• by Gavin O'Malley , Staff Writer @mp_gavin, October 29, 2012

Letting Google and Microsoft watch from the sidelines, Amazon just picked a fight with Apple over the future of mobile computing.

“Amazon’s front page -- one of the best marketing venues on the Web -- is using the Apple brand name to tout how its own competing Kindle Fire HD is better than the new iPad Mini,” reports AllThingsD.

“It doesn’t look like [Amazon] is going to simply let Apple roll right by and take over the mini tablet market,” The Next Web writes.

“It seems the time has come for the Kindle Fire hucksters at Amazon to go on the offensive against a very prominent rival,” writes TechCrunch.

“Amazon’s tagline is, ‘much more for much less,’ zeroing in on the difference between the price of its tablet and the $329 iPad Mini, and the screen comparison,” The Wall Street Journal’s Digits blog writes.

“The move reflects the critical nature of the post-PC battle to stake a claim in the future of IT,” according to Computerworld’s Jonny Evans.

Ultimately, “With such a big edge on price ($130) and access to free content through Amazon’s Prime service, the company shouldn’t have trouble finding a market for the Fire HD this holiday season,” The Verge concludes.

“Just the other day, Amazon … declared the Kindle Fire HD to be its best-selling product,” CNet notes. “Meanwhile, the urge to buy the iPad Mini seems to be a strong one, as shipments for some models slipped to 2 weeks within minutes of the Apple device going on sale.”