It’s almost September, which means that it’s almost time for Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) to update its popular lineup of Kindle Fire tablets. BGR has word that the e-tail giant has three new models in the pipeline. Naturally, the trio will launch ahead of the busy holiday shopping season, which is particularly important given how seasonal Amazon’s tablet sales are.
The company is expected to keep a similar strategy by offering an entry-level 7-inch model, a flagship 7-inch model, and a larger model. All three devices should get significant display upgrades.
The entry-level model’s resolution should go from 1024 x 600 to 1280 x 800, which is the current resolution of the existing Kindle Fire HD. The newer 7-inch flagship Kindle Fire HD will jump up to a 1920 x 1200 resolution, and the larger 8.9-inch model will go all the way with a 2560 x 1600 panel. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) may also introduce some major redesigns to the external casings.
That 8.9-inch panel is notable because it tops Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)‘s Retina iPad, which has a 2048 x 1536 panel. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)’s rumored device is also smaller, meaning it will sport even greater pixel density. It’s also the same resolution as Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)‘s Nexus 10, which is built by Samsung, but there’s no data on how well that device may be selling.
Pricing isn’t set in stone, but the anonymous tipsters say that Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is targeting the same price points. However, that likely doesn’t include the recent price reductions that Amazon is now offering ahead of the new models.
Beyond the display specs, there’s no other mention of internal components. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)’s historical processor supplier, Texas Instruments Incorporated (NASDAQ:TXN), has now ditched the mobile sector. The chip maker announced last November that it would refocus its OMAP processors on embedded markets where it saw more potential for sustainable growth. Amazon’s Kindle Fires have been TI’s biggest win in tablets, and there hasn’t been much talk of who Amazon may have turned to instead. However, TI has publicly exited markets before but continued supplying large customers with new chips, like what it did with baseband modems and Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) years ago.
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) and QUALCOMM, Inc. (NASDAQ:QCOM) are the top chip vendors right now, and NVIDIA has enjoyed an advantage in tablets thus far. The graphics specialist also happens to be ramping up its new Tegra 4 chips in the third quarter, which could potentially fit with Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)’s schedule.
Investors already know that new Kindle Fires are incoming, but will Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) also take the opportunity to launch a Kindle Phone or Kindle TV set-top box at the same time?
The article What to Expect From Amazon’s Upcoming Kindle Fires originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Evan Niu, CFA.
Fool contributor Evan Niu, CFA, owns shares of Apple and Qualcomm. The Motley Fool recommends Amazon.com, Apple, Google, Netflix, and NVIDIA and owns shares of Amazon.com, Apple, Google, Netflix, and Qualcomm.
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