(Photo: REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton)Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos holds up the new Kindle Fire at a news conference during the launch of Amazon's new tablets in New York, September 28, 2011.The Kindle Fire release date has been confirmed for September 6, as previous rumors suggesting that a press conference being held on that day was for the unveiling of the new device, have seemingly been confirmed.
Rumors have been rife about what devices will be unveiled at the press conference being held in Los Angeles. At the moment insiders have suggested that the Kindle Fire 2 is a dead cert. as well as a new first smartphone for Amazon.
The original Kindle Fire was released nearly one year ago, and initially many were uncertain about how well it would do and whether it would have any kind of impact on a market hugely dominated by Apple. However, Amazon's Kindle Fire slotted perfectly into a gap in the market for cheaper, smaller tablets and sales were higher than most anticipated prior to the launch.
Some experts are suggesting that Amazon wants to get their new improved second generation Kindle Fire out before Apple launches its rumors iPad Mini, which will go in direct competition with the Kindle Fire at the lower end of the tablet market.
Also given the success of Google's Nexus 7 tablet, Amazon may be anxious to get its updated product out and on the market to compete. Google's Nexus 7 had a hugely successful launch, selling out across the globe in most retailers.
However, a seven inch upgraded Kindle Fire may not be the only tablet in store for Amazon fans. According to some sources Amazon may also be looking to expand into the larger tablet market and go in direct competition with the iPad.
"Amazon is working on a new version of the Kindle Fire, with a larger display, that could compete more directly with the iPad, according to a developer briefed on Amazon's plans who did not want to be identified talking about unannounced products," a New York Times report alleged last month.
However, how success a larger Amazon Kindle Fire tablet would be against the massive market leader - the iPad - remains to be seen. It is likely that to be able to compete with the iPad, Amazon would have to price its product significantly cheaper than the iPad. Numerous other tablets have attempted to compete with the Apple iPad throughout the past few years, but if they are priced similarly to the iPad most consumers opt for the superior Apple brand product.
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