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kindle fire hd(215)
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facebook(12)
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The Reviews Are In
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"The screen is bright, brilliant and graphics are crisp and smooth" — Mashable "The Fire HD's speakers are the most ear-bleedingly awesome tablet speakers you've ever heard" — CNET "It boasts amazing Wi-Fi connectivity - perhaps the best so far in any device I have either owned or tried" — Gigaom "It offers a lot for the money; it's full of ambitious features; it provides super-convenient access to a never-ending trove of content" — Time |
Breakthrough Hardware Technology
When it comes to HD displays, great resolution is just the start. Unlike other 7" tablets, Kindle Fire HD delivers rich color and deep contrast from every angle, with an advanced polarizing filter and custom anti-glare technology.
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Low quality sound can ruin your HD entertainment experience. That's why Kindle Fire HD features exclusive, custom Dolby audio, dual-driver stereo speakers, and auto-optimization software for clear, crisp, balanced audio.
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When it comes to HD content, bandwidth is everything. Without it, you get video buffering, slow downloads, and dropped connections. Kindle Fire HD solves this issue by using state-of-the-art dual-band, dual-antenna Wi-Fi for over 35% faster speeds.
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HD content requires more storage, strong processing power and plenty of battery life. Kindle Fire HD was designed specifically for HD movies and games, giving you lightning fast performance without compromising battery life or storage.
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All the Content
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Are you a developer? Kindle Fire Developer Resources can help you get your apps and games on Kindle Fire tablets. Learn more
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Features
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Featured Accessories
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Technical Details
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| Back to Top | ||||||||||||
| Kindle E-readers | Kindle Fire Tablets | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Kindle Paperwhite 3G | Kindle Paperwhite | Kindle | Kindle Keyboard 3G | Kindle Fire HD 8.9" 4G Tablet | Kindle Fire HD 8.9" Tablet | Kindle Fire HD Tablet | Kindle Fire Tablet | |||||
| $179.00 | $119.00 | $69.00 | $399.00 | $269.00 | $199.00 | $159.00 | ||||||
| Screen Size | 6" | 6" | 6" | 8.9" | 7" | 7" | ||||||
| Display Technology | Paperwhite Built-in light | E Ink Pearl | E Ink Pearl | HD LCD | HD LCD | LCD | ||||||
| Resolution/Pixel Density | 212 PPI | 167 PPI | 167 PPI | 1920x1200, up to 1080p HD |
1280x800, up to 720p HD |
1024x600 | ||||||
| Audio | - | - | Stereo speakers | Dolby Audio, dual stereo speakers |
Dolby Audio, dual-driver stereo speakers |
Stereo speakers | ||||||
| Connectivity |
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- Wi-Fi |
Free 3G + Wi-Fi |
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- Dual-band, dual-antenna Wi-Fi |
- Wi-Fi |
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| Storage | 2GB on device Plus free cloud storage for all Amazon content |
2GB on device Plus free cloud storage for all Amazon content |
4GB on device Plus free cloud storage for all Amazon content |
16GB or 32GB on Wi-Fi device 32GB or 64GB on 4G device Plus free cloud storage for all Amazon content |
16GB or 32GB on device Plus free cloud storage for all Amazon content |
8GB on device Plus free cloud storage for all Amazon content |
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| Dimensions | 6.7" x 4.6" x 0.36" | 6.5" x 4.5" x 0.34" | 7.5" x 4.8" x 0.34" | 9.45" x 6.5" x 0.35" | 7.6" x 5.4" x 0.4" | 7.44" x 4.72" x 0.45" | ||||||
| Weight |
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5.98 oz | 8.7 oz | 20 oz | 13.9 oz | 14.1 oz | ||||||
| Processor | - | - | - | Dual-core, 1.5GHz OMAP4470 |
Dual-core, 1.2GHz OMAP4460 |
Dual-core, 1.2GHz OMAP4430 |
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| Battery Life | 8 weeks wireless off |
4 weeks wireless off |
8 weeks wireless off |
10 hours continuous use |
11 hours continuous use |
8.5 hours continuous use |
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| Web | Experimental browser |
Experimental browser |
Experimental browser |
Cloud-accelerated browsing using Amazon Silk |
Cloud-accelerated browsing using Amazon Silk |
Cloud-accelerated browsing using Amazon Silk |
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| Interface |  2-point multi-touch |
 5-way controller |
 Keyboard |
 10-point multi-touch |
10-point multi-touch |
2-point multi-touch |
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23,033 of 23,510 people found the following review helpful
By TL
Configuration:With Special Offers| Digital Storage Capacity:16|Amazon Verified Purchase
I've been an iPad user since the original came out. I also have an iPad 3. I have worked in IT for the past few years so I would say I am pretty good with technology and fancy new devices. With that introduction out of the way, I will be reviewing key points that I have seen touched upon in other reviews. Here goes...
BUILD
The device feels nice and solid. I'm a little surprised at how heavy it is, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. The rubberized backing is always nice for added grip. It's not as nice as say unibody aluminum, but it's not $500 either.
SCREEN
The screen is fantastic. But my problem is the same as when iPad got Retina Display, other than the OS, most apps look rather pixelated. A lot of the games I tried are not high definition, at least not high enough to look smooth on this screen. Hopefully apps get updated to higher resolutions.
