In addition, tapping the screen will unveil a slider which can evenly brighten up the screen, bringing a “cool light” into the reader. Because of a soft and gentle light, the next-gen Kindle is expected to be more reliable and comfortable to use than tablets that utilize harsh light similar to that of white LCDs. The integration of illumination into the new e-ink Kindles has been deemed as a favorable course of action for Amazon.

With the Kindle Touch being associated with a very satisfying reading experience, an illuminated screen can make such experience even more worthwhile. Illuminated screens can also contribute to the increased popularity of e-readers, that they are highly useful not just with daylight but even in the dark. Although the industrial design of the reader was reported to still remain at a developmental level, it was noted that the next-gen Kindle will be put up for sale this 2012.

Possible prices for the device are still undisclosed.

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The box set will contain the Grace FireDock, a battery-operated remote control, power adapter for wall outlet, aux cable port that you can use when you opt for other audio source besides Kindle Fire like iPad, iPhone or Samsung Galaxy, and a user manual. As another separate purchase, you can also buy the rechargeable Lithium Ion Battery which you can use to operate the FireDock while on the go.

It should be noted though that the battery will not charge the Kindle Fire. You can only charge the Kindle Fire when the FireDock is plugged directly to a wall outlet. The rechargeable battery is specifically made to power the FireDock when the device is not plugged in. Other notable features include a main side that provides 50° and 38° viewing angles and a cradle that can be rotated for vertical or horizontal use.

However, you need to wait for July 2, 2012 before you can enjoy this $130 device’s amazing features.

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The claim is further strengthened with Catcher Technology (a Taiwanese company involved in developing chassis) receiving initial orders from Amazon on a new Kindle Fire tablet PC. However, size of the chassis has not been identified (if it was, we’ll have an idea of the tablet’s size). Catcher will be responsible in supplying the chassis or the tablet’s skeleton structure to Amazon straight from its plants in Taizhou, China. However, Catcher remained mum on these reports.

Speculated features point to the tablet having a screen size ranging from nine (9) to ten inches while processor is the NVIDIA quad-core Tegra 3 (we can only speculate for now that the larger Kindle Fire may be the Kindle Fire 2).

As for release, there is information indicating that the Kindle Fire 2 may be revealed by second quarter of the year. The mere order from Catcher Technology can be a clear indication that Amazon is beginning to be busy on its new tablet project. In terms of price, this is a blur for now.

Recently it was reported that Amazon has made plans to choose and certify the components that are to be used for the Kindle Fire 2 that will significantly reduce manufacturing costs. As what had been suggested, Amazon is focusing on how to increase their profits based on hardware alone, thereby exploring parts that are less costly.

The public are expecting that they will integrate certain improvements, such as the integration of a microSD card slot, Bluetooth capabilities, and actual volume buttons. Moreover, it is expected that Amazon will be releasing a tablet that measures larger than its 7-inch predecessor, most likely 10 inches. It has been claimed that the mass production for the Kindle Fire 2 will begin this May or June for these units to be released and made available after 2012’s second quarter.

Stay tuned.

However, Amazon may be taking a step backward, if the rumors are true that it is planning to open a retail store in Seattle. Seattle is where the company’s headquarters is located. The company is said to try the physical store to test if the move can be profitable. According to the rumors, what Amazon intends to put up is a boutique type store. The lay out design of the store is also contracted sing a shell company to keep the business move a secret.

The Amazon store will primarily sell its best sellers, including Kindle e-readers and Kindle Fire. The store will also sell accessories, such as, cases, screen protectors, and USB adapters. Another reason why Amazon will open a boutique is to provide its own books an actual shelf to sell. It may be recalled that Amazon recently opened its own publishing division and invited some authors to write original books for the company.

The reason for Amazon’s tax issues may also be reason for trying to go with a physical store. Presently, Amazon is tax exempt from State taxes whenever the company recorded a sale. However, there are proposals to remove that exemptions and a physical store may just save Amazon from huge taxes.

The opening of the Amazon physical store is said to take advantage of the holiday season, which is at the end of the year. This means we have the rest of the year to speculate and wait for any confirmation about this rumor.

The said update triggers the Fire’s firmware to version 6.2.2 and will bring in minor upgrades, tweaks and previous fixes on certain glitches. The most notable improvement however is the full screen toggle button on the Fire’s Silk browser. This one definite development may prove to the world that both Amazon and Kindle Fire have something brewing, and the said full screen upgrade is just the tip of the iceberg. The documentation on version 6.2.2 is still not complete as of the moment, but it will be worth waiting for.

For Kindle Fire owners who are interested on updating their tablet manually, files can be downloaded here. After getting the file, you need to install it in your tablet’s kindleupdates folder then proceed to Settings>Device>Update your kindle. After doing so, you are on your way on enjoying new features of this update. However, let we remind those who previously opted to root their devices using BurritoRoot software that installing this firmware will nullify root access. We heard that Whiz kids are working on a new version of this software so, stay tuned.

