Kindle Fire HD 8.9 launched in Europe and Japan, gets permanent price cut in the USA

Kindle Fire HD 8.9 launched in Europe and Japan, gets permanent price cut in the USA

Amazon today launched its largest slate, the Kindle Fire HD 8.9, in Europe (the UK, Germany, France, Italy and Spain, to be exact) and Japan, where it's been up for pre-order since late last month. That's not all, though, as Amazon says having to make more 8.9-inch tabs for those markets has cut production costs, and the savings are being passed on to US customers in the form of a price cut. This isn't one of the time-sensitive offers Amazon has a habit of pulling, so from today onwards, you'll be able to pick up a WiFi-only 16GB model for $269, or the 4G option with 32 gigs of storage for $399. The higher capacity models -- 32GB WiFi-only and 64GB with 4G -- now tally up at $299 and $499, respectively.

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Source: Amazon

Green Throttle officially launches its Android gaming platform, we go hands-on

Green Throttle Games officially launches, we go handson

Thinking of rounding out your entertainment center's arsenal with an Android-based game console? You've certainly got options: Ouya, GameStick and Project Shield are all vying for a spot on your couch. On the other hand, you might already have a perfectly serviceable Android device just waiting to be converted into a makeshift games console -- that's where Green Throttle Games comes in. By pairing a dual-stick gamepad with a console-like game launcher, Green Throttle aims to turn any Android device into a gaming platform. We spent some time with a developer build of the setup late last year, but today the company officially launched the Green Throttle Arena and its companion Atlas controller. We popped in to the firm's Santa Clara office to see what changed.

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Kindle Fire HD 8.9 up for pre-order in Japan, ships March 12th

Kindle Fire HD 8.9 up for pre-order in Japan, ships March 12th

Amazon decided last year it was time to take the Kindle brand to Japan, but for some reason, the Fire HD 8.9 wasn't invited. Not being one to hold grudges, the biggest Kindle slate has agreed to a belated introduction, and is now available for pre-order on Amazon's Japanese portal, and in several bricks-and-mortar stores. Parting with 24,800 yen (around $269) will reserve you a 16GB model, or you can double that storage to 32GB for a total price of 29,800 yen (around $323). Both configurations are WiFi-only, and will begin shipping to early adopters on March 12th. If you've been holding out for that extra 1.9 inches, head for the link below to get in on the first batch, or peruse the Japanese PR if you're keen to hear the full pitch.

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Via: Impress Watch

Source: Amazon

Amazon discounts 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD models as part of Valentine’s Day promo

Amazon discounts 89inch Kindle Fire HD models as part of Valentine's Day deals

Amazon clearly doesn't have a problem with slashing the prices of its 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD from time to time. As such, don't color us surprised after the mega online retailer announced that it's kicking off Valentine's Day festivities by offering up to a $50 discount on the 8.9-inch Fire HDs. For starters, the WiFi-only slate is set to be up for grabs starting at a decent $269 for the 16GB model, while the higher-end, LTE-equipped Kindle will be tagged at a pricier $449 (with 32GB of built-in storage), which isn't too bad an offer when compared to the usual entry prices of $299 and $499, respectively. The Amazon deals run from today through February 8th, so there's still a little time to find out if your significant other would enjoy one of these -- or, if all else fails, perhaps you could just add some Fire to your personal gadget collection.

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Source: Amazon

Engadget’s tablet buyer’s guide: winter 2013 edition

DNP Engadget's tablet buyer's guide winter 2013 edition

As we begin 2013, we're stuck in a kind of tablet limbo. Most companies rushed to get devices out for the fall, while the models we saw at CES 2013 aren't yet shipping. As such, it's a mostly familiar deck, with Apple, Google and Microsoft once again striving for the top spot. That said, there are new entries from Amazon and ASUS, and many of us who didn't score some sweet loot this holiday season have a slate-sized pile of cash to spend. If you're in that situation, continue on for our first tablet guide of 2013.

Note: If you're looking for tablets with an Atom or Core i5 CPU, you'll find those in our forthcoming laptop buyer's guide, since they have the same guts as notebooks (or netbooks, in some cases). For the purposes of this tablet guide, we define tablets as slate-type devices with low-power ARM processors.