LOCK SCREEN ADS
Yeah there are ads on my lock screen. I'm not sure why this is such a big deal. How much time do people really spend looking at the lock screen? The first thing I thought when I saw the ads is WOW the pictures are really crisp! The ads are there to subsidize some of the $200 price tag. I might pay the $15 to get rid of them so I can customize it, but I might not. I feel like this has been blown out of proportion by other customers.
SOUND
The sound from the speakers is great. Much better than you would get from more expensive devices, very crisp and clean. I have the official Amazon case on and it has not affected the sound at all. Nothing much else to say, I doubt anyone will complain about this.
CRASHING
I've had two apps crash on opening. I don't know if it is the app or the OS. It's probably somewhere in the middle. Again, not a big deal for me. If it crashes, then I just tap it again and it works. I've also watched a few movies using the built in player as well as Netflix and Amazon Prime. No crashes for me at all. I'm sure OS stability will be improved as time goes on.
OVERALL SATISFACTION
Compared to my iPad 3, obviously the Fire HD is not as "good" so to speak. I mainly got it because I wanted something smaller. I also mainly used the iPad to surf the web, watch videos, and play some simple games. The Fire HD accomplishes this and does so much more. If you are expecting an iPad killer, or a desktop replacement, or a productivity machine, then you should look elsewhere.
I bought this to be a media device, and I believe that is what Amazon meant this to be. In this regard, I think this is a great device. In fact, I decided to keep this and sell my iPad 3, which will give me another $200+ to spend on other things. Just remember, this device is not for everyone. If you want a media device, you will be happy with this. Do not expect an iPad for $200.
UPDATE 9/18/12
Just wanted to add a few more things I have noticed over the past 24 hours.
- Power/Volume Buttons: There are a bit hard to press, which is somewhat alleviated by having the official case. Maybe it's because I'm a longtime iPad user, but this will definitely take some getting used to.
- Screen Glare: It took me a little while to notice, but I was playing a Seek & Find game while on Caltrain, with the bright Palo Alto sun shining right on me, and didn't have any trouble seeing the screen. I remembered that Amazon mentioned how the screen was changed to reduce glare, and they did an amazing job.
UPDATE 9/20/12
Two days later and I am still very happy with the device. Here are some more thoughts from me:
BATTERY LIFE
I have been playing Enigmatis (a hidden object game) for about an hour and a half each day on my commute. This drains about 15 - 20% of the battery with the screen brightness almost at the highest setting. Again, not iPad gold standard, but still very good.
SYNCING MUSIC
I have a Samsung Galaxy S3 and used an app called Easy Phone Transfer to get all my music from iTunes onto the phone. It transferred everything, including album covers, and I was hoping to find something like that for this device. I tried iSyncr, a $3 app, which did the job, but did not sync over album covers. I uploaded all my music into the Cloud, then downloaded it from Amazon, which increased the audio quality for a lot of my songs and added artwork, but this still did not show up on the device.
I got very frustrated getting all the album artwork over and eventually just gave up. It's not a big deal but I am kind of anal about those kinds of things. Just a heads up if anyone else out there is crazy about it like I am.
UPDATE 09/21/12
I got a call from Amazon Customer Service about this review, which surprised me very much. They advised me the best way to get the artwork to show up is have the songs in both the Cloud Player as well as the device, which I know does work fine. I was hoping to have the artwork show without needing things in the Cloud, but not a big deal any more.
I am more impressed with the fact that Amazon called me to give me advice on how to remedy the situation and ask if there were any other questions I had on the Kindle. The representative said he wanted to make sure I was happy with the Fire HD. This is one of the big reasons I went with the Kindle, and with Amazon in general. I have had great experiences with their customer service, who have always been able to handle my issues quickly and efficiently. No need to set up an appointment days later with a wannabe IT guy with a hugely overstated job title.
So this update is not really for the device itself, but sometimes it's not just the device, it's the company that offers it that makes a difference. This is why I no longer have any Apple devices, as cool as they may be. But it's not 100% gravy, as I have noticed lately that the keyboard keeps popping up randomly on screens where there is nowhere to enter text, ie. while playing a game. I just have to press the Back arrow to get rid of it, but maybe a bug the Amazon engineers want to take a look at.
UPDATE 10/05/12
So I don't know if it was always there, but over this past weekend I noticed a dead pixel on my Kindle's screen. I called Kindle Support and after a short 5 minute call, they sent me a new Kindle, no questions asked. So once again, very happy with Amazon customer service. I am still very happy with the device, and have some more thoughts on it:
HDMI CONNECTION
I bought an HDMI cable to hook up the Fire to my 46" Samsung and was quite impressed with the results. The quality was very good, not Bluray quality of course, but better than SDTV on an HD screen. You actually see every single thing you do on the big screen, like you are using a giant Kindle.
GOOGLE PLAY APPS
One of the main drawbacks in my opinion is, or should I say was, the lack of all the Google Play apps available on the Kindle. With a little research, I found out how to add apps that are not available in the Amazon store. It is pretty easy to do and works very well with the apps I tried. This greatly improves my opinion of the Fire HD.
PLASTIC AROUND THE SCREEN
The outer most edges of the Kindle are plastic. I noticed some kind of discoloration on the corner of mine, and just thought it was some dirt to scratch off. So I rubbed my thumb nail on the area, and noticed there were visible marks on the plastic. It appears this plastic can scratch some what easily, but I think this is just cosmetic as not of the plastic actually flaked. If you are not very anal about how your stuff looks, you probably won't notice it.
