Apple Grand Ayatollah Tim Cook is trying to clarify some comments made about 7-inch tablets two years ago, using a little math and very little common sense.

Back in 2010, Cook backed Steve Jobs’ view that 7-inch tablets would be dead on arrival. However, now that Apple has actually launched a 7.9-inch tablet, you would expect Cook to say that there’s hope for 7-inchers. Of course, he did not.

Cook doubled down on his previous claims, saying that Apple would not make a 7-inch tablet.

“We don’t think they’re good products, and we would never make one. The iPad mini is not a compromised product like the 7-inch tablets,” said Cook. “It’s in whole different league.”

So, Cook argues that the additional 0.9 inches place the iPad mini in a league of its own, as it ends up with 35% more screen acreage than a 7-inch tablet. Well, it does, but the whole point of miniaturizing devices is to make them a tad more portable. It is a bit like arguing that a 15-inch MacBook is better than a 13-incher by virtue of a somewhat bigger screen. It is a stretch that would make logic curl up in a fetal position and weep.

Besides, last I heard Apple was making some top notch 9.7-inch tablets. They are a lot faster than the mini and have wonderful hi-res screens. So why buy a mini then?

More here.