Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Amazon's tablet called 'Kindle Fire,' says TechCrunch

By Wilson Rothman

On Wednesday, Sept. 28, we're headed to an Amazon press conference in New York where we anticipate the company will launch a tablet. Three weeks ago, TechCrunch's MG Siegler purported to have a hands-on with the mystery device, a 7-inch Android tab. Now he's reporting its name, "Kindle Fire," and Amazon's rollout plan.a

Here are the new details on the Kindle Fire tablet, according to TechCrunch:a

It won't be ready to ship until the second week of November. E-ink black-and-white Kindles will still stay in the lineup. Amazon Prime, the $79-per-year shipping service that now includes Netflix-like streaming video, may or may not be included in the purchase price — or perhaps it will be offered in a specially priced edition. The cost of the device may be as high as $300, despite the original rumor of $250. The product is meant to go toe-to-toe with a coming update to the Barnes & Noble Nook Color.

Meanwhile, GDGT's Ryan Block is reporting that the reason that the tablet looks like a BlackBerry PlayBook (and has the same processor, to boot), is that RIM bought the design from Quanta, contract manufacturer of many computers and tablets, and rumored manufacturer of Amazon's tablet. Block cites unnamed sources, saying that Amazon opted for the PlayBook base model to speed up development:a

Amazon's team determined they could build a tablet without the help and experience of [Amazon-owned design group] Lab 126, so they turned to Quanta, which helped them "shortcut" the development process by using the PlayBook as their hardware template.a

However, since Siegler has allegedly played with the device, he makes a point to say that it's a much better experience than the critically panned BlackBerry tablet. "The software is better and, more importantly, the content available is much better," says Siegler. We believe that for sure.a

Read TechCrunch's story: On Wednesday, Amazon Will Unveil The "Kindle Fire"a

Read GDGT's story: The Amazon tablet will look like a PlayBook — because it basically isa

More Amazon stories on msnbc.com:a

Amazon to host press event, likely for Kindle tablet Amazon adds Buffy, other Fox shows, to instant videos Next Amazon Kindle is $250 7-inch Android reader, says TechCrunch Why Amazon's tablet will threaten the iPad

Catch up with Wilson on Twitter at @wjrothman, or on Google+. And join our conversation on Facebook.a

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