Amazon has been dominating the digital reader market within the United States ever since it launched the very first Kindle. With each new product update Amazon has continued to be at the very front of the digital reader market and that lead has now expanded all around the world. Other manufacturers offer digital readers including […]
This week the folks at Amazon’s Kindle department have revealed a button that may just change your Kindle-loving life. It’s the “Send to Kindle” button and it’ll be able to send content from the web to your Kindle tablet in just a tap. With this button, website creators and you will be able to implement a quick web-to-device setup in a snap!
This update allows, first and foremost, users like you to work with a Send to Kindle button on your desktop or in your web browser. When you’ve got this button in your web browser, it’ll appear above the fold with the rest of your bookmark links. If you’ve ever worked with a site like StumbleUpon or Pinterest, this is a very similar situation – one tap and you’re in.
If you’re using the Send to Kindle button from the desktop, you’ve got a bit more wide open array of options – so to speak. You can send all sorts of desktop-sitting materials at will – it’s so easy, your grandmother could do it!
Website creators will be able to implement a button that’s not unlike the Facebook “Like” button you see so often – the Google+ button and regular all-encompassing “share” buttons you’ll be familiar with already as well. If you’re a webpage creator, you’ll just have to head to the developer page and choose your size and color – grab it!
There’s also an Android version of the button which you can access in app form, then send from your phone to your tablet, or your computer to your tablet, or your web browser from whatever machine you’ve got to your tablet. Go wild!
Have a peek at the timeline we’ve got below for more information on the Kindle series and don’t forget to check our reviews of the last several devices to hit the market – it’s a sweet reading and media-loving festival of love!
Amazon grabs all media with “Send to Kindle” button is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Amazon seems to want to shake things up in the tablet sector, as it’s rumored that the e-tailer giant will be releasing a $99 Kindle Fire HD 7-inch tablet at some point. Currently, you can get a 7-inch Kindle Fire HD for only $199, which comes with 16GB of storage, but cutting that price down by half seems like quiet the feat.
According to TechCrunch, the sub-$100 tablet will come with a Texas Instruments processor and will feature a 1280×600 resolution display, so it looks like it won’t have anything too revolutionary, but we shouldn’t be expecting anything ground-breaking anyway, except for maybe the price, but as far as components are concerned, expect a bottom-of-the-barrel type of device.
Of course, you can grab a regular Kindle Fire for just $159, so a $99 Kindle Fire tablet seems pretty realistic. None of the major companies have outed a $99 tablet yet, so Amazon being first to the punch could be great news for the company. However, it’ll be interesting to see whether or not the tablet will sell at a loss.
Then again, $99 Android tablets already exist, but they’re mostly from generic brands, and they feature components and specs that aren’t too desirable to most people anyway. However, if Amazon could pull off a decent tablet at $99, it could be the start of something greater for prospective tablet buyers, and with the company’s large and lucrative ecosystem, taking a loss on tablet sales wouldn’t be a big deal.
UPDATE: We received word directly from Amazon that there are no plans for such a tablet: “It’s not happening — we are already at the lowest price points possible for that hardware.”
[via TechCrunch]
Amazon Kindle Fire HD tipped for $99 model [UPDATE] is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Good news for those located outside the US. Amazon’s Kindle Fire HD 8.9 is now available in a select number of countries in Europe, including the UK, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain, as well as Japan. To celebrate the expansion, Amazon also dropped the price of the tablet to $269 in the US, with the 4G version now starting at $399.
Previously, the 8.9-inch version of the Kindle Fire HD was priced at $299, while the 4G version costed $499, which means that the WiFi-only model received a $30 price drop, while the 4G LTE model received a healthy $100 drop, making it even more tempting to jump with both feet in and grab the tablet at a good price.
The Kindle Fire HD 8.9 features a nice 1920×1200-resolution display, which provides 254 ppi of pixel density. The tablet comes with a Texas Instruments OMAP4470 dual-core processor clocked at 1.5GHz with 1GB of RAM. The WiFi-only version comes in 16GB and 32GB flavors, while the 4G model comes in 32GB and 64GB variants.
