The Apple iPad has easily bested the Kindle; the match is quite obviously one sided. The mere fact that iPad can do so much more than read eBooks and browse the internet is already a major advantage. Add in the iPad’s significantly larger and colored touch screen display and the impressive Apple eBook reader that provides a better simulation of actually reading a book than the monochromatic wall of text that appears on the Kindle and it is easy to see why people would prefer to get the touch screen tablet over Amazon’s dedicated eBook reader.
Now, there are hints that Amazon’s upgrade to the Kindle is not just aimed at making the device better, but also to surpass the Apple iPad. Steve Jobs was not pulling any punches when he stated that Apple will stand on Amazon’s shoulders and go beyond what the makers of the Kindle have achieved. With the iPad, they have; now it is up to Amazon if they can manage to catch up.
There have yet to be any news about what the next Kindle device will be, but many expect it to also be a touch screen tablet, but it will take more than a copycat device to surpass the Apple iPad. While it is possible that they can tie up with Microsoft and form a Windows based tablet, the partnership is unlikely and MS is already planning their own tablet separately. Google’s Android might have been a good choice but the device has already been made and it has been shown off at the Web 2.0 Expo (the new Android tablet will also run a Kindle app –one was just released for the Google Android just recently).
So far, Amazon has opened up job positions for product testers that would be able to run upcoming Amazon items through paces and also ‘prepare’ products. Amazon has yet to confirm if this is in any way associated to the upcoming Kindle upgrade.
