As the release date for the new Amazon Kindle Fire draws nearer, more and more people have been pre-ordering the upcoming tablet device. So much, in fact, that in a recent study done by ChangeWave, the upcoming demand for the Kindle is actually ahead of the iPad.
RBC Analyst Mike Abramsky presented the findings from the latest ChangeWave survey on the likelihood of consumers to purchase the new Amazon Kindle. Somewhat surprisingly, the results showed a higher demand for the Kindle tablet, with 5% of consumers already having pre-ordered or are very likely to buy it. This beat out the similar survey done last year in which the Apple iPad sat at 4% of consumers saying they would be very likely to purchase the tablet.
However, we must also take into account the fact that as of last year, the Apple iPad was the first major tablet on the market. Perhaps consumers weren’t quite sure of a tablet’s capabilities and advantages but now that the market has seen numerous tablets rolled out in the last year, the consumers may be willing to pay up ahead of time because they are familiar with the product.
There was also a very interesting piece of information included in the report. “Tablet contenders (Xoom, Galaxy Tab, PlayBook, etc) have failed to gain appreciable traction against iPad’s est. 67% share, and iPad 2 should be a popular holiday purchase,” Abramsky wrote in his note. “However, strong early Fire uptake seems likely, raising speculation Apple now faces a real tablet contender. Survey data says 26% of likely Fire buyers (i.e. of the 5%) say they will delay/put on hold iPad buying. Sustained Fire uptake and ‘buzz’ will depend on consumer/reviewer reactions to Fire’s user experience.” – That means a number of people are actually replacing their iPad with Amazon’s Kindle Fire this year.
The Amazon Kindle Fire is set to launch on November 15th for a competitive price of $199. Preorders are looking up and we here at Tabletorials have also already put in our order. Make sure to keep checking back for a review of the device as soon as it is launched and catch all of this week’s highlights in our Tabletorials Friday Roundup.