The Kindle Fire series of tablets are great companions if you’re particularly close with Amazon’s ecosystem. Prime members get a lot of exclusive features with the Kindle Fire software, including the ability to rent ebooks for free using Amazon’s lending library, something that normal Prime members can’t take advantage of.
Amazon Kindle Fire HD 8.9 launches in Europe and Japan, US version now $269 is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
In case Amazon thought that real money just wasn’t cutting it, the company has announced “Amazon Coins,” a new virtual currency for Kindle Fire users that will allow them to purchase apps, games, and other digital content from their tablets. Amazon says that the new currency system is a way to help developers monetize their content.
Sadly, there’s not a lot of details available at this point, but the virtual currency will launch in the US sometime in May, and it will provide users with a secondary choice to buy apps or make in-app purchases. You’ll still be able to use a credit card like normal, but the new Coins system will also be an option.
Amazon plans to give away “tens of millions of dollars worth” of free coins to customers to celebrate the launch of the currency system. As far as developers are concerned, those who don’t yet have apps in the Amazon Appstore will have until April 25 to submit them in order for them to be compatible with the new currency system.
Since the new currency platform will allow you to use Coins for in-app purchases, as well as apps and games themselves, parents will have a bit more control over what their kids can buy on their Kindle Fire tablet, and it could be an a great alternative that would prevent you from having to put down your credit card information.
Amazon announces Coins virtual currency for Kindle Fire is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Amazon’s Kindle Fire HD was the company’s leading product throughout the holiday shopping season, and for good reason. The 8.9-inch version went on sale earlier last month, but if you happened to blink, the deal was gone. However, Amazon is offering the Kindle Fire HD 8.9 to students at $50 off all month long.
Amazon Student Members with an active Prime account (free six-month or $39/year plan) are only eligible for the deal. However, the company is letting students who aren’t Prime members sign up today to take advantage of the deal. In order to become an Amazon Student member, simply sign up using your .edu email address.
The offer is good towards either the Kindle Fire HD 8.9 WiFi-only model or the 4G LTE variant. The $50 discount means you’ll spend as little as $249 on a new 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD, which is the same price as the 7-inch 32GB model of the Fire HD. We have to say that’s a pretty good-looking deal for a great budget tablet.
The Kindle Fire HD 8.9 comes in four different flavors in all. The WiFi-only model comes in 16GB and 32GB sizes, while the 4G LTE version comes in either 32GB or 64GB flavors, all priced at $249, $319, $449, and $549, respectively, after applying the $50 discount. Read our full review of the device to learn more.
Amazon offering students $50 off a Kindle Fire HD 8.9 all month long is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Amazon’s latest Kindle Fire HD tablet may have just been released to the public, but that doesn’t mean Amazon isn’t going to put it on sale. It turns out that — for today only — the company is slashing $50 off the regular $299 starting price of the Kindle Fire HD 8.9, which means you can get the new tablet for only $249 for the 16GB version or $319 for the 32GB model.
To take advantage of the deal, you’ll have to be quick, since it only lasts for today and “quantities are limited.” All you have to do is head to the Kindle Fire HD 8.9 product page on Amazon, add it to your cart, and type in FIREHD89 at checkout. From there, the deal will take affect and you’ll save yourself $50 in an instant.
Amazon announced the deal on their Twitter feed, noting that it’s a “special, one-day deal” on the new 8.9-inch tablet. And while you have all day to ponder over the deal, the company notes that you should hurry, since supply is limited. Even if they had an abundant supply of these tablets, we wouldn’t be surprised if they all sold out sometime today.
Amazon’s Kindle Fire HD 8.9 is the company’s latest tablet to add to their Kindle Fire lineup. It has an 8.9-inch IPS LCD display with an impressive resolution of 1920×1200. On the inside, there’s an OMAP4470 dual-core processor clocked at 1.5GHz from Texas Instruments and 1GB of RAM. It also has a front-facing 1.3MP camera for video chatting.
