14 DAY TRIAL // We've been telling you a lot of people chose to buy tablets and offer them as gifts to loved ones this holiday season. Apparently, one of the most popular sellers in this category appears to be the Kindle Fire tablet.
Mobile app analytics firm Flurry has just posted some holiday sales numbers showing the Kindle Fire tablet at the center of Christmas celebrations.
According to the report, these particular slates saw 24 times more activations on Christmas day, compared to any other day in December.
Apparently, the Kindle Fire blew away competition like Apple, Samsung or Acer without breaking a sweat. But there’s a little caveat here. Kindle Fire tablets have been called the “fruitcake of tablets” which means people usually buy the tablet not for themselves but to offer it as a gift to somebody.
That’s why the Kindle Fire is no longer part of the top selling 5 tablets after the holiday season has ended.
However, it’s quite understandable why the Kindles remain a popular gift. They are worthy products with decent specifications and, most importantly, they come at a very good price. On top of that, Amazon regularly offers discounts for them and has even awarded its latest Kindle Fire HDX models with installment plans.
Flurry Analyst Marry Ellen Gordon explains the company’s point of view.
“We believe price, business model, target market and form factor all contributed to the big boost in Kindle activations at Christmas relative to other times of the year. Amazon sells Kindle tablets at cost, putting them with the Christmas budgets of more people than some other devices.”
“The reason Amazon sells tablets at cost is that for them tablets are a channel for promoting physical goods and promoting and delivering digital content. That same retail business model means that Amazon is top of mind for many consumers during the holiday season, giving it lots of opportunity to promote its tablets as Christmas gifts.”
The good news is that this year the “Christmas activation bump” wasn't that big compared to previous years, decreasing from 41 times its baseline activation on Christmas 2011 to 24 this year. So the Kindle Fire has chances of rising above its “king of the holidays” status.