[Review]: A human review of the Kindle Fire - Page 2

DreamWriter · 11-26-2011, 06:45 PM

I don't have a Fire myself, but I've read a lot of user reviews. My overall impression is that most people are satisfied with the device, as it does what it was intended to do and it is well-priced. I think it's especially nice for people who buy their ebooks, music, and videos at Amazon. Sure, there are a few features that could be improved. But what device doesn't have some drawbacks? I haven't heard of a perfect one yet—in any price range. It was never meant to compete with higher-end tablets.

obsessed2 · 11-26-2011, 06:57 PM

You can always tell when something is a hit because it sticks like a crow in the side, eating away at the competition. An estimated 4 million to be sold by Christmas. Yea, that's a real failure. At least if you are going to cite a negative review at least find a credible source. Macro?

http://reviews.cnet.com/tablets/amaz...-35022491.html

http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/14/a...e-fire-review/

http://online.wsj.com/article/personal_technology.html

All three of these credible reviews point out the good as well as the flaws. All that review points out is the flaws.

weatherman · 11-26-2011, 07:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SCION

A three-star review is totally different from saying the device doesn't do anything well.

I agree - he is being overly harsh. I think its his disappointment. I think most folks see through that, and learn to dismiss the one-star hater ratings.

robertc88 · 11-26-2011, 10:28 PM

Monkeyluis,

I think you've summed things up rather well.

I focus on what something I buy can do for the money. Nice to haves like a volume button and start button elsewhere aren't necessities to me that I feel would be a dealbreaker but I guess those sort of things if they irk one enough may have them looking elsewhere.

As an aside, I've been through plenty of blu ray players since inception and ALL have their flaws.

jocampo · 11-26-2011, 11:15 PM

Monkeyluis,

Your comment is very interesting. Like you, have two iPad 2 and couple of Apple products. My question for you would be, how the Fire can fill any gap in your reading experience? I mean, I'm assuming you have a smartphone too, right?

I am not so sure if keeping the Fire . Not a bad device but don't see a strong reason that justifies having an iPad, Android phone and now a Kindle Fire. Just curious ...

Xeddicus · 11-26-2011, 11:35 PM

Any review that even mentions any iThing is junk right off unless they're willing to trade me one for a Fire. Didn't think so. Why the heck aren't they comparing it to the Nook offerings and Coby tablets? You know, things that are actually alternatives for sure if you're going to spend $200 and not twice or 3 time that...

Kai Winters · 11-26-2011, 11:46 PM

I read the reviews and more importantly I read the threads on this forum...rather listen to users even if some are "fanboys"...I've no problem with loyalty.
Most of all I based my decision on spending an hour or more playing with the Fire, ipad2 and the others at my local BB.
I bought the Fire and do not regret it a bit. Matter of fact the more I use it the more I like it.

My wife likes it more than I do and she does not even use it. I love to read in bed and with a standard ereader I have to have a light on. I have the smallest light I can read by but my wife is still not a fan of the light but tolerates it...for 34 years...because she knows how much I love reading in bed.
With the Fire I no longer need a light. As a back lit device it has its' own light, even in sepia mode which I prefer and the brightness setting at one third brightness, and is great.

My wife is much happier...happy wife, happy life...and I am happy...

wizwor · 11-26-2011, 11:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by monkeyluis

There are a couple of things I wouldn't have minded, like the often mentioned hardware volume buttons. Also maybe the power button on the top.

If you rotate the Fire 180 degrees, the power button is on the top. I prefer to hold it this way.

monkeyluis · 11-27-2011, 01:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jocampo

Monkeyluis,

Your comment is very interesting. Like you, have two iPad 2 and couple of Apple products. My question for you would be, how the Fire can fill any gap in your reading experience? I mean, I'm assuming you have a smartphone too, right?

I am not so sure if keeping the Fire . Not a bad device but don't see a strong reason that justifies having an iPad, Android phone and now a Kindle Fire. Just curious ...

