just said "absolutely not" to this headline, maybe you are getting confused with the iPod touch redesign?
Lots of people gave imore crap for a previous rumor(forget if it was new iPad or 4S) and they were correct so I believe them! If apple wants iPads in schools and to destroy the completion even more, a cheaper(in price) 7in retina iPad would leave all tablets even further in the dust. I bet it would be as popular as the iPod nano which became the most popular iPod (before the touch came out) I can see parents buying these for their kids for school easily
Both. We got pretty close to nailing the dates and details of both the iPhone 4S and the iPad 3 (the new iPad). Part of what makes this so stressful -- we take it really seriously.
Rene, if your sources are right about the iPad mini, I wonder if the rumored price of $200-$250 might have been "leaked" to put a damper on sales of Kindles, Nooks, and so on. Because with a true Retina display, I think the price would have to be $249 or $299.
What I mean is that I can't believe $200 is really under consideration. It's just out there for effect.
Who said anything about Retina? 1024x768 would look just fine on a 7" screen, it looks awesome on the Playbook... not sure they could produce Retina this small at a price that big (because they still need to scale to 1024x768 / 2048x1536).
Either way, a price point that low would make this an iPad-killer. Nobody would buy the 10" anymore because 7" (or 7.85") is a WAY better form factor. They'd cannibalize sales, something to be careful of. The iPad makes you buy something else. The iPad-mini makes you decide NOT to buy that iPad and buy something else at a lower price point. Not good business. Convergence is bad when trying to move product.
I would still far -- FAR -- prefer the 9.7 inch iPad to any 7 inch iPad. 7-inch is a compromise. I already have an iPhone for that. 9.7 lets me get closer to approximating the actual work I can get done on a laptop.
Same reason I never bought a 7-inch netbook :)
There is seriously NO way that it will sell for $200. iPod Touch costs more than that. Nice rumor though.
"Part of what makes this so stressful..."
WTF? What is "stressful" about what you do? You write for a web site. You write about rumors. I'm sorry but, where's the "stress"?
I take this stuff seriously. I consider our readers' attention to be valuable. If I didn't stress over it, I probably shouldn't be doing it.
Don't stress over it Rene.
This should be a labor of love for you. Sure, there are deadlines and confirming sources and what not, but you should be ENJOYING doing this, not stressing over it, because if you let it be a stressful endeavor, one day you will find yourself having to abandon it due to health concerns. You are providing valuable information to readers who appreciate the work you do. Don't let it give you a heart attack. That's what the day job rat race is for and this shouldn't be that, for you.
I think you will probably end up eating your hat on this one Rene :-)
I'm not saying the 7" ipad won't happen, but it will never happen at that price point in my opinion.
Yeah, I use my 10" for watching movies on planes and stuff instead of my 13" MacBook, so I wouldn't want to go any smaller. 10" is small enough for what I use it for and like Rene said, if it's too big to take somewhere I still have my iPhone.
7.85 inch iPad is definitely coming this year, it is already in Apple supply chain in China.
I am surprise that this is still a rumor over in US; no secret can be kept when you make things in China.
Are these freakin authors stupid or just ignorant? I mean good night...
Neither, but both seem to apply to you.
I think this could be the ipod 5 but bigger
^^^THIS. iPOD Touch redesing...
If I can get my kindle loving mom a $200 iPad that would be amazing! She does like that she can take her kindle "anywhere" and still have a network connection. For free. Hmmmm
Except that Apple will surely stick with the idiotic glossy screen, instead of being the "leader" that it claims to be and shunning a fad that started with third-tier crap being sold at Best Buy.
I still think they should just make the screen on the iPod touch and iPhone bigger instead of making a smaller iPad. 4-4.3 inches. But many more people would buy iPads at $250.
And how would they do that, when the screen is already the entire face of the phone? Make it fold out somehow?
uhhh...you make a larger screen??
hello, troll
I think this is exactly what the rumors are based on. There is not going to be a 7" iPad. The rumors extend from information that there will actually be an iPhone with a bigger screen, starting at $200 (with contract). Rumors like this always stem from some small truth, but are generally misguided. This cycle has happened before every recent Apple launch. Recap: larger iPhone screen, $200 price point, and they will call it the iPhone (no iPhone 5). Rene can hire me as a writer if I'm right.
Apple sort of did address the cheap market in phones by offering previous model iPhone for $100 less than the new version, and even offering the 3Gs for free, with contract.
Re: ..."do to the tablet market what Apple did to the MP3 market in 2004 with the expansion of the iPod product line"...
I completely understand this concept. In fact, I've been expecting Apple do do this since the original iPad was announced. Different sized iPads at different price points. (But no iPad shuffle, please.)
But, Rene, if there isn't a 7 to 8 inch iPad in October, be ready for a heavy (virtual) smack down. I won't hold anything back. I know that iMore needs to at least report on actual rumor sites' posts, but I'm hoping iMore doesn't descend too far into rumor-mongering.
I hear you. We're very careful about this stuff, and so far I think we've done a good job (iPhone 4S, iPad 3). This is 100% the most stressful part of my job and I don't take it lightly.
My guess (personal opinion) is that Apple doesn't intend to take next-generation Android or Amazon 7-inch tablet competition lightly, and will scorch the earth with this iPad before anyone else gets any traction.
Looks like they have learned their lessons from Iphone. Even though they are selling quite a bit, they lost market share to Android. And now, Samsung is giving good competition and it's becoming difficult to stop them. It's good to see if Apple use this trick and offer competitive price before Andorid/Windows 8 gets their foot strong in tablet market. This is why I think being fan is fine but being blind believer is wrong. Company should always offer choices and better prices and blind believer will enable company to keep prices jacked up be it Apple, Google, Microsoft or Samsung.
Agree. Great job so far, and hey, if your sources are reliable it's cool. Especially if they're exclusive.
It was obvious to me a while back a 7" ipad was coming later. The only surprising tidbit is the retina screen.
I'd love to see it. It's a buy for the kiddo. I wonder if it'd come in 4G flavors?
If this product does come out, it'll be crippled with ridiculously small memory capacity and probably no GPS. And that latter omission will be particularly stupid, since a smaller tablet is an even better option for mobile use.
Then again, with no memory to speak of, you won't be able to hold much in the way of maps. So in the end, this product will be even more of a nearly useless gimmick than the larger iPad. And people will lap it up, and "the press" will fawn over it without a bit of real critical analysis.
and you will continue to troll on apple blogs
And you will continue with your jerk wad takes, Whathave you. Next time have a point. No room here for tools or trolls.
I am just the average user and have been holding off buying a Kindle Fire in the hopes that Apple will bring out an affordable Ipad mini! I have heard the rumors for several months and have been waiting!. the Ipad is too big, and the Ipod touch is too small. I want to be able to toss it in my bag and go! So, I am definitely sure that there will be a market. I have the original Nook and have been holding out for an Ipad of equal size! I hope Rene, you are right and am hopefully waiting!
Looks like they are playbook wannabes =P
If that were the case Apple would produce it with no native email or calendar.
Oops, that is the logic and smarts of those clowns at RIM.
The word is tens and tens of Playbooks have been sold.......yes, the iPad killer.
@Dixie Normis even without the native email and calendar, the playbook OS was and still is better than iOS...
Now the playbook has everything native its even better.
Word is even though the media is completely biased and hated on the PlayBook like crazy RIM was still able to sell over a million of them.
The Playbook doesn't have to be an iPad killer, many people will still like it even if they aren't part of the millions of iPad owners...
There are vastly less ferarris then there are Hondas and fords....ferrari is still better car, just not for everyone, especially the common people.
I hope this is true and the price is at $200, it would sell better than their current ipad and really take the tablet market over once more
The price point of this would eat to much into Apples profits to make it worthwhile.
At 200-250 they would be making no profit, just like everyone else is making no profit at that price point.
For arguments sake please endulge me in the following scenario, the numbers I make up are just for illustration and not based on an reality: In a world where no 7 inch tablets exist, Apple will sell 1 billion 10 inch ipads In a world where 7 inch tablets exist, Apple will sell 800 million 10 inch tablets thus, because of Android, Touchpads and Playbooks, Apple lost 200 million 10 inch iPad sales because those people wanted a 7 inch tablet instead of a 10 inch, and went with one of the offerings.
There are also many consumers who want a 7 inch tablet, but, only want Apple offerings, thus, they buy the 10 inch model, lets say there are another 200 million of these people.
If Apple makes a 7 inch tablet that makes no profit, sure, they will retain those 200 million people who bought the Android/Touchpad/Playbook, but, they will also lose another 200 million people who want ONLY an Apple 7 inch
Net loss of 200 million sales that make a profit
So to summarize, if Apple makes no profit on a 7 inch tablet, there is no point of them releasing it. It will only reduce their profits.
You can rest assured that if they put a 7 inch tablet on the market, they've done the math and have figured out a way to make it profitable, this isn't their first day on the job.
Either that or they decided to take the losses for the purpose of driving out the competition. Of course you have to be careful selling products at a loss in the US, you can run into anti-trust issues.
Please let us know the last time Apple sold anything for a loss in the past decade?
GUARANTEED - they have the numbers worked out. It will have removable memory and/or iCloud required. I suspect there will be some level of cloud connection required.
