Steve Jobs Calls 7-Inch Tablets 'Dead on Arrival', Says 10-Inches Minimum

Steve Jobs made a surprise appearance at today's financial results conference call for Apple's Q4 2010 results. Jobs commented on a range of topics including the fragmentation seen on Android as compared to the iPhone.

Of particular note, Jobs commented on the influx of tablet competitors that are flooding the market, and criticized the 7" tablet size, saying that it was too small.

Commenting on avalanche of tablets heading to market. Just a handful of credible entrants. Almost all use 7" screen, compared to iPad at nearly 10" screen. 7" screen is only 45% as large as iPad's screen. Hold an iPad in portrait view and draw a horizontal line halfway down. What's left is a 7" screen...too small. There are clear limits to how close elements can be on the screen before users can't touch accurately. We believe 10-inch screen is minimum necessary.

This effectively kills persistent rumors that Apple was planning on creating a 7" iPad in the near future. Apple has been known to experiment with different form factors and has even been suspected of creating multiple prototypes to throw off competitors.