Amazon has refreshed its line of Kindles, introducing four new devices, updating the original Kindle Fire, and dropping the price on the cheapest e-ink Kindle to $69.
The new line of Kindle Fire tablets -- the Kindle Fire HD -- comes in two screen sizes, 7-inch ($199) and 8.9-inch ($299). Both have 16GB of built-in storage (32GB versions are also available), and feature upgraded displays that feature less glare. Other features include dual-band wifi with two antennas to improve wifi reception and speed. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos also announced a $499 version of the largest Kindle Fire HD, which includes 4G LTE and 32GB of built-in storage, and, for $49.99 a year, 250 MB of monthly data, 20GB of cloud storage, and $10 in app store credit. The 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HDs are slated to ship on Nov. 20, and the 7-inch model is slated to ship on Sept. 14.
Bezos also presented a new e-reader device called the Kindle Paperwhite, which features a front-lit fiber optic display, an 8-week battery, and a $119 price tag ($179 if you want 3G). It ships on Oct. 1.
The original Kindle Fire also saw an upgrade -- faster chip, more memory, better battery -- and a price cut to $159. It ships on Sept. 14.
During the press conference (embedded below) in Santa Monica, Calif., Bezos talked up the Kindle Serials program, which allows readers to subscribe to a series for $1.99, and receive future installments as they're released. Other new features introduced include Whispersync for Voice, which syncs your reading progress across the audio and e-book versions of titles in your Kindle library.
