Amazon Announces New Fire HD 10 Tablet

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

I really have no need for a full fledged tablet. I'm quite happy with my 2015 Fire 7 Tab. Unfortunately, it only has single-band WiFi, along with several of my media phones, and lately I've been having difficulty connecting them to the net. I have no trouble with my dual-band devices.

Are you sure it's not your router? My kids have 2015 Fires and they don't have any issues connecting to our dual-band router.

[leebase]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

Fair enough. But I can say the same for all of my various Android tablets: they just work. Never had any serious trouble with any of them.

“Fairly rate”...”valid opinion”...potato potato.

I only mind when folks bash a product over hatred of the company that makes it. There are plenty of valid reasons someone might not like the iPhone....based on having one and being frustrated that it doesn't meet THEIR needs or they simply don’t like “the iPhone way”.

Myself, I pay next to no attention to those that “hate Apple” and therefore think the iPhone sucks..,having never had one. Or reverse the script and hate Android instead...based on anything other than actually having experience with one.

Even though I choose an iPhone as my daily driver...I think I can fairly rate Android devices. Even though I’d never pay “iPhone money” for an Android device...or none so far

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by leebase

Even though I choose an iPhone as my daily driver...I think I can fairly rate Android devices. ...

My main issue with iPhones and iPads is that I think they're overpriced. Of course I don't like the company either (from the days when they sued people for violating their patent on "rectangles with round corners" or colluded with the Big 6 publishers). But I don't like Google (or Microsoft) either.

[leebase]

Originally Posted by rcentros

My main issue with iPhones and iPads is that I think they're overpriced. Of course I don't like the company either (from the days when they sued people for violating their patent on "rectangles with round corners" or colluded with the Big 6 publishers). But I don't like Google (or Microsoft) either.

Yep. I don’t like Amazon's price dumping...but it’s nice having a cheap tablet with a MicroSD card.

I liked what I saw in the Pixel 3 night sight photos...even if it wasn’t enough to make me switch.

I loathe Samscum and their copy cat ways...but I appreciate that they ALSO innovate. Were I to buy a premium Android phone I’d be torn Between a Samsung and Pixel. Best hardware vs upgrade able Os.

[haertig]

I find my Fire HD8 (2017 version) to be almost perfect for what I want to use a tablet for. I do not need, or want, a high end tablet. Nor a large one.

My fire is used for watching movies on trips. For using VLC to stream RTSP output from a video camera. For reading PDF's (because my Kindle sucks at PDF's). For light use with email. For even lighter use with websites. For running simple apps (e.g., Strelok ballistics app). I used to use the Fire a lot more before I (finally!) bought myself a smartphone. It's only a midrange smartphone, but it absolutely blows the Fire out of the water in terms of speed. But for things that require a larger screen - like movies and PDF documents - the Fire wins out.

For me, the Fire HD8 is the sweet spot in terms of cost and size. If you buy the thing during Black Friday or one of the other sales, it's quite the handy device for the price. You just have to realize that it is a low end device, and is not, repeat, not, a substitute for a computer. Far from it. Except for a few things - basically things that need a larger screen size - it is handily beat by even a low end smart phone. But it does fit into a niche, because it is so cheap. You also have to make sure to install Google Play Store on it, because the selection of apps you get from Amazons store is too limiting. If the newer versions of FireOS lock you out of installing Google Play Store, then that is a fatal design mistake IMHO. I would not buy this tablet if Amazon does that.

For mobile electronics, I do not buy high end stuff. If I want high end, that's what my desktop computers are for. Everything else I view as a cheap substitute for that. Even my laptop is low end. Smartphone is mid range - for 1/3 to 1/4 the price of the super high end phones. Tablet ... I don't know, I always considered the Fire to be about the lowest of the low end. They don't get much cheaper, or slower, than the Fire, do they? But it works perfectly for what I use it for (I do sometimes wish it had built-in GPS though).

[haertig]

Originally Posted by leebase

Were I to buy a premium Android phone I’d be torn Between a Samsung and Pixel. Best hardware vs upgrade able Os.

You might want to investigate Motorola's offerings in the mid-range market if you're not wanting a premium phone. The OS is almost-stock Android. That's what I decided on myself. Specifically, a G7. I've been quite happy with it.

[Kindleing]

Is it possible to disable Alexa? I was tempted to buy a Fire during Prime Days but I heard/read that Alexa could not be disabled, and I do not need or want Alexa running. We have an older Fire HD 8.9 that doesn't get used much, but it is pretty limited. The new Fire HD 10 could be interesting for the price if Alexa can be shut down.

I just looked at Amazon and it's interesting... Special Offers on the Fire HD 10 can be eliminated for $15 extra instead of the $20 for Kindles.