In addition to that, it will most likely be a model tha ONLY features 3G/4G connectivity (with WiFi). To get the lower price point, you MUST sign up with a two year contract data plan.
$199 iPad Mini with data package will fly off the shelves.
How could Apple make any money with that price point? If they were losing money to drive competitors out of business, it could open them to a predatory pricing investigation.
Apple has huge markups in their prices, which is how they built that $100 Billion mountain of cash. They could drop prices quite a bit if they are interested in goals that allow for lower profitability.
Sorry.. It's just never gonna happen. Apple I'm sure has tons of prototypes, but those won't see the light of day. Face it, Apple isn't going to put out a crap device or something it isn't comfortable with and that is a small iPad. They sale a done of the 10"er's, they don't need another product to have people chose between.
I agree.
Moreover, a 7" iPad is not significantly cheaper to build than a 10" one, and Apple don't do cheap, it's just not part of their strategy.
This fall is going to be very fun. I look forward to the fireworks from an iPad Mini, Win8 tabs, and Android tabs.
I believe Rene and iMore's sources, there is actually thought and reason and just a huge headline with wild speculation. Nice job guys.
I agree. This seems waaayyyyy too good to be true. The kindle, nook tablet, Samsung 7inch galaxy whatever are barely cutting into apple's territory. No one knows them and no one wants to know them. People who buy them wind up wishing they just saved up a little more for the iPad. The only sales the 7 inch iPad would cut into would be the current iPads. Apple would just be competing with themselves. I'm sure apple is toying with the idea but in the end I doubt they pull the trigger on this.
No one knows or wants to know the kindle or nook? What cave are you in? Kindle does quite well for amazon. Is the kindle an ipad killer? Of course not, but then again even the fire doesnt try to be. But monochrome kindles roast the ipad when it comes to ereading.
You're missing the point...
This would make my life. I would buy a 7 inch iPad in a heartbeat especially at the $250 price point.
I hope this happens. this will become the interface for my carputer. I just don't have room to elegantly incorporate my 10 inch iPad.
I hope it comes with GPS.
Here's my take:
Apple will release a 7" device.
It will be a 7" iPod Touch. (This will not replace the current touch, just be an addition to the iPod line-up)
The 7" iPod touch will run iPhone and iPod Touch apps, but NOT iPad apps. (Much like the iPhone and iPod Touch don't run iPad apps now).
The 7" device, much like the current iPod Touch, will have a marketing focus on gaming and music.
Just my $0.02US
I don't think you're too far off in you opinion. I'm a little skeptical with the screen being 2048x1536 though. If they took the resolution of the iPhone display and doubled it (1920x1280), I can definitely see that.
Come on!!!
iPhone 4´ - iPod Touch 7´- iPad 10´
Clear water!!!
I post this everytime this rumour pops up.
I still have the original iPad and the only problem I ever have with it is that it is big and heavy when it's in my purse with all my other stuff. A small one would be far more comfortable to read with on the go and I'd be tempted to wait in line to get one right away. The smaller price tag doesn't hurt either!
Please please please let it be real this time.
Sorry Samsung, looks like your 7" Galaxy isn't for me after all. Dear Santa...
Also, thank you, iMore for your careful reporting. Keep up the great work.
I vote for ipod larger screen consistent with large iphone screen. Jobs made it clear he thought smaller was not better and all the products launched now are part of his road map.
Love my Kindle Fire! It is a wonderful device for the money. It does all I would do on an ipad but saved me at least $350.
It will be interesting to see if Apple does, in fact, release a 7 to 8 inch iPad. And whether or not they decide to release a larger iPad, maybe up to 13". We're guessing the smaller iPad is more likely.
We don't see any technical issues with the smaller iPad. It could continue to use the original iPad's 1024x768 pixel geometry, and presumably support all existing non-Retina apps with no changes. All at a lower price. And there may or may not be minor changes to iOS to allow for increasing the actual tap target sizes without increasing the size of the associated graphics. (Some tap targets are already larger than the actual visible buttons.)
But a larger iPad might be problematic. Apple probably wouldn't increase the pixel count for a 13-inch-ish iPad, so Apple might not be able to claim "Retina" resolution. And it might be more tiring to move up to 30% more across the larger screen over extended use periods. Not to mention the possible added weight, less-portable size, potential cannibalization of MacBook Air, and higher retail pricing.
Good point about a 13 inch iPad being a bit large for moving your fingers over.
I'd like to see an 11.6" iPad.
Why NOT cannibalize the MacBook Air? The device was introduced as a really portable laptop in a time where Netbooks were poised to dominate. The iPad, however, is a better product for that, and taught us that the future of computing is slates, not clamshells.
With the coming versatile Windows 8 tablets that will be dockable, run Metro apps, and run Windows Desktop, Apple needs an answer to the slate that can be used on a desktop. By adding 0.75" in width (the right bezel) and just over 2" in length, a 13" iPad could replace the MacBook Air. If it can be docked or sent to a large monitor, then the problem is solved.
If the iPhone will really go to being more of a 16:10 geometry, then the iOS world of apps is going to have a fragmentation issue on their hands. Likely Apple would need the iPad to follow suit and go to a 16:10 shape.
Regardless, the future of consumer computers is tablets, not clamshells, and it would behoove Apple to pare down to just 1 clamshell line, the MacBook Pro.
Very doubtful. Apple has never played catch-up as would be the case with a 7 inch model. Other companies have staked claim to smaller size tablets and Apple isn't likely to risk its success ratio coming late to the party.
You were right with the iPhone 4S and the iPad 3 - but then so was most everyone else. They were pretty obvious product progressions that most veteran users and observers nailed.
A 7" $200 iPad would be a huge step forward for the disintermediation of the school textbook that Apple began in January with iBooks2.
And a good way to introduce our kids to hypermetropia, having to read from a ~6" LCD backlight page instead of a 11" piece of paper.
I wonder if $299 makes more sense. $299 8GB 7" iPad or 32GB iPod touch.
$399 64GB iPod touch or 16GB iPad 2. $499 and up for the new iPad.
FlopTech, I would imagine that the position in the product line of a larger iPad will be handled by a touchscreen Retina Display on the newer MacBook/MacBook Air, which I think is inevitable.
While this sounds great on the surface the 8GB of internal storage is just not sufficient for me. Yeah I know go buy the larger iPad but that is not the point now is it. Some people want a smaller screen but at least 16-32GB of storage.
Now that Jobs is gone, Tim Cook is certainly going to do what he thinks will grow the company and a smaller iPad is certainly one of many things that will grow market share.
Apple has been slow in brand new products reference the iPod touch, and the iPhone. The 4S was a basic upgrade of the 4. They have really been good at new software. My question, if they put out a 7" iPad, will it take away from the iPod Touch? Has the iPod Touch really seen the end of it's time. You can only do so much to change it. The current iPod Touch will most likely be supported to a point like the past. At this time consumers are looking at new things. Putting out a 7" iPad at the price point listed would make sense, but with all the storage on everything else they make 8G seems small when you compare it to 16, 32, or 64G. Loading up books, and apps, 8G will fill up fast.
Dear René,
I wish I could believe you and scorching the earth and doing what they did with mp3/Itunes at first glance makes sense indeed. Alas, the potential 7 inch Ipad buyers most probably already bought music from Itunes so Apple wouldn't make any additional profit here. The complementary yearly content revenue would therefore : have to come from Apps -> we all know this is peanuts (2-3 billion paid to developers in 5 years time, so max. 1 billion) come from video/movie rentals -> sure, but again nothing to get excited about, cfr. Netflix & co textbooks... 5$ a piece profit, 10 books for each kid every year, 20 million US kids getting one = again max. 1 billion. See my point ? Not enough to compensate for the losses of the cannibalization on the regular Ipad. Of course, they'd hope that most buyers go for 16GB or 32GB which would then sell for 250$ and 300$ respectively, but still...
My guess is that they have yet to decide on the price and are considering 300$ so this latest rumor merely has a typo in it !
This is interesting... if Apple does this, at this price point, it means (to me):
They are really going to dominate this market, but at $200-250 it will either be an overall inferior version (memory aside), or we've been grossly overpaying for the 9.7". I'm really curious to see the specs on this thing, if it ever materializes.
You've been grossly overpaying for the ipad, and many other Apple products. How else does Apple end up with that $100 billion in cash? Apple has never competed on price. If they start offering discounted tablets at any size, that would be a major change in behavior.
It is only a matter of time before apple completed the screen size line ( nano, iPod, 7 inches, iPad). Each screen size bring a special something with it. When will apple bring the bigger sizes to fit on the wall?
100% plausible and seems to fit nicely into a strategic plan.
When iMore floated the rumor yesterday, I thought the mini would be a great thing to bring to market right before Christmas. I'm sure a ton will be sold to parents giving them to their iPad wanting kids, because a broken $200 iPad stings a heck of a lot less than a broken $500 one.
I seriously doubt it will be a scaled down "new iPad" though. I'll bet if they do go mini, they will instead shrink down the iPad 2. Cheaper screen, cheaper processor and cheaper cameras with 8 GB of storage would make a lot more sense for a $200-$250 machine, and would still blow the competition out of the water. I'm not sure how many people could justify a $300 premium for only 2.7 more inches of screen and 8 more GB of storage, meaning material cannibalization of lower priced new iPad sales.
