In the tablet market, there’s the Apple iPad…and everyone else. Nobody can touch the iPad at the moment. Tablets running Google Android Honeycomb aren’t as good as the iPad. The BlackBerry PlayBook isn’t as good as the iPad. With its recent webOS, the HP TouchPad is the second-best tablet on the market, but it’s still not as good as the iPad. The sales of all the aforementioned tablets reflect this; the iPad is a waterfall that keeps getting bigger, while its competitors are drops in a bucket.
Amazon has huge plans for the tablet market, but with so many competitors floundering, how can it hope to succeed? How can it hope to compete with Apple? Perhaps the answer is by being cheaper and offering a better reading experience than other tablets. PC Magazine’s Tim Bajarin recently wrote:
Multiple sources tell me that it will have the best reading experience of any tablet on the market. But, I am also hearing that Amazon is using pretty low-cost parts and not using any of the major manufacturers that are producing most of the tablets for mainstream competitors. Apparently, the company’s key goal is to make the tablet very inexpensive and then use a new business model to own the Android tablet market.
This might be the best strategy for Amazon. HP, Google’s partners, and RIM are trying to compete with Apple on a feature-by-feature basis. Those companies are trying to outdo the iPad in every way. If Bajarin’s sources are correct, Amazon hopes to take its slice of the pie by emphasizing price and its Kindle connectivity.
Amazon already has several pieces in place for its Android tablets. While some developers find it controversial, the company has had good success with the Amazon Android Appstore. Its Cloud Player offers a convenient way to listen to music on multiple devices and encourages Amazon MP3 purchases. Using screen tech that offers a superior reading experience and encourages Kindle book purchases is a potentially excellent differentiator. Not only would it round out the Amazon tablet’s cloud offerings, but it would make customers more likely to buy apps, music, books, and anything else they can find through Amazon.
I’d be totally down with a cheap Android tablet with great readability from Amazon. I’m a Kindle user, but I find that my eyes get tired way more easily on the iPad than on a Kindle Reader. I already use the Amazon Android Appstore and Cloud Player frequently. One of my few issues with the iPad 2 is that there isn’t a good way to handle multiple Gmail accounts while retaining all the native Gmail features. While the iPad 2 has had a huge impact on my digital life, I’d be willing to make room for the Amazon tablet that Bajarin describes.
How about you? Any of you curious about a cheap Amazon Android tablet with great readability?
I'm wondering how cheap it will be because I'm still not sold on tablets.
If you used one for a week, it would be a different story. There are a lot of things I can do on my phone or can do on my PC that are just better and more convenient on a tablet.
The tablet market has just started booming and it's going to get even bigger. Tens of millions of iPads have already been sold and the competition will eventually improve. Tablets have already started cutting into the laptop market.
Ok I wasn't clear, I get the appeal and understand what a tablet is and does, I just can't see myself with one. I am not willing to shell out that kind of money for something that I do not need. It's very much a luxury product and I can spend that money on some more practical for my lifestyle. While they are cool I can live and function without a tablet. Do I want one? Hell yes. Will I pay for one? Nah.
I'm not big on taking pics, videos or even emailing (I'd rather text). Rpad.tv, Google+, Huffington post, Cracked.com, Gamefaqs, and fantasy football are the only reasons I use a computer or my mobile device for internet reasons and 90% of the time I'm on a computer, I'm at work! I hardly use a computer when I am home for anything other than porn. Everything else is done on my TV, unless I'm making music, so a tablet is definitely not on my radar as a necessity, unless someone kindly donates one lol.
I can see you getting hooked on Garage Band for iPad. It's very cool.
That is one of the reasons I have for owning an iPad, but at the same time I don't know if it would be able to handle what I like to do with Garage Band. I use lots of tracks and effects and on my (now R.I.P'n) Mac G4 it would bring that machine to a crawl, then a stand still, and last but not least, a message stating that the processor cant keep up with the effects in my songs lol.
I don't know the specs of an iPad but the G4 was beastly at the time and I know the tech has come a long way.