Amazon Kindle Fire "tablet", Amazon Silk EC2 Cloud Browser, dirt cheap Kindles

[Hanni]

Just watching the live blog for the new Kindle Touch launch. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817...id=DG_qTPUe3kQ

-Basic Kindle(new version, smaller, lighter) dropping to $79(USD).
-Kindle Touch will launch at $99(USD)
-Kindle Touch with free 3G in over 100 countries $149(USD), no subscription.

No word yet on multitouch, what the Android OS is like etc. Hopefully he gets to that.

[Hanni]

And Kindle Fire announced, the tablet.

"7 inch IPS display. ultra wide viewing angle. fast dual core processor. light, easy to hold in one hand, 14.6 oz, has all the content"

"And all of the content on this device is backed up in the cloud so you can delete things whenever you want. Model of backing up your own content is a broken model. Feel same way about syncing."

"Syncing just like with Kindle Books should be done invisibly in the background and wirelessly and it should actually work"

"Customers love our whispersync feature for books, keep track of page. What if WSync also worked with movies and TV shows? Well it does. When you get home, switch to your big screen TV, movie will be right where you left it."

-Watching XMen. 16m colors. 169ppi. Gorilla Glass.
-Usual features like multitasking, play music and read at the same time.
-Web browsing is now going to be partially processed by the cloud to ease the burden on the tablet and increase speed of browsing. Sounds like lots of caching on the cloud of sites.

$199, shipping November 15, pre-order at this point is US only.

[Hanni]

Display7" multi-touch display with IPS (in-plane switching) technology and anti-reflective treatment, 1024 x 600 pixel resolution at 169 ppi, 16 million colors.
Size (in inches)7.5" x 4.7" x 0.45" (190 mm x 120 mm x 11.4 mm).
Weight14.6 ounces (413 grams).
System Requirements None, because it's wireless and doesn't require a computer.
On-device Storage 8GB internal. That's enough for 80 apps, plus either 10 movies or 800 songs or 6,000 books.
Cloud Storage Free cloud storage for all Amazon content
Battery Life Up to 8 hours of continuous reading or 7.5 hours of video playback, with wireless off. Battery life will vary based on wireless usage, such as web browsing and downloading content.
Charge Time Fully charges in approximately 4 hours via included U.S. power adapter. Also supports charging from your computer via USB.
Wi-Fi Connectivity Supports public and private Wi-Fi networks or hotspots that use the 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, or 802.1X standard with support for WEP, WPA and WPA2 security using password authentication; does not support connecting to ad-hoc (or peer-to-peer) Wi-Fi networks.
USB Port USB 2.0 (micro-B connector)
Audio 3.5 mm stereo audio jack, top-mounted stereo speakers.
Content Formats Supported Kindle (AZW), TXT, PDF, unprotected MOBI, PRC natively, Audible (Audible Enhanced (AA, AAX)), DOC, DOCX, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP, non-DRM AAC, MP3, MIDI, OGG, WAV, MP4, VP8.
Documentation Quick Start Guide(included in box); Kindle User's Guide (pre-installed on device)
Warranty and Service 1-year limited warranty and service included. Optional 2-year Extended Warranty available for U.S. customers sold separately. Use of Kindle is subject to the Kindle License Agreement and Terms of Use.
Included in the Box Kindle Fire tablet, U.S. power adapter (supports 100-240V), and Quick Start Guide.

[KTrain]

The Fire looks pretty great and at that price point it has the best chance at competing with the iPad.

[MickMcGeough]

Ad-based Kindle starting at $79!
http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/28/a...als-79-kindle/

Kindle Fire Android-based "tablet" $199
- 7" IPS Panel
- dual core CPU
- apparently based on Blackberry Playbook hardware
http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/28/a...e-impressions/

Amazon "Silk" cloud-based web browser
http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/28/a...eb-courtesy-o/

I don't really get what browser functions could be offloaded to the cloud to give a real performance increase (I mean, besides what Opera Mini's been doing for awhile already). Especially when you consider that if the Fire really is based on the Playbook hardware, it shouldn't exactly be thirsty for the power necessary to render websites.

ETA: Hanni posted some good stuff on the Fire here:
http://forum.calgarypuck.com/showthr...59#post3299059

[Rathji]

Fire is just Wifi, with no 3G option. For something that small, you would think they would try and capitalize on its portability. I guess you just need to use your phone as an AP when you are on the move.

Other than that, it seems like an amazing device for $199, although I wonder about it's power.

[MickMcGeough]

That's an impressive list of features/hardware for $199.

[MickMcGeough]

Originally Posted by Rathji

Fire is just Wifi, with no 3G option. For something that small, you would think they would try and capitalize on its portability. I guess you just need to use your phone as an AP when you are on the move.

Other than that, it seems like an amazing device for $199, although I wonder about it's power.

Well, the Playbook is plenty powerful and if it is based on the Playbook hardware as a lot of people say it is I'd imagine it should be fine.

