Dilemma: the size of a finger doesn't change just because your screen is higher resolution. A button and interface designed for the mini might look goofy on the larger device; an interface designed for the larger iPad might be entirely unusable on the Mini. And it's reasonable for designers to want to solve that problem.
Furthermore, your example is anecdotal and fairly meaningless. I've got a 15" screen that's 2880x1800, so what of it? I definitely don't run it at native resolution—it's scaled 2x, or 1.5x down. And it Just Works because there are APIs for native applications and in CSS that expose the pixel density so that developers can deal with it gracefully. Why not do the same for other devices which are also supposed to be high resolution—and more importantly—resolution independent?
The truth is, all of these devices have different pixel densities, and we're supposed to be moving in a resolution-independent direction, such that the physical size of the device and the number of pixels on its screen are completely arbitrary and controllable variables. Especially on mobile, interfaces depend on physical size, not on resolution; the size of a the main input mechanism does not depend on screen resolution or device size—it is static. It is a finger. We should be able to control the UI correctly instead of kludging around the problem.
This idea that you shouldn't need to design apps correctly is simply an excuse for the lack of means to do so. It's a poor argument.
They wouldn't, because it would have too high DPI. That's why they went for a multiple with Retina screens. I remember seeing an Android with a 1280x800 display or similar, using "mobile-optimized" sites was a pain.
Furthermore, your example is anecdotal and fairly meaningless. I've got a 15" screen that's 2880x1800, so what of it? I definitely don't run it at native resolution—it's scaled 2x, or 1.5x down. And it Just Works because there are APIs for native applications and in CSS that expose the pixel density so that developers can deal with it gracefully. Why not do the same for other devices which are also supposed to be high resolution—and more importantly—resolution independent?
The truth is, all of these devices have different pixel densities, and we're supposed to be moving in a resolution-independent direction, such that the physical size of the device and the number of pixels on its screen are completely arbitrary and controllable variables. Especially on mobile, interfaces depend on physical size, not on resolution; the size of a the main input mechanism does not depend on screen resolution or device size—it is static. It is a finger. We should be able to control the UI correctly instead of kludging around the problem.
This idea that you shouldn't need to design apps correctly is simply an excuse for the lack of means to do so. It's a poor argument.