Speaking of cannibalization, if they do come out with this, kiss the iPod Touch goodbye unless the cut current prices in half. Even then, I can see a lot of consumers deciding to just go ahead and spend an extra hundred or settling for less storage to get a real iPad.
Damitol -- I think the iTouches will still have their own niche, mostly for being a real portable music device, as well as easy texting. Maybe with the iPad Mini they won't install a camera. And while an iPad Mini would be a great Nook-replacer, trust me, you won't have people using it to listen to Spotify. Even at $250 I won't want to take an iPad Mini to a treadmill.
Apple isn't going to undercut themselves with a smaller cheaper fingers filed down tablet. Do I have to quote Steve? Seriously grow some iBalls and take Econ 101!
I believe a 7.8" iPod touch is coming. But, it won't have a 2048x1536 screen. It'll have a 1024x768 screen, just like the original iPad, and at that size, it'll be a "retina display". I think the math done in the above article is wrong.
When Steve said a 7" display sucked, he was referring to the current state of the art with low pixel density displays. Now, we have retina densities. I have an iPhone and an iPad with retina densities and in my opinion a 7.8" retina display would be just fine. I think Steve would agree.
A 1024x768 display would not require any modification to apps as it is the original iPad and iPad 2 screen pixel size.
Lastly, $200 is ridiculously cheap. I think Apple could easily price this at $250 or even $299 and kill off the other tablets. It'll probably be storage that decides the final price, or you could even have all three price points!
"but one way Apple will be keeping costs lower is by providing less storage capacity. $200 to $250 will get you 8GB."
Yes, saving a whole $15 worth of production cost over using a 32GB module.
I don't know about you guys, but I will hit the floor laughing if Amazon comes out and sues Apple for "stealing"their design.
If this rumor turns out to be true, I'LL BE SIGNING UP FOR THE QUEUE and be one of those people waiting in line. I can't WAIT for a smaller version iPad. Y'all are laughing, but Apple coming out with a 7-inch tablet will basically kill the competition, hands down. And no, a lot of people don't want bigger iTouches. They want something the size of a trade paperback that's completely portable (back pocket, ladies' purse) with a nice big screen--much bigger than the squint-inducing screens of even the larger Android phones--but that is PORTABLE. Sorry guys, but the iPad is not a true portable device. Yes, you can carry it around, but how many people (especially women) actually carry these? The current size of the iPad is also too big for me to read in bed. I don't want to sit up to read; I want to lie down and read on my side... and the iPad is too heavy and way too big for me to hold comfortably. Unlike the Kindle.
Can't wait!!
I really hope this thing comes out. I also really hope it is a smaller ipad and not a larger ipod touch. I have a 3g touch and now a 4s. I've always wanted an iPad, but the price point was just too much for me. Now, something around $300 is more like it. Even if its only 7inches thats fine. Ive wanted an iPad to have magazine subscriptions, and to do my web surfing on. It would seriously help with my iPhones battery life as well, because I really don't use the PC and do all my internet stuff on my phone, so the battery is never happy. A+ if they come out with a 7inch iPad and it started under $300, I would most definitly pick one up.
I hope this is true! If it is i'll probably sell my playbook and buy a (hopefully) 32gb Ipad Mini!
Really looking forward to seeing this in October. I don't see how people in the smaller tablet market could pass on a $250 iPad. 7 inch iPad+iPhone 5. Can't wait.
Uh... the 7.85" rumor is based on using the 163PPI panels that were used on the pre-Retina iPhone/iPod touch models. Since you are suggesting the display will instead use the display tech from the New iPad you CAN'T intermix this with that rumor.
The whole point of that rumor was that they would a) leave the resolution of the iPad alone and b) re-use manufacturing facilities to save money, just cutting bigger pieces out of the large sheets produced by the factory.
Your rumor suggests that a) they will break compatibility for this model AGAIN this year (that would be once for the New iPad, once for the rumored taller 4" New iPhone and again for the iPad Mini, all within a year), b) that they would go with an even higher resolution display than the New iPad, meaning it require a separate production line to produce.
Both of those suggest this rumor is unlikely, I'd say. Regardless of the source.
The New iPad display is so hard to push light through (presumably all the in-display electronics blocking light transmission) that the power demands from the display went up by almost 100%, which resulted in a 100% larger battery. Which means extra costs, etc.
Certainly by this fall its possible that Sharp's IGZO technology will have come online and helped to reduce this problem, but its unlikely we'll get back to the transmissivity of the iPad 2 for example. So no matter what, more battery-weight, cost.
I don't buy it. Just for the software fragmentation issues alone.
They won't be using an IPS display. It'll be the TN display tech in the iPod touch. Same DPI, 2048 x 1536 at 7.85".
Another option is 7" at 1920 x 1280. A pixel doubling of the iPod touch, iPhone res, but at the same DPI.
Still, you have to be highly skeptical of this rumor. It nukes their one product per price point strategy. If they do it at 200 to 299, the iPod touch has to move down to 150 and the iPod nano has to go down to 99.
Ah.... Typical. I love the way this news has arrived a day after I've upgraded to the new iPad.
Who cares about a 7" iPad? I want a 70" iPad! Now that would be awesome!
This is just rumors. Nothing more.
And it'll remain as rumors.
Retina on the 7" for $200 ? Apple would never do this as it'd kill their own iPod touch ;)
And the new iPhone comes out June 29th ;)
No way i don't believe , im calling sources out.
Yeah I really don't want to believe this at all. please apple whatever you do don't release this product.
This would be an instant buy for me. I am not a fan of the iPad. It's too big (for me). I want something bigger than the iPod and smaller than the iPad. I really hope that this is true. If so, it's a day one purchase.
If this were true, it would be awesome! I can't really break off $500 + for the new iPad, but $200-300 is well within my budget. I would buy one immediately and I'm digging the smaller size.
This wont happen. Apple it too smart to make such a dumb move ;)
I don't believe it, your competing against yourself. There is no one to compete against right now, stop sales of the iPod or slow down sales of the higher priced iPad. I see it as a lose-lose situation if they do that, for one thing at that price they won't have their normal profit margins.
When Steve Jobs came back to Apple he slimmed down the line of products, it would be nice for the consumer but most likely not for Apple. Keep on a dreaming.
Well said , well said :)
This rumored price point does worry me. I've been yearning for a smaller iPad since they first came out, but I don't want a neutered, or "budget", version. Give me an iPad with the same bells and whistles as the 10" version, and I'd gladly pay almost the same amount.
What would be better is if Apple made the next iPhone 5.5" screen and thinner than EVERYTHING on the market. Then they'd have a large screen smartphone and small screen tablet in one. Keep the same storage options. If Apple does release a 7" iPad with Retina around $249.99, it will kill the Kindle Fire and every Android Tablet out there. NO ONE will be willing to spend the same or more on an Android Tablet when they can get an iPad for the same price. The line for this 7" iPad will be longer than any iPad waiting line since the first.
I must say that if they do this I would buy it instantly!! I would have bought a new iPad but I simply can't afford it, and would rather have the 32GB version which is another $100.
I can't see Apple either a) selling it between 200-250 and keeping the same specs as the new iPad, or b) selling it for a lot more than that and NOT keeping the same specs (at least display-wise).
Now, unless they really make an amazing unpredictable change to the iPod Touch then I agree with most people here that a 7in iPad would destroy the iPod Touch line. At that point if you want a small music player there is the nano, and it is perfect for that. Also, I agree that if they do make a 7in iPad and keep the same specs as the new iPad then it will destroy the market for the 9.7in version.
Frankly, I would almost solely like to use an iPad for comfortably browsing the web and reading, along with more easily (than using an iTouch) writing emails and taking notes in a class or something. I can do all those thing much more comfortably with a lighter, slightly smaller, iPad. If I watch a movie, I am going to watch it on a TV, not an iPad, whether it was 7in or 9in.
So, here is what I think we will see, SOMETIME between now and Nov. 1st at the latest: an entirely new Line of iPods, it is really about time isn't it? We will see COMPLETELY redesigned iPhone, I don't know about other people but frankly I just think that it needs a totally new look. Even the difference between the 3GS and 4 isn't too huge. Lastly, I really do think (and hope) that we will see a smaller, cheaper IPAD (not big iPod Touch). That's what I think is going to happen. Oh yeah, and I hope we see a very fresh and new looking iOS with iOS 6.
Until it happens though we won't know for sure...but I am super excited for this fall because iPad mini or not I am expecting some great new things!
This can be the iPhone 5. People gets wrong. This is the iPhone with large screen!!!
This is very simple, Apple do not follow, Apple Lead....7" will never happen
I would buy an Ipad if the price went down to 200-250$ and if the screen was at least 8 inches. I would not buy a 7 inch. I owned a Nook and currently have a Kindle Fire and do not need another 7 inch which is perfect for reading but too small for video. I really want an 8 inch or 8.5 inch which is a nice compromise given many people think 7 is too small and 10 too big. Even a 7.5 will be nice.
I also want to add is if apple does not come out with a beeter price tablet i will get a Samsung 8 inch or the moterola xyboard 8 inch which are very attractive devices.
