09-25-2013, 03:48 AM | #16 | |
Fledgling Demagogue
Posts: 2,384
Karma: 31132263
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: White Plains
Device: Clara HD; Oasis 2; Aura HD; iPad Air; PRS-350; Galaxy S7.
|
Quote:
Companies can't rely on the idea that people will constantly buy new hardware. They have to respect the customer's faith that, in the event the next two iterations are unaffordable or unavailable, the customer's previous purchase will be fully functional for years. That's why so many of us still own a Kindle Keyboard: Its feature set is unique and its functionality is unimpaired. |
|
09-25-2013, 03:56 AM | #17 | |
eBook Enthusiast
Posts: 85,544
Karma: 93383043
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: UK
Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6
|
Quote:
|
|
09-25-2013, 04:26 AM | #18 |
monkey on the fringe
Posts: 45,460
Karma: 158151390
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Seattle Metro
Device: Moto E6, Echo Show
|
I have no intention of upgrading to this model. A lack of key hardware features and Amazon's forked Android make it overpriced compared to the Nexus 7. Compared to last year's Fire HD, it's still overpriced for my intended use. I was able to get a new Fire HD and Otterbox case for $158. Couldn't even begin to approach that pricing with the new model.
Bottom line - I'm very happy with my current Fire. |
09-25-2013, 04:30 AM | #19 | |
Treasure Seeker
Posts: 18,708
Karma: 26026435
Join Date: Mar 2010
Device: Kobo HD Glo, Kindles, Kindle Fires, Andriod Devices
|
Quote:
|
|
09-25-2013, 04:34 AM | #20 | |
Fledgling Demagogue
Posts: 2,384
Karma: 31132263
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: White Plains
Device: Clara HD; Oasis 2; Aura HD; iPad Air; PRS-350; Galaxy S7.
|
Quote:
An e-reader running a modified flavor of Linux is a very different thing from a standard multi-purpose Android tablet which deviates from a specific and perpetually developed OS with which many other apps -- and their updates -- must be compatible. The simplicity of text-based e-books require far less standardization at the software/hardware integration level, and the deliberately limited functionality of e-text-specific hardware/software is a completely different case from that of the tablet. The reason Amazon alone can make the KK relevant is because their variations on a standard are consistently useful. Not so their deviations from Android. As a tablet user, I want as much functionality as possible. I'm not interested in an attractive content player. Amazon is changing that model as well: They've made OfficeSuite a permanent part of their software and, according to the WSJ, are courting the business market. Business markets value compatibility. Most people I know who own the original KF either rooted it immediately or bemoaned its limitations. Limiting the OS to an Amazon-specific version of Jellybean which deviates from the original so much that it has its own name will probably limit the KF user's options even more. Last edited by Prestidigitweeze; 09-25-2013 at 04:39 AM. |
|
09-25-2013, 04:38 AM | #21 |
eBook Enthusiast
Posts: 85,544
Karma: 93383043
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: UK
Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6
|
Would you not be better off buying something like a Nexus tablet, in that case, rather than a Fire? The Fire is really not being sold as a generic tablet, but as an Amazon content consumption device.
|
09-25-2013, 04:41 AM | #22 | |
Fledgling Demagogue
Posts: 2,384
Karma: 31132263
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: White Plains
Device: Clara HD; Oasis 2; Aura HD; iPad Air; PRS-350; Galaxy S7.
|
Quote:
The fact that Amazon's looking into placing the newest Fires in business environments suggests they're looking at hardware flexibility just as I am (Office Suite = dynamic content creation, not passive content reception), which again makes their decision to deviate even further from Android seem curious. Last edited by Prestidigitweeze; 09-25-2013 at 04:52 AM. |
|
09-25-2013, 04:44 AM | #23 |
monkey on the fringe
Posts: 45,460
Karma: 158151390
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Seattle Metro
Device: Moto E6, Echo Show
|
|
09-25-2013, 04:49 AM | #24 | |
Fledgling Demagogue
Posts: 2,384
Karma: 31132263
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: White Plains
Device: Clara HD; Oasis 2; Aura HD; iPad Air; PRS-350; Galaxy S7.
|
Quote:
Kindle Fire HD and HDX Are Enterprise-Ready It's very clear the new Amazon tablets are partly designed for content creation, and that Amazon has implemented business-specific features and specs as well. Businesses and content creators like stability. Stability means fewer deviations from standard software. Last edited by Prestidigitweeze; 09-25-2013 at 04:59 AM. |
|
09-25-2013, 05:10 AM | #25 |
Inharmonious
Posts: 416
Karma: 2157616
Join Date: Jan 2013
Device: Sony PRS-950, Galaxy Tab 2 10.1
|
Nice hardware, but no thanks. Forked Android, no folder organization and most importantly no SD card slot means it's of no interest to me whatsoever. And yes, screen resolution is indeed pointless and overkill for screens of that size. It's a shame, since with standard Android and an SD card slot I'd have jumped on it without delay.