I agree. I have no justification. Lol. It also doesn't fill any gap, other than having the prime videos portable. My wife pre-ordered it for me, even knowing I said I didn't see a use for it because I do have the iPad & iPhone. I was still impressedby it when it was announced. I have grown to love the Fire & I could also see my kids using it too (they "share" my iPad 1 hand-me-down). So if anything it will still go to the kids & then they won't fight ove the iPad.

I also got the Kindle Touch....but reading more on the fire at the moment.

monkeyluis · 11-27-2011, 01:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wizwor

If you rotate the Fire 180 degrees, the power button is on the top. I prefer to hold it this way.

But then the case would feel off.

gweminence · 11-27-2011, 01:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by monkeyluis

But then the case would feel off.

I have the mareware CEO one. It doesn't feel off to me, in any position. But, I'm one of those that doesn't really care about where the button is, so I just hold it natively, usually -- though I sometimes read @ 90 degrees.

Andy_T · 11-28-2011, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jocampo

Monkeyluis,

Your comment is very interesting. Like you, have two iPad 2 and couple of Apple products. My question for you would be, how the Fire can fill any gap in your reading experience? I mean, I'm assuming you have a smartphone too, right?

I find the fire very helpful for reading due to its size (half that of my iPad, but twice as big as my iPod touch) and display sharpness. And it is more robust than my e-ink Kindle which - like all e-ink devices - suffers from display fragility so I am a bit reluctant to have it with me every day during commuting.

Best regards,
Andy

shinew · 11-28-2011, 01:23 PM

I've played around with my friend's Kindle Fire a bit over the weekend. I think how satisfied you are with the Fire has alot to do with whether you've used an iPad or not, regardless if you're trying to compare them or not.

To me the Fire seems sluggish in everything it does(I'm used to iPad2's speed), but I can see that if you have never owned a higher end tablet, you'll probably going to be happy with it. The screen is too small for the things I use, but the screen quality is excellent. But come on it's $200 bucks! great value!

SCION · 11-28-2011, 01:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shinew

I've played around with my friend's Kindle Fire a bit over the weekend. I think how satisfied you are with the Fire has alot to do with whether you've used an iPad or not, regardless if you're trying to compare them or not.

To me the Fire seems sluggish in everything it does(I'm used to iPad2's speed), but I can see that if you have never owned a higher end tablet, you'll probably going to be happy with it. The screen is too small for the things I use, but the screen quality is excellent. But come on it's $200 bucks! great value!

I would have to disagree with that assumption. Several of us owned high end Android Honeycomb tablets (some have an iPad) prior to buying the Fire. We don't compare it to them, so we evaluate the Fire based on what it's designed to do, not our experiences with higher priced/spec-ed devices. We're very happy with the Fire.

shinew · 11-28-2011, 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SCION

I would have to disagree with that assumption. Several of us owned high end Android Honeycomb tablets (some have an iPad) prior to buying the Fire. We don't compare it to them, so we evaluate the Fire based on what it's designed to do, not our experiences with higher priced/spec-ed devices. We're very happy with the Fire.

I don't own any high end android tablets so I can't really comment on that.

My point is that to me at least, even when I try not to compare the Fire to my iPad2, my expectations in terms of the operating speed is conditioned for the iPad2 standard. It's like downgrading from using a high end computer to a lower end machine is more noticeable than upgrading to a faster one.

That's fine if people don't feel the same way, i'm just speculating the cause for some who complained about it's lagginess(which I share) while others didn't. Glad you're enjoying your Fire

11-26-2011, 11:15 PM	#20
jocampo Layback feline Posts: 3,034 Karma: 6980745 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: USA Device: Oasis 2nd gen, Sony DPTS1, iPad Pro 10.5"	Monkeyluis, Your comment is very interesting. Like you, have two iPad 2 and couple of Apple products. My question for you would be, how the Fire can fill any gap in your reading experience? I mean, I'm assuming you have a smartphone too, right? I am not so sure if keeping the Fire . Not a bad device but don't see a strong reason that justifies having an iPad, Android phone and now a Kindle Fire. Just curious ... Last edited by jocampo; 11-26-2011 at 11:41 PM.

