Why the Kindle Fire HD is so cheap?

(CNN) -- If you take Jeff Bezos' word for it, Amazon's new Kindle Fire HD is "the best tablet at any price."

Bold claim.

And it's an obvious reaction to the reviews of last year's first-generation Kindle Fire, which praised the $199 price but made it clear you're getting the substandard tablet experience you just paid next to nothing for.

This year, Amazon has a new Kindle Fire called the Kindle Fire HD that's a noticeable improvement over the original. But is it the "best tablet at any price"? Nope. If you read the reviews, including mine, you'll quickly learn Bezos seems to have adopted the "reality distortion field" that Steve Jobs was famous for.

Does that mean the Kindle Fire HD is horrible? No. Not at all. In fact, it's still a decent option if you don't want to shell out $500 or more on an iPad. But how is Amazon able to make a good tablet at such a cheap price?

Simple. Like Amazon.com, the Kindle Fire HD is built to find ways to sell you more stuff.

First, and most annoyingly of all, the Kindle Fire HD displays full-color ads on its lock screen. That means every time you switch the device on, you see an ad for stuff like a Kindle e-book, a movie download, music from Amazon's MP3 store and the like. Amazon told me you'll also see a lot of third-party ads for products outside Amazon's ecosystem.

The good news is, if the ads really bother you, you can pay $15 to Amazon after you purchase the device to remove them for good.

But Amazon didn't stop with the ads. When you're using the tablet, you're constantly inundated with suggestions to check out more Amazon products. The most blatant example of this is on the Kindle Fire HD's home screen.

Whenever you hover over an app, movie, song or book, there's a section at the bottom of the screen that suggests other apps, movies, songs or books that you might want to buy. Do you like playing Angry Birds? Buy Cut the Rope! Do you like listening to Nicki Minaj? Check out Katy Perry's latest album!

You get the idea.

It's nearly identical to the way Amazon's website suggests items to you when you're shopping around.

These ads and suggested items are a clever way for Amazon to continue to drive value out of you months and months after you buy the Kindle Fire HD. And it's completely antithetical to your typical tablet experience. Tablets are supposed to be computing devices, helping you browse the Web, check e-mail, manage your calendar and the like. Yes, they make it easy to buy new content, but on devices like the iPad and Google's Nexus 7, you're not constantly pushed to do so.

But Amazon doesn't see it that way. It's just another portal to get you to buy. When you buy a Kindle Fire HD, it doesn't feel like your tablet. It feels like Amazon's.

Is this a dealbreaker? No way.

In fact, I imagine there are plenty of people out there who won't mind looking at ads and suggestions for stuff to buy if it means getting a decent tablet for less than $200. But if I had a choice between a $199 tablet with ads and offers (like the Kindle Fire) and a $199 without ads and offers (like the Nexus 7), I'd go with the latter every time.

Kindle Fire 2 Release Date: New Amazon Kindle Tablet Coming Out This Month?

In the latest Kindle Fire 2 release date rumors, new speculation has arrived that the brand new edition of the Amazon tablet PC could be arriving sooner than expected. In fact, some believe the company may unveil its newest gadget in the remaining days of August.

Several previous Kindle Fire rumors have been hitting the internet, with one of the latest mentioning that Amazon might eventually offer its tablets for free, with Amazon Prime subscriptions. Now a bigger rumor has hit that the company has in fact initiated the process to bring out their new device, a bit earlier than anticipated. The speculation arrives as Amazon has performed some FCC filings under a front company name.

According to PopHerald, there was a new FCC filing from Harpers LLC uncovered earlier this week. The "Harpers" name is a front Amazon has used in the past to protect itself from potential product leaks or rumors developing. The company used a similar move last year, right before unveiling its new Kindle Touch and first-ever Kindle Fire tablet to the world. Could it be a sign that new items are coming soon?

The original Fire tablet came out in September of 2011, so that would make an August 2012 release, one month earlier than before. However, Amazon is looking to jumpstart its way into the increasingly competitive tablet market. The new Google Nexus 7 has been enjoying success with its Android Jelly Bean operating system, meaning Amazon wants to get its product into the mix as soon as it can.

Not to mention, there are new tablets on the way from Apple, Microsoft, and Barnes & Noble. Also, with Apple's expected announcements coming in mid September, and an iPhone and/or iPad mini coming around late September, it just makes sense for Amazon to do their best to avoid getting overshadowed by all of that. So don't be surprised if there are new products unveiled on Amazon's homepage very soon.

