The latest market analyst insights from this week suggest that Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) may sell approximately 30 million iPad tablet computers in the December ending quarter of 2012 if rumors are accurate and the smaller “iPad mini” is released.

Photo credit: Martin Hajek

RBC Capital Markets’ Amit Daryanani theorized in a note to investors that without an iPad mini launch, Apple could sell 21.6 million units of its game-changing tablet computer in the fourth quarter of 2012.

This forecast is based on the hypothesis that only 9.7-inch iPads would be included in the sales – this would mean the second-generation iPad 2 and the “new iPad” with high-definition (HD) Retina Display technology.

However, if the iPad mini is released this quarter as many are expecting, that could mean an additional 8 million units sold. All in all, this would redound to a total of 29.6 million units sold in the December ending quarter, with an increase of $2 billion in net profits.

The iPad mini, which could possibly be announced as early as next week, will be pitted against other similar tablets such as the Google, Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) Nexus 7, the Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) Kindle Fire HD and the Barnes & Noble, Co. (NYSE:BKS) Nook HD.

Some of the specifications and features of the rumored tablet include a 7.85-inch display, Lightning dock connector, rear and front cameras and Wi-Fi (wireless fidelity) connectivity. The device’s price point could be kept low by the absence of specifications such as Retina Display and 4G LTE (long-term evolution) support.