Amazon Heats Up the Tablet Wars

 

 

Just as we were getting accustomed to Google’s foray into tablets with the Nexus 7, now Amazon has upped the ante with its pending introduction of 5 to 6 new Kindle Fire tablets, according to Demos Parneros, the president of U.S. Retail for Staples Inc. Apparently, one of the models will have a 10-inch screen but the world’s largest Internet-based retailer has neither confirmed nor commented on the matter to date. Opinions vary amongst media sources whether or not Amazon should be a hardware company as a starting point for accessing Amazon’s products and services. Some can consume Amazon’s products and services more successfully with non-Amazon devices than with the Kindle Fire, while others suggest that Amazon is following the Apple methodology of overpricing device memory and providing a device (or devices) as an entry point to other products and services. Consequently, Amazon can offer the devices at affordable prices on the assumption that consumers will also purchase products and services.

A June 28, 2012 article on BGR.com reported that a trusted (but unnamed) source stated that Amazon was set to launch its own tablets in the near future, most likely a 7-inch (with dual-core processor, 1280 X 800 pixels resolution comparable to Google’s Nexus 7) and a 10-inch (with a quad-core processor, front-facing camera, microUSB port and maybe an HDMI-out port).  Some media sources had previously reported the possibility of an 8.9-inch Kindle Fire.

 

 

A big question awaiting an answer is whether Apple will take the plunge with an iPad mini which some sources suggest will have a 7.85-inch screen. I am sure that we will soon know the answer…