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Amazon is moving quickly to defend its turf in the 7-inch tablet market after Apple's highly anticipated unveiling of the iPad mini last week.
In a not-too-subtle act of retaliation against Apple's new 7.9-inch tablet, Amazon has updated its homepage with a side-by-side comparison of Apple's product with its own Kindle Fire HD, claiming the latter offers better technical specs for a better price.
Amazon takes aim, specifically, at the new iPad mini's display, claiming its Kindle Fire HD offers 30 percent more pixels, or 53 more pixels per inch. The Internet search giant also suggests its Kindle Fire HD offers a richer experience when viewing HD movies and TV, and calls attention to its tablet having two stereo speakers vs. the iPad mini's just one.
[Related: Head-To-Head: iPad Mini Vs. Amazon Kindle Fire HD Vs. Google Nexus 7]
Amazon overall claims its 7-inch Kindle Fire HD offers "much more for much less," with a starting price of $199 compared to the iPad mini's $329.
Apple's price point for the new iPad mini is higher than what most Apple followers had projected, which had generally been figures around $250. But Apple, according to what Vice President of Worldwide Marketing Phil Schiller recently told Reuters, believes the $329 starting price is right on target; consumers will be willing to pay more, Schiller said, because the iPad mini offers more robust functionality than competing 7-inch tablets.
"The iPad is far and away the most successful product in its category. The most affordable product we've made so far was $399 and people were choosing that over those other devices," Schiller said, according to Reuters.
"And now you can get a device that's even more affordable at $329 in this great, new form, and I think a lot of customers are going to be very excited about that," he continued.
Apple did not immediately return a request for further comment.
NEXT: Analysts: New iPad mini Will Take 7-Inch Tablet By Storm