Amazon Kindle Fire HD 8.9 is $50 off today only is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Video game retailer GameStop is now selling select Kindle Fire tablets in stores across the US, just in time for the holiday season. They’re offering the Kindle Fire HD 7-inch tablet for $199.99 at all 4,400 stores, and the non-HD 7-inch version and the 8.9-inch HD for $159.99 and $299.99, respectively, “at select stores.”
However, if you’re still thinking about ordering one off of Amazon instead of driving to your local GameStop, the brick-and-mortar store will give you a $25 Amazon gift card if you buy a Kindle Fire tablet from them, which would essentially bring the price of the non-HD 7-inch Kindle Fire down to just a measly $135.
The deal will only last until January 31, so be sure not to putz around if you’re thinking about grabbing a Kindle Fire tablet anytime soon. If you already happen to have an original Kindle Fire and aren’t getting much use out of it, GameStop will also buy it from you and give you in-store credit for up to $100. You might be able to get a bit more cash out of it on Craigslist or eBay, but this is a great way if you need cash quickly.
GameStop has been growing its business for selling non-gaming devices for a while now. Last year, they started a pilot program to sell tablets in 200 stores, and expanded the program to over 1,600 locations later in May 2012. Back in March, GameStop also began selling refurbished iOS devices.
GameStop now selling Kindle Fire tablets, $25 Amazon gift card with purchase is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Users of Amazon’s Kindle app for iOS will be pleased to hear that the company has updated the app to include one of the Kindle’s latest new features called X-Ray. The feature enables users to explore the “bones of the book.” Users can view more info about a book, such as ideas, fictional characters, historical figures, and places.
The X-Ray feature is powered by Wikipedia and Shelfari (Amazon’s own community-powered encyclopedia), and it basically allows you to break a book down into different sections like people and terms, and then dig deeper into those individual sections to learn more about them. It’s a really handy for those who are really wanting to fully understand the book they’re reading.
The feature is only compatible with English titles at the moment, and not every single book supports X-Ray — it’s mostly just the popular titles that come with it. However, X-Ray is available for a select number of textbooks, and it gives you “instant access to all the most important terms and concepts, with glossary definitions, links to relevant textbook pages, and related content from Wikipedia and YouTube.”
You’ll need to be running iOS 5 or later in order to update to the newest Kindle app version, but the update is free and it’s available now in the iTunes App Store. We have to give it up for Amazon, though. Their business model is impeccable, and allowing anyone to access and purchase Amazon content, whether they have a Kindle tablet or not, is a good way to get as many customers as possible, no matter the platform.
Kindle app for iOS updated with X-Ray is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Amazon had some pretty sweet deals going on all weekend long, starting on Black Friday and ending on Cyber Monday. One of the best that we found on Amazon’s products was the $130 Kindle Fire deal — down $30 from its original price. The company boasts that “Cyber Monday 2012 was the biggest day ever for Kindle sales worldwide.”
Collectively, Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2012 “were the best ever for the Kindle family.” The company had more than doubled last year’s sales numbers, and while they don’t disclose any specific figures, it’s not too hard to believe. The $130 Kindle Fire deal was simply too good to pass up for a lot of people.
Amazon did release a couple of statistics and facts that might prove interesting for you. First of all, the top four spots on the worldwide Amazon best sellers list are Kindle ereaders and tablets. Also, Amazon claims the Kindle Fire HD to be the most gifted and most wished for product on Amazon since its launch.
Sadly, the Kindle Fire deal is over, and you’ll have to go back to paying at least $160 for the last-generation tablet, but that’s still a decent price. However, for just a bit more cash, you can pick up the newer Kindle Fire HD for only $200. That’s probably a better bet if you’re wanting to get the latest and greatest.
Amazon boasts “best ever” Black Friday and Cyber Monday for Kindle family is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
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