OS CHANGES
Here are two small gripes I have with the OS that I'm sure could be fixed with an OS update:
- Battery Meter: It would be nice if the battery meter could show percentage instead of just a graphic bar. Some people have mentioned Battery HD, but you still have to swipe down to see the percentage, so this makes it easier but does not solve the issue I had.
- Personal Videos: The mp4 videos I put on the device are located in the "Personal Videos" app, which shows screen shots of all the videos I put in. The problem is, all that is shown are the screen shots. You can get more info by holding your finger down on each video, but when you have multiple seasons of a show on the Kindle, it can get confusing. Ideally we should be able to look at videos in a list like our music.
UPDATE 11/15/12
Still very happy with the device. Here are some more thoughts:
LEFT HAND MODE
I did't think this would be a problem until I played a Solitaire game that DID have a left-handed mode. As a lefty who usually uses the Fire in landscape, I often have to reach across the screen to access the Settings or Home button in the menu. It's a small grievance, but can be really annoying when watching a movie or reading something. If there was an option for a left-handed layout with the menus on the left side of the device, that would be great.
PERSONAL VIDEOS APP
I had earlier complained about this app, as it did not list my movies and crashed playing a pair of them. I recently drove down to LA from SF, and put 5 movies on device, only to find that 4 of them would not play! I was pretty mad, until I remembered a simple solution, download another app. I downloaded Avia Media Player, which is not the greatest either, but it played all the movies I put on the Kindle. My faith was restored.
GOOGLE PLAY APPS
A lot of people have asked how to do this. If you are not having luck with Google searches, try this:
[...]
BUILD
The device feels nice and solid. I'm a little surprised at how heavy it is, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. The rubberized backing is always nice for added grip. It's not as nice as say unibody aluminum, but it's not $500 either.
SCREEN
The screen is fantastic. But my problem is the same as when iPad got Retina Display, other than the OS, most apps look rather pixelated. A lot of the games I tried are not high definition, at least not high enough to look smooth on this screen. Hopefully apps get updated to higher resolutions.
LOCK SCREEN ADS
Yeah there are ads on my lock screen. I'm not sure why this is such a big deal. How much time do people really spend looking at the lock screen? The first thing I thought when I saw the ads is WOW the pictures are really crisp! The ads are there to subsidize some of the $200 price tag. I might pay the $15 to get rid of them so I can customize it, but I might not. I feel like this has been blown out of proportion by other customers.
SOUND
The sound from the speakers is great. Much better than you would get from more expensive devices, very crisp and clean. I have the official Amazon case on and it has not affected the sound at all. Nothing much else to say, I doubt anyone will complain about this.
CRASHING
I've had two apps crash on opening. I don't know if it is the app or the OS. It's probably somewhere in the middle. Again, not a big deal for me. If it crashes, then I just tap it again and it works. I've also watched a few movies using the built in player as well as Netflix and Amazon Prime. No crashes for me at all. I'm sure OS stability will be improved as time goes on.
OVERALL SATISFACTION
Compared to my iPad 3, obviously the Fire HD is not as "good" so to speak. I mainly got it because I wanted something smaller. I also mainly used the iPad to surf the web, watch videos, and play some simple games. The Fire HD accomplishes this and does so much more. If you are expecting an iPad killer, or a desktop replacement, or a productivity machine, then you should look elsewhere.
I bought this to be a media device, and I believe that is what Amazon meant this to be. In this regard, I think this is a great device. In fact, I decided to keep this and sell my iPad 3, which will give me another $200+ to spend on other things. Just remember, this device is not for everyone. If you want a media device, you will be happy with this. Do not expect an iPad for $200.
UPDATE 9/18/12
Just wanted to add a few more things I have noticed over the past 24 hours.
- Power/Volume Buttons: There are a bit hard to press, which is somewhat alleviated by having the official case. Maybe it's because I'm a longtime iPad user, but this will definitely take some getting used to.
- Screen Glare: It took me a little while to notice, but I was playing a Seek & Find game while on Caltrain, with the bright Palo Alto sun shining right on me, and didn't have any trouble seeing the screen. I remembered that Amazon mentioned how the screen was changed to reduce glare, and they did an amazing job.
UPDATE 9/20/12
Two days later and I am still very happy with the device. Here are some more thoughts from me:
BATTERY LIFE
I have been playing Enigmatis (a hidden object game) for about an hour and a half each day on my commute. This drains about 15 - 20% of the battery with the screen brightness almost at the highest setting. Again, not iPad gold standard, but still very good.
SYNCING MUSIC
I have a Samsung Galaxy S3 and used an app called Easy Phone Transfer to get all my music from iTunes onto the phone. It transferred everything, including album covers, and I was hoping to find something like that for this device. I tried iSyncr, a $3 app, which did the job, but did not sync over album covers. I uploaded all my music into the Cloud, then downloaded it from Amazon, which increased the audio quality for a lot of my songs and added artwork, but this still did not show up on the device.
I got very frustrated getting all the album artwork over and eventually just gave up. It's not a big deal but I am kind of anal about those kinds of things. Just a heads up if anyone else out there is crazy about it like I am.
UPDATE 09/21/12
I got a call from Amazon Customer Service about this review, which surprised me very much. They advised me the best way to get the artwork to show up is have the songs in both the Cloud Player as well as the device, which I know does work fine. I was hoping to have the artwork show without needing things in the Cloud, but not a big deal any more.
