TechCrunch: Amazon’s Kindle Tablet Is Very Real

[molman]

One source said it doesn’t seem likely that Amazon is going to release a touch-screen e-ink Kindle, like the new Nook, anytime soon. But none of that is confirmed, it’s simply speculation based on the emphasis on getting this new tablet to market.

If the Kindle is still selling well (which it seems to be) and they want to keep their message simple by having one new product to promote (in an Apple-esk approach) it might be awhile before a we see a new eInk model... but yes we don't really know either way for sure.

[Fbone]

The article said the new device will be called the "Amazon Kindle." What will Amazon call their previous readers? How will we distinguish them?

[thinkpad]

Amazon should take look at what Samsung is doing. They're coming out with a really interesting 7.7 inch tablet running Android 3.2, presented at IFA in Berlin.

http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/01/s...ands-on-video/

[petermillard]

Originally Posted by Fbone

The article said the new device will be called the "Amazon Kindle." What will Amazon call their previous readers? How will we distinguish them?

My guess would be price, screen size & technology, mono vs colour etc... And let's not forget that it's Amazon; buy the wrong one and you just return it for exchange or refund, no?

[taming]

If this Christmas, Amazon prices its current Kindle below $100 and they compete with the Nook at $250, the high end tablet market may or may not turn out to be something they actually care about right now. I'm guessing the article got it right.

[=X=]

Originally Posted by SCION

A few weeks ago we were barking about B&N being able to produce a $250 quality tablet, why can't others. Now that price point is too much.

I am fickle like the gods

The tablet market had changed recently , prices for the low end devices have dropped but their specs are still close to the nook. I'd the Lenovo product does happen for 200/250 I would pick that over the nook any day.

[OtterBooks]

It's likely to have a better CPU than the Nook Color, as I can not imagine anyone putting something equivalent to the Nook Color's cpu in a modern device. It doesn't even match the minimum specs of many of the apps sold on Amazon. The NC has a very nice display, iirc. I am curious what sort of LCD the AmTab has.

[Dulin's Books]

The AmTab will have a AFFS lcd panels provided by Hydis which is a subsidiary of PrimeView/Eink Holdings http://www.hydis.com/eng/04_rnd/rnd_03.asp

AFFS or Advanced Fringe Field Switching Displasy are a Hydis patented tech which produces bright displays with very good color and 180 degree viewing angles with lower power usage then similar size IPS displays
http://www.hydis.com/eng/04_rnd/rnd_03.asp
http://www.hydis.com/eng/04_rnd/rnd_02.asp
http://www.boehydis.de/techno/techno...load_coolmenus

[OtterBooks]

Prediction: Despite the article's suggestion, it will not be called the "Amazon Kindle." It may not even carry the Kindle name at all.

[Andrew H.]

Originally Posted by taosaur

lol,


What's wrong with your K3? What's the point in making a new eInk device before there are any significant advances in the technology? Amazon could have made the K3 touch, but opted for their signature physical keyboard.

+1

Amazon is not "skipping a generation" of e-ink readers. There is no new generation possible yet...because there is no new e-ink screen available yet. The K3 was built around the Pearl screen, and Amazon presumably sees no reason to revisit decisions it made last year re: keyboard, size, or interface.

[Skip Wyona]

Let's not all get hot and bothered about the rumors of Amazon's new tablet Kindle. Wait until a device actually hits the marketplace and users and reviewers can report on real life experience. The only thing that can said for sure at this point is that late 2011 will be quite interesting for the e-book/tablet marketplace. Let the tablet wars begin!

[cfrizz]

Originally Posted by Skip Wyona

Let's not all get hot and bothered about the rumors of Amazon's new tablet Kindle. Wait until a device actually hits the marketplace and users and reviewers can report on real life experience. The only thing that can said for sure at this point is that late 2011 will be quite interesting for the e-book/tablet marketplace. Let the tablet wars begin!

If that's the case this forum would be dead since the practically 99% of the conversations on here are debates, speculations, & overall nonsense about what MAY happen (what these geeks want to have happen)!

[OtterBooks]

Originally Posted by Skip Wyona

The only thing that can said for sure at this point is that late 2011 will be quite interesting for the e-book/tablet marketplace. Let the tablet wars begin!

We're still waiting for the tablet sales to begin. The market doesn't even exist yet, outside of one product.

[Mark Rehorst]

If you look at most (all?) of the android based tablets out there- and there are a LOT of them- you don't see usually see any mention of the source of apps for it. That's because most (all?) don't have access to the Google Marketplace and having access to the Amazon App store is not yet a selling feature.

It's a safe bet that if Amazon comes out with a 7" Android based tablet that it, too, will not have access to the Google Marketplace. It will be limited to the stuff available on the Amazon Android App store, if for no other reason than they want to drive more people to their app store.

An Android based tablet from Amazon would be just one more in a field of a hundred that accesses the Amazon app store, not the Google Marketplace. If Amazon wanted to really do killer business with such a tablet they'd need to grow their app store so that it becomes a positive selling factor and/or get the Google apps into their app store.

The Google apps (Google Maps, Google+, etc)are generally the best stuff in the Google Marketplace, surrounded by a lot of fluff and outright garbage. Right now the Amazon app store looks mostly like all the fluff and outright garbage from the Google Marketplace.

I don't know why Google restricts access to its Marketplace. One would think that they'd try to give every Android device access, but clearly that is not the case. Maybe it's a matter of the different versions of Android that run on the various hardware platforms, which also explains why there are so many devices running older versions of Android. I suspect that a lot of the apps in the Google Marketplace will only run properly on the officially sanctioned versions of Android (which in-turn only runs on officially sanctioned hardware platforms) and Google may be trying to protect its name by not allowing devices that will have compatibility issues with apps from accessing those apps.

It will be interesting to see how all this shakes out.

[taosaur]

Originally Posted by Dulin's Books

The AmTab will have a AFFS lcd panels provided by Hydis which is a subsidiary of PrimeView/Eink Holdings http://www.hydis.com/eng/04_rnd/rnd_03.asp

AFFS or Advanced Fringe Field Switching Displasy are a Hydis patented tech which produces bright displays with very good color and 180 degree viewing angles with lower power usage then similar size IPS displays
http://www.hydis.com/eng/04_rnd/rnd_03.asp
http://www.hydis.com/eng/04_rnd/rnd_02.asp
http://www.boehydis.de/techno/techno...load_coolmenus

Maybe B&N is going the same route for the NC2--it might explain the anomalous report that they're acquiring "e-paper backplates" from eInk for use in the new NC (though that device is more vaporware right now than the Kindle tablet).