Go to Apple France's website to learn more about the new iPad Mini, and you will see the image above, of a device held between the thumb and index finger, to symbolize its slimness and lightness. Same thing for the iPhone Air, with an almost identical illustration.
Size matters, at Apple
Images that you will find identically on most Apple websites around the world, except on that of South Korea, where one detail differs: the device is alone, without the hand holding it. The probable reason for this alteration: not to offend Koreans. Indeed, this pinching gesture with the hand is used mockingly there, symbolizing the small size of male genitalia.
Contacted by macrumors to confirm or deny this explanation, Apple did not deign to respond.