Forget The Kindle - An Amazon Tablet Could Truly Challenge The iPad
by Joe White
April 18, 2011
Amazon's Kindle Wireless Reading Device may provide the iPad with some tough competition in the e-book reading department, but recent speculation by Marco Arment notes that a hypothetical "Kindle Tablet" could very easily knock the crown off Apple's iPad.
Essentially, Arment bases his speculation on two things - Amazon's recently announced ad-subsidized Kindle, and the company's failure to comply with Apple's in app purchasing policy (with regards to the Kindle app).
The ad-subsidized Kindle, Arment suggests, could very well be Amazon's attempt at testing an "ad-subsidy system" for an upcoming tablet. After testing the waters with this ad supported Kindle, Amazon could take what it has learned, and apply it to a Kindle tablet. This makes sense, right? I mean, an ad support Kindle does seem like a pit stop on the road to a Kindle tablet device, to me.
Arment's second point: Amazon may want Apple to remove the Kindle iOS app from the App Store. Because, upon doing this, Amazon would be in the perfect position to release its own tablet, potentially stealing a large chunk of the market share away from Apple. Arment shares some thoughts on the hypothetical tablet:
One could really imagine this happening. And, if it does, Apple's iPad will meet its first serious competitor. Do you have an opinion on this story? If you do, feel free to post it in the comments. And, you can read Marco Arment's original article here.
- A 7” tablet, to keep costs down, named something like the Kindle Color, Kindle Tablet, or Kindle Touch. (The existing e-ink Kindle would continue to fill the low-end spot in the lineup.)
- Android, but with Amazon’s media-storefront apps and (only?) the Amazon App Store to download new apps, all pre-linked to your Amazon payment information (like today’s Kindle) for one-tap purchases.
- A very aggressive entry price of $200-300, with the entry-level model being subsidized by up to $100 with ads, to compete very strongly with the iPad on price.
- Prominent promotion on Amazon’s front page every day.