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OpenCL mod for the Kindle Fire HD reveals untapped graphics potential (hands-on video)

If a Kindle Fire HD could run OpenCL accelerated graphics, it'd look like this handson video

As neat as the Kindle Fire HD already is, just a few dinky tweaks could turn it into so much more -- a platform for true physics-based gaming, for example, or even for surprisingly fast photo manipulation. How come? Because both the 8.9-inch and 7-inch versions of the Android-based slate come with a graphics engine that can handle OpenCL acceleration. It certainly won't work out of the box, but Amazon has been working quietly with Imagination Technologies -- the folks behind the tablet's PowerVR GPU -- to try it out. The demo after the break is subtle, perhaps, but it's fluid, detailed and goes far beyond anything that a stock device can achieve. It also proves that, in certain circumstances, OpenCL has the power to boost frame rates by 50 percent while simultaneously lowering power consumption by the same proportion. Read on for more.

Continue reading OpenCL mod for the Kindle Fire HD reveals untapped graphics potential (hands-on video)

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Amazon slashes $50 off Kindle Fire HD 8.9 models during January, but only for students

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While many of us are still recovering from New Year's celebrations, Amazon is considerably clearer-headed: it wants us ready for the winter school term that's about to start. Appropriately, it's offering a surprisingly steep discount on the Kindle Fire HD 8.9 for students. Americans headed back to class can get $50 off the price of the larger tablet for the whole of January, regardless of the capacity or the presence of LTE. The catch, apart from needing a .edu email address for the Amazon Student program, is the requirement for an active Prime subscription -- although that's no great shakes when Amazon accepts both the free six-month offer and the $39 yearly student plan. At $249, the discounted Kindle Fire HD is tempting for anyone who can do their course shopping at the Kindle Store... or just wants a convenient distraction during mid-terms.

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Via: SlashGear

Source: Amazon

WatchESPN sports streaming reaches Amazon Kindle Fire tablets

WatchESPN sports streaming reaches Amazon Kindle Fire tablets

Although WatchESPN viewing has been an option for Android viewers since 2011, those with Amazon tablets haven't had the same luxury -- they've sometimes had to watch on an old-fashioned TV. Thankfully, ESPN is giving them a better start to the new year by bringing its app to the Amazon Appstore. Anyone with a regular Kindle Fire, Kindle Fire HD or Kindle Fire HD 8.9 now has access to live games and news as long as they have a supporting TV subscription. The app is free outside of the cost of ESPN itself; if you've got the right mix of hardware and software, it's easy to get your fill at the source link.

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Via: ESPN

Source: Amazon

GameStop now stocking Kindle Fire tablets, handing out free virtual bucks with purchase

GameStop now stocking Kindle Fire tablets, handing out free virtual bucks with purchase

The Kindle Fire line of tablets is the latest set of electronics to grace GameStop store shelves in the US, the Texas company announced recently. From the baby 7-inch all the way to the larger 8.9-inch, the entire Fire line will be carried in all of GameStop's 4,400 US-based locations after a successful test run earlier this year with various Android-based tablets -- presumably it won't be too long before discounted, used versions of the tablets become widely available, as GameStop's offering a $100 in-store credit trade incentive toward the original Kindle Fire. Sadly, you'll only snag the free $25 Amazon.com gift card (offered through the end of January) if you purchase a brand new Fire, but then there's always that $50 off sale going on today, right?

Continue reading GameStop now stocking Kindle Fire tablets, handing out free virtual bucks with purchase

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Amazon shaves $50 off the 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD for today only

Amazon is shaving $50 off the Kindle Fire HD 89inch for today

Amazon may already be selling its Kindle range at cost, but here's your chance to snag one for even less. The e-tailer's knocking a cool 50 bucks off the 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD just for today -- valid on both the WiFi-only and the 4G LTE editions. Just use the code FIREHD89 while checking out and you can save enough to get rid of those pesky ads, load it up with apps, and still have some left over for a few literary classics.

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Source: Amazon, Kindle Team (Twitter)