Speculation is mounting that Amazon is about to unveil its second-generation Kindle Fire, with a launch event scheduled for 31 July. Yet with the original Kindle Fire still to debut this side of the Atlantic, could the UK’s first taste of Amazon’s tablet device be the Kindle Fire 2?

Cnet.com is claiming to have been told by a source that the new device will house a camera and feature actual volume control buttons, rather than the on-screen virtual ones found in the original Amazon Kindle. 

Amazon has been rumoured to be putting the finishing touches to a European Appstore with many believing this would see the original Kindle Fire make its UK debut.

However, this latest news suggests that rather than introduce us Brits to a device that is coming up for a year old, that an Amazon Kindle Fire 2 could be set for a mass global release.

Amazon is said to be wary of the competition from the likes of Google’s own Asus manufactured 7-inch Nexus tablet set to be unveiled at Google I/O, so perhaps a worldwide launch of its Kindle Fire 2 is its way of, erm…fighting fire with fire.

Do you think we'll see the Amazon Kindle Fire 2 before the original? Let us know in the comments below.