I am more impressed with the fact that Amazon called me to give me advice on how to remedy the situation and ask if there were any other questions I had on the Kindle. The representative said he wanted to make sure I was happy with the Fire HD. This is one of the big reasons I went with the Kindle, and with Amazon in general. I have had great experiences with their customer service, who have always been able to handle my issues quickly and efficiently. No need to set up an appointment days later with a wannabe IT guy with a hugely overstated job title.
So this update is not really for the device itself, but sometimes it's not just the device, it's the company that offers it that makes a difference. This is why I no longer have any Apple devices, as cool as they may be. But it's not 100% gravy, as I have noticed lately that the keyboard keeps popping up randomly on screens where there is nowhere to enter text, ie. while playing a game. I just have to press the Back arrow to get rid of it, but maybe a bug the Amazon engineers want to take a look at.
UPDATE 10/05/12
So I don't know if it was always there, but over this past weekend I noticed a dead pixel on my Kindle's screen. I called Kindle Support and after a short 5 minute call, they sent me a new Kindle, no questions asked. So once again, very happy with Amazon customer service. I am still very happy with the device, and have some more thoughts on it:
HDMI CONNECTION
I bought an HDMI cable to hook up the Fire to my 46" Samsung and was quite impressed with the results. The quality was very good, not Bluray quality of course, but better than SDTV on an HD screen. You actually see every single thing you do on the big screen, like you are using a giant Kindle.
GOOGLE PLAY APPS
One of the main drawbacks in my opinion is, or should I say was, the lack of all the Google Play apps available on the Kindle. With a little research, I found out how to add apps that are not available in the Amazon store. It is pretty easy to do and works very well with the apps I tried. This greatly improves my opinion of the Fire HD.
PLASTIC AROUND THE SCREEN
The outer most edges of the Kindle are plastic. I noticed some kind of discoloration on the corner of mine, and just thought it was some dirt to scratch off. So I rubbed my thumb nail on the area, and noticed there were visible marks on the plastic. It appears this plastic can scratch some what easily, but I think this is just cosmetic as not of the plastic actually flaked. If you are not very anal about how your stuff looks, you probably won't notice it.
OS CHANGES
Here are two small gripes I have with the OS that I'm sure could be fixed with an OS update:
- Battery Meter: It would be nice if the battery meter could show percentage instead of just a graphic bar. Some people have mentioned Battery HD, but you still have to swipe down to see the percentage, so this makes it easier but does not solve the issue I had.
- Personal Videos: The mp4 videos I put on the device are located in the "Personal Videos" app, which shows screen shots of all the videos I put in. The problem is, all that is shown are the screen shots. You can get more info by holding your finger down on each video, but when you have multiple seasons of a show on the Kindle, it can get confusing. Ideally we should be able to look at videos in a list like our music.
UPDATE 11/15/12
Still very happy with the device. Here are some more thoughts:
LEFT HAND MODE
I did't think this would be a problem until I played a Solitaire game that DID have a left-handed mode. As a lefty who usually uses the Fire in landscape, I often have to reach across the screen to access the Settings or Home button in the menu. It's a small grievance, but can be really annoying when watching a movie or reading something. If there was an option for a left-handed layout with the menus on the left side of the device, that would be great.
PERSONAL VIDEOS APP
I had earlier complained about this app, as it did not list my movies and crashed playing a pair of them. I recently drove down to LA from SF, and put 5 movies on device, only to find that 4 of them would not play! I was pretty mad, until I remembered a simple solution, download another app. I downloaded Avia Media Player, which is not the greatest either, but it played all the movies I put on the Kindle. My faith was restored.
GOOGLE PLAY APPS
A lot of people have asked how to do this. If you are not having luck with Google searches, try this:
[...]
An Amazon.com official commented on the review below
5,228 of 5,449 people found the following review helpful
Configuration:With Special Offers| Digital Storage Capacity:16|Amazon Verified Purchase
I have been an Amazon customer for years having owned the first gen Kindle and currently the 6" Kindle. I have purchased the 1st gen Fires for my children for Christmas last year and I have purchased both the touch and 1st Fire for my father.
I already own an Ipad and did not feel the need to own a Fire, since I believe they duplicated the same purpose. I did however place an order for the Paperwhite, but after thinking about it, why not own a full functional device that is more than just an ereader.
I love the eInk displays and how light the regular Kindles are. One of my main gripes about tables are that they are heavier and you cant read the screen in bright daylight. I'm not really sure why the daylight is such a big deal for me, since I probably only read outside when I'm on vacation (2x a year).
Anyway, I cancelled the Paperwhite and ordered the Fire HD. I love it. It is portable, I never take my Ipad anywhere, just too big. I uploaded my entire music library from Itunes to Amazon Cloud, (so much for being locked down Apple!) and of course all of my books are on it. I regularly borrow books from my local library and was often frustrated that when I was away from home I could not search for books on my regular Kindle, becuase the experimental browser was just not functional enough.
The sound is amazing as everyone has said, as well as the display. No need to go into detail about what everyone else said. My only gripe is that the touch screen is not really as responsive as I would like, but it still works fine. The display does cut the reflection and you can read out doors. That is not to say there is no glare, it's just not an unreadable LCD screen any longer.
As far as the ads go, I don't find them obtrusive. I like knowing what other people bought or may have looked at. What's the big deal? If your friends recommend something to you, do you get mad? Same thing here to me.
I like that I can sync my email and now, actually use the Prime streaming video service. Yes, I know I could use the app on my Ipad, but like I said, I like it all packaged neatly here.
