Buzz continues to grow around the follow up to Amazon's popular Kindle Fire tablet, which is rumored to hit stores this September.
Since the release of the original Kindle Fire, the marketplace has become more competitive, thanks to Google's Nexus 7, a direct competitor with Amazon in the 7-inch tablet market. Amazon is expected to unleash an upgraded and redesigned Kindle Fire 2 next month in an effort to compete with today's best tablets. This article covers a number of new features and upgrades with expect to see in the Kindle Fire 2 design.
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First, the Kindle Fire 2 release date and price, these being the first questions on every consumer's mind. A number of sources, citing anonymous insiders in Amazon's supply chain, have reported that the Kindle Fire 2 is already in production. The China Times reported that Amazon will begin shipping the first order of Kindle Fire 2 tablets out on September 7. As for the price, there's no official word on how much Amazon will charge for the new device. The original Kindle Fire cost just $199 for an 8GB model. It's unclear if Amazon will maintain the same price, or offer a higher memory version for a higher cost.
Amazon is expected to keep the same 7-inch display (diagonal) that we saw with the original Kindle Fire. While most analysts and consumers expect the Kindle Fire 2 to stay the same size so it can compete directly with the Nexus 7, some believe that Amazon is preparing to unveil a super-sized Kindle Fire 2. A few people have predicted that the Kindle Fire 2 screen will be 10.1 inches across, while DigiTimes recently reported that the Kindle Fire 2 will feature a 8.9-inch display, the same website previously claimed that Amazon was manufacturing a 9.7-inch tablet to compete with Apple's iPad.
The Kindle Fire 2 will likely feature a quad core processor. BGR recently reported that the tablet will use Nvidia's Kai processor technology, meaning that the device will sport a powerful Tegra 3 quad core processor. A 10.1-inch Kindle Fire 2 would feature Nvidia Tegra 3 with a 500 percent more powerful processor.
Amazon is also expected to improve on two areas where the original Kindle Fire design were clearly lacking: connectivity and camera. The first model had no camera or GPS at all, limiting its usefulness outside of as an eReader. The Kindle Fire 2, however, will likely be a fully-fledged tablet, rather than an eReader with few perks. Amazon's new tablet is expected to feature one or possibly even two cameras (for video conferncing), as well as high conectivity. Some have even suggested that the Kindle fire 2 may also function as a smartphone, capable of making phone calls and sending text messages.
The Kindle Fire 2 design is expected to be thinner and lighter than its predecessor. Amazon has a history of making its devices slimmer with each redesign, and technological advances make it easy to fit the necessary hardware into less space than before.
Amazon has remained tight-lipped regarding the Kindle Fire 2, refusing to reveal the devices official name or even confirm its existence. But last week, the company sent out a press conference invite with few details in it, kicking the Kindle Fire 2 rumor mill into high gear.
The note reveals that the event will take place on September 6, and states, "Please join us for an Amazon Press Conference."
