In January of 2010 Apple introduced a truly transformative device. The iPad was sleek, portable, and capable of browsing the web in a fluid, stunning, and timely fashion. With millions of units sold, the iPad has been nothing short of game changing. The product was responsible for increasing web accessibility, inclusiveness, and the creation of a whole new tablet market segment. Since then, tablet computers have been characterized by their ability to bring the internet to people across the globe.

Though the iPad continues to dominate the tablet market, competitors have taken note of Apple’s success. Rivals have come and gone innumerably over the past year and it appears that no company can de-throne Apple’s revolutionary product. Paying no heed to this notion, Amazon, which has limited exposure to the tablet market, has taken a chance and decided to enter the market in hopes for success.  Their product, known as the Kindle Fire, has modest specs, and a very powerful web-browser. This device’s web-connectivity is seemingly identical to its Apple counterpart; however, it outshines the iPad in two ways: content and price.

Amazon is famed for the sheer volume and variety of products available for purchase in its online store. Customers describe their use of the website as a sort of addiction, and this sentiment is not far from the truth. The company’s most notable success has been in the online book market. Here, its Kindle e-reader family has connected millions of users from all walks to a vast repertoire of electronic literature. Now the Kindle Fire is bringing all of the features of other tablets, like a web-browser and media playback to its lineup. In fact, it is doing this at a fraction of the price of its competitors. At $199, Amazon is set to lose approximately $10 on every Kindle Fire sold. The company is likely to make this difference back many times over because of its integrated book, music, and television content store; where it has achieved economies of scale by making scores of sales at little cost on the margin.

This device will have huge market implications because it will serve as a catalyst for the widespread adoption of tablet devices. Cheap, portable computers like these are leading the charge towards universal web-access. This will have a significant  impact  in consolidating global markets and connecting producers with consumers. Increased market cohesiveness and constant connection to the information superhighway will mean a wider range of people will be able to partake in the virtual economy.

With the ability to execute transactions with such ease and quickness, transaction costs will fall. Lowering these costs will contribute to greater market efficiency and an overall rise in the volume of transactions made. This notion is the premise of Amazon’s acceptance of a market price below its total costs.

Additionally, because this device is so comparable to the iPad, it will finally bring genuine competition into the tablet market. This is likely to result in more innovative products, lower prices for consumers, and a shorter product pipeline with more new features offered on new models.

Overall the newest entrant into the tablet-computing race is a good thing for consumers. The Kindle Fire raises the bar in terms of price and power offered. This will set a precedent for future devices and is a needed substitute to the current tablet offering. It will be interesting to see how the tablet landscape changes with the Kindle Fire, however one thing is certain: millions of people who otherwise wouldn’t buy a tablet will be picking up a Kindle Fire.