This coming week, Amazon is expected to host a media event next week at which many have speculated will unveil the next generation Kindle tablet.
Amazon flamed the “Fires”, sorry obligatory pun was necessary, when it published a press release on Thursday (8/30/12) stating that the current model Fire has sold out.
““We’re grateful to the millions of customers who have made Kindle Fire the most successful product launch in the history of Amazon,” said Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com Founder and CEO. “This has been a big year for digital products on Amazon—all of the top 10 sellers on Amazon.com since Kindle Fire launched just less than a year ago are digital products. Kindle Fire is sold out, but we have an exciting roadmap ahead—we will continue to offer our customers the best hardware, the best prices, the best customer service, the best cross-platform interoperability, and the best content ecosystem.””
So it took Amazon nine months to sell out of their Kindle Fire. I guess that isn’t too bad. While boasting “over 10,000 5-star customer reviews” and having “captured 22% of tablet sales in the U.S.,” Amazon continues to keep sales numbers to themselves.
Regardless, the Kindle Fire is likely the best selling Google Android-powered tablet on the market today. But it may not stay that way for long. Google has recently started shipping their own 7-inch Android tablet, the Nexus 7 to rave reviews. And Apple, not wanting to lose any sales opportunities, is rumored to be launching a new 7-inch “iPad Mini” in October, just in time to ruin Google’s and Amazon’s holiday sales numbers.
While we don’t know if Amazon will be unveiling one or two new Kindles next week, what does seem pretty clear at this point is that the online mega retailer won’t be releasing a 10-inch iPad competitor. AppleInsider.com writes:
“While a larger Kindle Fire may still be in the works, the source says Amazon is sticking with the 7-inch form factor and will announce two new models next week, including a slightly reworked version of the existing tablet. The decision is thought to be a defensive move in response to a growing small form factor tablet market, with new devices like Google’s Nexus 7 offering stiff competition to Amazon’s device.”
We’ll have an update on Amazon’s new Kindle offerings next week.