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Kindle Fire HD sales explode after iPad Mini announcement

I dont believe any business - until i see hard facts - including apple for all those people calling me a fanboy.
 
Just like the article says, it means nothing since we don't know how many they were already selling. It's completely unimpressive without real numbers.
 
The last paragraph of that is funny!!!

"With Amazon, though, we really have no idea what that statement means. It doesn't provide any details on Kindle unit sales. For all we know, the company sold 200 Kindle Fire HDs on Wednesday"
 
The iPad mini is "just another option" at $329. I ordered one because it's the iPad i've been wanting since I got my launch day iPad 1, but they needed to come down to $249 if they wanted to eliminate the Fire HD and Nexus 7 from the conversation.

The reason the 9.7" iPad does so well is because that price range and size, it's the most compelling and undisputed option. The Android tablets are flooded with various 10" models that don't really differentiate themselves from each other. The Microsoft Surface will be an interesting competitor, but only time will tell.

As for the 7"ish market, it's a lot less crowded for the top spot. When you think 7" tablets right now it's pretty much the Nexus 7, Fire HD, and possibly the Nook and Samsung tablets. The great thing about the 7" market is that all the main competitors are different enough to distinguish themselves from each other. The Nexus 7 could have run away with this market, but the Fire HD is such an interesting choice especially for those that are already married to the Amazon eco-system. As for the iPad mini, if it were at $249 then it could have easily run away with this market, but at $329 I bet most people are more likely to compare the iPad mini with other iPad options then they would with the lower priced 7" market.
 
Perhaps Apple will bring the mini down to $299 later on. Seems psychologically easier to sell.
 
Before the iPad Mini was announced I was planning on getting my sister one for Christmas but not for $329. So instead I'm buying my sister a Kindle Fire HD for Christmas today. :)
 
Apple doesn't compete on price with any of their products.

They will give away the low end of the market. No problem.

Amazon needs to sell content to survive in the marketplace. Apple only needs to sell the hardware.
 
Some people want a cheap tablet. Some people want a great tablet. That's good they have that choice.
 
I played with the Kindle Fire HD at Best Buy today and it's a nice, well built tablet but you can't convince an Apple snob of that.
 
Smiletime said:
I played with the Kindle Fire HD at Best Buy today and it's a nice, well built tablet but you can't convince an Apple snob of that.
Click to expand...
Yeah its nice.. Where are all of the apps? Thats what you get when you go Apple.

(I own a kindle fire by the way, along with 3 iPads)
 
They weren't disappointed at anything EXCEPT the price.

A lot of people that own a Kindle Fire, also own the iPhone and/or iPod Touch. They only own the Fire because it's a tablet, they can read on it, and get a few apps, plus it has that nice price tag. It's also an actual known company making them.

Ask any of them, and they'll all say they want the iPad, but they don't want to pay for it at the price that it is.
 
The newspapers here are full of adds for the likes of Harvey Normans and other electronics retailers already selling / pushing Android tabs (7") with ICS for €99, the blackberry playbook is now on sale for €139 for 64GB, the nexus 7 is available through a few retail outlets in Ireland (google play store don't sell it here) for €249 and of course there is an absolute bevy of other Android tablets available and yet despite all this competition it's the iPad that is still the most popular despite the mammoth price gap currently (€399 cheapest) between those android devices currently available.

So Apple have now added a cheaper option (€339 here) to the iPad arsenal, and whilst it still is significantly more expensive, I can not see it being de-throned just yet, even by the Kindle Fire HD which has yet to launch officially here, though you will be able to pop across the border / Irish Sea to buy one.

Amazon's device requires the use of Amazons services (similar to iTunes) however here the choice of services Amazon actually offer is very limited (no movies, music, amazon prime) and therefore the content on the Kindle Fire HD is going to be restrictive on the device here and for that reason alone, I don't see it providing much of a challenge to the iPad here for a long while yet.
 
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Bensalama21 said:
Yeah its nice.. Where are all of the apps? Thats what you get when you go Apple.

(I own a kindle fire by the way, along with 3 iPads)
Click to expand...

Actually there are many Kindle Fire specific apps. While they are not as plenty as on the Apple App Store they are there and the list is growing because of the Kindle Fire's popularity. I can't say the same for what's on the Google Play store.

Where the Kindle Fire shines is when you add Amazon Prime to it. I also like that my KF is linked to their store.