I will buy Ipad mini if it is real. but if it not real i will buy galaxy not 10.1 . Ipad mini will be on hands all the people around the world if it on the price around $200_$250.
I'm not sure if I would buy a mini then. Only 8gb? hmm..I think I may wait and just get an ipad2. The only thing about the ipads that deter me is that I had one in my hands and it seemed a bit bulky. Seems rather heavy to lug it around all the time too, which is why I like my iphone, however I would prefer a larger screen now that I am getting older and my eyesight is not as strong as it used to be. Tough choice to be made. I'll wait and see what October brings if anything. Thanks for the post!
Ever try reading an e-book on an ipad? The weight alone makes it a task. An ipad mini would be good to finally take down Kindle and Nook. E-Books are the future of publishing so I can see Apple vs Amazon for publisher rights to new releases.
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If Apple do launch a 7in ipad it will be for the education market. With the recent launch of educational apps store, i think i read somewhere, it would be right for Apple to conquer the educational market by a lower price ipad for students, giving cloud storage n access to apps for schools' subscriptions not just in America but world wide. The device with be a good size for children to handle. It could also be a way Tim Cook could be 'giving' back to the world, by allowing the price to be lower using the profits made over the years under Steve. It would be Apple's investment in the future generation. I like to think that.
I am glad I found your site. I am exploring the Internet as I never have before. I have more time since I reitred. I can see that there is a rich diversity in the blogs I am reading and I am trying to leave some comment whereever I visit. You have made your blog more interesting than most that I read. Thanks for that. I have started my own blog and website. In the text boxes I have entered my email address and my website URL. I hope you approve that I did this. It seems to be customary so I went ahead with it. TheVeryBest2You 13 7
I don't think Apple will make it $199. They are a premium brand. Will most likely be $299 for 8GB.
I like the cheaper, smaller iPad already!


text:
6 months after Newtown: Rush of gun laws, mixed results
- States have both tightened and loosened access to guns
- 86 state gun laws have been passed since the Dec. 14 Newtown massacre
- Since Newtown%2C 10 mass shootings have killed 44 people
Newtown, Conn., marked the six-month anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings with a ceremony and moment of science Friday. Since the tragedy, lawmakers in four key states have approved significant restrictions on access to firearms. But elsewhere in the USA, the picture is far from clear.
A USA TODAY analysis of the 86 state gun laws passed since Dec. 14 shows that states have both tightened and loosened access to guns. Lawmakers in many states used the spotlight the shootings created to broaden both who can carry a gun and where they can carry it. States including Colorado and Maryland tightened access to guns, Arkansas and Mississippi eased restrictions, and many other states issued rules whose impact could be debated either way.
In the U.S. Senate, lawmakers on April 17 blocked a proposal to expand background checks for gun purchases.
The attack by gunman Adam Lanza killed 20 children and six staff members at the Newtown, Conn., school. Since then, the national death toll from guns has topped 5,000, according to a crowdsourced data initiative by online magazine Slate and the Twitter feed @gundeaths.
There are about 13,000 to 14,000 murder and non-negligent manslaughter victims each year, based on FBI data. In each of the past five years, guns have been used in roughly two-thirds of all homicides. That means about 5,000 deaths in the first six months of the year is typical.
The incidents since Newtown include 10 mass shootings that killed 44 people. The most recent came last week at Santa Monica College in California, in which a gunman killed five people. The FBI defines a mass shooting as one in which four or more people die, not including the perpetrator.
Four people — including the gunman — died in a murder-suicide shooting Thursday in St. Louis.
The Sandy Hook shootings came less than five months after a midnight attack at a movie theater in Aurora, Colo., killed 12 people and jump-started a national conversation on guns and mental health. Legislators in Connecticut, Colorado, New York and Maryland responded quickly: Proposals in three states limited access to the kinds of military-style weapons or ammunition used in the shootings. In New York, new legislation forced owners to register these weapons for the first time. All four governors signed the bills into law.
Daniel Webster, director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research, says Connecticut and New York already had strong gun laws. But Maryland and Colorado took much bigger steps post-Newtown: Maryland strengthened a "toothless" gun-dealer licensing system and for the first time this October will require Marylanders to tell police if their guns are lost or stolen. In Colorado, a new universal background check is "an important milestone," Webster says.
Both states, he says, approved measures "to keep guns from dangerous people. That's what I think is most significant since Newtown."
Takirra Winfield, a spokeswoman for Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley, a Democrat, says there was " a sense of urgency to do this and get this done."
Andrew Arulanandam, a spokesman for the National Rifle Association, says the four states are post-Sandy Hook outliers that "got it wrong" in protecting citizens from gun violence. "The rest of the country is looking at this from a more pragmatic view," he says. "They're looking at it from a standpoint as to what really works."
That includes measures such as Arkansas' Church Protection Act, which prohibits churches or other places of worship from "determining who may carry a concealed handgun" inside, or a Mississippi law that drops the concealed-carry age from 21 to 18 for soldiers and veterans. In all, 30 governors have signed weapons measures since Newtown, according to an analysis by the National Conference of State Legislatures.
President Obama met Thursday with relatives of the Sandy Hook victims to thank them for urging Congress to pass new gun laws.
Contributing: Meghan Hoyer, David Jackson, Associated Press

subset: commoncrawl


text:
by London Haiku Project
Joe Woodhouse
Joe Woodhouse is a poet and primary school teacher living in London. As the creator of The London Haiku Project, Joe writes about moments of city life around him in micropoetry form. His longer poetry and articles have appeared in a number of journals, including Brittlestar Magazine. He is currently working on his second chapbook of poetry.
Latest posts by Joe Woodhouse (see all)
- Between Tower Blocks - May 25, 2016
- Delayed Train - May 18, 2016
- Spring afternoon - May 11, 2016


text:
Kölcsey, Ferenc
Kölcsey, Ferenc fĕ´rĕnts köl´chĕĭ [key], 1790–1838, Hungarian writer and orator. A student of the Enlightenment, he aided his friend Krasiıski in a reform of the Hungarian language, investigated Hungarian literary history, and introduced the critical essay. As a member of parliament (1832–36), he spoke eloquently to urge freedom for the serfs. His prose and poetry are somber and elaborately classical in style; they reveal a strong moral sense. Kölcsey wrote the Hungarian national hymn (1823).
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2023, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: Russian and Eastern European Literature: Biographies


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Orioles 7, Rays 5: Baltimore's Muscle Halts Rays' Momentum
Davis, Pearce homer to derail Rays' attempts at a rebound.
ST. PETERSBURG | Chris Davis hit a replay-delayed grand slam and the Baltimore Orioles beat the Tampa Bay Rays 7-5 on Tuesday night.
Davis was awarded a slam off Erik Bedard (3-5) during a five-run third-inning after a video review showed his drive struck the foul pole. He reached second base on an opposite-field shot down the left-field line. The review that lasted 1 minute, 18 seconds revealed the ball hit the pole a few feet above the wall, and Davis was given a home run.
The Orioles also got a two-run homer from former Lakeland High School star Steve Pearce.
Sean Rodriguez and Desmond Jennings homered for Tampa Bay, which is 5-16 in its last 21 games.
The Rays pulled within 5-2 in the bottom of the third when Rodriguez and Jennings hit consecutive solo homers off Miguel Gonzalez (4-4). Jennings has four homers in 22 at-bats against the Baltimore right-hander.
Tampa Bay made it 5-4 on James Loney's two-run double during the fifth.
Baltimore went ahead 7-4 on Pearce's two-run drive in the seventh. Tampa Bay got one run back on Yunel Escobar's eighth-inning sacrifice fly.
Gonzalez, activated from the 15-day disabled list before the game, allowed four runs and eight hits in five innings. He had been out since May 31 due to a strained right oblique.
Zach Britton pitched the ninth for his eighth save.
Bedard gave up five runs and four hits over four-plus innings.
Rays LF David DeJesus stayed in the game after he ran hard into a low fence near the foul pole while chasing Davis' homer. ... Baltimore C Matt Wieters had season-ending right elbow ligament replacement surgery. The Orioles are hopeful that he will be ready for opening day next year.
... Tampa Bay RHP Jeremy Hellickson (elbow) struggled in his third rehab start with Triple-A Durham, allowing seven runs and 12 hits in 2 2/3 innings. ... Baltimore INF Michael Almanzar (left knee) is scheduled play for the rookie-level GCL Orioles on Friday. ... The Rays signed RHP Brent Honeywell, taken 72nd overall in the 2014 draft. ... To make room on the roster for Gonzalez, RHP Josh Stinson was designated for assignment. ... Orioles RHP Kevin Gausman (2-1) and Rays RHP Alex Cobb (2-4) are the scheduled starters for Wednesday's series finale.


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This winter has been rough on me, and I'm sure it's been tough for a lot of you too. I check the weather on my phone and see no hope for days. Temperatures lingering well below freezing seem to be the norm now. Of course, there are snippets of beauty amongst this snow and ice. Scenes that would rival any tropical paradise in their splendor.
On the positive side, I do love me some winter fashion. I love chunky knits, boots, pom-pom hats, and huge scarves wrapped around a thousand times. I've gotten to wear crimson and berry-toned lip colors, which look out-of-place in the warmer months. I have also been loving goth-inspired nail polishes – very moody and a far cry from the fuchsias and tangerine reds I wear in the summer.
