Via The Digital Reader, we learn that Amazon continues to schmooze talent in the Boston region. The next Lab 126 event can be found here, with more interesting language attached to a December mixer:
We are working on a revolutionary V1 product that will allow us to deliver Digital Media to our customers in new ways and disrupt the current marketplace. […] We believe this new product will be even bigger than Kindle!
Of course, we have some idea what Amazon might be working on in regards to a television-based streamer. And there probably are greater numbers of TV viewers than readers these days… but enough to eclipse Kindle tablets and e-readers? I’m not so sure. Are we looking at an Amazon phone or smartwatch or is this just typical marketing hyperbole?
Smells like cinnamon…
Didn’t realize that Amazon had started to invade Kendall Square. Microsoft and Google have already taken out quite a bit of the area, now getting even more crowded in addition to all of the biotechs in the area.
In any case, I agree – I also wonder what they could be coming up with that they think will have as big of a market as kindle and not already in existence.
I hope the new product includes a calendar which helps them realize that Thursday December 30 doesn’t come around again for several years.
Amazon Digital PRIME DVR-TV with unlimited Amazon Cloud Drive storage. Local SSD for no-lag viewing. Access to all of your Amazon digital content including movies, TV, music, Kindle books and your own digital pictures and Amazon Appstore apps & games. Includes Amazon PRIME, Netflix, HBOGo, Hulu-Plus.
rpj22, good catch. Strange. So is there just a single event and this is a typo where they got the month (January 30th is a Thursday) or day wrong? What the source article links is an event with a different month (January) and without the exciting text. Curious.
Hearing rumors that they’re going to do a buyout of the FCC…
Nope, it’s personal drones.
If it happens, it has to be phone. There is no more growth on tv connected devices, chromecast took care of that. I suspect it will come with some kind of a connection to amazon streaming with a discounted or free price, maybe something like what republic does. My republic bill is $10, they can certainly beat that. Free if you use amazon only for data, by the bit for non amazon 3g/4g? I would jump, I have a lot of Amazon music and am not happy with the performance of my republic service.
I can’t see anything else that will lead to increased sales for them. That’s what it is all about…
@Bryan10024, I can’t imagine that being something they call bigger than Kindle – at least I hope not, since there are already dozens (hundreds) of devices doing Amazon streaming or are you saying something to do live capture? I don’t see SSD being a benefit. Tivo does fine recording 6 streams an playing back multiple streams all on a standard SATA spinning hard drive. I don’t see the HBO thing being included because they refuse to license HBO GO to anyone without a cable subscription. I don’t see Netflix being included as they are direct competition. Obviously and app store would allow these apps to be installed, but not included.
Suspect its just hyperbole. But hey, you never know. Apple sold 13 Million Apple TVs by halfway through 2013, about half of them in the previous year, so say the run rate is 6.5 Million. The stuff I’ve seen recently had Kindle FIRE sales estimates in the 10 million range. Doesn’t seem likely a TV STB product will sell enough units to eclipse the Kindle line…
Similarly, Netflix has what, 33 Million customers? I can imagine Amazon thinking they have a chance at numbers like that, but geez it would take a long time. Selling 10 Million STB units on the strength of Amazon Prime? That’s years away…
A new Kindle product with similar pricing, battery life, display quality for reading but with color and refresh rates sufficient to support video? Possible though most of the technologies that promised to deliver this sort of thing have fizzled so far.
I don’t have any idea…
Prime 3D Printers.
So… Prime 3D Printers located in 7-Eleven’s next to the Amazon Lockers that can create products for immediate pickup? Brilliant!