Amazon will reportedly launch a $50 tablet for the holiday season
After the Fire Phone failure, the company may try to get cheap hardware out in droves
Amazon’s Fire HD tablets may not be as feature-rich as some competitors – and they’re locked to Amazon’s services and marketplace – but they’re pretty affordable. And come this holiday season, that may be even more true.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Amazon intends to release a new 6in tablet later this year that will sell for just US$50 (about £33) – or effectively half the price of the company’s current Fire HD 6 device, which sells for US$99 (or £79 in the UK).
It’s not yet clear how much Amazon intends to trim down the device’s capabilities to hit that price point, aside from a note that it’ll have a mono speaker instead of a stereo one. Otherwise, should we expect the same 1280×800 display, quad-core processor, and 8GB storage? If so, Amazon will surely lose money on each device leaving its warehouse.
But that’s always been the point with its low-end tablets. Even with a very thin profit margin – or none at all – the company should make its money from the long tail of selling apps, games, and other media. And, of course, pointing users towards the company’s physical products. Amazon profits over the lifespan of the devi
Andrew Hayward
Freelance Writer 
