Amazon Rumored to Release Tablet; New Kindles on the Way

Amazon has already taken on the eReader market with the Kindle, but the online retailer’s tech ambitions probably don’t stop there. According to The Wall Street Journal, Amazon will release a tablet before October.

According to unnamed sources, the Amazon tablet will sport a 9-inch touchscreen and will run on Android. The sources claim the tablet won’t be designed in-house, but rather will be produced by an Asian manufacturer. It looks like the tablet will not have a camera, which makes sense given the retailer’s decidedly more eBook-friendly (rather than multimedia-heavy) bent. And as expected, the rumored tablet will offer easy access to eBooks and music purchased through Amazon. This report doesn’t confirm or deny previous rumors that the Amazon tablet, codenamed Coyote, would have a Tegra 2 chip or whether the screen would be made by Taiwan-based E Ink Holdings.

In addition to the buzz about an upcoming tablet, Amazon is in the news for its upcoming eReader releases. Sources say the company will release two updated Kindle models—one with a touchscreen, and another that’s a cheaper version of the current Kindle eReader. These may be unconfirmed rumors, but they certainly seem likely; especially considering that Amazon recently dropped the ad-supported Kindle 3G’s price to $139 from $164.

via The Wall Street Journal