My only question is how many HD movies/TV shows can you download to the device? I like to download them when I travel and delete when I get home.
If you are an Amazon user, you should know that this tablet is no different that any other device (Apple?) that tries to get you completely integrated into their system. Should not really be a surprise to anyway that all of the shopping experiences point to Amazon.
I am pleased to have a tablet that is portable and easy to use.
Great job Amazon.
My word to the rest of the "reviewers" don't actually own the product, but write reviews on products that you don't own, to grip about a feature you read about. It's silly and clutters the reviews for those of us that actually like reading what other people are saying about a product.
**Update 10/1/2012**
After having my fire for a few weeks I still have very few complaints. I pretty much carry it with me whenever I am out of the house. I love having the option to read or if there way available wi-fi watch a movie. I wish it came with 4G but I bet it would make the price out of line with other small tablets.
The only cons I have is the typing experiences. It seems there is not predicitive text for the Silk browser which makes typing a little tough. I hear though there will be an update.
I dislike fingerprints on the screen when reading, but easily remedied with s soft cloth.
I have read 3 books and I am on my 4th and the screen is no issue whatsoever. This was my biggest concern before purchasing. I have no issue whatsoever. Just so you know, I read a lot and love the Eink Kindles, so this was an experiment to see if I could read for long periods of time with no eyestrain. Not an issue at all.
All in all I still love it. I have not used my Ipad since getting my fire.
I already own an Ipad and did not feel the need to own a Fire, since I believe they duplicated the same purpose. I did however place an order for the Paperwhite, but after thinking about it, why not own a full functional device that is more than just an ereader.
I love the eInk displays and how light the regular Kindles are. One of my main gripes about tables are that they are heavier and you cant read the screen in bright daylight. I'm not really sure why the daylight is such a big deal for me, since I probably only read outside when I'm on vacation (2x a year).
Anyway, I cancelled the Paperwhite and ordered the Fire HD. I love it. It is portable, I never take my Ipad anywhere, just too big. I uploaded my entire music library from Itunes to Amazon Cloud, (so much for being locked down Apple!) and of course all of my books are on it. I regularly borrow books from my local library and was often frustrated that when I was away from home I could not search for books on my regular Kindle, becuase the experimental browser was just not functional enough.
The sound is amazing as everyone has said, as well as the display. No need to go into detail about what everyone else said. My only gripe is that the touch screen is not really as responsive as I would like, but it still works fine. The display does cut the reflection and you can read out doors. That is not to say there is no glare, it's just not an unreadable LCD screen any longer.
As far as the ads go, I don't find them obtrusive. I like knowing what other people bought or may have looked at. What's the big deal? If your friends recommend something to you, do you get mad? Same thing here to me.
I like that I can sync my email and now, actually use the Prime streaming video service. Yes, I know I could use the app on my Ipad, but like I said, I like it all packaged neatly here.
My only question is how many HD movies/TV shows can you download to the device? I like to download them when I travel and delete when I get home.
If you are an Amazon user, you should know that this tablet is no different that any other device (Apple?) that tries to get you completely integrated into their system. Should not really be a surprise to anyway that all of the shopping experiences point to Amazon.
I am pleased to have a tablet that is portable and easy to use.
Great job Amazon.
My word to the rest of the "reviewers" don't actually own the product, but write reviews on products that you don't own, to grip about a feature you read about. It's silly and clutters the reviews for those of us that actually like reading what other people are saying about a product.
**Update 10/1/2012**
After having my fire for a few weeks I still have very few complaints. I pretty much carry it with me whenever I am out of the house. I love having the option to read or if there way available wi-fi watch a movie. I wish it came with 4G but I bet it would make the price out of line with other small tablets.
The only cons I have is the typing experiences. It seems there is not predicitive text for the Silk browser which makes typing a little tough. I hear though there will be an update.
I dislike fingerprints on the screen when reading, but easily remedied with s soft cloth.
I have read 3 books and I am on my 4th and the screen is no issue whatsoever. This was my biggest concern before purchasing. I have no issue whatsoever. Just so you know, I read a lot and love the Eink Kindles, so this was an experiment to see if I could read for long periods of time with no eyestrain. Not an issue at all.
All in all I still love it. I have not used my Ipad since getting my fire.
An Amazon.com official commented on this review
(What's this?)
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. We're glad you're enjoying your Kindle Fire HD, and we are particularly excited to see your encouraging comments regarding the display and sound quality, as the team worked really hard to build an excellent experience.
We wanted to answer your question about storage. HD content is much larger than SD content, which is why Kindle Fire HD starts at 16GB. On average, a 90 minute HD movie is 2GB and a 45 minute HD TV episode is 0.9GB. With your 16GB Kindle Fire HD, you can have up to 6 HD movies or 13 HD TV episodes. This number will vary depending on the other items you have stored or installed on your device.
We hope this information helps.
Thanks,
The Kindle Team
We wanted to answer your question about storage. HD content is much larger than SD content, which is why Kindle Fire HD starts at 16GB. On average, a 90 minute HD movie is 2GB and a 45 minute HD TV episode is 0.9GB. With your 16GB Kindle Fire HD, you can have up to 6 HD movies or 13 HD TV episodes. This number will vary depending on the other items you have stored or installed on your device.
We hope this information helps.
