Google's Nexus 7 Could Sell 8 Million Units and Top the Amazon Kindle Fire 3 (AMZN, GOOG)

Google's GOOG upcoming tablet revision could prove to be hugely profitable when it is released later this year. According to DigiTimes, the second-generation Nexus 7 could sell as many as eight million units worldwide in 2013. This would be a significant bump over the original Nexus 7, which has sold an estimated six million units since it was released last summer. DigiTimes' supply chain sources are concerned that this sales estimate could be difficult to achieve now that several other (lower-priced) tablets are on the market.

• Hewlett-Packard HPQ is currently selling its seven-inch Android tablet for $139.99 -- $30 lower than the MSRP.
• Barnes & Noble BKS also lowered the price of its seven-inch Nook HD, which now retails for $129.
• Microsoft MSFT is expected to drop the price of the Surface RT from $499 to $349 this Sunday.
• Apple AAPL sells its cheapest tablet, the iPad Mini, for $329. The company is expected to release a new version later this year.

Related: Hewlett-Packard's $169 Tablet is Just the Beginning Amazon AMZN has not announced when the next-generation Kindle Fire will be released, but many expect it to arrive within the September/October timeframe. All of these tablets will produce stiff competition for the new Nexus 7, which is rumored to contain a 1980x1200 display, a Snapdragon 600 processor from Qualcomm QCOM and two cameras (5MP in the rear, 1.2MP in the front). If the device can sell eight million units, it should be able to eclipse the sales of the Kindle Fire 3. Amazon is currently the number-two player in America, but its sales are nowhere near that of the market leader -- Apple. During the March quarter, Apple sold 19.5 million iPads. Amazon would not say how many Kindle Fires it sold during the same period, but the company is believed to have sold 1.7 million tablets. At a rate of nearly two million tablets per quarter, Amazon would not be able to sell more than eight million total units (Kindle Fire 2 and 3 sales combined) in 2013. This could pave the way for Google to take the lead. Part of Google's success is due to its global presence. While the Kindle Fire was initially exclusive to North America, Google has sold the Nexus 7 in as many nations as possible. Louis Bedigian is the Senior Tech Analyst and Features Writer of Benzinga. You can reach him at 248-636-1322 or louis(at)benzingapro(dot)com. Follow him @LouisBedigianBZ