Tablet Wars - CNN - CBS

I have been discussing Amazon's Kindle Fire and Barnes and Noble's Nook Tablet on both CBS Early Show and CNN the past two days. (Click here for CBS TV segment) I have been fortunate to have spent a few days with a Fire review unit and was impressed with the specs, speed and overall performance especially at a pricetag of $199.  See below for deets on both devices and how this will likely shake up the tablet world.   

In the world of electronics, 2011 is the year of the tablet and the iPad has reigned - owning an estimated 82% of the tablet marketshare and selling 39 million plus as of September. Other brands would kill for a slice of this pie. But to date, the 100+ tablets have failed to impress, mainly because they can’t undercut the iPad in price or match the specs.

But, I’ve been covering the tablet space closely and I think for the first time we might actually have some viable competition, which is nice because it will give consumer’s options heading into holiday season.

First, let’s start with Kindle Fire:

The quick and dirty specs: 7” screen, it runs off a customized version of Android, access to songs, movies, apps, newspapers, magazines, dual core processor, new Amazon web browser (Silk), and decent battery life 8+ hours continuous reading. But here’s the kicker… it comes at a pricetag of $199 that’s $300 cheaper than the iPad.

Next, Barnes and Noble’s Nook tablet:

Pretty similar specs, 7” form factor, also sports a dual core processor, access to e-books, movies, apps, a little bit more memory and storage space with a pricetag of $250.

(More specs below)

But the bottom line is the pricepoint for the consumer. With the brand recognition and price tag, expect the Kindle Fire to be the second hottest tablet.

Is there anything that these tablets are missing?

Both tablets do not have front and rear facing cameras. That means no option to video chat, take pics or HD video. Also, they will only have a few thousand apps out the gate (expect that number to grow quickly).  However, they won’t come close to the iPads 100k+apps just made for iPad and 500,000 in the Apple App Market.

How are pre-order sales stacking up?

According to eDataSource – Amazon took 500,000 pre-orders from September 28 through October 28 and the hype continues to grow.

And expect the tablet wars to be in full swing in retail.

Barnes and Noble has just rebranded their storefronts with a special Nook area just for one- on- one assistance with devices – they’re hoping that the firsthand customer service offered in their retail stores will help boost sales. And Amazon, who is known for its online sales, will be selling in over 16,000 stores from Best Buy to Target to Radio Shack.

It will be interesting to watch it pan out. I think a lot of buyers will see that $50 difference and impulse shop.

Amazon cashing in on the eco-system. 

Amazon is reportedly taking a hit on the device, well, because they can. Since they distribute e-books, music, movies – they are trying to wrap this device around the ecosystem - trying to become a consumer’s one stop shop. So here’s the deal.  You buy the tablet, but then for $79 more you can get a year of Amazon Prime. That gets you free 2 day shipping on Amazon.com – (hoping you buy products), free access to their e-book lending library (access to thousands of e-books to loan out as long as you want), and free access to content like instant stream of movies and TV. Smart.

SPECS FOR THE NERD AT HEART:

Size:

iPad: 9.7” screen

Nook: 7” screen

Kindle Fire: 7” screen

Weight:

iPad: 1.3lbs

Nook: 14.1oz

Kindle Fire: 14.6oz

Operating System:

Both run on Android 2.3

iPad runs iOS

Speed:

All have dual core processors

Storage:

On-device storage: Kindle Fire 8GB (80 apps, 10 movies, 800 songs, 6,000 books)

Cloud storage options for all Amazon content

Nook tablet: 16GB (up to 10,000 books) (can add additional 32GB to microSD card)

iPad: 16GB+

Cameras:

iPad: front and rear facing cameras; video chat; HD recording

Nook: No camera

Kindle Fire: No camera

Connectivity:

iPad – Wi-fi/ 3G

Nook: Wi-fi only

Kindle Fire: Wi-fi only

Battery Life:

iPad2: Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi-Fi, watching video, or listening to

music

Nook Tablet: 11.5 hours of continuous reading and 9 hours of video playback with

wi-fi off

Kindle Fire: 8 hours of continuous reading and 7.5 hours of video playback with wi-

fi off.

Apps Available:

iPad: 500,000 apps (140,000 made just for iPad)

Nook: several thousand at launch

Kindle Fire: several thousand at launch

(Amazons also smart in offering Hulu Plus, Netflix, etc --- taking cues from Apple and

not limiting content)

Pricepoint:

iPad: Starting at $499

Nook: $249

Kindle Fire: $199

Content:

Kindle Fire: (At launch) 400+ full-color magazines and newspapers

(At launch) subscribers will receive free three- month trial of 17 Conde Nast

magazines

Nook: 234 magazines and 36 newspapers +

Apple: 240 publications