Thanks,
The Kindle Team
1,506 of 1,577 people found the following review helpful
Configuration:With Special Offers|Digital Storage Capacity:16
I purchased the original Kindle Fire on release day last year. It served me pretty well but was extremely glitchy. It would freeze, restart and stutter while playing games. For what it was, an entry level device, it wasnt bad.
So when the Kindle Fire HD was released, I decided I might as well give it a go as well. So far the Kindle HD looks to be twice the machine the original was. I am gonna keep this short and sweet and just create a pros and cons list for you guys. I dont want to be too long winded, but if you have questions you post in the comments, I will try to respond to them for a little while today.
PROS:
1. Vibrant Screen
2. Much more responsive to the Touch than the original Kindle ever was.
3. Games that stuttered on the Original, play flawlessly on the HD.
4. The speakers are awesome, Loud, clear and crisp. No need for the Volume + app like on the original fire.
5. The device is slim, sleek and sexy. Really like the curves on the back and the styling.
6. Front facing camera works great for SKYPE. Quality was better than that on my SIII phone.
7. Wifi seems a bit faster, but not by much. Silk still isnt an optimal browser though. I have 65Mbps Download and 15Mbps Upload subscribed service.
8. Cloud sync worked like a charm, almost everything from my old fire is now on my new Fire HD.
9. The device feels sturdy and well built.
CONS:
1. The "Customers Also Bought" on the bottom of the home screen is terrible. I can care less about what others bought. The advertisements on the Lock Screen are fine and understandable, they really dont bother me at all or with the function of the device. The CAB on the home screen take away from having your favorites immediately accessible and are extremely intrusive with no option to remove it. I would gladly keep the ads on the lockscreen and pay 15 bucks to get rid of the CAB on the homescreen. Enough on that.
2. I work in a hospital and I know 11 people including my wife who now is a proud owner of a Fire HD. One thing we have all noticed is that sometimes when you unlock your device, the speakers will make a popping sound, sort of like a static or feedback. Hopefully this gets fixed.
3. Compared to the Original fire, there is a noticeable delay when clicking on apps or games. It seems more prevalent on certain apps but the same apps have no issue on the original Fire. More prevalent on the HD than on the original.
4. Magic books. For some odd reason, things I remove from the carousel magically reappear to irritate me constantly. I am a bit OCD and only want what I use to be on my carousel and nothing more. Hopefully this will be fixed as well.
5. Certain apps that were available on the Kindle Fire, are not available on the Kindle Fire HD. Accuweather for example is no longer a free app on the HD neither is ScreenDim.
6. I do not understand why we cannot use a different keyboard like Swiftkey. That would be a massive upgrade over the stock keyboard.
NON ISSUES:
1. Flash Player- It isnt so hard to get this to be a flash device. First you need a browser that allows flash to operate. Download a browser like Dolphin 8.8.1 to begin with. Not only does Dolphin perform better than Silk, it is more intuitive as well. Next download Flash Player 11.1 for ICS, make sure its for ICS. Once both are sideloaded, install, and flash should be working. It works on mine. CHECK MY COMMENTS FOR A STEP BY STEP
2. Charger not included- Again, in this day and age, most cellphones and other electronic devices use a mini usb charger. Just use the same plug for the Fire HD. I use my old Fire charger just fine.
3. Carousel- While most agree customization of the carousel skins would of been a nice touch, it still isnt a deal breaker and I didnt buy it to stare at the carousel.
I probably have over 20 hours on the Fire HD right now. From my memory that is all I can recall. If I remember anything or run across anything, new I will just edit in an update below. Any questions just ask in the comments. Overall, this device seems like a great deal. It should be much stronger once a patch is released to fix some bugs, but what doesnt need a patch these days once a product is released. Overall great showing by Amazon. Good Luck
Update #1 9-17-2012
So this is the second time that I have come home from work and the wifi on my Kindle Fire HD is acting wonky. It worked fine at work, then I got home and if I wasnt in the same room as the router, I couldnt get a page to load even though I had full bars of wifi. A reset of the Kindle HD completely fixed this and now I am outside on my front porch, far far away from my router. Hopefully an update will fix the wifi steadiness. Not sure if its because I switched to a different network or what, but I am gonna submit feedback to amazon regarding the issue.
Update #2 09-19-2012
So the issue occurred again. My Fire HD wifi worked this morning at home. I went to work, it hooked up to the public wifi at work no problems. I get home and unless I am right next to my router, pages will not load. Instead of restarting the entire FIRE HD, I went to options, turned off wifi and turned it back on. Problem was solved. Everything then worked as it should. I am not sure why I am having these issues with Wifi as I am a gaming geek and have brand new equipment and top of the line router and modem. I have the Asus RT-N66U router and Motorola SB6121 DOCSIS 3.0 modem. All other devices and the original FIRE work fine, no issues. If anyone else has these issues try turning wifi off then on again.
Update #3 09-20-2012
So it occurred again. I emailed Kindle Feedback with the issue to hopefully have them fix it in an update. By the way, if you guys want to report issues with your kindle fire, email: kindle-feedback@amazon.com
09-22-2012
So it has been a full work week of use for the Kindle Fire HD. I have probably used the device now for about 50-60 hours of web browsing, shopping, posting on forums, playing games, skyping, watching movies and reading. What is nice is one of those Advertisements on the lock screen that so many people complain about gave me a free 5 dollar credit to rent a movie on Amazon Instant Video for nothing at all. How could they? LOL. Overall the Kindle Fire HD has been a superb device for me. Only a few apps have forced closed on me during this time, just as often as on any other device. I am used to the "Customers also bought" section on the homepage already, I dont even notice it anymore. Like I said before, the advertisements are really a non issue, and actually have paid me by giving me free MP3 credits and free movie credits. Wifi speed is good, picture clarity is great, sound is in a class of itself for tablets.
