HP has already proved any product that is well made but priced super cheap can always set the sales chart on fire. Amazon had conceptualized the Kindle Fire along similar lines and the result is similar too, with Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos stating they are “building millions more than we’d already planned.” Amazon has never been comfortable revealing the number of devices they have sold and so on and they are sticking to it as they try to settle down in the hotly contested tablet segment. However, what is of significance is the use of the term ‘millions,’ a term that till now has been used almost exclusively by Apple to describe sales of its iPad range of tablet.
Actual shipment of the Kindle Fire is slated to kick off on 15th November though there is no way we can make out how many exact number of the tablet Amazon will have in its inventory by then. It can only be speculated but with strong conviction that the number would not be small but rather high given the deluge in demand.
The Kindle Fire would be running Android but with a heavily customized user interface built on top of it that makes the tablet a lot ‘Amazon‘ oriented. Up-front, the Kindle Fire comes with a 1024 x 600 pixel resolution capacitive multi-touch display of 7 inch dimension. The tablet will also come pre-loaded with quite a few essential apps such as the Amazon Appstore, Amazon Silk web browser, and Amazon apps for music, movies, and e-books.
The Kindle Fire however will never have the latest Google Android 3.2 Honeycomb or Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich in its present set up while access to the Google Android Market will also be off bound too.
Amazon is expecting the effect of this device would be similar to what the Kindle 2 e-book reader had on its digital e-book store. It is following a similar strategy with the Kindle Fire as it intends to entice users with the applications like music and movies that users would be able to use this device for.
Amazon has also stayed clear of pitching their tablet as an iPad competitor. In fact, it is also being speculated they are selling the Kindle Fire for less than the manufacturing cost but plans to make up for the money lost by selling content on the tablet. The strategy seems to be working as the company has already notched up huge pre-orders and is expected to fare even better in the coming holiday season.
Sovan Mandal is the senior tablet and tech corespondent for goodereader.com. He brings a international approach to news that is not just applicable to the North American market, but also Asia, India, Europe and others. Sovy brings his own writing flavor to the website and is interested in Science Fiction, Technology and Writing. Any questions, send an email
