Amazon reports Q3 2012 net loss, but seems more concerned with the iPad Mini

Amazon has released its third quarter earnings report, revealing a growth in sales, but an overall net loss for the quarter which ended September 30, 2012. Net sales increased to $13.81 billion, up 27% from the $10.88 billion in last year's third quarter. Despite the increase in sales, the company saw a net loss of $274 million, compared to the net income of $63 million last year.

Aside from the sales numbers, Amazon seemed keen on hyping the Kindle Fire, but in a rather particular way.

“Our approach is to work hard to charge less. Sell devices near break even and you can pack a lot of sophisticated hardware into a very low price point,” said Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com. “And our approach is working – the $199 Kindle Fire HD is the #1 bestselling product across Amazon worldwide. Incredibly, this is true even as measured by unit sales. The next two bestselling products worldwide are our Kindle Paperwhite and our $69 Kindle. We’re selling more of each of these devices than the #4 bestselling product, book three of the Fifty Shades of Grey series. And we haven’t even started shipping our best tablet – the $299 Kindle Fire HD 8.9” ships November 20.”

That's not where it gets weird, though. Amazon then spent the next portion of their financial report comparing their Kindle Fire HD to the recently announced iPad Mini. Below is exactly what the report included:

Highlights

• Compared to the iPad mini, Kindle Fire HD 8.9” has:
  • 193% more pixels (2,304,000 pixels vs. 786,432 pixels)
  • 56% more pixels-per-inch (254 vs. 163)
  • Watch HD movies and TV – cannot on iPad mini (iPad mini is an SD device)
  • Better audio with dual stereo speakers and Dolby Digital Plus
  • Wi-Fi with dual band, dual antennas + MIMO
  • Costs $30 less

• Compared to the iPad mini, Kindle Fire HD 7” has:
  • 30% more pixels (1,024,000 vs. 786,432 pixels)
  • 33% more pixels per inch (216 vs. 163)
  • Watch HD movies and TV – cannot on iPad mini (iPad mini is an SD device)
  • Better audio with dual stereo speakers and Dolby Digital Plus
  • Wi-Fi with dual band, dual antennas + MIMO
  • Costs $130 less

As usual, Amazon didn't release sales specific numbers, so we don't have a firm grasp on how the Kindle Fire performed this quarter. Maybe a little less time comparing yourself to the iPad and a little more time celebrating your successes would result in Amazon's shares not falling.