Kindle Fire Reviews Rolling In

[crashed]

I have to admit I'm stuck between both the Fire and the Nook Tablet. In all honesty I think e-readers and these "half" tablets are pretty much at their peak. They both are affordable and made well with good software that can be patched to perfection, or rooted for completeness.

I think it's a matter of who will get a good modded OS installed on it, otherwise it's a small leap to a full blown tablet (and that drastic price jump).

[Harmon]

Well, I moseyed on over to Best Buy to check out the KF. Considering it just as an EBR, I liked it more than the Nook. Main reason being that the hardware/screen ratio is better - the non-screen hardware just disappears on the KF but I'm quite aware of it on the Nook. YMMD.

The KF is nowhere near an iPad killer. It's not even a baby iPad, really. It lacks the finish and software slickness of the iPad.

But there's one thing I think the KF has certainly done, and that's kill off any chance whatsoever of a 7 inch e-ink EBR. The Sony 950 is the last one we'll see. I suppose that maybe Sony has a 975 in the works, but I certainly don't expect it.

[Prestidigitweeze]

I've never been a fan of Apple's gated garden. But if they ever bring the Retina Display to the iPad, I might have to get one for two technical reasons:

1. More viable professional music apps than any other tablet, smartphone or PMP.

2. Unlike every Android device I've used, minimally jerky UI and negligibly stuttering performance.

Those things are mere nuisances for most users, but for professional musicians who depend on maximum control, standardization and timing, they're absolute deal-breakers.

By the time there's a Retinal iPad, it's very possible other tablets will have caught up with its display's resolution. But that isn't the deciding factor for me: It pales before sufficient pro music apps and smoother UI/timing.

================

Here, apart from the lack of power, is the main reason I won't be buying a Kindle Fire:

Its proprietary app store is so much more impractical than Apple's that it qualifies as a Sony-level strategic miscalculation.

As invasive and controlling as it is, Apple's app store is seamless for Apple devices. But for Android devices, Amazon's market is a third-party overlay on the true Android Market. This complicates the timely delivery, updating and performance of the apps one buys. And unless one allows Amazon's constant data/power-hungry app validation, after being installed, the apps won't even load offline on non-Amazon Android devices. That situation might be improved upon with the KF, but my Samsung experiences with the Amazon App Store don't bode well for the idea of ownership.

Supposing you buy an audiophile music player like Neutron and wish to sideload to a second device. First, your ability to do so will be complicated or even negated by Amazonian intervention depending on which sort of device is the object. Second, you won't be able to load Neutron's device-specific updates to the commercial app as linked to on the NMP web site, since Amazon Market purchases won't be recognized as Android Market purchases.

Mind you, I'm not a fan of the KF's passivity-honed specs. But the Amazon App Market makes it impossible for me to consider any Amazon tablet until the day Bezo understands that his third-tier app-store model is directly in the way of fair use, and that many customers will be unhappy about that and prefer to deal with Google directly.

[kartu]

It's a terrific, compact little friend, and—is this even saying anything?—the best Android tablet to date.

http://www.theverge.com/2011/11/14/2...le-fire-review

What a shameless piece of....

[kennyc]

I received my Kindle Fire this week and have been using it for the last few days. I love it! It's certainly not a full Android Tablet like my Xoom, but it's way more portable, reading on it is great, videos are great. Browsing the web is just 'okay' but the access to all my Amazon content and it being synced across all my devices (Kindle 2, computer cloud reader, Xoom, Fire, and DroidX) is the real clincher. The video content is even synced with my TV which has Amazon Video app on it.

I'm lovin' it!

[MrsJoseph]

Originally Posted by Prestidigitweeze

I've never been a fan of Apple's gated garden. But if they ever bring the Retina Display to the iPad, I might have to get one for two technical reasons:

1. More viable professional music apps than any other tablet, smartphone or PMP

2. Unlike every Android device I've used, minimally jerky UI and negligibly stuttering performance.

Those things are mere nuisances for most users, but for professional musicians who depend on maximum control, standardization and timing, it's an absolute deal-breaker.

By the time there's a Retinal iPad, it's very possible other tablets will have caught up with its display's resolution. But that isn't the deciding factor for me: It pales before sufficient pro music apps and smoother UI/timing.

================

Here, apart from the lack of power, is the main reason I won't be buying a Kindle Fire:

Its proprietary app store is so much more impractical than Apple's that it qualifies as a Sony-level strategic miscalculation.

As invasive and controlling as it is, Apple's app store is seamless for Apple devices. But for Android devices, Amazon's market is a third-party overlay on the true Android Market. This complicates the timely delivery, updating and performance of the apps one buys. And unless one allows Amazon's constant data/power-hungry app validation, after being installed, the apps won't even load offline on non-Amazon Android devices. That situation might be improved upon with the KF, but my Samsung experiences with the Amazon App Store don't bode well for the idea of ownership.

Supposing you buy an audiophile music player like Neutron and wish to sideload to a second device. First, your ability to do so will be complicated or even negated by Amazonian intervention depending on which sort of device is the object. Second, you won't be able to load Neutron's device-specific updates to the commercial app as linked to on the NMP web site, since Amazon Market purchases won't be recognized as Android Market purchases.

Mind you, I'm not a fan of the KF's passivity-honed specs. But the Amazon App Market makes it impossible for me to consider any Amazon tablet until the day Bezo understands that his third-tier app-store model is directly in the way of fair use, and that many customers will be unhappy about that and prefer to deal with Google directly.

