Amazon’s New Alexa Tablets Bring Google Play to a Premium Lineup
Is replacing its budget Fire tablets with a pricier lineup built to compete with the iPad and other premium tablets. The new Alexa-branded devices
Amazon is replacing its budget Fire tablets with a pricier lineup built to compete with the iPad and other premium tablets. The new Alexa-branded devices run Android with Google Play access, a major shift for a company whose tablets have long centered on its own services.
Unveiled Thursday, the 8-, 11- and 12-inch models cost between $230 and $550 and are due to start shipping Oct. 14. Amazon says the redesign, faster processors and built-in Alexa+ features justify the higher prices.
A different software strategy
Fire tablets have typically offered a low-cost route to Amazon’s video, reading and shopping services. The new models still include Amazon apps such as Prime Video, Kindle, Audible and Amazon Music, but users can also download millions of apps through the Google Play Store.
That access could make the tablets more useful beyond Amazon’s ecosystem. Panos Panay, Amazon’s senior vice president overseeing devices and Alexa, told The Verge that Google Play was essential to the product. The company is pitching the devices as full-fledged tablets, not simply screens for consuming Amazon content.
Alexa+ sits at the center of the new experience, from a personalized home screen to hands-free interactions. Amazon says the Kindle app can offer a distraction-free reading mode and up to 20 hours of reading on a charge.
From budget hardware to premium competition
The shift marks a break with Amazon’s long-running Fire strategy, which relied on inexpensive hardware to draw customers toward its retail and subscription services. The new tablets feature aluminum bodies and high-resolution displays, with a Pro model aimed at work. Amazon is also offering a keyboard and stylus for the Pro line.
Amazon is entering a market where Apple and Samsung already sell established premium tablets. Its challenge will be to persuade buyers that Alexa+ and a more open Android experience are worth paying more for than the company’s earlier devices.
Preorders opened Thursday. The first tablets are scheduled to ship Oct. 14.
Source: theverge.com