I'm more concerned about what Android OS it's built on. I've yet to use a Gingerbread tablet that had the same silky-smooth responsiveness that people have come to expect after playing with iPads and Honeycomb devices.

I'm not surprised at the lack of 3G in a $199 tablet - they've got to cut some corners to get it under $200 (and good on them for that). I'm a bit surprised there's not a $249 or $299 3G option though.

[Rathji]

Originally Posted by MickMcGeough

I'm not surprised at the lack of 3G in a $199 tablet - they've got to cut some corners to get it under $200 (and good on them for that). I'm a bit surprised there's not a $249 or $299 3G option though.

That was my point, although obviously not stated clearly.

For $199, I don't doubt this becomes my top choice for an e-reader/tablet. I have not looking into it previously, but I assume there is a reasonable MSTSC compatible client for Android?

[Hanni]

Originally Posted by MickMcGeough

ETA: Hanni posted some good stuff on the Fire here:
http://forum.calgarypuck.com/showthr...59#post3299059

Maybe a mod could merge my posts to this thread?

[CKPThunder]

I like Amazon's thinking on this. Sell the tablet at a loss and then try and re-coup their losses through digital purchases.

This tablet would be perfect for my wife since all she does is read, browse and watch movies on our iPad.

The Fire will have to improve on the 2 point multitouch screen if they want to tap into the gaming market though.

[photon]

Originally Posted by Hanni

Maybe a mod could merge my posts to this thread?

Done.

[Ashartus]

Those Kindle prices are really going to hurt their competitors - I believe the new Sony reader was going to be priced at $149 and the Kobo is $139. It's hard for others to compete with a company that isn't worried about making a profit on their device since they use it to get you to buy their other content instead. The tablet could be good news for other Android tablet makers though (if they can get their price down a bit) if it spurs the development of more Android tablet apps.

[Hanni]

Originally Posted by Ashartus

Those Kindle prices are really going to hurt their competitors - I believe the new Sony reader was going to be priced at $149 and the Kobo is $139. It's hard for others to compete with a company that isn't worried about making a profit on their device since they use it to get you to buy their other content instead. The tablet could be good news for other Android tablet makers though (if they can get their price down a bit) if it spurs the development of more Android tablet apps.

For us you have to include shipping for Kindle as well since Canadians don't qualify for free shipping. Still cheaper than the competitors though.

[Ashartus]

Originally Posted by Hanni

For us you have to include shipping for Kindle as well since Canadians don't qualify for free shipping. Still cheaper than the competitors though.

Actually, looking further they are only really cheaper than the competitors if you get the version with advertisements; the regular price for the Kindle touch (without 3G) is $139 so once you pay shipping etc. it's probably quite a bit more expensive than the Kobo touch if you live outside the US. Maybe Kobo need an ad-sponsored version to stay competitive.

[chemgear]

http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/28/k...laybook-fight/

http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/28/a...e-impressions/

Second link with video. It's pretty much the playbook again hardware/form factor wise.

[Rathji]

Just to clarify, you can load your own content onto Kindle devices, correct?

[Ashartus]

Originally Posted by Rathji

Just to clarify, you can load your own content onto Kindle devices, correct?

Generally. The Kindle e-readers use a proprietary format that is different than everyone else, so you can't buy an e-book from Kobobooks, Sony Bookstore or most of the other sellers and put it directly on a Kindle; you'd need to strip the DRM and convert the format first (there are a few other sellers that can provide a compatible format for Kindles though).

For the tablet it sounds like they'll be relying on cloud storage, so you'd probably need to upload your own content onto an Amazon server to load it onto the Kindle tablet, but I'm not positive about that.

[Rathji]

Originally Posted by Ashartus

Generally. The Kindle e-readers use a proprietary format that is different than everyone else, so you can't buy an e-book from Kobobooks, Sony Bookstore or most of the other sellers and put it directly on a Kindle; you'd need to strip the DRM and convert the format first (there are a few other sellers that can provide a compatible format for Kindles though).

For the tablet it sounds like they'll be relying on cloud storage, so you'd probably need to upload your own content onto an Amazon server to load it onto the Kindle tablet, but I'm not positive about that.

ok, so for anything that isnt an ebook, it wont matter. I normally deal with PDFs for texts and technical manuals, most of the stuff isnt in actual ebook format.

[Ashartus]

Originally Posted by Rathji

ok, so for anything that isnt an ebook, it wont matter. I normally deal with PDFs for texts and technical manuals, most of the stuff isnt in actual ebook format.

Most e-readers aren't that great for PDF due to screen-size issues, since PDF can't be re-flowed; if you're using it for PDF you might be better off with a larger-sized e-reader like the Kindle DX or Sony PRS950 (I've heard Sony readers handle PDF better, but I've never tried to read PDF on mine so can't confirm), or a tablet if you don't mind using an LCD screen instead of e-ink.