After Kindle Fire Comes Amazon's New Smartphone

Before the end of 2012, Amazon are expected to release a smartphone that will rival Apple's iPhone, but at a fraction of the price.

Following on from the successful release of the Kindle Fire, industry analysts Citigroup have stated that moving into the Smartphone market will be Amazon's next most logical step.

Talks have already begun in Amazon's supply chain in the Far East to build and produce a new Smartphone which will easily rival the ever-popular Apple iPhone, but which will be sold at a fraction of the price.

Citigroup have been able to confirm that the new smart phone will have a 4" screen, which is bigger than the current iPhone screen, and an 8 megapixel camera.

It is currently under development with Foxconn International Holdings, which are the top contract cell phone makers in the world, and who currently produce many of Apple's most successful products.

Industry insiders see this move as a direct assault by the online retail giant on the lucrative touchscreen entertainment monopoly that Apple currently hold.

Amazon recently launched the Kindle Fire tablet device using components from Texas Instruments, Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics and Hynix Semiconductor.

Such is the demand for the Kindle Fire, there are suggestions that sales across the U.S could reach 5 million in the run up to Christmas.

Sales of the Kindle Fire are going through the roof because consumers find its $199 price tag irresistible.

Amazon loses $3 on every Kindle Fire tablet it sells, but this if easily offset against the huge income stream it generates through its online sales of downloadable music and movies.

Quite how they will offset the cost of their planned new smart phone while selling at a loss is unclear at this period in time, but when Amazon say they will do something, they normally do it, and make it highly profitable by giving the consumer a great deal that is hard to resist.

Globally, Amazon has been described as the department store to the world as Google is the search engine of the world, and this comparison gives us some idea of just how huge an online retailer Amazon really is.

Those of us who recollect Amazon's early days remember them fondly as an online bookshop, who not only undercut other retailers, but who, from the very start, established a reputation for offering a quick and reliable delivery service.

This trend has continued and today Amazon sells just about everything you can think of, and will deliver practically everywhere.

It will be interesting to see how this new smartphone they are developing works out.

The Amazon Kindle Fire tablet follows hot on the heels of the hugely successful Kindle e-Reader, which has revolutionised how we read books, and generated a healthy and robust new industry in self-publishing to satisfy demand.

It would seem a natural progression for Amazon to now target the touchscreen cell phone market, according to analysts Citigroup.

Taiwan's Ton Hai Precision Industry Company Ltd - who supply many components for Apple, will be contracted to undertake the actual making of the new Amazon smartphone,

It is expected the cell phone will be pegged to the mid-range level and, depending on the type of processor used, should retail at around $150 - $170.

• Amazon Kindle Fire