There have also been cozy times I get to share with my husband. Him and I exploring the city and finding a new café. I will get a latte and he will get a hot chocolate because he has an abhorrence that stems from childhood towards coffee. We'll share a cookie or a croissant or both and discuss things in the world that we don't understand or can't wrap our heads around, future vacations we want to take, or whatever may come up.
We'll also laze around at home more often on the weekends. In the summer I like to be out and about. This winter I'm enjoying staying in more. Usually I'm the type of person who gets in a very bad mood if we don't have weekend plans. But this winter I've been happy to stay-in on a Friday night and cook a nice dinner for just the two of us. Of course friends are always welcome, but rather than going out, sometimes it's nice to stay snug and comfortable at home. When Sunday morning comes around I'm also skipping the usual restaurant brunches and opting for an omelet or pancakes or French toast at home. I'm not big on sweets for breakfast, but sometimes a nice french toast satisfies like nothing else.
When making French toast I don't really measure anything out. It's an effortless dish that will come together if you have the basic ingredients. That's why I love making it. I paired it here with ruby-toned fruits: blood oranges, pomegranates, and raspberries. And I always use cinnamon and vanilla in my french toast. You can add other spices like cardamom or ground cloves. But the combination of cinnamon and vanilla is my favorite and will make your whole kitchen smell very welcoming.
Cinnamon and Vanilla French Toast with Ruby Colored Fruits
I am providing a loose recipe here, because I really feel French toast is foolproof unless you burn it in the pan. 😉
oil or butter for frying
bread of your choice, sliced a little thicker than usual and day old is best. I usually have whole wheat or sunflower toast, but brioche and challah are optimal.
eggs, use 1 egg for every 3 slices of toast
milk of your choice, use about 1 cup for every 3 slices of toast
sugar, to taste – I like to use raw sugar or sugar with larger crystals so that it caramelizes nicely on the toast.
vanilla extract or a vanilla bean scraped, start with 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon for 3 slices of toast, you can adjust the amount according to your taste
a pinch of sea salt
an array of fruits or your choice, I used blood oranges, pomegranates, and raspberries. (fruit combination inspired by @thedelicious on instagram)
chopped nuts, for serving (optional)
to serve: whipped cream or sour cream or crème fraîche or yogurt, orange zest, cinnamon, and pure maple syrup
Beat eggs with milk, add in sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, and a pinch of salt in a wide rectangular dish. Soak the bread until the egg custard is absorbed on each side.
Heat a large frying pan with oil or butter on medium heat. Add the soaked toast pieces in the pan. Cook for about 2-3 minutes per side or until golden. Top with the blood oranges, pomegranates, raspberries, nuts, and other topping of your choice.


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Tequila gets a bum rap. Sure, there are savvy drinkers who spend a lot of time and money tracking down prize bottles of reposado and anejo; but the bulk of the bibulous universe--accustomed to downscale mixto tequila in mass-produced margaritas dispensed by slushy machines, or seemingly endless lines of shots--still views the spirit as "to-kill-ya," associating it with countless regrettable incidents. As a result, perhaps more than any other spirit, tequila inspires a kind of negative reaction among many drinkers, who recall a bad night in college.
Fortunately, tequila is more forgiving. Decent 100-percent agave tequilas have a bright, peppery character that can really light up a cocktail. And for those whose experiences with tequila cocktails have largely entailed salt-rimmed glasses, there's an enlightening world to explore; the Prado is a good place to start.
Pairing the agave spirit with its old friend, fresh lime juice, the Prado substitutes the margarita's orangey triple sec for a dose of aromatic maraschino liqueur, with the white of half an egg added for extra body (since accurately dividing an egg white can be a pain, you can go ahead and mix two drinks and share one with a friend). Silver and reposado tequilas work equally well in this drink; just make sure you're starting with a spirit that's 100-percent agave. With a deep, layered flavor and alluring aroma, the Prado isn't necessarily a beginner's cocktail, but it can be a good way to re-enter the world of tequila.
Recipe Facts
- 1 1/2 ounces tequila
- 3/4 ounce fresh lime juice
- 1/2 ounce maraschino liqueur
- 1/2 egg white
Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker and shake very hard, without ice, for 10 seconds, to aerate the egg white. Open the shaker and fill with ice, and shake again very hard for 10 seconds; strain into a chilled cocktail glass.


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It's Friday afternoon when my phone rings.Good Housekeeping
is looking for a writer for a piece about clutter. Do we have any problems on that front? Can I send photos?
We do, and I can — once our Internet service is back on. Seems our bill was buried by the drift of paper that covers our dining room buffet like snow on a high mountain, and it never got paid.
"I'm your gal," I tell the editor. "I'll e-mail you some pictures on Monday."
More From Good Housekeeping
Over the weekend, I take snapshots. It's handy to have three sons to blame for the toys and clothes that roam freely. However, it doesn't explain the cardboard boxes, stacked two and three deep, in the bedroom, mudroom, and living and dining areas. We've been in our house six months and unpacked the necessities, but the leftover boxes are full of photos, memorabilia: things from our past that we aren't sure belong in our present. Worse, we keep piling on other homeless items — from old electronics to wall art, sleeping bags, you name it — that we haven't found a place for yet. It's the clutter of indecision.
The editor is convinced by my photos, which is a mixed honor, like being chosen for a makeover. I'm excited about getting to "after" but embarrassed to have qualified for "before." Here's how I learned to reclaim my home, and how you can, too.
Next: Week One's Plan
Week One
My first task: Check out the online support program clutterdiet.com — sort of a Weight Watchers for pack rats and disorganized folk. I used diet plans to lose weight after each pregnancy, so I understand the metaphor. I don't get that worried until I read site founder Lorie Marrero's bio, which says she bought her first label maker in fourth grade; another staffer used to organize her Barbies' gowns in rainbow order. I still don't own a label maker; my Barbies were slobs. But Clutter Diet promises I'll lose the piles of extra stuff, gain time, and reduce stress. Sign me up.
Right off, the site warns that a crash approach (purging) won't work. "Unless you change the habits that got you disorganized in the first place," it says, "you will soon find the space a mess again." Good thing GH has asked me for a six-week commitment — long enough to see some results if I stick with it. The site offers how-to videos, articles, work sheets, and message boards, where, I notice, staffers respond to subscribers' questions. While advice based on a digital photo of a messy room may not be the same as an in-person consultation (for which pro organizers charge anywhere from $50 to $125 an hour), at $15 a month, it's not a bad substitute.
To get started, a weekly "menu" plan suggests a minimum of one to two hours spent on a "main dish" organizing project, plus a few small "side dishes," "snack" tasks, and a "dessert" activity to reward yourself. I glance out the window — it's a beautiful day. These people are going to make me spend it inside my closet, I just know it. I force myself to poke around the site a bit more, and I run across a stat to which I relate all too well: 23 percent of Americans admit to paying bills late because they can't find them (I'm not alone!). Oh, and here's one more: A third of IKEA shoppers surveyed reported more satisfaction from clearing out closets than sex. OK, I can't go along with that, but dealing with clutter is clearly a cultural obsession. Take the popularity of TV shows like Oprah's "Clean Up Your Messy House Tour," hosted by organizer Peter Walsh, and Walsh's now-syndicated TLC program Clean Sweep. On the latter, when one organized bedroom was unveiled, its owner wept as if cured of a fatal illness. "Oh my God! Thank you, thank you!" she cried.
Watching her reaction, I've got to wonder if she and one-third of IKEA customers know something about a clean closet that I don't.
After touring the site, I'm ready to dig in. This week's main dish: Look ahead to events that require advance planning — and plan them. The purpose is to help me manage my time better, since that's one thing disorganized people tend to waste (who, me?). I check the calendar. My 39th birthday is in three weeks. I spend an hour creating a guest list, invites, and a menu. Either I just outsmarted this program or failed it spectacularly, but I'm having a party.
Next: Week Two's Plan
Week Two
Week two's objective is to straighten up the guest room. Awesome. We have no guest room. Free play!
Not so fast. There's a note that says the assignments are suggestions only; I should pick whatever project is most urgent. That, without a doubt, is the home office in the corner of our adjoining living and dining rooms.
First, I need to pull together a basic organizing tool kit: grocery sacks and trash bags for sorting and discarding; sticky notes, a permanent marker, and a handheld label maker for labeling; a tape measure for determining storage needs; and pen and paper to jot down to-dos. Then I can deploy the diet's ORDER approach: Outline your plan, Review your items, Decide where things belong, Establish homes and routines, Revisit your system. Organizers, it must be said, are fond of acronyms. I am not.
Outlining my plan (O) means figuring out who uses the space and for what. The kids use it for doing homework. I use it for opening mail, paying bills, and (hypothetically) filing. So in reviewing the items (R), I focus on what relates to these functions, tossing trash and excess. Maybe I don't need 10 three-ring notebooks, no matter how cheap they were on sale. I keep two and put the rest in the "donate" pile. Within the "keep" pile, I start grouping like objects: mail here, computer cables there.
