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Amazon Set to Unveil $199 'Kindle Fire' Tablet

I already ordered two Kindles :)

...though, since I have an iPad, I'm not interested in the Kindle Fire tablet... yet.. I am wagering I will buy one for my mum when her birthday comes next January... for now, I've ordered the two lowest-end Kindles, the $79 Kindle and the $99 Kindle Touch.

These Kindle tablets look slick and at $199 they make ideal gifts. I can't afford too many iPad gifts. :D
 
I am not so sure...the Kindle Fire is $199 but its got subpar specs...Why only 8 GB of storage and no mic? Can you put in a SD card?

All Apple has to do is come out with a 7 inch ipad\itouch...for $199 and kills this thing off...hell even at $249 it would kill it off..
 
trip1ex said:
btw, how come Apple is denied a Multi-touch trademark because the term is too generic while Amazon gets a 1-Click trademark.
Click to expand...

Achieving secondary meaning. Apple failed to do that with Multi-touch, otherwise like stated in the decision, they would have been granted the trademark. Amazon marketed "1-Click" aggressively and made sure that the term was associated with Amazon back in the day when they applied for the trademark.

Seriously folk, gotta pay attention and read the whole decisions, not just skim through if you're going to make comments like these.
 
Amazon is doing the only thing that a competitor can do to enter this market. They're going to lose money on the hardware side and hopefully make up for it on the content side. That being said, I purchase a lot of items from Amazon each and every year (I'm an Amazon Prime member). On several occasions, they've tried to lure me over to their content services. I've downloaded several songs from their digital store (never paid for one - they were all free via an Amazon promotion), purchased a couple of books, etc. However, I've never once tried their Video-on-Demand service, or even watched their free streaming content (I use Netflix). Time and time again, I find myself going back to iTunes and Netflix for my content. Ask me why and the answer you'll get is, "I don't really know". This is going to be Amazon's greatest challenge. How are they going to lure people away from iTunes? The Fire's a start, but I don't see the millions of current iPad owners jumping ship to access the Amazon ecosystem.
 
It looks like the ads only display when you turn off your kindle:

"Special Offers & Sponsored Screensavers display on Kindle Touch when you're not reading."


That's not too bad. I don't mind that.
 
tripjammer said:
I am not so sure...the Kindle Fire is $199 but its got subpar specs...Why only 8 GB of storage and no mic? Can you put in a SD card?

All Apple has to do is come out with a 7 inch ipad\itouch...for $199 and kills this thing off...hell even at $249 it would kill it off..
Click to expand...

Apple might kill the iPad if they do that....
 
What do folks think of of the infrared sensors instead of capacitive display for the kindle touch. I'm tempted for this model, but to be honest, that seems to scare me off.
 
The big news here is the evolution of the definition of what constitutes a "tablet."

() Amazon protects its flank in the eReader market with a new floor ($79) and a premium version with improved e-ink, additional content, and a "lifetime" 3G connection in 100 countries for $149. Nobody is going to encroach on Amazon's turf in this market.

() The "Fire" is better understood as growing up from the e-Reader market than a de-featured iPad. It expands the content available from books (and to some extent magazines) to movies, videos, the web, and music. (Not clear what happens to the Kindle DX at this point; it seems to be an unwanted stepchild.)

() The "split browsing" experience, if it works, builds on the Opera model and will eliminate the one area where no one (including Apple) has been able to resolve "lags" in the user-interface, i.e. web browsing. Managing browsing to eliminate jerkiness and lags is a huge step forward for users who don't differentiate between looking at a web page and running a local app. Roadblocks and net congestion will remain but if Amazon manages to "smooth" the browsing experience, they'll impress a lot of users.

() Not clear how traditional Kindle customers will react to the backlit Fire but I suspect the expanded content available will soothe their feathers. And if it doesn't, the other new Kindle models will provide a place for them to go.

() Not sure why the Fire apparently doesn't include a built-in email or messaging client. Though an email client is apparently available for download from the Amazon digital store. No demonstration of the Fire keyboard options (that I saw) so that might be the stumbling block. (Along with the wifi only current limitation.) In any event, I think those are the missing pieces for many potential customers who don't need/want a fully featured tablet.

() All in all, Amazon is taking a step by step up the ladder approach by extending an e-reader base into "tablet" functionality. And at a price point under $200, they'll sell 'em by the boat load.
 
MacVault said:
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8G4 Safari/6533.18.5)

This is great - Apple will have to price the iPad more resonably now!
Click to expand...

I know!! If Apple do compete with this price I will get the iPad but if not kindle fire all the way. I just need an e reader that supports zinio reader. Android or iOS I don't care :D
 
roadbloc said:
If it's anything like my Kindle, it's bound to be awesome. I don't feel the iPad "has it" in terms of a good device for reading. Obviously however, a tablet is used for so much more than reading.
Click to expand...

