Amazon: Kindle News and Discussion Thread
Thread Starter
Team Owner
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From: Jersey
Where is there a legit review of the Silk browser? All I have read is speculation. Using Ec2 to make up for the lack of cpu on the tablet seems like a good idea to me as long as they aren't making a copy of all the web pages that the user visits.
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From: Not Las Vegas (SF Bay Area)
I probably didn't word that right.
I want to see reviews of the browser for the kindle fire since that is what I use the most, the one on this touchpad isn't all that great
I want to see reviews of the browser for the kindle fire since that is what I use the most, the one on this touchpad isn't all that great
Thread Starter
Team Owner
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From: Jersey
So it looks like they will be caching all the pages they gather. I hope there is an option to unsilk https connections. I don't want copies of my bank/broker web pages sitting in the ec2 blob.
Suzuka Master
Joined: Jan 2009
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From: SoCal
I'm with F-C, kinda disappointed. I guess I was hoping for more, but then in this price range I guess you cant ask for much.
Its running android, there should be a page for widgets, one of my favorite things about androids.
They focused heavily on movies/books/browsing.
For me, I dont rent movies off of amazon, I dont buy books from amazon, so only browsing is interesting.
If i did get this I would probably subscribe to amazon prime so I can stream movies.
If I can get a digital version of C&D magazine to amazon I would like that, but I dont wanna pay much more for it.
No front camera, so no video chat, but I hardly find it an issue because I have yet to see a flawless video chat over handheld devices.
Seems quick and maybe the browser is good, seems promising, and it should have flash since it runs android.
Big question though. Is this running honeycomb or gingerbread? My guess is honeycomb because of the pop up home menu. Which means if this gets lots of developer support we can maybe see a stock honeycomb device or ICS since its being released in a couple months. But doing that might remove the easy to use books/movies/browsing experience so you win and lose.
I'll wait. Theres still no breakthrough tablet out there yet imo
The great ones are way to expensive still. If they drop to say $300-$400 I'd get one (ipad/galaxy tab)
Its running android, there should be a page for widgets, one of my favorite things about androids.
They focused heavily on movies/books/browsing.
For me, I dont rent movies off of amazon, I dont buy books from amazon, so only browsing is interesting.
If i did get this I would probably subscribe to amazon prime so I can stream movies.
If I can get a digital version of C&D magazine to amazon I would like that, but I dont wanna pay much more for it.
No front camera, so no video chat, but I hardly find it an issue because I have yet to see a flawless video chat over handheld devices.
Seems quick and maybe the browser is good, seems promising, and it should have flash since it runs android.
Big question though. Is this running honeycomb or gingerbread? My guess is honeycomb because of the pop up home menu. Which means if this gets lots of developer support we can maybe see a stock honeycomb device or ICS since its being released in a couple months. But doing that might remove the easy to use books/movies/browsing experience so you win and lose.
I'll wait. Theres still no breakthrough tablet out there yet imo
The great ones are way to expensive still. If they drop to say $300-$400 I'd get one (ipad/galaxy tab)
The Third Ball
Joined: Sep 2002
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From: Los Angeles, Ca
Hmmm...
Not sure if I would go with the $99 touch or go with the Fire.
The wife finally vocalized interest in an e-reader that isn't an iPad (too heavy, she hates hardbacks, etc)
At 14oz...Im curious how "heavy" or not the fire is.
Not sure if I would go with the $99 touch or go with the Fire.
The wife finally vocalized interest in an e-reader that isn't an iPad (too heavy, she hates hardbacks, etc)
At 14oz...Im curious how "heavy" or not the fire is.
Suzuka Master
Joined: Jan 2009
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From: SoCal
Also ask your wife, or yourself would you use it more than just an e-reader and if its worth spending the $100 to have something to watch movies/browse, gonna take a wild guess and say games wont be played as much.
Dont forget unless you have amazon prime renting movies comes at a cost too so if you do get it for movies and will rent movies theres more than that $100 premium.
As for size, go look at the blackberry playbook in person, I think its weight should be similar. And the size and feel should be similar as well?
The Third Ball
Joined: Sep 2002
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From: Los Angeles, Ca
Well, to answer some questions/concerns.
