Amazon has launched its Kindle Fire HDX — the latest version of its Kindle tablet — in China, as the company seeks to build on its recent success, which includes topping the Android tablet marketplace.
Amazon finally brought its Kindle devices to China in June last year, after plenty of rumors and repeated delays. This time round, Chinese customers haven’t had to wait that long for the Kindle Fire HDX to land in the country — Amazon announced it only in September last year.
The tablets, which come in 7- and 8.9-inch sizes, are being featured prominently on Amazon’s Chinese website now.
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The 7-inch tablet Kindle Fire HDX is retailing from CNY1,699 ($278) while the 8.9-inch one costs upwards of CNY2,999 ($491). Comparatively, in the US, the 7-inch model starts at $229 while the 8.9-inch variant costs upwards of $349.
The Kindle Fire HDX tablets run an updated version of Amazon’s Fire operating system and are powered by a 2GHz quad-core processor from Qualcomm. The screen is a beyond-HD display, with a pixel density of 323 ppi for the smaller version and 339 ppi for the 8.9-inch version. The tablets also boast 100 percent sRGB color accuracy and dynamic image contrast.
In addition to being around one-third lighter than their predecessors — Amazon says that at just 374 grams, the 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HDX is the lightest large-screen tablet — the new devices have an ‘all-day’ battery. In real terms, Amazon says that should give up to 11 hours of mixed use and 17 hours of reading time.
Amazon has also introduced the upgraded version of its Kindle Fire HD in China today — which features a faster processor with an HD display and a new lighter and slimmer design, similar to the Kindle Fire HDX. This lower-cost variant retails from CNY1,099 ($178).
Headline image via Spencer Platt/Getty Images
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