Another bonus is the much maligned ads. I have already taken advantage of several deals and added Amazon credit to my account for future purchases. :)

I have preordered the 8.9 " KF. I can't wait for next month.
 
Rodster said:
Actually there are many Kindle Fire specific apps. While they are not as plenty as on the Apple App Store they are there and the list is growing because of the Kindle Fire's popularity. I can't say the same for what's on the Google Play store.

Where the Kindle Fire shines is when you add Amazon Prime to it. I also like that my KF is linked to their store.

Another bonus is the much maligned ads. I have already taken advantage of several deals and added Amazon credit to my account for future purchases. :)

I have preordered the 8.9 " KF. I can't wait for next month.
Click to expand...

Amazon is holding a developer conference next month, so it will only get better, which is great for people that own the KF. I also like Amazon Prime and am happy that I'll be able to use it on my iPad Mini too, used it a lot on my Fire. Worth every penny.

Promotional offers are pretty crazy too, recent albums for $0.99 sale? Free $2 MP3 credit every few weeks? $2 to spend in the Amazon On Demand section? Free magazine subscriptions? Free books? Only the iOS developers do that kind of pricing for the Mac and iOS App Stores.
 
There must be something in it, Cook and Schiller have both come out "explained" the pricing, one would imagine that they must have been encouraged by external forces to do so, there must have been specific reasons for their statements, makes no sense to make those sort of comments just for the sake of it. One must also assume that they have up to date statistics on rivals pad sales as well as public perception of price.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1474809/

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1476128/
 
daveathall said:
There must be something in it, Cook and Schiller have both come out "explained" the pricing, one would imagine that they must have been encouraged by external forces to do so, there must have been specific reasons for their statements, makes no sense to make those sort of comments just for the sake of it. One must also assume that they have up to date statistics on rivals pad sales as well as public perception of price.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1474809/

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1476128/
Click to expand...

This is a fact that was confirmed by the Amazon CEO during the launch of the Fire HD that the Kindle Fire has 20% market share of any tablet. That's impressive in it's first year to achieve that. I'm sure Apple is well aware of that and now add the wildly popular Nexus 7.
 
MNealBarrett said:
Evidently, more than a few people were totally disappointed about the price of the iPad Mini and the extremely low resolution of the Mini's display, and decided to go with something that has both a higher-resolution display and a lower price.
Click to expand...

The lower price is due to the use of advertising on the Kindle. Like Google, Amazon is looking to have an income stream from advertising rather than from the end users of their devices. Personally, I'll pay to minimize my exposure to advertising, but that's just me....
 
Rodster said:
Actually there are many Kindle Fire specific apps. While they are not as plenty as on the Apple App Store they are there and the list is growing because of the Kindle Fire's popularity. I can't say the same for what's on the Google Play store.

Where the Kindle Fire shines is when you add Amazon Prime to it. I also like that my KF is linked to their store.

Another bonus is the much maligned ads. I have already taken advantage of several deals and added Amazon credit to my account for future purchases. :)

I have preordered the 8.9 " KF. I can't wait for next month.
Click to expand...
True, but Amazon Prime is also on the iPad :D
 
thewitt said:
Apple doesn't compete on price with any of their products.

They will give away the low end of the market. No problem.

Amazon needs to sell content to survive in the marketplace. Apple only needs to sell the hardware.
Click to expand...

Nicely said.

Apple makes money on hardware sales, and has a vibrant App Store and iTunes.

Also, in no way, shape or form would I consider a Kindle Fire. It's the Netzero of tablets, and that's not flattery.
 
Bensalama21 said:
True, but Amazon Prime is also on the iPad :D
Click to expand...

Yup i'm aware of that. I got it on both my iPad's, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, PS3, XBOX 360 and soon to be Nexus 7. It's all tied together and more seamless and optimized on the Kindle Fire HD. ;)
 
Rodster said:
This is a fact that was confirmed by the Amazon CEO during the launch of the Fire HD that the Kindle Fire has 20% market share of any tablet. That's impressive in it's first year to achieve that. I'm sure Apple is well aware of that and now add the wildly popular Nexus 7.
Click to expand...

So Amazon claims they have 20% of the "tablet market". What does that translate to? And how would anyone verify that. Amazon never gives out sales figures. Why can't they just release figures like Apple does? Everything we've seen so far are guesstimates from Wall Street analysts.
 
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