Tablets Kindle Fire HDX 8.9" might be the top competitor to iPad Air

[tbayrgs]

That would be Google/Android devices that have Google Play already to go on the device with no side loading. If you said Nexus 7/10 and hopefully the N8 along with Samsung, ASUS, ACER etc then yeah those are direct competitors to Apple because they tie in directly to Google's ecosystem. The Kindle Fire filters out that ecosystem and the Amazon Apps Store is grossly limited vs Google Play.

What is your hangup with the Google Play store? Why does a tablet have to have access to Google Play to be a competitor to Apple? iPad customer get their apps from the App Store, Window's tablets get theirs from the Windows Marketplace, Nexus devices get theirs from Google Play, and Kindle Fire users get theirs from the Amazon app store. Some are better than others but they all serve EXACTLY the same function. Why the Google Play benchmark? We've stated this repeatedly, as have other Kindle Fire users--they don't miss the Google Play store because most aren't even aware of it. These customer's certainly aren't going to rule out purchasing a device because of a deficiency that doesn't even exist in their eyes.

If you are correlating consumption as direction competition to Apple then EVERY tablet made including the $59 el cheapo tablets are direct competition to the iPad.

Yes, they are. We're just saying the there is a pretty big overlap between who Apple and Amazon target as the functionality they offer is desired by these customers, more so than others.

 

[Rodster]

What is your hangup with the Google Play store? Why does a tablet have to have access to Google Play to be a competitor to Apple? iPad customer get their apps from the App Store, Window's tablets get theirs from the Windows Marketplace, Nexus devices get theirs from Google Play, and Kindle Fire users get theirs from the Amazon app store. Some are better than others but they all serve EXACTLY the same function. Why the Google Play benchmark? We've stated this repeatedly, as have other Kindle Fire users--they don't miss the Google Play store because most aren't even aware of it. These customer's certainly aren't going to rule out purchasing a device because of a deficiency that doesn't even exist in their eyes.

It's not a hangup it's the facts. When it comes to competitive ecosystems it's iOS vs Android. If I want the latest and greatest Android App I can find it and buy it on Google Play on any of my Android devices. You can't do that on the Amazon App store. Most of the time they lag behind the Google Play store and Apps on Google Play tend to be updated more quickly than what's on the Amazon App store.

So with my Nexus 7 or any other Android device I can do more than I can with my Kindle Fire HD. The Kindle Fire offers a convenient approach to use the device to interface with most things related to Amazon. That's not a bad thing but it's certainly not the ideal approach if you want to use your Android devices for things other than Amazon.

And getting back to Apple. If you can find the Kindle Fire HDX being used in, industrial applications then I would agree that it's a direct competitor to the iPad because the iPad is not a one trick pony which the Kindle Fire is and that's Amazon.

Saying the Kindle Fire HD is a direct competitor to the iPad is like saying the Nintendo Wii U is a direct competitor to the PlayStation 4 or XBOX One because it's not. Those devices are in different categories.

I don't want anyone to think i'm dissing the Kindle Fire line because I own them and enjoy what they do but it's typically related to Amazon.

 

[AppleRobert]

It's not a hangup it's the facts. When it comes to competitive ecosystems it's iOS vs Android. If I want the latest and greatest Android App I can find it and buy it on Google Play on any of my Android devices. You can't do that on the Amazon App store. Most of the time they lag behind the Google Play store and Apps on Google Play tend to be updated more quickly than what's on the Amazon App store.

So with my Nexus 7 or any other Android device I can do more than I can with my Kindle Fire HD. The Kindle Fire offers a convenient approach to use the device to interface with most things related to Amazon. That's not a bad thing but it's certainly not the ideal approach if you want to use your Android devices for things other than Amazon.

And getting back to Apple. If you can find the Kindle Fire HDX being used in, industrial applications then I would agree that it's a direct competitor to the iPad because the iPad is not a one trick pony which the Kindle Fire is and that's Amazon.

Saying the Kindle Fire HD is a direct competitor to the iPad is like saying the Nintendo Wii U is a direct competitor to the PlayStation 4 or XBOX One because it's not. Those devices are in different categories.

I don't want anyone to think i'm dissing the Kindle Fire line because I own them and enjoy what they do but it's typically related to Amazon.

I see a sale very soon. The Fire HD 8.9 was on HSN last night with the price of $199. One can believe what they choose about the amount posted that was sold during the offer but it was over 40,000.

One can also use alternatives to Amazon's store like 1mobile. The selection is not bad but the Play Store rules obviously.

