Following the massive success of the Kindle Fire, everyone knew it was only a matter of time before Amazon released an updated model. Those rumors increased drastically once Amazon cut the price of the Kindle Fire to $159. So the question is: when is the new Kindle Fire coming? Well, according to the front page of Amazon, it comes out on November 20.
Dubbed the Kindle Fire HD, the new e-reader comes in three flavors. First, you have the 7″ Kindle Fire HD that you can get with 16 GB for $199 or 32 GB for $249. Up from that, you can get the 8.9″ Kindle Fire HD with 16 GB for $299 or 32 GB for $369. Finally, we have the 8.9″ Kindle Fire HD 4G LTE Wireless with 32 GB for $499 or 64 GB for $599.
I know what you’re thinking: “An HD display is great and all, but is that all there is to this?” Thankfully, no – not by a long shot. First, let’s get the obvious differences out of the way. While the original Kindle Fire had 8 GB of internal memory, these newer models will have 16/32/64, depending on your choice. This is due to the fact, of course, that HD content takes up more space. So having that extra space is a definite plus.
The other big one is the 4G LTE model. For those who don’t know, this gives you Wi-Fi-comparable speeds, be it for downloads or streaming, wherever you go. Certain Kindle models have had 3G speeds in the past, but this is the first one to give you 4G speed. What’s more, you don’t need to worry about hooking up with Verizon or AT&T, because Amazon supplies its own service. For the low price of $49.99 a year (you read that right, a yearly fee) will get you 250 MB of 4G every month. Amazon provides the following chart to put the savings into perspective.
For those not impressed with 250 MB, a 3 GB and 5 GB are in the works and will be announced soon.
There are even more cool upgrades as well, some even history-making. The Kindle Fire HD will be the first tablet in history to feature dual-band, dual-antenna Wi-Fi. What does this mean? Faster downloads and better media streaming. How much faster? How about 41% faster than the iPad 3. Yes, with even the $199 Kindle Fire HD model, you can stream video with less video buffering and download media faster than on an iPad 3 (according to Amazon).
On top of this, the Kindle Fire HD features some nice added gadgets to its impressive repertoire, like dual custom-built Dolby audio stereo speakers and software. The device will also have a front- facing HD camera for Skype.
With all the success of the Google Nexus, Amazon had to strike hard and fast to keep in the tablet race, and they have. They’ve created an HD upgrade with faster data speed (including an affordable 4G option) that works fantastically with their Amazon Prime service. Anyone who’s an Amazon Prime member may want to take a look at these upcoming tablets. Amazon is already taking preorders for the devices when they release on November 20.
So what do you guys think? Is the new Kindle enough of an e-reader for you? Leave a comment below and tell us what you think. Till then, here are some more pictures.
