I've used both. I prefer the Mini's screen to the old N7: larger viewing angles, better color saturation/accuracy, less backlight bleed, smaller bezel.
The iPad Mini Retina will likely be the perfect small tablet for most users.
I just can't look past the poor resolution of the iPad mini - and on that basis alone, I would not recommend it to anyone, except people with very poor eyesight.
I agree that DPI isn't everything. I think of it as like "stock" to a soup. Without stock (or with awful stock), you have no soup. The rest of the ingredients are important, but stock is king.
iPad mini has foul tasting "stock" ;)
Brightness is important, but not fundamental, viewing angles are less important when you're looking straight on or from a slight angle (ie. 99% of the time). I didn't notice a huge difference on contrast ratio (eg. differentiating dark colours readily).
I would not recommend the current iPad mini to anyone with reasonable eyesight.
> viewing angles are less important when you're looking straight on or from a slight angle (ie. 99% of the time).
I find that with the ipad mini viewing angles actually do seem kind of important, because—unlike a phone—I very often use the ipad mini without holding it, whether sitting on a table, on my lap, or propped up against something while I watch a video. The result is that one doesn't have nearly the same easy control over viewing angle one has when hand-holding a device...
Yeah, this is the thing I could never get my head around. I know that the iPad mini is superior in many ways, but I just can't see how people can justify spending the extra money! The iPad mini is £110 - £190 more expensive, depending on which size you get. That's just too much IMHO.
The iPad Mini Retina will likely be the perfect small tablet for most users.