Rumor: Amazon has a Working Tablet and It's Coming Soon

TechCrunch’s MG Siegler is reporting that not only does Amazon have a tablet in the works, but that he’s held it in his hands. The new tablet is reported to be a full-color, 7-inch device with a capacative multi-touch screen that will be branded as a Kindle but will not have an e-ink display. Apparently, the device will have the shocking low price of $250 when it hits the shelves, and will be sold alongside existing black-and-white Kindles.

According to the article, though the device uses the Android operating system as a foundation, it has a custom-made Kindle OS built on top of that. Interestingly, impressions of the device seem to indicate that instead of competing with the iPad as a all-in-one device, the Kindle tablet will be deeply integrated into the services offered by Amazon. The Kindle Store will power book reading, the Amazon Cloud Player will play your music, and Amazon’s streaming video service will push your videos. The idea, it seems, is that the device be based primarily on the cloud and serve as a hand-held bridge to Amazon’s media services.

TechCrunch says that the device is slated for a November release. If true, this could have the potential to shake up the iPad hegemony in the tablet market.

(TechCrunch via Techmeme)

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Max Eddy