I use the kindle books/app on my iPad. Much better selection than iBooks. Thats not a worry.
Advantage of the touch...e-ink
Advantage of the fire...backlight (reading with the lights off with no added "book light")
Amazon Prime - been an account holder for years
I use the kindle books/app on my iPad. Much better selection than iBooks. Thats not a worry.
Advantage of the touch...e-ink
Advantage of the fire...backlight (reading with the lights off with no added "book light")
Amazon Prime - been an account holder for years
Suzuka Master
Joined: Jan 2009
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From: SoCal
I say go for the fire then, for $100 you get a lot more functionality.
And if your like me, I like reading at night haha mainly because thats the only time of the day I can read when I have school. Although I havent done too much leisure reading recently. But I used to read books off of my iphone 3G back in the day before I slept lol.
Do you know if the kindle touch gets the magazine subscriptions??
If you would want that, thats another reason to jump ship to the fire if you read any magazines.
And if your like me, I like reading at night haha mainly because thats the only time of the day I can read when I have school. Although I havent done too much leisure reading recently. But I used to read books off of my iphone 3G back in the day before I slept lol.
Do you know if the kindle touch gets the magazine subscriptions??
If you would want that, thats another reason to jump ship to the fire if you read any magazines.
The Third Ball
Joined: Sep 2002
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From: Los Angeles, Ca
Again this will be for my wife...so probably mainly books. Possibly some browsing.
I use my iPad for books, magazines, and movies at this point...I also read hardback novels, so the weight doesn't bother me.
I use my iPad for books, magazines, and movies at this point...I also read hardback novels, so the weight doesn't bother me.
Team Owner
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From: Miami, FL
I read the Fire was packing Gingerbread. Some on engadget were happy because apparently they weren't happy with Honeycomb but I don't know jack about Android tablet OS'.
I wouldn't mind an iPad mini for like $300 at 7" so that I can use the shit ton of apps that I have on my iPhone. I understand that Apple tends to charge a premium over a similar product (iPod comes to mind so I went Creative). But they'd probably only charge at the lowest $400 to not cannibalize iPad 2 and 3 sales. At this point I can't justify a tablet for that much and would just go cheap laptop.
I wouldn't mind an iPad mini for like $300 at 7" so that I can use the shit ton of apps that I have on my iPhone. I understand that Apple tends to charge a premium over a similar product (iPod comes to mind so I went Creative). But they'd probably only charge at the lowest $400 to not cannibalize iPad 2 and 3 sales. At this point I can't justify a tablet for that much and would just go cheap laptop.
Suzuka Master
Joined: Jan 2009
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From: SoCal
You're right it is packing gingerbread. But I dunno if it matters much because it is heavily modified. Its not gonna have the android market for one. Just the Amazon app store.
I don't think apple will come out with a 7in tablet. I remember reading somewhere that Steve jobs doesn't believe a tablet should be so small
I don't think apple will come out with a 7in tablet. I remember reading somewhere that Steve jobs doesn't believe a tablet should be so small
Drifting
Joined: Jul 2006
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From: Pleasant Hill, CA
Im thinking about the Fire, but Im waiting to see if it'll get Honeycomb. I want the Transformer or other high end tablet but they're so much more expensive...
Moderator
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From: Not Las Vegas (SF Bay Area)
engadget review.
http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/14/a...e-fire-review/
ill just paste the conclusion and some videos.
review:
http://www.viddler.com/explore/engadget/videos/3520/
browser comparison:
http://www.viddler.com/explore/engadget/videos/3521/
http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/14/a...e-fire-review/
ill just paste the conclusion and some videos.
Wrap-up
The Kindle Fire is quite an achievement at $200. It's a perfectly usable tablet that feels good in the hand and has a respectably good looking display up front. Yes, power users will find themselves a little frustrated with what they can and can't do on the thing without access to the Android Market but, in these carefree days of cloud-based apps ruling the world, increasingly all you need is a good browser. That the Fire has.
When stacked up against other popular tablets, the Fire can't compete. Its performance is a occasionally sluggish, its interface often clunky, its storage too slight, its functionality a bit restricted and its 7-inch screen too limiting if you were hoping to convert all your paper magazine subscriptions into the digital ones. Other, bigger tablets do it better -- usually at two or three times the cost.