Where things go (I'm up to D) depends on how often they're used. With a sticky pad and a marker, I label the groups: A for daily use, B for often, C for seldom, D for never. The A's and B's get the prime real estate — but where is that real estate, I wonder, staring at my lettered stuff in front of the buffet. Then I have what I think they call a breakthrough — the buffet has 12 unused drawers. I grab the label maker and start classifying them: OFFICE SUPPLIES, WORK PROJECTS, STATIONERY. The A and B stacks have a home (that would be the E in ORDER); I move what doesn't belong to the mudroom to sort it there (I plan to revisit my system — the final R — in a month or two). It feels incredible — like looking down in the shower post-pregnancy and realizing you can see your toes again.
Next: Week Three's Plan
Week Three
By week three, I'm learning to evaluate my clutter as I encounter it. What is this? Whose is it? Why do we have it? Where does it belong? I keep these words from Lorie Marrero in mind: "If you ever hear yourself saying 'for now,' you have just delayed a decision or action." That delay, she cautions in her book, The Clutter Diet, is the root of all disorganization.
Some decisions are easier to make than others. I've actually started wondering if we're getting less mail, but no, it's just that it's becoming routine to open it and deal with it as it comes in. And the bin in our once-overstuffed hall closet now serves as a donation station for items heading to Goodwill. Yes, chaos and indecision are receding, but there are spots where they remain entrenched — those lingering boxes in our bedroom, for instance.
"I think creative people often have a difficult time with making decisions," Marrero says, "because they can envision so many possibilities. It's hard to toss out an old sock when you look at it and see a dust mitt, a puppet, or a dozen other things."
I'm living proof. In one box, I find unopened sewing patterns, an embroidered pillowcase I'd planned on making into an apron for my niece, and leftover fabric waiting to be turned into pot holders to match a tea cozy I'd sewn years ago. I strike a deal with myself: If I haven't made the pillowcase into an apron in six months, I'll let it go. And into the donate pile with the rest: one less box of "someday," more room for today.
Next: Week Four's Plan
Week Four
My diet is getting a metabolic boost from the party I planned in week one. Knowing that 30 people are coming over is a powerful motivator to clear the dining/family area.
While out looking for a file cabinet for the home office in this same open room, I spot a vintage desk. It's $200 and in great shape — with a deep drawer for filing and a much broader surface than the small desk on which the family computer currently teeters. I pull out the pocket-size tape measure I now carry with me. It's a perfect fit. After years of writing at the dining table or in bed with a laptop on my knees, I'll have a place to claim as my own. I'm not just figuring out where stuff belongs; I'm figuring out where I belong.
Until now, I've skeptically regarded celebrity organizers who promise personal transformation and use words like "catalyst" and "clarity." Oh, come on, I'd think. It's just a bunch of stuff. How deep can it be?
Pretty deep.
"Stuff has power," says Oprah's organizing guy Peter Walsh when I interview him. "Exploring it touches who you are, how you live, and what you value." But looking beyond all that, he sees the rise of his industry as nothing more than a "return to good old common sense." Specifically: "Pick up after yourself."
Next: Week Five's Plan
Week Five
Now that I've been on the Clutter Diet for over a month, I've officially abandoned the menu plans, but I am still applying the techniques. My priority this week: school backpacks — we need a place to stow their contents and a place to keep the packs themselves. For a few days I study how my boys come and go, noting where the delays are in getting them out the door and where things land when they come home. The FAA should observe arrival and departure patterns this closely.
What I come up with is an in/out tray for each boy near the counter where I make their lunches and snacks, where work sheets and permission slips can be managed. Then, we create a new inbound/outbound flight path between that spot and the coat and bag hooks I've put up in the mudroom. Within days, they've got the drill down. No, it doesn't "solve" the empty juice boxes the kids still leave on the coffee table, but at least I don't have to step over backpacks and jackets to get to them.
I've also been circling the issue of what to do with our hundreds, maybe thousands, of disorganized family photos. They've become what organizer Julie Morgenstern, in her book SHED Your Stuff, Change Your Life, calls a "stagnant" area. Yet she says it's crucial not to just junk it. "If you don't ask, 'What is the attachment?' you lose the opportunity for insight and transformation," says Morgenstern. She suggests a test for sorting my pics: "Is it the best reminder I have of that person or experience?"
Once I pull out the prints that meet this criteria, I get frames, mats, and some photo-safe boxes that take the guilt out of the sorting process — I don't feel bad about not hanging my nephew's school portrait when it's filed in a pretty box.
When a few favorite photographs are hung on the dining room walls, they spark questions from our boys. "Is that baby you, Mom? Is that Aunt Emily?" We tell stories over dinner about long-ago celebrations, far-flung cousins, departed grandparents. It dawns on me that de-cluttering isn't about having less. It's about being able to appreciate more.
Next: Week Six's Plan
Week Six
"Wait, I don't have my keys."
My editor has arranged an in-home visit from Clutter Diet's Marrero. We'd decided to go grab a bite and strategize — until I come to a halt. "You're going to get used to this," I tell her, as I begin the familiar hunt.
"Where do you normally put them?" she asks helpfully.
"That's the problem — there isn't anywhere I normally put them."
"Hmm," says Marrero. "Maybe we can work on that."
The focus of Marrero's visit is my two older sons' bedroom. Their twin beds are rafts on a river of clutter, with the headwaters originating in their closets. Somebody reaches for a tee, and the stack tumbles down, along with anything stashed on the shelf beside it: awards, toys, rocks. The stuff that boys are made of.
Lorie's first suggestion: Replace the shallow, freestanding shelves with custom-fit wire shelving, which ends up being less than $175 total at the hardware store.
She then looks quizzically at the two beds, one high off the floor, one low. "Were these bunk beds at some point?" she asks.
I had forgotten that they were, and neither my husband, Patrick, nor I can remember why they aren't. We reassemble them, and in 15 minutes, we've doubled the available floor space. Marrero notices that the shelves we're pulling from the closets will fit under the mudroom windows if cut down. We'll gain 30 square feet of new storage space — for free.
Lorie Marrero has superpowers.
Later that day, we pick up a key hook for me and decide where my purse, coat, and keys go. If I can keep it up for a few days, says Marrero, it will become habit.
When Marrero leaves, I stand in the relative calm of my bedroom and look at the last of the unpacked boxes. I think of the end of winter in the northern town where I grew up, when the giant banks of snow have diminished to hard-packed cores of ice. There's always a sunny Saturday when the townsfolk decide that the ice has worn out its welcome, and they come out with hoses and pickaxes to get rid of the last remnants.
I feel a surge of energy. I can get through these boxes and vow to strap on my tool belt and tackle the much-dwindled stack tomorrow. Instead of feeling bad about what's left frozen and buried inside, I'm excited about what's coming: new experiences, new ideas, new growth. Spring.


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February 12th, 2013
2013 marks a milestone for the Girl Scouts, with a century of building "courage, confidence, and character" in young girls across the United States and beyond. The organization also celebrates 95 years of one of its most popular programs: the sale of its famously irresistible cookies.
For the 2013 cookie selling season, which takes place between January and April of each year, Girl Scouts of the USA has revamped its business approach, taking innovative measures to broaden customer access and overall appeal.
And these girls will stop at nothing to make their sale.
Over the last 95 years, GSUSA has nurtured a multimillion dollar enterprise focused on teaching young women the ethics of business and entrepreneurship. The program seeks to build confidence and reliability, but not the personal bank accounts of the girls who participate.
"Every penny after paying the baker stays with the local Girl Scout council that supports the sale," said a statement from the organization. Councils use cookie revenue to supply troops, groups, and individual girls with program resources, communication support, adult volunteers and assistance in conducting events.
The statement continued, "We see the opportunity to increase revenues nationwide and change the dialogue about Girl Scout Cookies."
They're baking up some creative ways to get there.
The Girl Scouts redesigned their boxes to appeal to a more modern customer, highlighting the five key principles that the cookie sales program teaches: goal-setting, decision-making, money management, business ethics and people skills.
"For the first time in over a decade we've updated our boxes to really show that actually Girl Scout Cookies are more than just cookies," GSUSA CEO Anna Maria Chávez told CNN's Early Start. "They develop these young ladies into tremendous leaders that are doing amazing things in their communities."
The organization is also making a nod toward health-conscious consumers with the introduction of Mango Crèmes. It's a new cookie featuring mango, coconut, vanilla and "Nutrifusion," a product that "supercharges" foods' nutritional value, according to the maker's website. ABC Bakers, one of only two "Official Girl Scout Cookie Bakers," describes the product as "a mango-flavored creme filling with all the nutrient benefits of eating cranberries, pomegranates, oranges, grapes, and strawberries."
Marketing and promotion strategies have also been overhauled. While tradition has it that Girl Scouts go door-to-door taking orders in their community and later hand-deliver the goods, tech trends have now made it possible for customers to seek out their sweet treat suppliers. The Girl Scout Cookie Finder App, available on iPhone and Android devices, provides GPS coordinates for the nearest cookie sales location.
Additionally, in step with recent food world trends, local troops teamed up with Sweetery NYC, a New York City food truck and mobile bakery, to create the National Girl Scout Cookie Day Truck. On Friday, February 8th, girls from all across the tri-state area rolled up to four different locations at designated intervals throughout the day. The snowstorm raged. The Girl Scouts sold on, securing canopy poles and credit card transactions.