Do you think the Kindle Fire 2 release date will happen this month, or next?

What Kobo and Amazon Need to Do with Their Second Generation Tablets

e-Reading has changed dramatically in the last two years and many users are making the switch from traditional e-ink devices to tablets. Tablets offer a wide array of added functionality, such as videos, music, email, internet, and apps. Both Amazon and Barnes and Noble developed their own ecosystems to offer added content, while Kobo relied on Getjar for its apps and then updated to Google Play. With all of these devices almost a year old, what do they have to do to remain competitive in a ever shifting landscape of tablet computers?
The first thing all of these companies need to do is adopt higher hardware level performance. Quad-Core processors are becoming the norm in offerings from Asus, Google, and other major companies. Customers expectations have reached a point where they demand a higher performing processor. There are many benefits to elevating from the dual-core level of old. Added power allows for better rendering of 1080 P video and play the most cutting edge of games. As ebook technology increases and enhanced books editions are becoming the norm, you want to be able to get the full experience without the OS stuttering. Most books have a high decree of multimedia content, such as interactive maps, audio, video, and touchscreen controls. With prices coming down on processors, due to wider industry adoption, going this route would not dramatically elevate the cost to the customer. The Google Nexus 7, which enters the markets at a little over $200.00, proves this point.
Kobo is the odd man out, in terms of a rich and expansive ecosystem. Besides its own bookstore, it does not offer anything original in terms of content distribution. Amazon and Barnes and Noble both run their own app stores and actively court developers to submit exclusive content to them. Kobo formerly relied on Getjar to deliver content to the devices, and in most cases the apps and games are tailored towards phones and not tablets. A few months ago the company received Google Certification and now has full access to Google Play. This might work out just fine, but in order to be distinctive in the marketplace, Kobo really needs to take a hard look at developing its own app store and not rely on a 2nd party to deliver it to the customers. It would give the company more control over what apps and games best work on its devices and create a greater competitive edge in the market. You might not buy a Vox, but if you can use the Kobo App Store on any Android tablet, then the brand still gets advertised.
All of the major tablets that are geared towards reading run the Google Android operating system. When you purchase anything by Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or Kobo, you are relegated to tremendously outdated version of Android. Often you will see 2.3 being the standard and many top-end devices right now are running Jellybean, which is quite a few iterations further ahead. In order to deliver the best content, apps, and games, it is essential that these companies adopt Jellybean into their platform. There are some major additions to the platform such as Google Now. It functions like your own personal assistant, giving you a wide array of options to manage your daily life. There is also expanded facial recognition software to provide an extra layer of security. Tablets that are marketed as e-readers are mainly a family device, with everyone having access to certain things. How great would it be if a face unlocked your kids profile and only their books would be listed or their favorite learning games? While your face would unlock your own library and favorite zombie stomping time killer?
In essence, all of these tablets issued by Amazon, Kobo, and Barnes and Noble are woefully outdated by current standards. More than ever, customers are seeing high performing hardware at prices under $259.99. In order to remain competitive in the marketplace, all of these companies need to adopt higher performing hardware and software. These e-reading tablets might appeal to a strong segment of avid readers, but could see an increased user population of casual customers who just want a great deal. The one advantage all of these companies have is a strong retail presence. You can’t enter any store with a respectable tech section and not see a Kindle, Kobo, or Nook.
What do you think these companies need to do to warrant an upgrade from your older model or just buying one for the first time?

Amazon Instant Video comes to iPad with offline viewing option

Amazon has released Instant Video, a new video streaming app for the iPad. The app mirrors much of the functionality found on the Kindle Fire, including access to stream 'thousands of titles' available to Amazon Prime subscribers. It appears as though you won't be able to discover a great deal of content from within the app — Amazon says only a 'selection of top Prime Instant Video titles' is included. Instead, users will need to visit the Amazon website to add items to their Watchlist.
For movies and shows purchased or rented through Amazon, you can choose to either stream or download the content for offline viewing. Again, to purchase video that's not already in your library, you'll be kicked out to amazon.com to go shopping. There's AirPlay compatibility, but it's audio-only — video stays on the iPad, and there's no compatibility with Apple TV. Other features include Amazon staples such as auto-updating season subscriptions and Whispersync, which saves your position in a movie ready for you to pick up viewing on another device. Amazon Instant Video is available as a free download from the App Store.

Update: After initial testing, we've found that the app's streaming video option is accessible only over Wi-Fi, even when used on the 4G LTE-enabled iPad.