10-27-12
Update 7.2.1 finally enables us to get rid of the pesky "Customers Also Bought" that many of us were complaining about. Now we have just our normal carousel without anyone trying to get us to buy something that we do not want. The patch still did nothing for the popping noise that the speakers make randomly while using the tablet. I have now noticed it makes a popping noise sometimes even during games, not only when sliding the open bar on the lock screen. This doesnt happen often, but when it does, it is annoying. There are still instances where the wifi drops out or says it is connected and doesnt allow you to surf the web. You must then turn wifi off then back on again on the kindle fire and everything is fine. Amazon says they are working on a fix and I have sent my data log files to them on numerous occasions to help with this issue.
I really dont think you can beat this at its price range at all especially if you are an avid Amazon shopper. The Amazon Prime subscription ($79.00 a year) basically gives you a subscription to a "netflix-like" streaming service (netflix is $96.00 a year for streaming), access to tons of books and free 2 day shipping on most amazon purchases. That benefit right there is what seals the deal, no other tablet provider can lump together all those services at a low price like Amazon. I am really happy with my choice, but sure there are things I would love to have on this tablet, but I knew that before buying it. If anyone has questions just post them in the comments. I do my best to answer them. Also if you see a question on there you feel you can answer, by all means please do. Its nice to help others get the full potential out of their purchases. Have a good one.
I will continue to update this thread with all my findings and hope to help people make an informed decision. Thanks
So when the Kindle Fire HD was released, I decided I might as well give it a go as well. So far the Kindle HD looks to be twice the machine the original was. I am gonna keep this short and sweet and just create a pros and cons list for you guys. I dont want to be too long winded, but if you have questions you post in the comments, I will try to respond to them for a little while today.
PROS:
1. Vibrant Screen
2. Much more responsive to the Touch than the original Kindle ever was.
3. Games that stuttered on the Original, play flawlessly on the HD.
4. The speakers are awesome, Loud, clear and crisp. No need for the Volume + app like on the original fire.
5. The device is slim, sleek and sexy. Really like the curves on the back and the styling.
6. Front facing camera works great for SKYPE. Quality was better than that on my SIII phone.
7. Wifi seems a bit faster, but not by much. Silk still isnt an optimal browser though. I have 65Mbps Download and 15Mbps Upload subscribed service.
8. Cloud sync worked like a charm, almost everything from my old fire is now on my new Fire HD.
9. The device feels sturdy and well built.
CONS:
1. The "Customers Also Bought" on the bottom of the home screen is terrible. I can care less about what others bought. The advertisements on the Lock Screen are fine and understandable, they really dont bother me at all or with the function of the device. The CAB on the home screen take away from having your favorites immediately accessible and are extremely intrusive with no option to remove it. I would gladly keep the ads on the lockscreen and pay 15 bucks to get rid of the CAB on the homescreen. Enough on that.
2. I work in a hospital and I know 11 people including my wife who now is a proud owner of a Fire HD. One thing we have all noticed is that sometimes when you unlock your device, the speakers will make a popping sound, sort of like a static or feedback. Hopefully this gets fixed.
3. Compared to the Original fire, there is a noticeable delay when clicking on apps or games. It seems more prevalent on certain apps but the same apps have no issue on the original Fire. More prevalent on the HD than on the original.
4. Magic books. For some odd reason, things I remove from the carousel magically reappear to irritate me constantly. I am a bit OCD and only want what I use to be on my carousel and nothing more. Hopefully this will be fixed as well.
5. Certain apps that were available on the Kindle Fire, are not available on the Kindle Fire HD. Accuweather for example is no longer a free app on the HD neither is ScreenDim.
6. I do not understand why we cannot use a different keyboard like Swiftkey. That would be a massive upgrade over the stock keyboard.
NON ISSUES:
1. Flash Player- It isnt so hard to get this to be a flash device. First you need a browser that allows flash to operate. Download a browser like Dolphin 8.8.1 to begin with. Not only does Dolphin perform better than Silk, it is more intuitive as well. Next download Flash Player 11.1 for ICS, make sure its for ICS. Once both are sideloaded, install, and flash should be working. It works on mine. CHECK MY COMMENTS FOR A STEP BY STEP
2. Charger not included- Again, in this day and age, most cellphones and other electronic devices use a mini usb charger. Just use the same plug for the Fire HD. I use my old Fire charger just fine.
3. Carousel- While most agree customization of the carousel skins would of been a nice touch, it still isnt a deal breaker and I didnt buy it to stare at the carousel.
I probably have over 20 hours on the Fire HD right now. From my memory that is all I can recall. If I remember anything or run across anything, new I will just edit in an update below. Any questions just ask in the comments. Overall, this device seems like a great deal. It should be much stronger once a patch is released to fix some bugs, but what doesnt need a patch these days once a product is released. Overall great showing by Amazon. Good Luck
Update #1 9-17-2012
So this is the second time that I have come home from work and the wifi on my Kindle Fire HD is acting wonky. It worked fine at work, then I got home and if I wasnt in the same room as the router, I couldnt get a page to load even though I had full bars of wifi. A reset of the Kindle HD completely fixed this and now I am outside on my front porch, far far away from my router. Hopefully an update will fix the wifi steadiness. Not sure if its because I switched to a different network or what, but I am gonna submit feedback to amazon regarding the issue.