That's right – the Girl Scouts now accept plastic. Friday marked the introduction of the new sales method.
On average, Girl Scout troops participating in the program raise over $790 million a year and GSUSA doesn't have plans to slow down anytime soon. Neither do the girls, themselves.
Girl Scouts in the Greater Northeast last week were not only in competition with each other – they were battling the elements. As a blizzard rocked the region, sugar-starved adults trudged through sharp hail and strong winds to get their hands on those famous green boxes.
Maribel Sabino, a 14-year-old Senior Girl Scout taking a break from sales to seek shelter from the cold, sat with her family at a café in midtown Manhattan. "We are here selling Girl Scout Cookies to inform people that Girl Scouts is not only about selling cookies and camping, but it is about how Girl Scouts is the number one girl-led business in the world," she said.
Maribel's 12-year-old sister Rachel, a Cadette, didn't mind the weather all that much. "It's really a voluntary thing, but it teaches girls about life skills."
Their youngest sister Olivia, a 9-year-old Junior Girl Scout, agreed. "I use decision-making every day," she explained. "I have to decide what time I'm going to wake up for school; I have to decide what the Girl Scout money is going to be used for. It not only helps us in the future but it helps us every day."
Girl Scouts of the USA serves girls ranging from five to seventeen years of age. Troops exist in every zip code in America and 92 countries across the world. The organization now boasts 3.2 million young and adult members worldwide.
Got a favorite Girl Scout cookie? Shout it out in the comments below.
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Lynn woman pushing baby carriage killed when van backs over her
Baby not seriously injured in Lynn incident
Lynn police say a 61-year-old woman pushing a baby in a carriage has been killed after a van backing out of a parking spot struck her.
Police identified the woman as Kathleen McPartland, 61, of Lynn. The woman is believed to be great aunt of the 18-month-old girl in the carriage.
Police say the girl was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.
The woman was struck at about 5:30 p.m. Sunday just seconds after two Chelsea teens had asked her for directions.
Eighteen-year-old Moises Baez and 17-year-old Amanda Arsenault tell The Daily Item they watched the van back over the woman several times, and helped pull the baby to safety.
The teens say they were at a nearby park on a date and asked the woman for directions so they could call a relative for a ride home.


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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – USA Hockey today announced that 48 players, representing 24 National Hockey League teams, have been invited to the U.S. Men's National Team Orientation Camp from Aug. 26-27, at Kettler Capitals IcePlex in Arlington, Va.
The camp is designed to assist in preparation for the 2014 Olympic Winter Games, set for Feb. 7-23, 2014, in Sochi, Russia.
Of the 48 players invited to the camp, 16 have previous Olympic experience, including Dustin Brown (Ithaca, N.Y./Los Angeles Kings), Zach Parise (Minneapolis, Minn./Minnesota Wild) and Ryan Suter (Madison, Wis./Minnesota Wild), three of the alternate captains on the 2010 U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team that captured the silver medal.
Also highlighting the roster are forward Patrick Kane (Buffalo, N.Y./Chicago Blackhawks) and goaltender Jonathan Quick (Milford, Conn./Los Angeles Kings), the two most recent Conn Smythe Award winners as most valuable player in the Stanley Cup Playoffs; Phil Kessel (Madison, Wis./Toronto Maple Leafs), who finished second behind Kane among U.S.-born skaters with 20 goals and 52 points during the 2012-13 season; and goaltender Jimmy Howard (Syracuse, N.Y./Detroit Red Wings), who tied for the NHL regular-season lead in shutouts with five.
Nine players on the orientation camp roster played for the bronze-medal winning U.S. Men's National Team at the 2013 International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship in Stockholm, Sweden, and Helsinki, Finland, including goaltender John Gibson (Pittsburgh, Pa./Norfolk Admirals); forwards Nick Bjugstad (Minneapolis, Minn./Florida Panthers), Alex Galchenyuk (Milwaukee, Wis./Montreal Canadiens), T.J. Oshie (Warroad, Minn./St. Louis Blues), Craig Smith (Madison, Wis./Nashville Predators) and Paul Stastny (St. Louis, Mo./Colorado Avalanche); and defensemen Justin Faulk (South St. Paul, Minn./Carolina Hurricanes), Erik Johnson (Bloomington, Minn./Colorado Avalanche) and Jacob Trouba (Rochester, Mich./Winnipeg Jets).
The 2014 U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team is under the direction of David Poile, general manager, Ray Shero, associate general manager, Brian Burke, director of player personnel, and Jim Johannson, assistant executive director of hockey operations for USA Hockey. The orientation camp includes 30 first-round NHL draft picks, including two first-overall selections. Fifteen players invited to the camp have been part of USA Hockey's National Team Development Program. A total of 33 players on the orientation camp roster have played U.S. college hockey. The 2014 U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team will be coached by Dan Bylsma. USA Hockey's international council, chaired by Gavin Regan (Potsdam, N.Y.), vice president of USA Hockey, has oversight responsibilities for all U.S. National Teams.
|Current Team
|Craig Anderson
|Ottawa Senators
|John Gibson
|Norfolk Admirals (AHL)
|Jimmy Howard
|Detroit Red Wings
|Ryan Miller
|Buffalo Sabres
|Jonathan Quick
|Los Angeles Kings
|Cory Schneider
|New Jersey Devils
|Current Team
|Zach Bogosian
|Winnipeg Jets
|Dustin Byfuglien
|Winnipeg Jets
|John Carlson
|Washington Capitals
|Dan DeKeyser
|Detroit Red Wings
|Justin Faulk
|Carolina Hurricanes
|Cam Fowler
|Anaheim Ducks
|Jake Gardiner
|Toronto Maple Leafs
|Erik Johnson
|Colorado Avalanche
|Jack Johnson
|Columbus Blue Jackets
|Seth Jones
|Nashville Predators
|Nick Leddy
|Chicago Blackhawks
|Paul Martin
|Pittsburg Penguins
|Ryan McDonagh
|New York Rangers
|Brooks Orpik
|Pittsburg Penguins
|Kevin Shattenkirk
|St. Louis Blues
|Ryan Suter
|Minnesota Wild
|Jacob Trouba
|Winnipeg Jets
|Keith Yandle
|Phoenix Coyotes
|Current Team
|Justin Abdelkader
|Detroit Red Wings
|David Backes
|St. Louis Blues
|Beau Bennett
|Pittsburg Penguins
|Nick Bjugstad
|Florida Panthers
|Dustin Brown
|Los Angeles Kings
|Ryan Callahan
|New York Rangers
|Alex Galchenyuk
|Montreal Canadiens
|Patrick Kane
|Chicago Blackhawks
|Ryan Kesler
|Vancouver Canucks
|Phil Kessel
|Toronto Maple Leafs
|Trevor Lewis
|Los Angeles Kings
|Kyle Okposo
|New York Islanders
|T.J. Oshie
|St. Louis Blues
|Max Pacioretty
|Montreal Canadiens
|Kyle Palmieri
|Anaheim Ducks
|Zach Parise
|Minnesota Wild
|Joe Pavelski
|San Jose Sharks
|Bobby Ryan
|Ottawa Senators
|Brandon Saad
|Chicago Blackhawks
|Craig Smith
|Nashville Predators
|Paul Stastny
|Colorado Avalanche
|Derek Stepan
|New York Rangers
|James van Riemsdyk
|Toronto Maple Leafs
|Blake Wheeler
|Winnipeg Jets


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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–President Obama, while a presidential candidate, gave a very important speech (March 18, 2008) on race in America.
In that speech he said that "Most working- and middle-class white Americans don't feel that they have been particularly privileged by their race…. So when they … hear that an African-American is getting an advantage in landing a good job or a spot in a good college because of an injustice that they themselves never committed … resentment builds over time."
Those were brave and important words for then-Sen. Obama to say. However, through close observation and experience I have learned to pay more attention to what President Obama does than to what he says.
The most recent case in point is his nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court. As a federal judge, Ms. Sotomayor has been the poster child for President Obama's desire to have judges who will have empathy with some groups, which means less empathy for other groups.
Lady Justice is blindfolded for a reason: She's supposed to be impartial, not empathic. Empathy belongs in the legislature and the executive branch, and not in the judicial branch. Sotomayor is a living, breathing example of making the law subjective and relative, rather than objective and impartial.
The best illustration of Judge Sotomayor's less-than-objective view of the law is her treatment of the Ricci v. DeStefano case.
The Ricci case involves New Haven, Conn., firefighters (17 whites and 1 Hispanic) who scored highest on written exams but were not promoted because the city council feared being sued for racial discrimination because no black firefighters scored well enough to be promoted. The firefighters who were denied promotion filed a lawsuit claiming reverse discrimination.
When the case came before Judge Sotomayor, she rejected their claims in such a casual fashion that a fellow judge, Jose Cabranes (a Clinton appointee), severely criticized her and stated that "this perfunctory disposition rests uneasily with the weighty issues presented in this appeal." In other words, Judge Sotomayor gave the 18 deserving male firefighters the back of her judicial hand.
Ms. Sotomayor also stated in a 2001 speech, "I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life…. Our gender and national origins may and will make a difference in our judging."
