Amazon has introduced a new, smaller, cheaper better version of Kindle 2. Call it the “Kindele” or Kindle Jr. It will ship at the end of August.
The one pictured is the $139 WiFi-only version. There’s a $189 3G version (AT&T network). The screen size is same as Kindle Sr. but there are improvements all around. It’s also reportedly lighter and has a longer battery life than its predecessor.
The $139 price tag will drive a lot of sales — a lot. And, as the NY Times argues, it may be the beginning of a Q4 (holiday sales) price war with immediate competitors B&N and Sony in the dedicated “reader” market.
At this price point it’s no longer going to be compared to the iPad. It’s a high-quality, super-affordable, single-purpose device.
See also: The iPad ‘Killer’ Is Price
July 30th, 2010 at 12:11 pm
[...] Kindle, in part because of a significant price drop: $249 to $189. It also just introduced an even cheaper (and better) model for [...]