Amazon normally refreshes their entire product line every single year in September. The current generation HD and HDX tablets are getting a bit long in the tooth, but are still considered very viable tablets. Currently Amazon is in the hardware stage where they are deciding what processors they are going to employ in the 2014 edition of the Kindle family. We now have confirmation from many sources that Amazon is going with the Mediatek processor for their entry model Kindle Fire HD.
Amazon has employed a very interesting strategy in their last two generations of Android driven tablets. They normally release an HD version of their 7 and 8.9 models with higher specs and an entry level edition that they can appeal to people who don’t want to spend a lot. The current models Amazon sells is the Amazon Kindle HDX 7, Kindle HDX 8.9 and the entry level Kindle Fire HD. The HDX product line is currently using the Snapdragon processors, while the Kindle Fire HD uses a dual-core Texas Instructions version. In order to market a budget tablet and keep the cost down to around $129 it is important to use cost efficient components.
Amazon will be selecting China based MediaTek to power their entry level Kindle HD 7 refresh later in the year. The company successfully convinced Amazon that they are ready for prime time and used the new deal they signed with Google, for for Nexus tablet revamp as leverage. No one seems to know what the new processor will be, but there are rumors that it will be the new MT8135 quad-core that went into production late last year.
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.
