To go along with the just-announced Kindle Fire HD with 4G LTE connectivity, Amazon announced a new data plan — for $49.99 a year, users will get 250MB per month of data, plus 20GB of cloud storage and a $10 Amazon app store credit. That's not a huge amount of data, but the plan is significantly cheaper than similar options from wireless carriers (and what you can get for Apple's iPad). Right now, 250MB / month plans for the iPad cost $15 per month, and Bezos touted that advantage on stage. When comparing both the costs of the devices as well as the LTE data plan, Amazon makes a pretty compelling case for its new flagship tablet. While Amazon didn't mention a specific carrier, the 4G LTE logo it showed off on screen is unmistakably AT&T's — our bet is on the company providing Amazon's LTE service.

Update: The press release confirms AT&T and also clarifies that the $49.99 data plan applies to the "first year" of ownership, after which time Fire HD owners will presumably have to sign up for a standard plan.



