Even though Amazon’s 7-inch Kindle Fire tablet has launched but is yet to be released, the world’s largest online retailer has reportedly started to put plans in motion to produce a second-generation model of the Android-powered device, which could see the long-rumoured 10.1-inch tablet launch in the first half of next 2012.
Digitimes reports that Foxconn has secured the orders, adding to its existing contracts to manufacture Apple’s iPad 2 and Sony’s Tablet S, with it suggested that the company could contribute around 80% of the world’s tablet shipments in the near future.
The apparent confirmation of Kindle Fire orders follows a previous report that Amazon was likely to choose Foxconn to produce its larger tablet model, but then shipments of the 10.1-inch tablet were scheduled to begin before the end of 2011, in time for the holiday season.
Amazon’s current 7-inch Kindle Fire is currently produced by Quanta Computer but Foxconn was apparently involved in talks to produce the device. According to sources, the company “reportedly decided to not take the 7-inch tablet PC orders as the company has been busily working on iPads for Apple,” — ensuring that its rival Quanta Computer secured the orders, a company that is also heavily involved in Apple’s supply chain.
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The Kindle Fire sells for $199, compared with $499 for Apple’s lowest-priced iPad. The tablet has a powerful dual-core processor and Amazon will offer customers 18 million movies, TV shows, songs, magazines, and books, its Amazon Appstore with thousands of popular apps and games, ultra-fast web browsing via Amazon Silk, free cloud storage for all Amazon content.
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