Hasta La Gadget!

In case you haven’t heard, Amazon happily took the wraps off of its new Kindle Fire lineup during today’s earlier event in Santa Monica, California. And, for those living in the UK, you, too, can have the online retail giant take your money for one of these slates pretty soon — well, at least for a couple of the fresh models. As far as pricing goes, the entry-level Kindle Fire will cost a mere £129 (around $205), while the 7-inch Fire HD takes on the slightly heftier price of £159 and £199 for the 16 and 32GB, respectively. Obviously, this leaves out that 8.9-incher Fire HD, though it looks like Amazon’s only bringing the smaller Fires to the United Kingdom, as there’s no mention of the company’s larger tablet anywhere on the site. Still, folks looking to pre-order can do so now at the source link below, but better hurry, since Amazon does note they’re all being fulfilled on a “first come, first served” basis.

Filed under: Tablets

Amazon’s Kindle Fire, Kindle Fire HD arriving in the UK October 25th, starting at £129 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 06 Sep 2012 18:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Amazon made a ton of major announcements during its press event today, wowing the crowd with the reveal multiple new Kindle Fires including an HD variant. While the Kindle Fire HD is certainly something to get excited about, so is the Kindle Paperwhite, Amazon’s latest iteration in its line of Kindle eReaders. Don’t be fooled by your expectations for eReaders, though, because the Kindle Paperwhite brings a number of innovations to the table.

The first is obviously that gorgeous “Paperwhite” display. Amazon has upped the resolution of the screen over previous versions of the Kindle, and as a result, the text you see on screen is sharper than what you’ll get with other eReader displays. That’s helped along by the fact that you can change the font and its size with the Kindle Paperwhite, which is definitely an appreciated addition. Then we have the backlight, which is one of the more predictable features, but still nice to have along nonetheless. You can adjust the backlight strength depending on your surroundings, so you can always have the perfect amount of light to make sure that what’s on screen is easily readable.

One of the most exciting announcements Amazon made in relation to the Kindle Paperwhite is that its battery can last up to 8 weeks. That’s with the backlight kept on the entire time, which is absolutely nuts. There are few key features that come packed with the Kindle Paperwhite too, including X-Ray, “Time to Read” and Whispersync. X-Ray implementation in the Kindle Paperwhite serves as something as an on-demand glossary, giving you information on the characters in your story with a simple touch. Time to Read displays the amount of time you have left in your book at the bottom of the page you’re currently on, and the Whispersync feature syncs your audiobooks to your text books, allowing you to listen to the narrator as you read along.

There are two versions of the Kindle Paperwhite. The standard version is $119, while there’s a version with free 3G for $179. Like most eReaders, the Kindle Paperwhite is very lightweight, coming in at only 7.5 ounces and 9.1mm thick. The Kindle Paperwhite looks great, and with that bump to resolution – Amazon is touting 212 PPI – it sounds like the company has a winner on its hands.

So there you have it – even though a lot of attention will be on the Kindle Fire HD, the Kindle Paperwhite is by no means a slouch. It’s definitely one of the most impressive eReaders we’ve seen, and at $119 for the standard version, Amazon will have no problem winning over the eReader crowd. Both are available starting October 1 and are up for pre-order today, so if you want one, you won’t be left waiting long. Expect to hear more from the Kindle Paperwhite in the very near future.

Kindle Paperwhite hands-on is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Just as we were expecting, Amazon pulled the veil off the newest iteration of the Kindle today. Dubbed the Kindle Paperwhite, by far the most noteworthy feature about this new eReader is its display. With it, we’re seeing Amazon make a departure from the Pearl E Ink display it has used in previous Kindles and instead go for a white display that comes complete with a backlight.

That “Paperwhite” display lends to a number of improvements in the eReader field. Amazon says that the Kindle Paperwhite offers 25% more contrast, whiter whites and blacker blacks. The high-resolution screen provides 212 PPI and 62% more pixels, a significant improvement over Kindles from the past. Even better? Amazon says that the Kindle Paperwhite boasts a 8 week battery life, even with the light turned on the entire time. Any way you slice it, that’s pretty impressive.

Like most eReaders, the Kindle Paperwhite is pretty lightweight and easily portable. The entire unit sports a thickness of 9.1mm and a weight of just 7.5 ounces. It’s no surprise that Amazon has announced a new Kindle with a backlight – doing so lines it up to be a direct competitor with Barnes and Noble’s Nook Simple Touch with Glow Light – but these additional features and that sexy display might just make it the eReader to have this holiday season. Stay tuned for more news direct from Amazon’s Kindle press event!

Kindle Paperwhite arrives with backlit screen is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

If you can’t quite scrounge up the $200 it takes to buy a quality 7-inch slab these days, Amazon may have a solution for you: sell them your attention. According to the Wall Street Journal, the company plans to develop a ad-supported tablet that would display advertisements whenever the screen is turned on. Sound familiar? Like the ad-supported Kindle readers Amazon’s already dabbled with, subsided tablets would ring in at a lower price tag then their ad-free counterparts. WSJ sources also mentioned that some versions of the device would be WiFi only, potentially lowering the price even further. No word yet, if you’ll be able to buy yourself out of the ads later, of course.

Update: Care for a thicker plot? CNET is now reporting that Amazon will reveal two new Kindle Fire tablets next week — an all new 7-inch wonder and a slightly reworked version of the original. While a brand new slab could be an obvious contender for the 7-inch tablet crown, a refreshed version of Amazon’s original hardware could very well fit the ad-supported bill. Check out CNET’s full report at the source link below.

Filed under: Tablets

WSJ: Amazon is building an ad-supported tablet (Update: two Kindle Fire devices coming next week) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 31 Aug 2012 16:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Indian consumers haven’t been cut off from Amazon’s world of e-book goodies, but their experience is about to get a lot more native with the launch of a local Kindle Store. The prices of over a million books are now available in rupees, and if you’re in need of hardware, the latest bare-bones Kindle can now be found in-store at Croma for Rs. 6,999. That E Ink Pearl screen comes at a premium, however, as there are more than a few budget-friendly tablets available in the country which support the Kindle app. The best news is probably reserved for fledgling writers, who now have access to Kindle Direct Publishing to showcase their work and hopefully net some purchases.

Continue reading Amazon launches India Kindle Store, swap rupees for good reads

Amazon launches India Kindle Store, swap rupees for good reads originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Aug 2012 11:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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