Ever since the original iPad was released in 2010, rumors regarding the Cupertino-based company secretly preparing a smaller version of iPad have been rife. And now, it looks like these rumors might be coming true as competition from the likes of Google's Nexus 7 has ramped up.

Also a couple of days back, GottaBeMobile revealed a case mold of Apple's purported iPad Mini and the latest report has come from the guys at ThinkiOS, who have revealed some drawings of the iPad Mini which, according to them, has revealed a lot about the design of the next iPad.

ThinkiOS, which cited an anonymous Chinese person as their source, has indicated that the latest iPad Mini will have the similar design of the current iPad, but will be significantly smaller. Supporting the GottaBeMobile report which claimed that the new iPad will be the thinnest of all tables produced by Apple till date, the present report also says that the device is quite thin with a measurement of only 7.3mm thickness.

According to the report, Apple's iPad mini will be 7.87 inches tall and 5.3 inches wide, a significantly smaller footprint that the current-generation iPad model, which measures 9.5 inches by 7.31 inches. And while the third-generation iPad is 9.3 millimeters thick, the iPad mini will supposedly feature a design that is a remarkable 7.4 millimeters thin. For comparison, the iPod touch measures 7.3 millimeters thick.

The drawings also unveiled that the iPad Mini, like the upcoming rumored iPhone, will feature a smaller 19 pin connector instead of the regular 30 pin connector. But the smaller dock connector, reportedly, is expected to be more efficient than the 30 pin connector. The device is also reported to feature two grills for speakers, a rear camera as well as a front camera for Facetime.

Unlike Google's Nexus 7, the new iPad Mini will feature a rear camera as well as a front camera for Facetime. It is unknown at this point of time whether the device will have a 5-megapixel camera like the new iPad or will carry a VGA camera just like the iPod touch fourth generation and iPad 2.

There is no information yet about pricing and availability. Earlier reports from WSJ and Bloomberg confirmed that the iPad Mini is expected to be released later this year, most likely in the fall based on a recent report from Chinese-language MyDrivers site, the iPad mini will cost between $249 and $299.

At the same time, a number of industry watchers already believe low-cost Android tablets are having trouble competing with Apple's $400 iPad 2, so a brand new iPad priced at $300 or lower could represent an insurmountable roadblock for Google's great land-grab. Topeka Capital Markets analyst Brian White also predicted that the iPad mini will launch this fall priced in line with MyDrivers's report.