I returned mine too. It's not safe to let the kids use it. Amazon insist you have one-click purchase set up even to watch free prime content, and they don't let you set up a pin or a password just for the pay-for stuff. So it's trivial for my children to run up outrageous bills.<p>(I installed and very soon thereafter uninstalled the amazon prime app on my TV for the same reason: when you watch free prime content, they still seem to send you a $0.00 invoice for every single free thing you watch. Then when your children watch something else, they charge your card, and the "invoice" gets mixed up with all the other $0.00 invoices in your amazon folder or inbox. Fuck That Shit. At least Netflix is safe against that shit.)<p>If it wasn't Amazon, it'd be a clear-cut scam. But it's Amazon, so I have to hope they come to their senses. Until then, we're getting an ipad, and we're sticking with netflix (even though we have prime ... for now anyway).
I also returned mine. I was expecting a more polished experience from Amazon. Even for $200 the software feels unfinished and nowhere near as responsive or intelligently designed as iOS. The lack of hardware volume controls and placement of the on/off switch are the killing blows.<p>This isn't buying a Honda and expecting a BMW-class experience. It's buying a Honda and getting a car that only starts after three tries, only reads square CDs, only streams music from EMI, and refuses to brake until the pedal is pressed in the exact special way at the exact time. The iPad just drives.
I tried using this for just a few minutes, since my friend has one.<p>The slowness is quite staggering. For example, there was a copy of a dictionary on it; I tried to use Search to find a word (since paging through from "A" would be ridiculous) and it took like 20 seconds to show ANY results. This kind of functionality isn't just unacceptable, it's so bad that the Search function <i>might as well not exist</i>.<p>The ability to hold it in one hand (albeit with stretched fingers) was nicer than the iPad; but since there's no practical way to use that same hand to operate the device it doesn't really matter. When I have to stop and use both hands to operate a smaller device or a larger one, I would prefer to just have the larger one.
Not to dismiss his criticisms. The Fire has problems. But this device was clearly designed for a different market. He acknowledges it <i>"I had read that the Fire is designed as a consumption device for Amazon products"</i> But he decided to buy it anyway.<p>It seems odd to write a lengthy criticism of a product he anticipated wouldn't suit him.<p>EDIT: grammar
I went few phases:<p>1. Wow, first tablet..this is aweseome!!!<p>2. Hmmm, some slowness, buyer's remorse, should I keep this?<p>3. Started using it for web surfing, games and reading.<p>The more I use it, the more I like it.<p>It needs more apps (the amazon appstore is limited, a good RSS reader would be welcome, can't use the same one that I use on my phone).<p>Perhaps a software update or two can fix the speed issues?<p>I'm keeping mine for now, I use it way too much.
I'd love to read a review comparing it to the Nook Color. I have a Nook Color and it's not an iPad substitute. Nevertheless, loaded with CM7, it has a useful place for light web browsing and reading recipes in the kitchen.
I bought one for my wife as a birthday gift. After reading the reviews, she didn't want the Fire. I returned it and got the $109 no-keyboard no-touch kindle instead, and she loves it. E-Ink is just such a better reading experience than a LCD.
I disagree with his statement about the Kindle Fire not having built-in support for .mobi files. I am currently reading Land of Lisp in .mobi format on my Kindle fire with no problems. The one quirk I did notice is even though I uploaded the .mobi file to the books directory, the book shows up in the Docs view. It seems only books purchased directly through the Kindle store are allowed to show up in the Books view.
I generally like my Kindle Fire but I do find some of the on screen buttons require multiple presses to respond, particularly the back button. Hopefully this will be fixed in a software update.
I bought it primarily for reading books and figured any other use I got out of it was a plus. I've since found out that it's great for video less so for other stuff. I think overall it's an outstanding value for the price.
From what I've read, the kindle fire has been underwhelming. I think this is largely due to our expectations for tablet computing, given that we now have android tablets and ipads. Would it be fair to say the kindle fire is a better kindle, but not a tablet computer?
