Amazon’s goal is to sell 4 million of its upcoming 7 inch Android tablet due out in the next month, but they might experience inventory shortages.
The online retail giant is trying to duplicate the success it has had in the e-reader arena with tablets. Statistically, 10 inch tablets have outperformed 7 inch ones in the last six months. They are planning on releasing a 10 inch model sometime in 2012, but want to gauge the success of its debut model before committing to the entire manufacturing process.
Amazon is planning on offering its tablet for $250.00, which is the same price as the Barnes and Noble Nook Color. Digitimes is pointing out that sources claim the milestone of 4 million units sold in just two months may be just a dream.
Barnes and Noble is rumored to be working on the Nook Color 2—which may come out towards the end of October—and may heat up the tablet race. If B&N does release its 2nd generation honeycomb tablet and Amazon debuts their device around the same time, we have to wonder how the market will react. Both companies gain traction from their expansive ecosystem. The Nook currently is the best tablet being billed as an e-reader because of the wide array of newspapers, magazines, textbooks, kids books, and audio content. They have been running away with the market for most of this year and the tail end of last year. Amazon is just getting into the tablet market and their entire strategy is not known. They are rumoured to be creating a Netflix-esque book subscription system and are currently in the works trying to woo prospective magazine companies.
During the holiday season this year in the tablet/e-reader hybrid arena, there will be quite the battle. The advantage Amazon might have is that it can offer the device in more markets and the Nook remains USA only, unless you fake a USA address on your account.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
