Amazon’s most notorious business strategy is undercutting market prices, offering up alternatives for retail purchases large and small, streaming media and even enterprise cloud services.  Speaking specifically to the consumer market, Amazon’s Kindle line may not be its most profitable piece of hardware, but only the starting point for Amazon’s mobile dreams.

Back in September, the e-comm giant released new versions of its popular, yet very affordable tablet, the Kindle Fire HDX.  The new tablets are designed with a better display, lighter design, a faster processor, and a new Mayday button that allows you to instantly chat with an Amazon representative when you need help with your device or any of its Amazon Prime services.

The Kindle Fire HDX is relatively cheap compared to what Apple and Samsung offer, but packs enough punch to make it competitive with many higher end products.  Time Magazine even ranked Amazon’s newest tablet in its Top 10 Gadgets for 2013.  Still, sales of the device aren’t as high as the company hopes, so Amazon has a plan to fuel Kindle Fire HDX sales over the holidays: Installment Plans.

Amazon is making its Kindle Fire HDX easier to afford by splitting the cost into four parts.  The 7-inch version requires an initial payment of only $57.25 while the 8.9-inch model will start at $94.75.  The rest of the cost will then be split into three, which will be paid at 90 days, 180 days, and 270 days.  If a consumer fails to settle their remaining balance, their HDX will be deregistered, shutting down all Amazon accounts and rendering their devices useless.

Still not ready to make the call on the Kindle Fire HDX? See how it compares to the iPad 4, Galaxy Note 10.1 and the Surface Pro 2.

Holiday gadget wars

Amazon isn’t the only one drawing in customers this holiday season via special offers as Samsung is offering discounts starting at $30 for its range of tablets.  Special offers apply only for online purchases.

Even Microsoft is spreading holiday cheers with its 12 Days of Deals.  From December 9-20, Microsoft is offering huge price cuts on special items each day.  But even if you miss the daily deal, Microsoft still offers huge discounts on some of its products like $200 off for a Surface Pro, $100 off for an Xbox holiday bundle, $300 off on a Razer Edge gaming tablet, and $100-$300 off on laptops and Ultrabooks.

photo credit: Stratageme.com via photopin cc