And this device is going to "Have it" in terms of reading? It uses the same type of screen as the iPad, but gives you less real estate.
 
While I'm not hating n this device it seems like it's built more for content consumption, and not content creation which at least the iPad is trying to rectify with soe of the Apple made apps. This looks to be a low power / low spec consumer driven device. Let's see what Amazon can do with this.
 
OptyCT said:
Amazon is doing the only thing that a competitor can do to enter this market. They're going to lose money on the hardware side and hopefully make up for it on the content side. That being said, I purchase a lot of items from Amazon each and every year (I'm an Amazon Prime member). On several occasions, they've tried to lure me over to their content services. I've downloaded several songs from their digital store (never paid for one - they were all free via an Amazon promotion), purchased a couple of books, etc. However, I've never once tried their Video-on-Demand service, or even watched their free streaming content (I use Netflix). Time and time again, I find myself going back to iTunes and Netflix for my content. Ask me why and the answer you'll get is, "I don't really know". This is going to be Amazon's greatest challenge. How are they going to lure people away from iTunes? The Fire's a start, but I don't see the millions of current iPad owners jumping ship to access the Amazon ecosystem.
Click to expand...

It's not really for CURRENT iPad owners. It's for the ones who haven't bought a tablet like myself. See ya iPad, I'm going with the Fire.
 
jouster said:
No it doesn't. There are too few of them for that to be the case.
Click to expand...


Nope- HP sold hundreds of thousands of them with the fire sale, and they have a second batch now- there are a lot of them out there.

And @WRX- Do you really think WebOS isn't going to get licensed out/bought? It isn't as polished as iOS, but some features (ex. Multitasking) is so much better than iOS.
 
OptyCT said:
... How are they going to lure people away from iTunes? The Fire's a start, but I don't see the millions of current iPad owners jumping ship to access the Amazon ecosystem.
Click to expand...

They don't need to lure iPad owners to jump ship. They only need to sell to the 6 billion people on earth who don't have iPads.
 
trip1ex said:
btw, how come Apple is denied a Multi-touch trademark because the term is too generic while Amazon gets a 1-Click trademark.
Click to expand...

...because Amazon introduced the "1-Click" concept as a quick way to purchase something. Multi-touch refers to way people physically interact with something.

Also LOVE how the Apple fanboys are out in force to dismiss the Fire. Amazon have produced a great device for less than $200 that'll do most things that people would use an iPad for (i.e. web browsing, social networking, reading and other media).

It might not directly compete with the iPad, but there is definitely a market for it.

The way Amazon is embracing cloud computing is great too, I genuinely believe that they are leading the way here.
 
Chupa Chupa said:
That presumes that all tablets are created equal. It's like saying a $20K Chevy Malibu w/ many of the same features as a $40K BMW 3 series also share the same targeted customers. Of course the Malibu and BMW are in two different demographic markets. Price had never been a barrier to iPad buyers.

The Fire kills the Nook Color and also pinches the low end non-iPad tablet market. I don't think it disrupts the iPad market b/c people who want an iPad want an full featured tablet and there is nothing ground breaking about the Fire other than its price.
Click to expand...

i hate analogies like that because you are essentially comparing market staples that have been around for 40, 50, 60, 70 years(BMW and Chevy) to an Touch Tablet market that has been alive for almost 2 years?

People are still getting into the tablet market, where as the car market has been alive and well for almost one century. If you dont think this amazon tablet it going to halt some iPad sale, you are delusional.
 
Edit: this was in reply to someone stating you can’t use non-Apple content on iOS, but I can’t find that comment anymore.

You can buy DRM-less eBooks (such as Harry Potter) and music (Amazon, Spotify, etc). You can also rip music and films if that’s legal in the country where you live. And speaking of Amazon, you can use the Kindle app, with your Amazon-bought eBooks, on any iOS device.
 
PeterQVenkman said:
It looks like the ads only display when you turn off your kindle:

"Special Offers & Sponsored Screensavers display on Kindle Touch when you're not reading."


That's not too bad. I don't mind that.
Click to expand...

Exactly. It just replaces the generic screen saver wallpapers that would show up if you have the pricier one.
 
At those prices I may need to finally get a kindle!! Also I see Amazon is using the phrase multi-touch to describe their screen on the new kindle touch when you compare the models.
 
I just pre-ordered one. My children wanted an iPod Touch, and now they have something better.

It will not hurt the iPad, but hurt the iPod Touch. If Amazon put a FF and RF cameras in it, then it would have put nails in the coffin of the iPod Touch.
 
don't compare on price

why is everyone doing the low price dance.

Unless the departure of Mr. Jobs has changed Apple's strategy, I do not recall that they have decided to dumpster dive for the low price prize. They have never been known for low cost. I for one hope they do not forget this.

Yes, the iPad is more expensive. It also is more ground breaking than anything RIM or Amazon or HP have to offer. The next iPad will similarly break new ground.

I'll stick with Apple.
 
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