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But the party who loses the most in a world with a 7-inch iPad is Apple itself. While there’s virtually no question it’ll sell the product hand over fist, it would represent a cheapening of what Apple stands for.

As Jobs once said, Apple is first about building the best computers possible, and making a profit second. While that might sound like a mere Kool-Aid platitude, if you examine Apple’s actions, it’s quite accurate. Eschewing netbooks, replacing the iPod Mini with the iPod Nano, and its end-to-end approach to manufacturing — Apple has always been more concerned about providing customers with a certain experience than things like market share.

The iPad right now is one of those experiences. For both Apple’s customers and its competitors, it’s the tablet you aspire to. Throw a 7-inch iPad in there, and it becomes something else: the iPad Classic. It splits the tablet market in two, and it makes a mockery of the 10-inch iPad’s retina display by suggesting to tablet customers they can get along without one.

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