[ScotiaBurrell]

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2012/...rdware-future/

Citigroup analyst Mark Mahaney believes that Amazon will release a Kindle Phone in the fourth quarter of 2012, according to a report from November. “Based on our supply chain check, we believe FIH [Foxconn] is now jointly developing the phone with Amazon,” wrote Mahaney in a note to investors.

Because Amazon is comfortable with thin hardware profit margins — an easy price to pay if it leads to greater ecosystem sales — it could potentially sell a smartphone at cost. Mahaney’s report says that the Amazon phone could be built for somewhere between $150 and $170, and that Amazon would sell it at cost to customers.

Markkanen concurs with Mahaney: “Given that Amazon’s strategy is to treat devices as a content hub rather than a stand-alone product, it’s pretty likely that price points for the smartphone would be very aggressive.”