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Amazon could go after budget-conscious holiday shoppers with $50 tablet

With the holiday season fast approaching, Amazon is aiming to tempt budget-conscious consumers with a super-cheap 6-inch tablet, the Wall Street Journal said Monday.

The company is aiming to price the diminutive device at just $50, that’s half what its current 6-inch Fire HD slate costs and even cheaper than its lowest-price Kindle e-reader, which retails for $79.

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The move to target the low-end tablet market may be a sign of frustration with sales of its pricier Fire HD tablets and Fire phone, though it could simply be that the e-commerce giant feels it can offer a solid device to go up against a collection of generally poor offerings at this remarkably low price point.

The Journal’s source provided no specs for the device, though the report talks of a mono speaker rather than stereo, and adds that buyers shouldn’t expect much in the way of battery life, either. Amazon is likely aiming for a simple, durable offering that performs the basics a little better than competing devices.

The tablet’s low price point could be achieved by including ads on its lock-screen as it does with its existing range of Fire tablets. Amazon may even sell the tablet at a loss, using it as a way to sell services such as Prime and drive sales of its digital media.

To keep costs to a minimum, the company has reportedly outsourced development of the tablet to firms in Asia. The move is said to have upset some at its Lab126 R&D facility in Silicon Valley, which recently saw a number of engineers laid off as the company apparently takes a stricter approach to the way it spends its money.

With so many people these days happily ignoring their tablets in favor of their large-screen smartphones, you have to wonder how much success Amazon will have with an ultra-cheap, 6-inch tablet. However, if it does land in time for the holiday season, it could certainly prove a popular buy for kids.

The Journal’s report also suggests Amazon is prepping new 8- and 10-inch devices for launch later this year. As ever, DT will keep you posted on all developments so check back later for more information.

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
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