If you’ve been following all the recent tech news you’ll already have heard the growing speculation about an Apple iPad mini with a release date rumored for October. Talk of a smaller iPad is not new but continuing leaks seem to suggest that this time it’s the real deal and today we have news that it could be ultrathin, thanks to the use of G/F2 thin-film technology.

The lower-cost iPad mini is said to have a 7.85-inch screen as opposed to the standard sized iPad that has a 9.7-inch display. If current rumors are to be believed the iPad mini will have a price tag of around $200 to $250, with the price kept down by specs cuts such as only 8GB of internal storage. We now hear that Apple will also use new touch panel technology to make the device as slim as possible while also apparently cutting costs.

BGR tells of a report from Taiwanese DigiTimes, which has a somewhat mixed record of reliable Apple leaks and in the latest news, anonymous industry sources claim that G/F2 thin-film technology will be used to make the iPad mini thinner than all previous iPads. Furthermore we’re informed that Apple has already entered into a contract with Nitto Denko for supplies of the new touch panels using this technology and that the 7.85-inch touchscreens will be built by Nissha Printing and TPK Holding.

If this contract news is accurate it seems as though Apple is well on the way towards the production stages of the iPad mini but of course for now none of this is confirmed. In more news DigiTimes gives figures of iPad mini shipments expected in 2012 of between 7 and 10 million units so it would seem that Apple is expecting big sales of the mini iPad.

We’ll be keeping a track of further developments with the purported iPad mini and will keep readers informed as we find out more. For now we’d welcome comments from our readers about the iPad mini. Do you think Apple would have a hit on its hands with a smaller, cheaper iPad tablet? Does the idea of an even slimmer iPad appeal to you?