By Mae Anderson, Technology Writer
NEW YORK (AP) --Amazon keeps rolling out the devices.
The largest U.S. e-commerce company is introducing two new e-readers and new styles of its Kindle Fire HD tablet as part of a fall lineup of Kindle devices. The new and updated devices come on the heels of Amazon's Fire smartphone launch in June and the launch of a Fire set-top box that allows online video streaming to your TV in April.
With the new e-readers Amazon is trying to entice users to join its ecosystem of products and services by offering a variety of price points and products. Once a user has an Amazon device they are more likely to shell out for Amazon's $99-annual Prime loyalty club as well as buy movies, books and apps from the retailer.
All devices begin shipping in October, in time for the crucial holiday shopping season. Amazon's new devices will have to compete with a variety of tablets and smartphones, however — including Apple's new iPhone 6 and 6 Plus — in order to win during the crucial season.
At the high end, Amazon has refreshed its Kindle Fire HDX with a sharper 8.9-inch display, better sound and faster processor, keeping the same $379 price tag.
It is also now offering Kindle Fire HD tablet in two sizes, with 6- and 7-inch screens, measured diagonally. The devices with a 6-inch screen start at $99, while the 7-inch screen starts at $139, down from $154.
Finally, Amazon is introducing a kids Kindle HD tablet, $149 for a six-inch screen and $189 for a 7-inch screen, that comes with a two-year warranty and a year of Amazon's FreeTime Unlimited, a subscription-only service that offers access to a curated assortment of kid-friendly apps, books and videos.
The Fire HD Kids Edition also disables in-app purchases. That is key because Amazon is in the midst of a dispute with the Federal Trade Commission over allegations that it did not do enough to prevent children from making unauthorized in-app purchases in the past. Apple and Google have settled with the FTC over similar charges, but Amazon has said it is not going to settle.
Amazon also debuted a new e-reader, called the Kindle Voyage, that costs $199 and features a glare-less screen and textured glass front. On the low end it is offering a $79 Kindle touch e-reader, the first time a touch screen has been available on an e-reader at that price. It will also continue to sell its mid-range $119 Kindle Paperwhite e-reader.
Shares of the Seattle company fell $3.76 to close at $324 on Wednesday.
Harvey Weinstein hit with new sex crime charge in New York
Harvey Weinstein pleaded not guilty Wednesday to a new sex crime charge in New York, as he awaits retrial in his landmark #MeToo case.
Details of the new allegations were not immediately available. He was charged with committing a criminal sex act.
The jailed ex-movie mogul has long maintained that any sexual activity was consensual.
Prosecutors revealed last week that Weinstein had been indicted on additional sex crime charges that weren't part of the case that led to his now-overturned 2020 conviction. But the new indictment was sealed until his arraignment.
Prosecutors have said that the grand jury heard evidence of up to three alleged assaults — two in hotels in the Tribeca neighborhood and one at a lower Manhattan residential building. The purported incidents took place from the mid-2000s to 2016, prosecutors said.
But it's not clear whether any of those allegations underlie the new indictment.
While bracing for the new charges, Weinstein also is awaiting retrial after New York state's highest court this spring overturned his 2020 conviction on rape and sexual assault charges involving two women. The high court, called the Court of Appeals, ordered a new trial, which is tentatively scheduled to begin Nov. 12.
The Court of Appeals ruled that the then-trial judge unfairly allowed testimony against him based on allegations that were not part of the case. That judge's term expired in 2022, and he is no longer on the bench.
Prosecutors have said they'll seek to fold the new charges into the retrial, but Weinstein's lawyers say it should be a separate case.
Weinstein, who also was convicted in 2022 in a Los Angeles rape case, remains behind bars while awaiting his New York retrial.
Weinstein,... Read More