What Blackberry called, “The best thing since the first Blackberry” is now seeing yet another price redection to the price of $200 for the 16GB model. This QNX powered tablet launched without email, calender and contacts applications which made it feel as though the device was rushed. This was origionally priced at $500, but this price drop should help sales a lot, though it is now in direct competition with the Amazon Kindle Fire also priced at $200. It is not known when this will be happening, but it should be coming before the holidays arrive. Which would you choose?

Amazon's Kindle Fire

When the Kindle Fire was introduced back in September, there were some skeptical people. Many thought that Amazon reaching the $200 price point would mean the tablet experience would be much worse than on other tablets at higher price points. They mentioned the lack of cameras, Bluetooth, a microphone, and more. But it doesn’t matter. Here’s why.

When doubters mention the lack of these features, they aren’t thinking of the Kindle Fire’s target market. The Fire is for people who want to sit back and just play some games, read books, and watch movies. The new document translation feature is also really awesome. For them, cameras, Bluetooth, and microphones don’t matter to them. All they want is a way to enjoy content. Nothing more, nothing less.

So, overall, I think the Kindle Fire will be great for people that just want to have an easy way to have a ton of content at their fingertips. And that’s what they’ll get. With Amazon Prime on the device, people will be able to stream tons of content for only $79 a year. That’s all most people need. With this price point, parents will be able to give their kids tablets without breaking the bank. The Fire will be what puts tablets into the hands of people that didn’t want to drop hundreds more for a more expensive tablet. And that’s what’s exciting.

The Amazon Kindle was released four years ago in 2007, and it has hit the world by storm. Many other companies have also changed with the times and released their own eReaders, but the Kindle remains dominant, and even allows some users to borrow books from libraries. Recently, with the announcement of the expansion of the family, including the new Kindle Fire tablet, there are a lot of options to consider. Here’s a basic rundown.

The Kindle 

 The most basic Kindle is only $79 and is Wi-Fi enabled, has 6 inch E-Ink display, and downloads books at blazing fast speeds. It weighs less than six ounces, and is definitely a bang for your buck. You can also pay $109 for a version that doesn’t display sponsored screen savers and special offers.

The Kindle Touch and Kindle Touch 3G

The Kindle Touch and it’s 3G enabled version are essentially the same as the basic Kindle except with a touch screen. It is slightly smaller and lighter, and can hold up to 3,000 books. This model allows users to store audio books and music on it, giving people the choice of listening rather than reading. The 3G no longer allows internet browsing, but lets you download books anywhere you go. It will be released on November 21st, 2011, so get your pre-orders in!

The Kindle Keyboard and Kindle Keyboard 3G

The Kindle Keyboard offers a full keyboard for navigation and page turning, while only weighing 8.5 ounces and being 1/3 of an inch thick. It can hold up to 3,500 books, and like the other Kindles, have an extremely long battery life that stretches beyond a month. The Kindle Keyboard is only $99 with the screen savers and special offers, while $139 without. The 3G enabled version is $139 with the screen savers and special offers and is $189 without. Decisions, decisions.

The Kindle Fire

The Kindle Fire is Amazon’s first step into the growing tablet industry, and at only $199, this tablet’s sales will be on fire. It offers a 7 inch, multitouch display and is Wi-Fi compatible. It offers free cloud storage for everything on it, and allows users to surf the internet with Amazon Silk. Amazon Prime users will be able to stream TV shows and movies, and anyone can download from the 18 million shows, movies, books, and magazines Amazon has to offer. This baby is going to be released on November 15th, 2011.

Robert takes a look at the new Kindle 3.1 software. Check out release on omnitechnews.net:
http://www.omnitechnews.net/blog/2011/02/07/kindle-software-update-3-1-now-available-includes-real-page-numbers-and-public-notes/

If you would like to download the 3.1 update, please go here:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=hp_navbox_top_kindlelg?nodeId=200529700

If you own a Windows Phone, you’ve probably been asking yourself “When is that darn Amazon app coming out?”. Maybe not, but the official Amazon app is now live in the Marketplace. It’s free, and really takes advantage of Windows Phone’s panorama control. I don’t have a link, but if you search Amazon in Zune, then you’ll see the app. Here is the description of the app:

Designed for Windows Phone

Swipe left or right to slide between product details, reviews,related items and more.

Fast

Quickly search millions of products In more than 40 product categories.

Convenient

Take advantage 1-Click ordering. Prime member support Wish Lists,package tracking and more.

Secure

All purchases are routed to Amazon’s secure servers.

This has been news for a while now but we thought we’d let you know anyway; a deal site called LivingSocial is selling Amazon gift cards for $10 a piece. What’s so big about this you might say, well these gift cards have a $20 value on Amazon. This deal doesn’t have much time left so I would go and grab one of these things now. LivingSocial is selling about 90k of these cards an hour, and it is only one per person, but this is still a great deal to make your day.

Update: LivingSocial has sold 1 million cards.

Update: Sold out after 1,301,296 cards purchased

With the recent pricing announcement for the 3DS, it was pretty obvious that this device would be making it’s way to Amazon soon. We also get a glimpse at the packaging now which is nice. The new 3DS is available for pre-order in two colors: Cosmo black and aqua blue for $249.99.

More interestingly, Metal Gear Solid Snake Eater 3DS and Contra 3DS are also available for pre-order. They don’t have any box art as of right now but hopefully we’ll see some pop up over the next few weeks.

Amazon points out some of the new features of the Nintendo 3DS:

• Nintendo 3DS offers a new way to play, 3D without the need for special glasses
• Play 3D games, take 3D pictures, and watch 3D videos with Nintendo 3DS
• Connect to a deeper wireless experience with SpotPass™ and StreetPass™, giving you more exclusive content and connecting you with other Nintendo 3DS users
• Complete with an adjustable stylus, 6 AR cards, and fun built-in software such as Face Raiders™, Nintendo 3DS Sound, and the Mii Maker™ application
• The 3D depth slider lets your determine how much 3D you want to see

Well this is either a totally mistake, or a total bargain; the original PS3 is currently listed on Amazon for $39.99. New. People are ordering these things in bulk so I would order soon if you’re going to get in on this deal. Obviously, they are already out of stock but Amazon are still accepting orders. Your total savings with this deal/mistake is $460.00. It’s pretty obvious that Amazon are going to be refunding a lot of people but hey, it’s worth a shot. To order the $39.99 PS3, follow this link:

Update: Amazon have broken the link to the PS3. Well it was fun while it last. No word on whether people will be getting a refund though. What have your experiences been?

Update: Well the ball game is officially off.

Amazon has just announced the next generation of Kindle! Set to be released on August 27th, this new Kindle is 21% smaller, 15% lighter, and has a 20% faster E Ink refresh rate. It will come in 2 colors: the new graphite and the original white. The 3rd gen. Kindle will be available in a $139 WiFi only version and a $189 WiFi+3G version. Other improvements include better battery life, increased storage (4GB), an experimental WebKit browser, and higher display contrast. These are the main updates in the new device but there are some other minor tweaks to the hardware and software. Overall, pretty cool.

Update: It’s already available to pre-order right here: http://amzn.to/cdW4XZ

It’s been over a year since the Kindle DX was released so it was only a matter of time before a refresh. The Kindle got a price drop earlier this week and now it’s the DX’s turn to take the spotlight. The new DX will feature a new 9.7 inch display which is 50% brighter. It will also come with a graphite black finish. It will cost $379 and is available for pre-order today. The new DX will ship on July 7th.