Mockup of The Android Kindle

It’s called the ‘Amazon Kindle’ though it’s not like any of its ancestors. It’s a 7-inch Android based, capacitive touchscreen device. Rumors of Amazon making a tablet have persisted for a long while. TechCrunch’s MG Siegler reports that he has seen and used it. There are no pictures yet as he was authorised not to take any pictures of the device.

The device might be launched in October for $250 with a 10-inch version in 2012. The touchscreen isn’t like the iPad’s touchscreen as it relies on a two-finger multi-touch instead of 10-finger like the iPad. The $250 price is clearly low compared to other tablets in the market at the moment (Did Amazon take a cue from HP?). $250 is  the exact same price as Barnes & Noble’s Nook Color, its direct competitor. They’re both 7-inch colour touch screens and they both run on Android.

The Kindle runs on a single-core chip with 6GB of internal storage. The initial version is Wi-Fi only. Amazon is working with carriers for a 3G version. It has a micro-USB port, 10 hour long battery life and there is no camera. We also know there’s a rearrangement and redesign of the Android interface. The interface speaks Amazon and Kindle. It’s black, dark blue and orange. The main screen displays all the content you have on the device. Below the main carousel is a dock so you can pin your favourite items in one place. Above the dock is the status bar for time, battery and other notifications. The Kindle has no physical buttons on its surface. The menu is brought up by tapping the screen once.

How Amazon intends to make this work is by deeply integrating it into all of its services. The book reader is Kindle app, the music player is Amazon’s Cloud Player, The movie player is Amazon’s Instant Video player. The app store is… you guessed right: Amazon’s Android Appstore.

Google apps cannot be found on this device at all, word is Amazon built on an earlier version of Android before 2.2. Users of this device won’t get Android Honeccomb or Ice Cream Sandwich. If they do, they wont know because it will be at the background of the OS. Analysts have suggested Amazon sell their tablet without mentioning Android or telling users it runs on Android. Seems like Amazon took the advice. All the old Kindles will co-exist with this new tablet as low-cost Kindles. The User Interface and Experience might change in a while.

What do you think about the new Kindle? Can it take on Apple’s iPad and other Android tablets on the market?

Source: TechCrunch

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