ONLINE BOOKSELLER Amazon is redesigning its website to make it tablet friendly as it prepares for the launch of its own $250 Kindle tablet.
The changes, which will soon be available to all users, see a redesigned home page without clutter and there is a lot of whitespace.
The search bar has been enlarged and there are fewer buttons, while the focus is on Amazon’s digital offerings such as ebooks, digital games and applications.
According to Techcrunch blogger Sarah Perez, who reported seeing a prototype of Amazon’s tablet device, the changes in Amazon’s online store “practically scream ‘tablet-optimised'”.
Amazon’s tablet has a back-lit 7in screen and is geared towards playing internet music and movies.
It is multi-touch, but could rely on a two-finger multi-touch instead of 10-finger, like the Ipad uses.
The tablet will be the first Kindle with a full-colour screen. Originally, Amazon had planned to launch a 7in and a 10in tablet at the same time but that plan changed this summer. Techcrunch said that Amazon is now betting everything on the 7in tablet and if it works, the company will release the more expensive 10in tablet in the first quarter of next year.
As anticipated, Amazon has forked Android to build its own version for the Kindle, which apparently looks nothing like the Android we are used to.
Techcrunch said Amazon is planning on offering its $79 a year internet streaming service Amazon Prime for free along with the device.
Amazon’s tablet will be WiFi only and come with a colour touchscreen, but will have a limited 6GB of storage.
Experts have had a positive outlook on Amazon’s tablet device, partly because at $250, it is around half the price of most tablets on the market, including the Ipad.
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