Amazon to hit back at Google with two new Kindle tablets, says source

Published Jun 29 2012, 10:20 BST  |  By Andrew Laughlin

Amazon is preparing to hit back at rival Google with two new Kindle Fire tablets, including a new large-screen version of the slate, according to reports.

The online retailer saw a major competitor for its Kindle Fire product enter the market this week in the shape of Google's Nexus 7, a tablet with the same screen size and price as the Kindle Fire, but much better technical specifications.

Amazon is also in catch-up mode as Google will launch the Nexus 7 in multiple markets next month, while the Kindle Fire is still only available in the US, despite being launched last October.

The BGR website claims that Amazon will respond to the competition by unveiling two new Kindle Fire tablets next month.

BGR's sources say that the retailer is readying a new seven-inch tablet, dubbed "Coyote", which would have the same dual-core processor as in the current Kindle Fire.

It is, therefore, unclear how the tablet will compete with the Nexus 7, as Google's slate is powered by a Tegra-3 chipset with a quad-core CPU and 12-core GPU, making it much more powerful.

However, Amazon is also said to be working on a ten-inch screen slate, called "Hollywood", which would boast a quad-core processor.

BGR said that its source has "handled" both of Amazon's new tablet models and revealed a number of details about them.

The unnamed person said that Amazon has "vastly improved" the build quality of the Kindle Fire for the next generation tablets, following criticism of the current product.

"It's really up a notch from the current Fire," the source said.

Much of the bump in quality has come from Amazon's adoption of a metal casing instead of the soft-touch plastic body in the current Kindle Fire, said the source.

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The back of both new Kindle Fires is said to have a "chrome-look rib" that contrasts against the black matte finish, improving the feel and appearance of the device, while also housing the speakers.

Amazon's new slates are said to be thinner than the first generation of the Apple iPad and feature no buttons at all on the front of either device.

The ten-inch model includes a front-facing camera, said the source, and both tablets have a micro-USB port and additional jack, possibly an HDMI-out port.

It is expected that both Kindle Fire tablets would run Google's Android operating system, although reports have suggested that Google will make the latest version, Jelly Bean, exclusive to the Nexus 7.