I want a tablet that can-
- surf the web fast
- youtube
- apps/ games
- is a reader;
as kindle is known more for being readers.. will the fire be an exception, or will it be used mainly as a reader?
what i mean is... can it basically do everything the ipad can do, and also do it as well as the ipad, except lack of a camera & 3g internet?
Anonymous
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Hi, VegasKid, Kindle Fire is as far from iPad as Earth is from Moon besides being late to the game a year after Nook Color from Barnes & Noble. Limitation of Kindle Fire are so numerous that it might take a couple of pages to list, I'll try a few:
1. Kindle Fire doesn't have microSD slot that, for example, Nook Color has thus it is stuck with 6 GB usable internal storage unlike Nook Color that can get up to 32 GB card in. Kindles are made to be almost like a "dumb terminal" of the past to make sure you're tied up to Amazon's storage on the web (for which you need Wi-Fi connection to get to) and you can only store content you get from Amazon there, not other files. Quoting Amazon on Kindle Fire: "Free cloud storage for all Amazon content". Get it, Amazon content?
2. The stats of how long the battery can last (Kindle Fire theory is 7.5 hours) are taken with Wi-Fi off. It will last only about 3 hours if you use it to access content from their Cloud storage over Wi-Fi.
3. Amazon can spy on your web activity through their new cloud-integrated web browser of Kindle Fire.
4. VERY IMPORTANT – lack of microSD slot means that if you decide to root your Kindle Fire, you’ll have to root the actual device thus there will be no coming back. On Nook Color, you can make it boot from a “rooted” microSD card and if you want to get back to the original Nook you can just take out the card and reboot.
5. Kindle Fire doesn't have a camera.
6. Kindle Fire has about 70% less usable screen area than iPad 2.
7. Kindle doesn't support eBooks in ePub format that is the most used format in the world.
8. Kindle app store contains only Amazon approved apps and it does not include (and will not include) Netflix app that iPad has and Nook Color is getting thus again you're stuck with Amazon content only.
9. Amazon confirmed that you cannot download anything to Kindle Fire when traveling abroad.
10. Amazon says it will review every app in its Appstore for Fire compatibility, as part of an automated process. Rejected apps will include those that rely on a gyroscope, camera, WAN module, Bluetooth, microphone, GPS, or micro SD. Apps are also forbidden from using Google's Mobile Services (and in-app billing), which, if included, will have to be "gracefully" removed. In terms of actual content, Amazon has outlawed all apps that change the tablet's UI in any way (including theme- or wallpaper-based tools), as well as any that demand root access (it remains to be seen how the company will treat the root-dependent apps already in its store).
11. I'd recommend waiting for Nook Color 2 that is rumored to be released by Barnes & Noble shortly.
?
The Kindle Fire, like all LCD-based ereaders, is really a tablet. While it'll be fully capable of being used to read ebooks, it'll also perform great on those other non-reading applications that you seek. Be aware, however, that's it will not be the best for long-run reading. The E Ink ereaders display ebooks via ambient light just like physical books and are excellent for long run reading but lousy for apps, games, web browsing, and videos.
Yes, the Kindle Fire will be competitive with the iPad. So many will be sold that developers will be drawn to the platform like they were to the iPad. There are already many apps available (but not yet nearly as many as iPad/iPhone/iPod). Amazon is keeping the cost of the Kindle Fire low in hopes to make more money selling apps and other media. With its previous Kindle success, and with its success as an online merchant in general, it's well positioned succeed with the Kindle Fire. Finally, the Kindle Fire's new Silk browser leverages Amazon's massive cloud infrastructure for storage and processing optimization; there's nothing like this anywhere else in the tablet world currently, and it'll be hard to imitate by competitors.
curlylocks2
Yes, it can.
However the other thing it doesn't have is a gyroscope (i.e. the thing that lets you turn it upside down and still read it the right way up etc) that is why driving games won't work on it.
However, in some ways it's better than a normal tablet as unlike the ipad it is flash compatible which means it's better for surfing the web.
http://www.squidoo.com/ipad-vs-kindle-fire-comparison
accorn34
The kindle fire is defiantly more a tablet then an ereader. Frankly the silk browser is going to be way better than the ipad browser, considering it supports flash and youtube etc.
You can get a good deal on the kindle fire here:
http://www.shoppersource.net/goto/kindle_fire
I would totally go for the kindle fire over the alternatives, since not only is it the cheapest cost full featured tablet going, but it amazon is going to have the hugest media selection that is going to dwarf everyone else. They already own the publishing world, and now they are moving into movies etc, which you will have full access to on the fire.
So YES, it's just like an ipad - it supports fast web browsing, youtube, runs google android apps, media player & color ereader- which considering the price it's insane.
Rose D
The Kindle Fire is an Anroid based tablet. It's cheaper than an iPad or full Android tablet like the Xoom because it lacks certain hardware features like cameras, GPS etc. But it can do most everything any other Android tablet can do. You get apps at Amazon's App Store - browse there to get an idea of what's available.