Amazon Set to Step Up as Next iPad Competitor

DigiTimes reports that Amazon is set to launch its own tablet device within the next few months, adding yet another iPad competitor to the mix, but one with the ability to deliver significant media integration due to its existing businesses in the music and video markets. According to the report, Amazon is trying to bring the device to market well ahead of the holiday sales rush and will be shooting for aggressive shipments of 700,000-800,000 units per month with a goal of selling four million units before the end of the year.

The timing of launch is to meet the peak sales period prior to Thanksgiving in the US and the year-end holidays in the US and Europe, the sources pointed out.

Amazon adopts processors developed by Texas Instruments, with Taiwan-based Wintek to supply touch panels, ILI Technology to supply LCD driver ICs and Quanta Computer responsible for assembly, the sources indicated.

The report specifically mentions that Amazon will integrate streaming movie services with the new tablet, although the company's new Cloud Player for music should also make it simple for tablet owners to listen to their music on the device. It is unknown what platform Amazon will use for its tablet, but most observers presume that the device will be based on Android considering Amazon's existing offerings for the platform such as its Appstore for Android.

While competitors have been slow to react to the iPad's success and even in aggregate have still been unable to dethrone Apple's tablet from its dominant market position, new tablets are now appearing on a regular basis with most of the major computer and electronics players staking out their positions. And like Amazon, other companies such as HP are doing what they can to duplicate portions of Apple's integrated iOS ecosystem by moving to cloud-based media services that will allow music and other content to be easily accessed across devices.