Wally

[DuckieTigger]

Originally Posted by leebase

Even though I choose an iPhone as my daily driver...I think I can fairly rate Android devices. Even though I’d never pay “iPhone money” for an Android device...or none so far

Actually you can't fairly rate Android devices if your experience is limited to cheap and under powered ones. Especially if you try to imagine how a mid range Android phone should work based on how your cheap Android tablet works. If you go all the way up to iPhone money on a high end Android phone, the gap in experience will be even bigger.

[stumped]

Alexa is disabled on all Fire tablets if you use parental controls. ( the alexa app still updates and opens but alexa does not respond to voice ). But you can still use other features of the app e.g. set up a different device, like an Echo

I use parental controls to set password required for all purchases, but no other restrictions. without that, everything is on a dangerous "one accidental tap and you bought it". Shop, music, videos, books

there is no option to have both Alexa AND parental controls, its one or the other, unless Amazon have changed the rules for the latest tablet.

[DiapDealer]

It's easy to turn off Alexa's "hands-free" feature. It's a toggle setting in the window shade. Maybe that's not technically "disabled," but she'll certainly never answer any questions or respond to any voice commands while in that mode. You can also turn off accessing Alexa by hitting the "Home" button. You'd have to manually open the Alexa app to get her to do anything after that.

I've got enough Echos in the house that my 2017 Fire tablet always runs in that mode. I've forgotten that the device is even Alexa-capable to be quite frank.

The voice purchasing settings (including setting a PIN or turning the feature off entirely) are available in the standard Alexa settings. No need to use parental controls. At least that's how it works on my 2017 model.

[John F]

Originally Posted by Deskisamess

It was the Fires that sparked my dislike of android. My first "real" tablet was android, a Toshiba Thrive in 2012.

The Fires were ok to play on, and watch video. But the lack of stability really bugged me. When I needed something for more than playing, I tried an iPad, having gotten comfortable with an iPhone 4s. The grandkids still use that first iPad, and an old iPad Air is happily mounted in the kitchen, even running iOS 13. They just work.

I had an iPad 1, and switched to an Android tablet. One of my main uses for a tablet is web surfing, and the iPad/Safari would crash multiple times per day. My Android tablet seldom crashes. I do like my iPhone.

[DiapDealer]

Originally Posted by leebase

Even though I choose an iPhone as my daily driver...I think I can fairly rate Android devices. Even though I’d never pay “iPhone money” for an Android device...or none so far

Sure. That's because you didn't say the magic phrase "actively dislike Android." Which I took to mean: "won't buy or use Android." If something else was meant by that phrase, then @Deskisamess has my apologies. But I don't think it's a stretch, by any means, to suggest that a negative review of Restaurant X's baba ganoush by someone on the record as "actively disliking eggplant" might not be very objective (or very useful to someone who likes baba ganoush). YMMV.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by Kindleing

I just looked at Amazon and it's interesting... Special Offers on the Fire HD 10 can be eliminated for $15 extra instead of the $20 for Kindles.

That's standard for the Fire tablets. I'd love to get rid of the ads on my HD 8, but when I only spent $27.50 to buy I can't justify a more than 50% bump just to get rid of the ads.

I'll follow on to the other Fire fans here. My HD has gotten heavy daily use since I got it last Black Friday. Google Play is running smoothly and was trivial to install; I've paired it with an ancient Anker keyboard that was lying around the house, and I find that I usually can't be bothered with my laptop for typical web browsing and email. Yeah, it's not the fastest kid on the block, but it does everything I need it to and it's fast enough. I also agree that for me, it's the sweet spot between the underperforming HD 7 and the pricier HD 10.

[ShortNet]

This new Fire leaves me underwhelmed. The resolution still is not as good as the 2013 Fire HDX. Drat! I was hoping to replace my HDX, but not for a lesser resolution. Oh, well, it will be better for my budget.

[Apache]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

Yeah, I'm just lamenting the fact that I have to get rid of a still functional tablet due to the WiFi issue. But hey, that's progress. The hardware outlives the software, firmware, apps, infrastructure, etc. At least I'll get a bump on the OS, jumping from Lollipop 5 to Nougat 7.

I got a super deal by trading in an old Dot 2 for the new Show 5 during Prime Day. The few dollars you get on the trade-in itself isn't all that great, but the 25% off the full price of a new device is killer.

Now that you mention it, maybe I should re-think the HD 8. The HD 10 is still too large for my use.

It's a problem with everything. I drive a 1993 S10 Pickup that just turned over 90,000 miles. You can replace all of the major parts. It is the less common parts that are difficult or impossible to replace. There is a rubber vent seal under the driver's side kick panel that failed. There are absolutely none available any where that will fit and they are not cost effective enough for any one to make an after market version. I ended up Having to make a metal cover plate and seal and just mounted in in place to keep the water from pouring in when it rained. And I do mean pouring in. After a rain my driver side floor board was a miniature wading pool. I put an after market modern radio in it a few years ago because any used original equipment radios are over $400.00 and I am not paying that for a FM/AM Radio. They even make a digital model for my truck and it is also over $400.00. I hate planned obsolescence.
Apache