Amazon to release new kindle with rechargeable protective case

Amazon’s Kindle Voyage. CEO Jeff Bezos says an ‘all-new, top of the line Kindle’ is near. Also under development is a separate case with a battery that can be charged using solar power.PHOTO:NATHAN OLIVAREZ-GILES/THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

(THE WALL STREET JOURNAL) Amazon.comis betting on batteries to drum up more sales of its popular line of Kindle e-readers.

In a first for the Seattle online retailer, Amazon will soon sell a higher-end Kindle witha rechargeableprotectivecasefor extended battery life, according to a person familiar with the matter. Thisremovable coverwill allow the Kindle to be thinner than earlier devices.

Also under development is a separateKindle case with a battery that can bechargedusing solar power. It is unlikely this case will be released in the immediate future, another person familiar with the matter said.

Amazon’s chief executive,Jeff Bezos,saidMondayon Twitter that an “all-new, top of the line Kindle” is almost ready, and promised the company would reveal details next week.

Pricing for the latest devices couldn’t be learned. A spokeswomandeclined to elaborate on Mr. Bezos’s tweet.

The new Kindle and case are code-named “Whiskey” and “Soda,” respectively, and the solar-powered case is known internally as “Sunkiss” amongengineers atLab126, Amazon’s Silicon Valley hardware development unit, one of the people said. The division is responsible for other Amazon devices including its Echo virtual assistant, Fire tablets and Fire TV set-top box.

Thelatestdevices would help to solidify Amazon’s dominance in e-readers. Rivals likeRakutenInc.’s Kobo andBarnes & NobleInc.’s Nook have failed to gain significant traction, in part because of Mr. Bezos’s stated commitment to selling devices at or near cost to keep prices low.

Amazon has also tied e-books and e-readers into its popular Prime program, offering occasional discounts exclusively to members of the $99-per-year service. Today, for instance, Prime members can buy various Kindles with price cuts of as much as 38%, presumably to clear inventory for the new devices.

The Kindle was Amazon’s firstconsumerelectronics device, released in 2007 for $400. As Amazon cut prices it has proven to be the company’s signature gadget, with about a dozen different iterations includinga large-screen version and the highest priced model, the$199Voyage.

Because the devices are durable, one challenge has been compelling readers to buy upgraded versions, according to people familiar with the matter, though Amazon says it is content to make money off e-book sales even for older model Kindles. The company has never released details about Kindle sales.

The new Kindle devicefollows Amazon’s rollout of voice-activated speakers last month known as Dot and Tap and an expanded lineup of thumb-sized devices allowing customers to summon specific products with the push of a button.

The solar-powered case fits with a broader ambition at Amazon to reduce its environmental impact, though its overseas manufacturers may have different aims. Amazon’s cloud computing AWS unit uses wind and solar power at several of its data centers.

It has a stated goal of getting 40% of its power from renewable energy sources by year-end, from 25% last April.