 

[tbayrgs]

It's not a hangup it's the facts. When it comes to competitive ecosystems it's iOS vs Android. If I want the latest and greatest Android App I can find it and buy it on Google Play on any of my Android devices. You can't do that on the Amazon App store. Most of the time they lag behind the Google Play store and Apps on Google Play tend to be updated more quickly than what's on the Amazon App store.

So with my Nexus 7 or any other Android device I can do more than I can with my Kindle Fire HD. The Kindle Fire offers a convenient approach to use the device to interface with most things related to Amazon. That's not a bad thing but it's certainly not the ideal approach if you want to use your Android devices for things other than Amazon.

And getting back to Apple. If you can find the Kindle Fire HDX being used in, industrial applications then I would agree that it's a direct competitor to the iPad because the iPad is not a one trick pony which the Kindle Fire is and that's Amazon.

Saying the Kindle Fire HD is a direct competitor to the iPad is like saying the Nintendo Wii U is a direct competitor to the PlayStation 4 or XBOX One because it's not. Those devices are in different categories.

I don't want anyone to think i'm dissing the Kindle Fire line because I own them and enjoy what they do but it's typically related to Amazon.

You keep looking at this from the perspective of the small minority of customers. Yes, there will be a section of iPad customers that won't consider the Kindle, but there is still a huge section that will. The simple matter is that most iPad users and most Amazon buyers likely use their tablets for exactly the same thing--media consumption. They don't use industrial applications or need obscure apps. The apps they do need are generally going to be available on Amazon's app store. The most commonly used functions by these user on the iPad are the same things being done on a Fire--web browsing, video, books, games, email. These are the customers both companies want because they are going to use their own ecosystem for their entertainment and more likely than not these customers will consider these two devices more than any other. Amazon and Apple are competing for these customer's wallets. It cannot be explained any simpler than that.

Just try answering this question--what's the first tablet a Kindle Fire customer would considering getting instead?

Again, you are looking at this from the small minority of users, the tech savy (or even moderately tech conscious) who wouldn't be happy with the Fire, and may very well not be happy with an iPad either. Apple and Amazon aren't competing for these customers--you're right there. But these customers are a drop in the bucket compared to the general consumer they ARE competing for.

Here, try this. Name the best selling tablets right now. If your answers don't contain either iPad or Kindle in their names, you're simply incorrect.

Yet you think the bestselling tablets aren't competitors.

 

[Rodster]

Sales has zero to do whether the iPad and KF are direct competitors because they are not. And this will prove it from Amazon's POV. Jeff Bezos has not changed his stance on the iPad being his direct competitor since his comments in 2011. He doesn't care whether it is or not. All he cares is that when you turn on the Kindle Fire it leads to his Store.

Lastly the reason the iPad is not a direct competitor to the Kindle Fire is because Amazon Prime is offered on the iPad. Have you noticed it's not offered on any other Android devices like the Nexus 7 or ASUS, ACER, Samsung etc? Because that's the Kindle Fire's direct competition not the iPad.

If the iPad was a threat to the Kindle Fire it would not offer it Amazon Prime, yet it's available for the iPad. I wish I could get Amazon Prime on my Nexus 7 as I wouldn't need the Kindle Fire HD or any other Amazon tablet and Jeff Bezos knows it.

 

[tbayrgs]

Sales has zero to do whether the iPad and KF are direct competitors because they are not. And this will prove it from Amazon's POV. Jeff Bezos has not changed his stance on the iPad being his direct competitor since his comments in 2011. He doesn't care whether it is or not. All he cares is that when you turn on the Kindle Fire it leads to his Store.

Lastly the reason the iPad is not a direct competitor to the Kindle Fire is because Amazon Prime is offered on the iPad. Have you noticed it's not offered on any other Android devices like the Nexus 7 or ASUS, ACER, Samsung etc? Because that's the Kindle Fire's direct competition not the iPad.

If the iPad was a threat to the Kindle Fire it would not offer it Amazon Prime, yet it's available for the iPad. I wish I could get Amazon Prime on my Nexus 7 as I wouldn't need the Kindle Fire HD or any other Amazon tablet and Jeff Bezos knows it.

Well, we're clearly not going to convince the other of our opinions so I'm going to call it a day on this discussion and just agree to disagree.

FWIW, I'm not a Kindle Fire fan--far too locked down for my taste (says the fan of many Apple products typing this post on his iPad Air--how's that for irony, an Apple user saying something else is too locked down ).