[Rumor] Scoot over nook, the Kindle want some of that Android tablet action.

[bhartman36]

Originally Posted by Giggleton

It's about planning for multiple scenarios. If some hardware manufacturers decide to go into full lockdown mode, Amazon might need to flood the market with tablets within 6 months, predeveloped prototypes would be needed for this to happen.

Is there such a thing as full lockdown mode with Android? I could see Apple locking Amazon out of the iPad, but the myriad Android devices all being locked down and unrootable seems pretty improbable. Especially when the Kindle software is such a big hit on tablets. The Kindle software even works on a rooted Nook. If there was any way to really lock Android down, don't you think B&N would do it in a heartbeat?

It's never wise to say, "It'll never happen", but I don't see a lot of good reasons for Amazon to build a tablet. Everything they're doing (in my eyes) seems to be pointing to getting as many of their stores on as many devices as possible, not trying to be another "me too" LCD e-reader/tablet.

[din155]

If it’s about speculations then maybe Amazon wants to avoid a lockdown situation with apple or any other company. What if tomorrow apple decides to ban kindle app? Or google decides to start policing the android market and wants to squeeze more juice than they are already getting with their adds?
Wouldn’t it make much more sense for Amazon to have their own device that they can integrate it with their ecosystem and remove the dependency on anyone else? And its not that they are going to pull back the apps from other devices but their own device will be better integrated with Amazon ecosystem.
Just speculations..

din

[astrodad]

I'd buy a color 7-inch tablet from Amazon. I have an iPad but it's too big for comfortable reading at night in bed. I like e-ink but I find that I prefer the night time reading mode of an LCD screen (as opposed to using a book light). If they make it, I will buy it, as long as it's not too big.

[rcuadro]

Originally Posted by RockdaMan

Can't read a Android tablet in the sun...

It gets too hot in the sun so I read in the shade
But even there the glare is something that can be a pain in the ass and you need to angle the tablet (the iPad for me) one way or another to be able to read.

Ever since I purchased the iPad I find it is much more useful (for me) since I get my books from multiple sources. Amazon and B&N being some of them and it is much easier to have one device that can play well with everyone vice having to carry a kindle or nook exclusively.

[bhartman36]

Originally Posted by din155

If it’s about speculations then maybe Amazon wants to avoid a lockdown situation with apple or any other company. What if tomorrow apple decides to ban kindle app? Or google decides to start policing the android market and wants to squeeze more juice than they are already getting with their adds?

I can possibly see Apple banning the Kindle app, but I don't know how much that would hurt Amazon. Jailbreaking an iOS device is fairly trivial (although I think it's harder than rooting Android, from what I understand). A jailbroken iOS device will use Amazon products just as well as they'll use anything in the App Store.

As for Google, I think they'd be insane to try to change things too much. Android is open. It's distributed under a combination of the GPL and Apache licenses. If Google tries to squeeze the manufacturers too much, then it's sayonara for Google. The companies who want to will just put out their own Android variants, and users will sideload whatever apps they want.

Originally Posted by din155

Wouldn’t it make much more sense for Amazon to have their own device that they can integrate it with their ecosystem and remove the dependency on anyone else? And its not that they are going to pull back the apps from other devices but their own device will be better integrated with Amazon ecosystem.
Just speculations..

I see what you're saying, but it doesn't seem to be Amazon's business style. They've obviously had the money to do it before now. Why isn't there already an Amazon tablet? For that matter, why haven't we seen an Amazon media player? A Kindle is basically an iPod for books, so if they were going to go the same route with music and movies, why haven't we seen a Kindle for music and movies? If they were going to do it, I would've thought they would do it by now. Everything I'm seeing seems to point in the opposite direction: "You provide the hardware. We'll take care of the software you buy for it."

[elcreative]

Actually Amazon have been waiting for flexible displays that can be built into a wristband that willl link to giggles universal pan-digital worldnet and access everything that has ever been or will be written...

