Amazon reportedly launching revamped Kindle Fire HD tablets later this year

In order to corner more share in the global tablet market, online retail store Amazon is looking at completely revamping its Kindle Fire tablet line-up for 2013, according to BGR. Amazon is planning an expansion for its current line-up with brand new devices that may be debuting in the next few months.

Amazon is set to launch at least three new Kindle Fire tablets into the markets to hit the shopping season this year. According to the same sources, the first tablet that the online retail website is planning to bring is a substitute for the 7-inch Kindle Fire, which is currently the company’s entry-level tablet.

While the diagonal measurement will not be changed, it seems like Amazon has plans for a new panel for the tablet, which will come with a higher 1280 x 800 pixel resolution. Quick fact: This is the resolution that the current Kindle Fire HD comes with. As of now, the base Kindle Fire model comes with an IPS display with 1024 x 600-pixel resolution.

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The new Kindle Fire may see a better panel with 1280 x 800 pixel resolution..

Other additions to the line-up include a brand new version of the Kindle Fire HD. Similar to the upgraded base model, the Kindle Fire HD will get an improved panel with 1920 x 1200-pixel resolution. This is huge step-up from the current 1280 x 800-pixel screen that the current model sports. The new entry-level Fire HD will also have a 7-inch display, if sources are to be believed. The Kindle Fire HD is currently priced at Rs 15, 999.

The last addition to Amazon’s tablet line-up for this year will be a pumped-up version of the 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD. While the current model already sports a 1920 x 1200 pixels panel, it seems like Amazon has plans for a completely new screen with a bumped up pixel count of 2560 x 1600.  If this is true, Amazon’s newest offering will come with more pixels in a smaller 8.9-inch screen than Apple’s 9.7-inch Retina displa, which comes with 2048 x 1536-pixel resolution. The current 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD model is priced at Rs 21,999.

Amazon may give the 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD more pixels than Apple’s 9.7-inch Retina display

The company is reportedly planning to bring in major changes to the design of the Kindle Fire HD tablet line-up as well. While the current Kindle Fire HD comes with a back that slopes smoothly out towards the edges, the new models may come with a more angular design with a flat slope out towards the edges instead of the curved slope. It also seems like the company is planning to redesign the tablets with corners that aren’t as rounded.

An additional change to the design is the shift of the power and volume buttons, which may no longer be found on the side of the tablets. Amazon may be looking at moving the buttons to the sloping area on the -back instead. This move is probably the company’s way of addressing the accidental button-pressing problem that users have faced in the past when the tablet is placed on its back.

The weight of the tablets is also being looked at. If sources are to be believed, Amazon has plans to make its latest additions considerably lighter than the current models in the market. It is still unclear if the launch versions of Amazon’s new tablets will be identical to the pre-production models currently being tested, though.

The company, however, has chosen not to confirm all this yet. The price at which these new tablets will come to the market has also not been finalised. However, Amazon may be looking at introducing the new tablets at the same price that the current Kindle Fire and Kindle Fire HD tablets sell at. For now, there is no word on when the new tablets may find their way to Indian shores, owing to the fact that the tablets are yet to see an official launch overseas.