Back in April I made some guesses (gdgt.com/question/amazon-s-tablet-is-coming-but-wh...) about what Amazon's tablet might be. Now that the Kindle Fire has been announced, how'd I do?
1. Amazon is working with Samsung
My source was pretty emphatic about this, but it's clear they're working with Quanta for this first one. I still think it's possible that they'll do one of the follow up devices with Samsung -- Amazon is expected to announce another one early next year -- but I can't say for certain whether they're partnering with them on it or not. It's possible the relationship fell apart somewhere along the line.
2. Amazon will fork Android 2.3, not build on top of Honeycomb.
Yep, I was right about this one. I couldn't see how they'd build on Honeycomb given how tightly Google was controlling access to it.
3. Amazon will integrate other Amazon services besides Kindle book, plus offer apps via their Android app store.
This was an easy one, and as expected they announced access to Amazon's video and music services as well as integration with their existing app store.
4. It will be a closed device.
Not a surprise at all, they're doing just what Barnes & Noble did with the NOOK Color and only letting you get apps from their store. (Though I'm sure the Kindle Fire will be rooted within minutes after it goes on sale.)
5. Price: $250 for sure, but $199 is possible.
I said they'd price it at no more than $250, and that they'd offer it at $199 if they were smart, and that's just what they did.
6. There will be services that are free to Prime members.
I said, that, "They do already offer Amazon Instant Video to members for free, offering that same access via a tablet might be enough to convince a lot of Prime members to buy an Amazon tablet." As announced, Instant Video will be free to Prime members and they're offering a free 30-day trial to people who buy a Kindle Fire.
7. Launch date
I guessed it'd be somewhere around the end of the summer. Seeing as how the official end of summer was just five days ago I wasn't too far off.
Discussion about
My Amazon tablet predictions from April -- How'd I do?
Pretty spot on, but then again, they basically telegraphed their intentions when they announced the Amazon AppStore for Android. It basically screamed "we are doing a tablet".
For Apple, I think they should be very cognizant of what's going on as this is the iPad's first REAL taste at competition. And when you consider what people actually DO with an iPad (very casual stuff at best), it's incredibly hard to see the value proposition in a very well done $199 tablet from Amazon compared to the iPad which only just starts at $499 (especially in this horrible down economy).
Keep in mind that even with all the power that the iPad 2 has, app developers do not code specifically to it because they can't ignore the larger install base of iPad 1 owners. And the main use of a faster dual-core CPU in the iPad 2 is web browsing which Amazon competes very well with Amazon Silk.
What amazes me the most is why is Amazon, a web store company a few years ago beating out Google and Microsoft, titans in the tech industry? It seems that Amazon is pulling a Google, like Google pulled an Apple and Apple pulled a Microsoft in usurping the industry to really show what the future will be like.
Final point:
Apple: best at integrated devices (their own), refuses to play well with others
Google: best at the cloud (their own), sucks at integrated devices
Microsoft: best at enterprise, just ok everywhere else
Amazon: best the cloud (especially for everyone else), willing to play in other people's sandboxes (apps on every device where possible).
I wonder which strategy will win out in the end...
For Apple, I think they should be very cognizant of what's going on as this is the iPad's first REAL taste at competition. And when you consider what people actually DO with an iPad (very casual stuff at best), it's incredibly hard to see the value proposition in a very well done $199 tablet from Amazon compared to the iPad which only just starts at $499 (especially in this horrible down economy).
Keep in mind that even with all the power that the iPad 2 has, app developers do not code specifically to it because they can't ignore the larger install base of iPad 1 owners. And the main use of a faster dual-core CPU in the iPad 2 is web browsing which Amazon competes very well with Amazon Silk.
What amazes me the most is why is Amazon, a web store company a few years ago beating out Google and Microsoft, titans in the tech industry? It seems that Amazon is pulling a Google, like Google pulled an Apple and Apple pulled a Microsoft in usurping the industry to really show what the future will be like.
Final point:
Apple: best at integrated devices (their own), refuses to play well with others
Google: best at the cloud (their own), sucks at integrated devices
Microsoft: best at enterprise, just ok everywhere else
Amazon: best the cloud (especially for everyone else), willing to play in other people's sandboxes (apps on every device where possible).
I wonder which strategy will win out in the end...
Admittedly, I'm a sucker for new gadgets. (I pre-ordered the Touchpad) and have preordered the Fire. I already have Kindle 1 & 2 and wanted color and touch, so have high expectations. I'm not disappointed with Touchpad, but am with HP. Hope Amazon produces a great product. Looks good.
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