Update #2 09-19-2012
So the issue occurred again. My Fire HD wifi worked this morning at home. I went to work, it hooked up to the public wifi at work no problems. I get home and unless I am right next to my router, pages will not load. Instead of restarting the entire FIRE HD, I went to options, turned off wifi and turned it back on. Problem was solved. Everything then worked as it should. I am not sure why I am having these issues with Wifi as I am a gaming geek and have brand new equipment and top of the line router and modem. I have the Asus RT-N66U router and Motorola SB6121 DOCSIS 3.0 modem. All other devices and the original FIRE work fine, no issues. If anyone else has these issues try turning wifi off then on again.
Update #3 09-20-2012
So it occurred again. I emailed Kindle Feedback with the issue to hopefully have them fix it in an update. By the way, if you guys want to report issues with your kindle fire, email: kindle-feedback@amazon.com
09-22-2012
So it has been a full work week of use for the Kindle Fire HD. I have probably used the device now for about 50-60 hours of web browsing, shopping, posting on forums, playing games, skyping, watching movies and reading. What is nice is one of those Advertisements on the lock screen that so many people complain about gave me a free 5 dollar credit to rent a movie on Amazon Instant Video for nothing at all. How could they? LOL. Overall the Kindle Fire HD has been a superb device for me. Only a few apps have forced closed on me during this time, just as often as on any other device. I am used to the "Customers also bought" section on the homepage already, I dont even notice it anymore. Like I said before, the advertisements are really a non issue, and actually have paid me by giving me free MP3 credits and free movie credits. Wifi speed is good, picture clarity is great, sound is in a class of itself for tablets.
10-27-12
Update 7.2.1 finally enables us to get rid of the pesky "Customers Also Bought" that many of us were complaining about. Now we have just our normal carousel without anyone trying to get us to buy something that we do not want. The patch still did nothing for the popping noise that the speakers make randomly while using the tablet. I have now noticed it makes a popping noise sometimes even during games, not only when sliding the open bar on the lock screen. This doesnt happen often, but when it does, it is annoying. There are still instances where the wifi drops out or says it is connected and doesnt allow you to surf the web. You must then turn wifi off then back on again on the kindle fire and everything is fine. Amazon says they are working on a fix and I have sent my data log files to them on numerous occasions to help with this issue.
I really dont think you can beat this at its price range at all especially if you are an avid Amazon shopper. The Amazon Prime subscription ($79.00 a year) basically gives you a subscription to a "netflix-like" streaming service (netflix is $96.00 a year for streaming), access to tons of books and free 2 day shipping on most amazon purchases. That benefit right there is what seals the deal, no other tablet provider can lump together all those services at a low price like Amazon. I am really happy with my choice, but sure there are things I would love to have on this tablet, but I knew that before buying it. If anyone has questions just post them in the comments. I do my best to answer them. Also if you see a question on there you feel you can answer, by all means please do. Its nice to help others get the full potential out of their purchases. Have a good one.
I will continue to update this thread with all my findings and hope to help people make an informed decision. Thanks
Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars
its just ok...
the frustration lies in the fact that within just a couple of weeks, they dropped the price on it. Shame on Amazon, they should guarantee their prices like brick and mortar stores... Read more
Published 1 hour ago by April Alvarez
5.0 out of 5 stars
great product
Ordered for my wife who kept stealing my computer to surf the net. She loves it. Now it goes everywhere with here
Published 1 hour ago by Steve Phillips
5.0 out of 5 stars
LOve it..Still learning how to use it
I'm old school..love to read.. tired of having hundreds of books..so I got this and, yes I love it..but I'm still a nerd when it comes to using it for other things. Read more
Published 1 hour ago by lindy
5.0 out of 5 stars
best buy ever.
Love the speed, quality, the clairity, the sound. the cloud and special features. Any one looking to up grade should
Published 4 hours ago by Pamela
5.0 out of 5 stars
Kindle Fire HD is ON FIRE!
First you need to understand this is not a computer(neither is the IPAD or NOOK). If that is what you are looking for, purchase a netbook.
It is an entertainment device. Read more
It is an entertainment device. Read more
Published 5 hours ago by Wm O Writes
5.0 out of 5 stars
Love, love, love my Kindle Fire HD
Love, love, love my Kindle Fire HD! Does exactly what it is supposed to do and then some. I mainly wanted this tablet to be able to read without taking a bulky book with me. Read more
Published 6 hours ago by Red
5.0 out of 5 stars
Love it
Love love love! Does everything I need it to do. It's fast. Have had zero problems with the device so far :)
Published 6 hours ago by Amanda
5.0 out of 5 stars
good purchase
I loved my kindle and just upgraded to the Kindle Fire HD7''. I use it mainly for reading books. I am 72 yrs old and find that the Kindle fire is easier on the eyes and plan on... Read more
Published 8 hours ago by joyce reinhardt
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good
The product is very useful, and a good tool to have for children. It is everything the website said it would be. I am glad I got the kindle fire HD.
Published 8 hours ago by Keee
4.0 out of 5 stars
Nice tablet
My wife can now check her e-mail with one touch on the screen, which she loves. The battery runs down fairly fast - if one has it on for many hours a day.
Published 8 hours ago by D. Brown
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