I haven't used Amazon's app store as yet - I'm surprised to hear that it's so restrictive.

[Harmon]

Originally Posted by kennyc

I received my Kindle Fire this week and have been using it for the last few days. I love it! It's certainly not a full Android Tablet like my Xoom, but it's way more portable, reading on it is great, videos are great. Browsing the web is just 'okay' but the access to all my Amazon content and it being synced across all my devices (Kindle 2, computer cloud reader, Xoom, Fire, and DroidX) is the real clincher. The video content is even synced with my TV which has Amazon Video app on it.

I don't think Amazon intends for it to be a full Android tablet. It's intended to be an Amazon Consumption tablet. And if you consume what's on Amazon, that strikes me as pretty good for the price.

Probably if I didn't already have a KK and a KDX, this is the Kindle I'd buy.

But it's no substitute for my iPad. Not even close.

[SCION]

Originally Posted by kennyc

I received my Kindle Fire this week and have been using it for the last few days. I love it! It's certainly not a full Android Tablet like my Xoom, but it's way more portable, reading on it is great, videos are great. Browsing the web is just 'okay' but the access to all my Amazon content and it being synced across all my devices (Kindle 2, computer cloud reader, Xoom, Fire, and DroidX) is the real clincher. The video content is even synced with my TV which has Amazon Video app on it.

I'm lovin' it!

Plus you can sideload apps with no fuss! I still get my magazines through Barnes and Noble using the NOOK app. When there are more Fire specific versions of magazines I'm interested in, I'll use Amazon. Overall, it's a great complement to my Sony Tablet. And it's only $199 for tightly knit access to the Amazon ecosystem. This is what I've been wanting for some time. I don't need to buy books anywhere else. I'm guaranteed to find what I want at Amazon. Oh, plus you can sync sideloaded books!

[SleepyBob]

Originally Posted by MrsJoseph

I haven't used Amazon's app store as yet - I'm surprised to hear that it's so restrictive.

It really isn't. What it boils down to, is if you want to run apps from the Amazon App Store, you also have to have the App Store App installed. Which you probably already installed in order to purchase said App.

The App Store App matches up the Apps that are registered to your Amazon user id, and will not run an Amazon-purchased app if it doesn't match your account.

[Prestidigitweeze]

Originally Posted by MrsJoseph

I haven't used Amazon's app store as yet - I'm surprised to hear that it's so restrictive.

It might or might not be as restrictive when used with an Amazon device. But in my experience with non-Amazon android devices, it won't allow apps to open without an active internet connection, which depletes battery life and is impractical in areas with bad coverage, and it can create update version discrepancies and make secondary device-specific updates maddening (since not all of those are pushed to the android market, let alone, to Amazon).

This shouldn't be a polarizing issue. You can still love your Kindle Fire while wanting JB to stop inflicting on Android app users what essentially becomes a second layer of frustrating authentication variables.

[Andanzas]

Originally Posted by Prestidigitweeze

It might or might not be as restrictive when used with an Amazon device. But in my experience with non-Amazon android devices, it won't allow apps to open without an active internet connection, which depletes battery life and is impractical in areas with bad coverage, and it can create update version discrepancies and make secondary device-specific updates maddening (since not all of those are pushed to the android market, let alone, to Amazon).

This shouldn't be a polarizing issue. You can still love your Kindle Fire while wanting JB to stop inflicting on Android app users what essentially becomes a second layer of frustrating authentication variables.

That's strange. On my Asus Transformer, I've never had a problem using apps purchased from Amazon with the wifi turned off. And I turn on the Airplane Mode quite often to save battery life.

[Blossom]

Originally Posted by Andanzas

That's strange. On my Asus Transformer, I've never had a problem using apps purchased from Amazon with the wifi turned off. And I turn on the Airplane Mode quite often to save battery life.

It's will work as long as you are logged into the app store on your device. No net needed. If you log out and the app you downloaded has DRM it will give you pop up telling you to log in.

[Andanzas]

I didn't know that. That's interesting. Thanks!

[Blossom]

Originally Posted by Andanzas

I didn't know that. That's interesting. Thanks!

I found out when my hubby couldn't play Angry birds in bed at 3AM one night. I had to get out of my comfy bed and go downstairs and find the password to our account so he'd stop pouting.

You would think I would learn from this but nope next week it happen to my phone. I couldn't read on Mantano because of it and had to go searching once again for the password.

On the Fire it doesn't work that way. There's no logging in or out needed. It's like any Kindle. You register your device and you are logged in for good.

[Prestidigitweeze]

Originally Posted by Blossom

It's will work as long as you are logged into the app store on your device. No net needed. If you log out and the app you downloaded has DRM it will give you pop up telling you to log in.

The version of the Amazon App Store I had on my Samsung Epic refused to stop connecting to the internet in the background unless I logged off, and even then, it restarted and ran in the background continuously. Which meant I had to uninstall it to stop running down my battery, which meant that none of the apps I downloaded through it actually worked.

The same proved true for my co-worker's device, which I believe was a Galaxy tablet.

I'm sure the store is integrated nicely with the KF, and it's possible that later versions of the Amazon App Market for smartphones might have addressed the worst aspects of their login issue. Still, you couldn't pay me to revisit that level of enforced passivity.

Amazon's mp3 downloader is far more flexible, which actually makes it useful. All that Amazon has to do musically at this point is to offer higher-resolution FLAC files at an increase in price. Apple has done this already with ALAC, and several online music stores in the UK and Europe have done this with FLAC all along.