Got one free last week, and for me 7" is the perfect size for typing in landscape mode. I actually quite like the Amazonized android too for the most part. Side-loading apps is a bit of a hassle, but at least you can install any android app. I put Dolhpin HD on it, runs fine. It's also not sluggish at all (maybe they've pushed an update since the early reviews?). It's much zippier than my LG revolution. Some apps seem to run way smoother than on my phone (e.g. TuneIn Radio has been flawless so far). Battery life is good. The easy to accidentally press power button at the "bottom" (using it upside down can actually occasionally be an issue for some apps that only run in one mode), and lack of a SD slot is really dumb. I'd still buy one for $200.
I bought one. First tablet. I find it just fine for the price tag and it is extremely portable. Since buying it I have used my laptop about 70% less. For some reason I cannot log into HN from the Fire. If I was able to, then frankly I would only use my laptop for development or writing long form.<p>I am only using it for reading books and browsing. I have also downloaded a couple of books in PDF format and sent them to my kindle email address. They read just fine, although you will need to pinch-zoom every page if the text is too small.<p>Sometime it freezes, and frankly I had to replace the first one (I bought it in store).<p>I have no idea what people expect for $199. I find it very valuable for the money. I have a feeling by the second or third iteration they will have a dedicated audience just as Ipad and Iphone do.
There is the Blackberry Playbook that is exactly the same device for the same price but a lot nicer in UX.
Lenovo also has the Idea Pad A1 that is slightly more in ($229) price but same form factor.<p>Both of these devices will get you the full Tablet experience minus the lag and general unfinished feeling of the Fire. Plus both have the Kindle app so reading amazon content is not a problem. So there is no real market for the Fire from what I can see. sure the Silk browser seems cool but Laggy execution will kill any perceived advantages.<p>For about $100 more you can also get the ASUS Transformer (my current Tablet). I have literally stopped using my laptop except at work once I got this. The attached Dock makes it a perfect device for my usecases.
I checked out that vizio, it's single core and 1/2 the storage (has an sd slot though). Unless you care about the GPS and camera, seems rooting the fire is a better choice. I doubt I'll root mine though, I'm one of the few that seems to like it.
Since Nobody else on this thread commented about the .mobi support yet, I'll put this here: <a href="http://www.artima.com/forums/flat.jsp?forum=106&thread=338317" rel="nofollow">http://www.artima.com/forums/flat.jsp?forum=106&thread=3...</a><p>From the comments and googling it appears that the Fire supports .mobi just fine, except that it puts them in the "Docs" index instead of "Books". Something about some meta data that distinguishes them.
Thoughts on the Kindle DX which is on sale for $259? The original Kindle screen always seemed too small to me and the DX always seemed too expensive, but now...
I think the problem is people are expecting all the functionality of the iPad, this is simply a e-reader on a little bit of steroids. For me the device has been good, the issue with the .mobi files confused me also but really they just appear in the Doc section. If you go to this expecting for an iPad, you will hate it. If you want a simple e reader that lets you browse the web and download some apps, then its great.
Amazon made it very clear from the beginning that the Fire was designed first and foremost for consuming Amazon content, and it does that very well. I do not regret spending the $200 on it.<p>It was never advertised as a tablet or a competitor to the iPad, so I don't understand all of the backlash from the people who wanted to use it that way.
I refuse to go Android with another device until they implement hardware acceleration and improve the user experience. The staggering that occurs when scrolling and moving between applications is just plain unnatural and I have a mini-aneurysm every time it does it. Plus, the battery drainage is atrocious on the phone I have. That said, I haven't sprung for a tablet yet, so we'll see where both the iPad and the best Android offering compare when that times does eventually come.
I just recently predicted consumer backlash with the Fire:<p><a href="http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3269095" rel="nofollow">http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3269095</a><p>...so I guess I'm not surprised.