[bhartman36]

Originally Posted by elcreative

Actually Amazon have been waiting for flexible displays that can be built into a wristband that willl link to giggles universal pan-digital worldnet and access everything that has ever been or will be written...

Now that, I'd buy for $250.

[elcreative]

Come on, that's a bit cheap... I did say everything that has been written as well as everything that will be written... reckon that's worth more than $250

Originally Posted by bhartman36

Now that, I'd buy for $250.

[bhartman36]

Originally Posted by elcreative

Come on, that's a bit cheap... I did say everything that has been written as well as everything that will be written... reckon that's worth more than $250

Well, right now I'm out of work, but okay, how about $300?

[din155]

Originally Posted by bhartman36

Jailbreaking an iOS device is fairly trivial

It maybe easy but the question is how many would go that way? Many times its easier to have another device just like many members here have multiple ereaders.

Originally Posted by bhartman36

A Kindle is basically an iPod for books, so if they were going to go the same route with music and movies, why haven't we seen a Kindle for music and movies? If they were going to do it, I would've thought they would do it by now. Everything I'm seeing seems to point in the opposite direction: "You provide the hardware. We'll take care of the software you buy for it."

There could be many reasons why they didn’t launch a tablet till now:
- There were not many operating systems for tablets supported by sufficient apps. In fact there were none except apple and Honeycomb seems to fill that gap
- Video and data download on the go need high bandwidth (3g and 4g can fill that gap)
- Interest of people in the tablets?

I guess its the timing of a product sometimes that gets people interested. Now most people know about iPad and kindle and they will take notice of any other tablet which combines the features from both of them.

din

[zinj]

Originally Posted by bhartman36

All of the existing tablets (except, as I said, the TouchPad, at the moment) are Kindles, to the extent that a tablet can be a Kindle. The biggest differentiator between a Kindle and a tablet running the Kindle software is the e-ink screen, isn't it? If you keep the e-ink screen, it's not going to be much of a tablet, and if you get rid of the e-ink screen, it's just a tablet with an Amazon logo, as far as I can tell.

I just don't see the advantage for Amazon with this.

That's why there's great potential if this device has a Mirasol display.

[Barty]

This WILL happen.

Amazon already sells razor blades (books, music, streaming video, apps). Why not sell their own razors? They're big enough to walk (kindle) and chew gum (tablet) at the same time.

I personally have no interest in a 7" tablet. Too small for use around the house. Give me free 3G (possibly with data caps) and you've got something.

[bZkindle]

Originally Posted by Barty

Give me free 3G (possibly with data caps) and you've got something.

I wonder if amazon will partner will a provider for 3G or if it'll be wi-fi only?
There obviously won't be free 3G with such an internet capable device.

[6charlong]

Everyone is talking about a Kindle that can render in color, but aren't we talking about Amazon moving away from AZW? The Kindle app on my PC and on the iPad can't render color. So are you proposing they're going to support ePub? Maybe something else?

[bhartman36]

Originally Posted by din155

It maybe easy but the question is how many would go that way? Many times its easier to have another device just like many members here have multiple ereaders.


There could be many reasons why they didn’t launch a tablet till now:
- There were not many operating systems for tablets supported by sufficient apps. In fact there were none except apple and Honeycomb seems to fill that gap
- Video and data download on the go need high bandwidth (3g and 4g can fill that gap)
- Interest of people in the tablets?

I guess its the timing of a product sometimes that gets people interested. Now most people know about iPad and kindle and they will take notice of any other tablet which combines the features from both of them.

din

It's not even about the fact that they haven't launched a tablet by now, though. They haven't even launched a media player device (a la iPod, Archos, etc.). If they felt the need to promote their music/movies that way, why haven't they built a device like that? And what you count as an advantage, the prevalence of tablets now, can also be a disadvantage: The field is very crowded, and it'll be harder to compete.