|
09-25-2013, 07:28 AM | #26 | |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 11,732
Karma: 128354696
Join Date: May 2009
Location: 26 kly from Sgr A*
Device: T100TA,PW2,PRS-T1,KT,FireHD 8.9,K2, PB360,BeBook One,Axim51v,TC1000
|
Quote:
As for screen resolution, it comes in handy for gaming, reading, surfing, etc. |
|
09-25-2013, 07:30 AM | #27 | |
Wizard
Posts: 4,538
Karma: 264065402
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Taiwan
Device: HP Touchpad, Sony Duo 13, Lumia 920, Kobo Aura HD
|
Quote:
|
|
09-25-2013, 07:37 AM | #28 |
eBook Enthusiast
Posts: 85,544
Karma: 93383043
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: UK
Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6
|
Yes, that was my point. Amazon make little or no money from hardware sales - they essentially give away the devices at cost price, and rely on content sales to make their profit. It's not in their interest to give away a device and make it easy for it to be used for content purchased elsewhere.
|
09-25-2013, 08:00 AM | #29 | |
Fledgling Demagogue
Posts: 2,384
Karma: 31132263
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: White Plains
Device: Clara HD; Oasis 2; Aura HD; iPad Air; PRS-350; Galaxy S7.
|
Quote:
With all due respect (which, contrary to standard sarcastic internet usage, means you're actually due my respect), I think you're wrong this once. See the article to which I linked before. Here It Is Again If I'm missing the point, then The Wall Street Journal has missed the point entirely and were misled by Amazon's Vice President of Enterprise and Education, Raghu Murthi. They were also misled by Caroline Brant, Learning Solutions Director at ROI Training, Inc. Whatever the reason, Amazon has decided to venture into the world of dynamic content creation this time, and to sell tablets for not only media consumption but business use. Up until now, I'd have characterized the KF as an interactive TV designed to cloud-broadcast Amazon-purchased media. If this and other articles are to be believed, that's no longer the only reason to buy one. |
|
09-25-2013, 08:08 AM | #30 | |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 11,732
Karma: 128354696
Join Date: May 2009
Location: 26 kly from Sgr A*
Device: T100TA,PW2,PRS-T1,KT,FireHD 8.9,K2, PB360,BeBook One,Axim51v,TC1000
|
Quote:
As for the "purity" of the OS, note that Amazon is calling it FireOS, not Android. It is now its own separate entity. Parse the descriptions and you'll see they aren't even claiming full Android compatibility, merely that it can run "most" Android apps. Amazon is doing the same thing Samsung is doing, only more extensively in de-Googling their system. Simple rule of thumb: if you want Android, buy Nexus. If you want an appliance and don't care what the plumbing is like, then maybe the Fire's will do. And, BTW, the tablets are not over spec'd -- there is no such thing as too much RAM, CPU-power, or GPU-power, for *gaming*. What Amazon is doing is focusing on customer usage profiles (note the plural) and adding features to tickle the fancy of the corporate types, the gamers, the family buyer... Buyers they actually have a chance to persuade. Android purist and iOS fans they never had a chance with so there is no reason to even bother. They have a product and they will sell it to those that want it. It's a hardcore approach. It may work or not but nobody can accuse them of doing a me-too generic product. Just as with KF8 vis-a-vis epub3, they are focusing on what is useful to *their* customers and targets instead of trying to be all things to all people. In the NBCNEWS piece above, Bezos reiterates that they make their money when people use their gadgets not when they buy them. And that they are indifferent to upgrade sales. Which means at least some of the HDX features will be coming to the current HD models. And to their reading and video apps. The FIRE tablets are appliances, not computers. They are closer to Smart TVs than PCs. And that is the way their customers need it. There's plenty of generic android tablets out there for those looking for purity. Amazon is looking for content and service consumers, not mobile computing users. |
|
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Amazon Local - 60% off Kindle Fire Accessories - use by 9/22/2013 | sufue | Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links) | 1 | 09-09-2013 04:42 PM |
Amazon Student Members: Save up to $70 on Select Kindle Fire Tablets | gabby98 | Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links) | 1 | 08-13-2013 12:34 PM |
Physical Retail Stores that carry Amazon 2012 Kindles (Paperwhite, Fire 2, Fire HD) | Top100EbooksRank | Amazon Kindle | 6 | 09-21-2012 07:57 AM |
I've been musing about tablets, the Fire and computers | KlondikeGeoff | Kindle Fire | 35 | 09-15-2012 09:40 PM |
Amazon's Upcoming Tablets | DAHayden | News | 5 | 07-27-2011 10:48 PM |