Kindle Versus iPad

KOMPAS.com - Amazon unveiled a touchscreen tablet com-puter in an attempt to pull the rug from beneath Apple and its iPad. The Kindle Fire, which has many similar functions, will be sold in the U.S. for $199 (£128), less than half the price of the cheapest iPad available.

The low cost stunned technology industry watchers, who suggested that Apple and other tablet manufacturers would have to cut their prices. Users will be able to access more than 18million movies, television programmes, songs, apps, games, books and magazines via the Amazon website.

The device has a seven-inch screen, compared with the iPad 2’s 9.7-inch display. And unlike the iPad, it will not have a camera or be able to make video calls.

Unveiling the tablet in New York, Amazon’s chief executive, Jeff Bezos, said: ‘Kindle Fire brings together all of the things we’ve been working on at Amazon for over 15 years into a single, fully-integrated service for customers.

‘These are premium products at non-premium prices. We are going to sell millions of these.’

The Kindle Fire will be available in the U.S. from November 15.

Although no date has been set for it to go on sale here, Britain will be getting the latest version of the basic Kindle, which is thinner and lighter than existing eReaders. It will cost £89 – but even this is a mark-up of almost 80 per cent compared to the U.S. There, the new version will cost $79 – about £50.

A company spokesman defended the pricing, saying that the new basic Kindle was the ‘most affordable’ ever. She added: ‘Operating costs differ by country, but as with all products on Amazon, we work hard to offer customers the lowest possible prices.’

But Professor Ajay Bhalla, a technology expert from Cass Business School in London, said: ‘Amazon has not got the pricing right. Consumers are smart and there is plenty of choice in this market.’ He doubted the Kindle Fire would pose a meaningful challenge to the iPad because of the absence of a camera.