If one of Amazon’s retail partners is to be believed, the Kindle Fire will be released with several variants, as many as six in its next version. The regional President for Staples Retail said that the Amazon tablets will come in “five to six” variants, differing in size and that there is a high probability of a 10” device. Mr. Demos Parneros said in an interview that the tablets are all going to be of different sizes, but he didn’t say when they might be launched.
The Kindle Fire is currently available for purchase for $199.
Speculation has been mounting since several months that the online shopping giant is going to launch a new tablet sometime this year and analysts believe that it will be around Christmas time to capitalize on the holiday season. Some believe Amazon could go for a Kindle Fire launch by the end of July, while others report that a 10inch tablet is in the offing in the coming months this year. There has been no official word from Amazon about the launch of the next version of the Kindle Fire but it is apparent that an upgrade is necessary. While the device opened strong, its sales have dwindled considerably and that might be a sign for the company to come up with something new. However, it would be rather surprising if the single Kindle Fire will be replaced by an array of devices.
In addition to a new tablet, rumors are floating around that Amazon is working on developing a smart phone as well. Supporting this is only circumstantial evidence to the tune of an employee number increase to 900 from 500 at the company’s research and design facility in Silicon Valley. Analysts believe that Amazon has several surprises up its sleeve and a smart phone is likely, but Amazon has kept mum even on this issue.
Though the market is looking forward to a new Kindle, it might not see the warmest of welcomes considering the release of the Nexus 7 from Google. The Google Nexus 7 sells at the same price as the Kindle Fire, $199 and currently boasts of features and specifications that have set the bar pretty high. Analysts have lowered the forecast for the new Kindle’s sales from 14mln to 12mln and if Amazon wants to retain its hold in the 7” tablet segment, it has to come up with something unique.