Fair and impartial to all? Hardly! Fortunately, Chief Justice John Roberts is living proof that Judge Sotomayor's assessment of white males and their supposed limitations is incorrect.
The Ricci case has now gone before the U.S. Supreme Court, and the majority of the justices have given every indication that they are going to give the New Haven firefighters the justice they were so casually denied by Ms. Sotomayor. Chief Justice Roberts was particularly tough in oral questioning of the New Haven City Council's attorney.
This was no surprise. In a case that came before the Supreme Court last year (Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1), which involved racial preferences for balancing enrollments in particular schools, Chief Justice Roberts wrote in his majority opinion denying racial quotas or preferences: "The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race."
That's blind justice — equal treatment for all under the law. Sotomayor will be for affirmative action, quotas, set asides. That's the business end of empathy. In the business end of empathy, some people get discriminated against in favor of other people.
Richard Land is president of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.


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Calif. tax collector criticized for opposing fee
One of California's top elected tax collectors is facing criticism for his high-profile campaign to block a controversial fee that Democratic leaders say he and the state board he serves are responsible for collecting, not opposing.
Republican Board of Equalization member George Runner says the Democratic Legislature and governor engaged in an "illegal money-grab" when they voted last year to charge rural residents whose homes are at risk from wildfires a $150 fee.
Runner has a website encouraging homeowners to appeal the fee. He has written and spoken out against it, and says he will join a planned lawsuit by opponents who argue it is an unconstitutional tax.
"I've opposed this new tax from the beginning, because I believe it is unconstitutional," Runner says on his website. "I intend to join a lawsuit asking the courts to halt this illegal money-grab as soon as possible."
Democrats including state Controller John Chiang, Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg and fellow Board of Equalization member Betty Yee say Runner, a former state senator who was elected to the BOE in 2010, has gone too far in opposing a lawfully enacted fee he helps administer.
"He has a different role now. His job is to implement the law," said Steinberg, D-Sacramento.
Yee said Runner should simply refer any citizens' complaints to the state Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, which will benefit from the projected $84.4 million it is expected to raise.
"He's certainly entitled to his opinion, but trying to corral people into opposing the fee seems a little untoward," she said.
California Common Cause lobbyist Phillip Ung and Bob Stern, former president of the Center for Governmental Studies in Los Angeles, both said Runner is within his rights as an elected official in opposing the fee.
The five-member Board of Equalization collects the state's sales, fuel, alcohol, and tobacco taxes as well as various fees, including the fire fee. At Runner's urging, the board also mailed notices to property owners in advance of the fire fee billing.
The board began sending out bills a month ago to the first of more than 825,000 property owners. It will help pay for existing fire prevention services. About 95 percent of rural property owners will get a $35 discount because they already pay a local fire protection tax.
Runner said Wednesday that he is appropriately balancing his dual responsibilities by opposing the fee even as he helps collect it. He said he represents 9 million people, and about half the new fire fee bills are going to people in his sprawling district, which covers most of inland California from San Bernardino to the Oregon border.
"I don't know that anyone could point to anything that we have done other than to enhance the responsibilities that the Legislature has given us," he said, referring to his own activities. "We make it real clear: We tell people to pay it. We don't want people to get caught up in penalties and interest."
Runner encourages residents to pay their bills on time and in full. But he also tells property owners how to appeal on several grounds.
There's no question the fee is unpopular, Runner said, even among Democrats such as Assembly Speaker John Perez of Los Angeles. Last month, Perez unsuccessfully proposed ending it in return for closing a $1 billion corporate tax loophole.
The board's chairman, Democrat Jerome Horton, said Runner is free to express his views as an individual board member, but "advocating to individuals to violate the law, it's something I wouldn't do."
Runner and other tax opponents say the fee is actually an illegal tax that should have required a two-thirds vote of the state Legislature rather than the simple majority vote it received. He is also helping the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association line up plaintiffs for the planned lawsuit seeking to overturn the fee, said the group's president, Jon Coupal.
Chiang, who is a member of the Board of Equalization as elected state controller, said in an emailed statement that Runner's "campaign rhetoric is unnecessary and runs afoul of the Constitutional requirement that the BOE treat all statutes passed by the Legislature as lawful unless deemed otherwise by the courts."
Board member Michelle Steel, a Republican, also opposes the fire fee, her spokesman Arie Dana said, though she has not gone as far as Runner to publicize it.
The first bills, about 130,000, went out Aug. 13, giving property owners 30 days to pay. Bills are being sent in alphabetical order by county.
As of Wednesday, 2,793 appeals had been filed.
Nearly two-thirds of those, or about 1,800, were filed in protest that the fee is illegal. Another 11 percent challenged the state's calculation of the number of livable structures on the property; 9 percent disputed ownership of the property; and 7 percent contended the home is not within the state responsibility area covered by the fee.
Runner said he is working with fee administrators to give property owners the option of paying in installments if they can't pay the entire fee. So far, 67 owners have claimed a financial hardship.
CalFire, not the Board of Equalization, will consider the appeals.
With months left to go this fire season, the department already has spent $132 million on the large, out-of-control wildfires that can rage for weeks, said spokeswoman Janet Upton. That is well above the $93 million allotted for such fires in the state budget, and the balance will come out of the state's budget reserve.
"If prevention can prevent even a fraction of these large damaging fires, it's worth the $9.58 that homeowners are paying each month," Upton said.


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It was no surprise to seasoned home builders when the Census Bureau reported in March a newer trend of people moving closer to the city and away from the suburbs. Rick McAlexander of Associated Designs in Eugene, Oregon has worked with hundreds of builders over the years to design houses for all types of neighborhoods. But, when Dane Butler of Future B Homes, also in Eugene, approached Rick about designing a series of single family homes for a growing, mixed-use development close to the urban core, Rick jumped right in. Rick has a passion for density housing, close to the city, and was happy to create his first collection of urban styled house plans, specifically created for a planned village development.
Dane Butler, president of Future B Homes, knew his urban village units needed a fresh concept in order to offer contemporary styled homes that most people could afford and realistically enjoy living in. "These kinds of homes should actually cost less to take care of with lower utility bills and less maintenance.", Dane says.
After months of collaboration, Future B Homes began building a series of small footprint homes in a local development called Crescent Village. Rick created house plans for this project that have a north and south orientation. However, he situated the windows and patios on the home's south side, which faces the neighbor's adjacent exterior wall. This allows natural light to stream in throughout the home while offering privacy for each homeowner. After experiencing enthusiastic homeowner demand, Future B Homes has now built a total of 14 village style units out of a planned 26 for the mixed-use neighborhood.
The unique idea of an 'urban floor plan' attracts two types of clients, but for different reasons, according to Rick. He says some clients are keenly interested in living in a home with a smaller footprint. Other clients are driven primarily by economic benefits, because a smaller lot leads to lower development and construction costs, and lower maintenance bills. "Our clients get the best of both worlds with this plan", says Rick, "whether the person is environmentally driven or conscious of cost".
The concept of a planned urban village is not new. There are hundreds of examples of older, high-density neighborhoods in larger cities, like San Francisco and Seattle, or on the east coast in Boston and New York City. Even Charleston and New Orleans have long traditions of narrow homes built close to the street, right in the city. These types of dense neighborhoods were known to be highly livable during their heyday when individuals worked, shopped and socialized, within blocks of their home.
While Rick says he's inspired by the lifestyles of yesteryear, fast forward about five decades and he's incorporated significant differences in today's urban house plan. First and foremost, homes are not attached by a shared wall. These plans offer more privacy, natural light and some amount of defined yard space. And, the homes are energy efficient and include amenities that are considered must-haves in today's lifestyle. According to Dane, "With these plans, people find they have all the space and features they need with no wasted square footage."
For example, Associated Designs has the 'Parkview Plan 30-905', where the house is only twenty-six feet wide and almost sixty feet long. The home is designed with an inviting entry court close to the street that could include a fenced privacy screen. A person can approach the home and take a right into the front door or turn left and head along the exterior wall toward an open or enclosed patio.
The first floor of this plan offers a contemporary, open kitchen with a great room layout, plus a master bedroom that includes a luxury bath and walk-in closet. The second floor accommodates three good-sized bedrooms and a two-door, shared bath with double sink. Add a 300 square-foot bonus room over the garage and the space lives large. The total living area is right under 2200 square feet with a footprint at just about 1500 square feet. Lot lines are approximately 3.5 feet from the exterior walls.
A developer doesn't have to build a whole new village to utilize this style of housing. It works just as well when placed within undeveloped lots in older neighborhoods. It's not uncommon in most cities to see well established neighborhoods from the turn-of-the-century, or mid-century, to include empty lots or houses in serious disrepair. City planners and developers both recognize the potential to convert weedy tracts into housing for people wanting to live closer to the city's core. And, astute developers can turn several contiguous residential lots into a coordinated group of urban concept houses, each with a different plan but similar in styling. Dane notes that people who choose an urban village house tend to feel comfortable spending more time outdoors, enjoying a sense of community and neighbors.
There is a definite trend, says Rick, where people want to move closer to the city and cut their commute times while increasing access to urban amenities, city events and al fresco cafes. It's about affordable and quality living, while working and playing in the same neighborhood – just like the old days, only better.