Amazon iPad 2 Rival Tablet Gets Fondled By Journo

It's unlikely that any other publication, let alone any other journalist would have been believed had they claimed to have seen and handled the next Amazon tablet.

Yet because MG Siegler works for Techcrunch (and AOL), it is likely that his detailed description of the Amazon tablet, known as the "Amazon Kindle" is reliable.

The device, he says, comes with a 7-inch capacitive touchscreen display with a customised version of Android running on it; Siegler says that it looks like the Blackberry PlayBook, another 7-inch tablet.

Disappointingly, it appears to be a two finger multi-touch, rather than a 10-finger as with the iPad and has no camera; furthermore, Amazon has yet to come with a colour e-ink screen which means that the tablet has to use a traditional back-lit colour screen.

The Design Verification Unit seen by Siegler appears to be the one set to be released in a few weeks time. At $250, it will be in direct competition with the HTC Flyer and the Lenovo A1 which costs less at $199.

Siegler also says that a bigger version of the tablet, a 10-inch model, will be produced if the 7-inch model proves to be a hit and mentioned that a 3G version of the device will be available.