The tech world is expecting Apple (AAPL) to up the stakes in the tablet war Tuesday by announcing a smaller, cheaper iPad.

Apple isn't saying anything officially, but it has sent out an event invitation with the words "We've got a little more to show you."

The rumor mill has been pretty spot-on with Apple announcements recently, having thoroughly dissected every facet of the company's iPhone 5 weeks before the device was revealed.
Rumors about the smaller iPad have been pouring in and have been remarkably consistent. Apple can't keep a lid on much these days, it seems.

Here are the expectations:

Smaller screen
Former Apple CEO Steve Jobs was no fan of a 7-inch tablet, saying you simply can't make a great tablet at that size. "It's too small to express the software that people want to put on those things," he said in a 2010 conference call.

But apparently you can make a great tablet at 7.85 inches, measured diagonally. That's smaller than the regular iPad's 9.7-inch screen.

A not-so-small price
Amazon (AMZN) and Google (GOOG) can breathe a little easier, because Apple may not go for cutthroat pricing. Many analysts expect the new model will be priced between $299 and $349.

Why not match the prices of the 7-inch tablets from rivals? Because Apple doesn't need to. Sterne Agee analysts Shaw Wu thinks "a price point of $299 or $349 makes sense with its entry-level iPod touch starting at $199 and iPad 2 at $399," according to AllThingsD.

So Amazon's $199 Kindle Fire HD will certainly be appealing, as will Google's $199 Nexus 7. But Apple will surely make a persuasive case for spending more on the smaller iPad.

No retina display
The new model is not expected to have the intense 2048 x 1536 Retina display that the latest iPhones and iPads have. Instead, Apple may release it with a 1024 x 768 display and move to Retina later, reports the iMore site. "Keeping costs down will be the primary concern for the first-generation iPad mini, and there'll be plenty of time to ramp up the display later," Rene Ritchie writes.

A Nov. 2 ship date
Just in time for the holidays. TechCrunch, citing a source close to Apple's supply chain, says the smaller iPad will likely go on sale on Nov. 2. Apple will promote the new device heavily as a holiday gift, for good reason. The company sold 15.4 million iPads in the holiday quarter last year, TechCrunch adds.

Apple is so bullish about the new model's sales potential that it has placed an order for more than 10 million in the fourth quarter, The Wall Street Journal reports.

New Mac announcements
Apple hasn't forgotten about Macs. It may announce a 13-inch version of its MacBook Pro as well as perhaps new iMacs.

The Apple event kicks off at 10 a.m. Tuesday in San Jose, Calif. Investors seem a little excited, as Apple shares were up 2.7% in afternoon trading Monday to $626.04.

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