Get the SolarKindle, apparently. SolarFocus, a company dedicated to innovation and devices that use solar energy, has just unveiled a cover especially made for the Amazon Kindle e-reader, and is expecting a large crowd to gather around its booth at the upcoming CES 2012. It serves three purposes; first, protecting the Kindle with a tough leather casing, second, illuminating the E-Ink on the Kindle with an 800 lux LED light powered by an internal 1,500mA lithium battery, and third, helping you go green with a solar panel on the cover top.

If you’re asking how the light would be recharged, all you need to do is place the cover under the sun for about 8 hours for a fully charged battery that has the potential to power both the light and the Kindle for extended reading time. However, there is also a USB port for those who don’t want to leave the case out in the open. It’s admittedly pretty innovative, and has the potential to sell quite a lot. Hopefully soon SolarFocus will be able to manufacture more cases for the other Kindle models such as the Kindle Touch.

Starting January 15 the SolarKindle will be available at $79.99. It’s a little pricey, so if you think you can live without having to siphon energy from the sun, there’s a panel-less version that will cost $59.99.

The latest Amazon Kindle is good for reading tons of ebooks on the go because of its e-ink display and low-power consumption. The problem, however, is the lack of backlighting which could hamper your night time reading habits. Amazon introduced the Lighted Leather Cover equipped with a glossy leather exterior and built-in reading lamp powered by the Kindle. However, it is quite expensive at $60 and doesn’t have a kickstand for hands-free reading.

The Kapsule Lightstand for Kindle solves these issues. With just a $40 pledge, you can secure a unit for yourself or $75 to get 2 sets. The accessory clips on the rear of the Kindle and has a top and bottom goosenecks. The top houses the light that can be pulled to turn the LED light on while the bottom provides the adjustable stand. The light is provided by a power efficient LED that consumes 25%-50% less power than Amazon’s Light cover.

Watch this video for more details:

The accessory is designed exclusively for the Amazon Kindle 3 (a.k.a. Kindle Keyboard) and not compatible with Kindle 4 and Kindle Touch. The group is planning to release a compatible version for the latter devices if the project will roll successfully. The project requires $40,000 goal (already at $1,300) to kick start production after 34 days.

A huge part of Kindle’s software is a group of pseudo HTML5 as well as JavaScript webpages. This is what separates Kindle Touch from its predecessors. These new software variants made it easy for some geniuses to spot certain blind spots within the browser. A function called nativeBridge,dbgCmd() was located. This serves as the key for running and old shell commands as root.

With this new discovery, a jailbreak was immediately created by merely cramming a load of HTML5 and JavaScript into an MP3 file’s ID3 tags. Of course, the MP3 files needs to be easily downloadable. At present, there is still nothing much that can be gained from hitting the “play” button of that MP3 file. However, the genius behind this breakthrough is expecting today’s developers to use a certain set of tools necessary for writing programs that will work with this new contraption.

Yifan Lu, the genius behind this discovery, has made it possible for Kindle Touch, or K5 as others would like to call it, users to jailbreak their units by merely playing a file that is in its MP3 format. With a jailbreak-ed Kindle unit, one of the many advantages is now much easier to get started with adding your most favoured applications. For instance, the jailbreak allows you to install an Epub reader if you like reading EBooks.

First of all, the .zip file needs to be downloaded. Copy the MP3 file over to your Kindle’s music folder. Once fully saved, you can now “play” the MP3 from your unit’s experimental menu. If you see a screenshot that suddenly pops out, then you have now successfully hacked your new Kindle Touch. See the video below for more details.

Remember, the Kindle Fire is a web tablet. It has a 7-inch display that is capable of 1024×600 pixel resolution. It’s touchscreen of course and has Custom Android for its operating system (OS). Processor is TI OMAP 4 dual core and there’s an 8GB flash memory. Moreover, it utilizes Amazon Silk for its web browsing functionality. It also WiFi and support for both video (MP4) and audio (AAC, WAV, OGG, MP3, MIDI). Let us not forget that it’s also an E-book reader which has support for these formats – AZW, PRC, PDF, DOC, TXT, DOCX. In terms of user connectivity, it has a 3.5mm jack and support for one high-speed USB/5-pin micro USB type B. Battery life is a good 8 hours.

According to a close source, Amazon is keen on bringing the Kindle Fire to Europe but the company hasn’t really been that generous in terms of details specifically on the if and when’s. The word though is that it will be in January when our British friends get to lay their eyes on the Kindle Fire. Hopefully, we do get to have some more details on the pricing and availability. This information needs to be confirmed though. Until then we’re putting this under our rumor’s bin.