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11-26-2011, 06:45 PM	#16
DreamWriter Books are brain food. Posts: 2,950 Karma: 4836916 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: U.S. Device: Paperwhite · Fire HD6/HD8/HD10 · Galaxy Tab A7	I don't have a Fire myself, but I've read a lot of user reviews. My overall impression is that most people are satisfied with the device, as it does what it was intended to do and it is well-priced. I think it's especially nice for people who buy their ebooks, music, and videos at Amazon. Sure, there are a few features that could be improved. But what device doesn't have some drawbacks? I haven't heard of a perfect one yet—in any price range. It was never meant to compete with higher-end tablets.

11-26-2011, 06:57 PM	#17
obsessed2 Wizard Posts: 1,041 Karma: 4694121 Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Virginia Device: Pocket Edge X 2 , Edge, gTab, Kindle Fire, Nextbook 7S	You can always tell when something is a hit because it sticks like a crow in the side, eating away at the competition. An estimated 4 million to be sold by Christmas. Yea, that's a real failure. At least if you are going to cite a negative review at least find a credible source. Macro? http://reviews.cnet.com/tablets/amaz...-35022491.html http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/14/a...e-fire-review/ http://online.wsj.com/article/personal_technology.html All three of these credible reviews point out the good as well as the flaws. All that review points out is the flaws.

11-26-2011, 10:28 PM	#19
robertc88 Fanatic Posts: 555 Karma: 1579999 Join Date: Jan 2011 Device: none	Monkeyluis, I think you've summed things up rather well. I focus on what something I buy can do for the money. Nice to haves like a volume button and start button elsewhere aren't necessities to me that I feel would be a dealbreaker but I guess those sort of things if they irk one enough may have them looking elsewhere. As an aside, I've been through plenty of blu ray players since inception and ALL have their flaws.

11-26-2011, 11:35 PM	#21
Xeddicus Member Posts: 15 Karma: 10 Join Date: May 2009 Device: none	Any review that even mentions any iThing is junk right off unless they're willing to trade me one for a Fire. Didn't think so. Why the heck aren't they comparing it to the Nook offerings and Coby tablets? You know, things that are actually alternatives for sure if you're going to spend $200 and not twice or 3 time that...

11-26-2011, 11:46 PM	#22
Kai Winters Lover of Books Posts: 218 Karma: 1073074 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Northern NY Device: iPhone 7+	I read the reviews and more importantly I read the threads on this forum...rather listen to users even if some are "fanboys"...I've no problem with loyalty. Most of all I based my decision on spending an hour or more playing with the Fire, ipad2 and the others at my local BB. I bought the Fire and do not regret it a bit. Matter of fact the more I use it the more I like it. My wife likes it more than I do and she does not even use it. I love to read in bed and with a standard ereader I have to have a light on. I have the smallest light I can read by but my wife is still not a fan of the light but tolerates it...for 34 years...because she knows how much I love reading in bed. With the Fire I no longer need a light. As a back lit device it has its' own light, even in sepia mode which I prefer and the brightness setting at one third brightness, and is great. My wife is much happier...happy wife, happy life...and I am happy...

11-28-2011, 01:23 PM	#28
shinew Addict Posts: 309 Karma: 1008082 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: NYC Device: Kindle PW, K4 Touch, iPad2, Samsung Galaxy S II	I've played around with my friend's Kindle Fire a bit over the weekend. I think how satisfied you are with the Fire has alot to do with whether you've used an iPad or not, regardless if you're trying to compare them or not. To me the Fire seems sluggish in everything it does(I'm used to iPad2's speed), but I can see that if you have never owned a higher end tablet, you'll probably going to be happy with it. The screen is too small for the things I use, but the screen quality is excellent. But come on it's $200 bucks! great value!