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Originally Posted by poohbear_nc
In addition to the above mentioned power saving updates, there are some nifty new features. Amazon is moving more functionality to the Carousel and actually making it useful!
1. You can now 'pin' apps to the front of the Carousel. So now, no matter how many apps you use, or if you buy a bunch of books on one day, you can now pin your most accessed apps to the start of the Carousel. I hope they port this to the Fire Tablet - the Carousel is now functional, rather than an annoyance.
I have pinned the Phone app, Email app, Notes app, Maps app, and my Photo gallery. This is a real help if you're driving and absolutely need to make a call or pull up directions - the apps are now on the first screen at your fingertips. No more searching through a list.
2. On the app grid view you can now make collections by type: you can only have one type of item in a collection - put all your books into a "library" collection, put all your games apps together, etc. This really reduces the number of screens you have to page through on grid view, and cleans up the display. You can't put apps & books into the same collection.
3. You can now delete emails directly from the Carousel - without having to open the email app. So you can quickly clean up your Inbox or browse new emails while on the Carousel without opening an app.
These updates clearly (IMHO) indicate that Amazon will be distinguishing its smartphone from other brands by enhancing/improving the Carousel - part of its emphasis on one-handed or gesture/eye controlled functionality. It's amazing what you able to do holding the phone in one hand and using your thumb and wrist movements to access content/apps from the Carousel. All smartphones have the grid app view (as does Amazon), but only Amazon offers the Carousel - and I'm going to be eagerly watching for how ingenious future updates will be.
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All those features are part of the Fire HDX 7 2013 firmware except that favorites are saved below the Carousel in the Home Area. Collections can also be saved in that area.
I fully expect that Amazon will have Ultra Power Savings Mode for the 2014 model of the Fire HDX and probably in a firmware upgrade for the Fire Phone. That would probably extend my Fire HDX charge cycle from 9 days to about 30 days.
Amazon uses a subset of Android and the Samsung Galaxy s5 phone uses full Android.
The problem may be that it will not be added to old models until 6 months after the new model sales cycle starts. Thus, I will be buying the Fire HDX 7 2014 and give away my Fire HDX 7 2013. Since the Fire Phone is a 2014 model, I would expect its firmware to add that feature in eary 2015.