Amazon executive Jeff Bezos said that it is the company’s cheapest tablet ever and they are setting a completely new standard for a tablet under $50. While they were, in fact, among the first to introduce the e-reader, the Amazon Fire phone-their attempt to break into the mobile communications industry-has failed terribly, the company seems to be moving back to a format that they know a little better.
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The new 7-inch Fire tablet released last week goes for $49.99, well below the cheapest version of the iPad, the iPad Mini 2, which costs $269.
The new Amazon Fire TV will also have a dramatically larger selection of apps and games.
And, if you really are impressed with the new version of the Kindle Fire, according to ReCode, you can purchase the product in a six-pack for only $249!
Amazon also unveiled updates to larger, more expensive tablets and its devices for streaming internet video to TV sets. The new model runs at 2x2GHz plus 2×1.6GHz. It has 8GB of internal storage, but expandable up to 128GB using microSD card.
Here is a look at ‘s new tablet lineup, starting with the Amazon Fire 7.
“We are frustrated that Amazon doesn’t give Prime members even more benefits related to hardware (lower prices, early delivery, more exclusive content, etc…), nor does it aggressively drive HW owners to become Prime members (at least not directly)”, Schachter writes.
Amazon is hoping the low price of the new tablet will be so appealing that people will stock up on the devices and have them scattered around the house. Buyer’s will be paying for five tablets and will be getting a sixth one for free. A more durable version designed for kids will come with a blue or pink bumper and a 2-year replacement warranty if it’s broken for any reason. The business model so far is to mostly promote its content but is concentrating more of its efforts on selling its hardware. It is powered by a 1.3 MHz quad-core MediaTek MT8127 Cortex-A7 processor coupled with about 1GB of RAM.
So what does the discount tablet actually offer? The company will also continue to sell the current 6-inch Fire HD, at $99, and 8.9-inch Fire HDX, which starts at $399 and delivers higher performance vs. the two new models.
While Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) has announced its new TV hardware, it has not set an on-sale date with its website simply saying “coming soon” for the improved Apple TV.
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“There’s one part of the tablet (market) that’s growing right now, and … that’s sub-$100 tablets”, explains Dave Limp, who is the senior vice president of Amazon devices.
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