So, the Kindle Fire is great value and perhaps the best, tightest integration of digital content acquisition into a mobile device that we've yet seen. Instead of having a standalone shopping app the entire tablet is a store -- a 7-inch window sold at a cut-rate price through which users can look onto a sea of premium content. It isn't a perfect experience, but if nothing else it's a promising look into the future of retail commerce.
The Kindle Fire is quite an achievement at $200. It's a perfectly usable tablet that feels good in the hand and has a respectably good looking display up front. Yes, power users will find themselves a little frustrated with what they can and can't do on the thing without access to the Android Market but, in these carefree days of cloud-based apps ruling the world, increasingly all you need is a good browser. That the Fire has.
When stacked up against other popular tablets, the Fire can't compete. Its performance is a occasionally sluggish, its interface often clunky, its storage too slight, its functionality a bit restricted and its 7-inch screen too limiting if you were hoping to convert all your paper magazine subscriptions into the digital ones. Other, bigger tablets do it better -- usually at two or three times the cost.
So, the Kindle Fire is great value and perhaps the best, tightest integration of digital content acquisition into a mobile device that we've yet seen. Instead of having a standalone shopping app the entire tablet is a store -- a 7-inch window sold at a cut-rate price through which users can look onto a sea of premium content. It isn't a perfect experience, but if nothing else it's a promising look into the future of retail commerce.
http://www.viddler.com/explore/engadget/videos/3520/
browser comparison:
http://www.viddler.com/explore/engadget/videos/3521/
Moderator
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From: Not Las Vegas (SF Bay Area)
geez look at the browser comparison for pinch to zoom and scrolling at 2:25, that would really piss me off if its really like that for everything.
i mean compare it to the ipad and even the galaxy tab 7.0, its like night and day.
also if you look at other areas of the tablet in the review video the UI is sluggish.
but i guess you really cant complain for only $199
i mean compare it to the ipad and even the galaxy tab 7.0, its like night and day.
also if you look at other areas of the tablet in the review video the UI is sluggish.
but i guess you really cant complain for only $199
Thread Starter
Team Owner
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From: Jersey
Looks underpowered. Maybe they can fix the response time with some software optimization? I think I'd try to find a good deal on an iPad 1 over this. It's a good first try though. I still prefer my Kindle 3 over the Fire as an e-reader.
Last edited by doopstr; Nov 14, 2011 at 08:46 AM.
Moderator
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From: Not Las Vegas (SF Bay Area)
but honestly you get what you pay for, at this point id rather pay the extra money for a full honeycomb or ice cream sandwich android tablet or iPad.
I think part of the reason why its so sluggish is due to them using gingerbread as the base OS, iirc most of the OS is software accelerated. If they can optimize the OS to be hardware accelerated or use ICS as the base OS then i think it would run much better.
Goodbye.
Joined: Jun 2011
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From: BroCal
Regarding the Amazon Silk Browser, it gets faster the more you use it. So even right out of the box it is comparable to the stock Android browser. Imagine after a week's use of your regular web browsing usage and it will be ridiculously fast to load and use!!
For a consumer, the Kindle Fire will easily be their choice tablet for the price and not forking over an extra $300 for the overpriced ipad, and let's face it, any actual Android tablet out there cannot compete for the masses.
For a consumer, the Kindle Fire will easily be their choice tablet for the price and not forking over an extra $300 for the overpriced ipad, and let's face it, any actual Android tablet out there cannot compete for the masses.
Three Wheelin'
Joined: Jul 2011
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From: Oklahoma
Next time I'll do a search before posting a thread. The mods are welcome to delete or lock my other KF thread.
Ok - y'all get on my nerves talking all "tech". I don't know what the hell honeycomb or ice cream sandwich or any other sweet deliciousness means - but here's my review:
(my husband surprised me with one right before Thanksgiving...been using it religiously for about a month)
Pros:
-Great e-reader and I love the Amazon Marketplace. I use it to read books as well as magazines.
-Great for games. My kids entertain themselves with AngyBirds and Jewels, I have Majong Tiles, Words with Friends, and a few others on there and all work flawlessly!
-I use Netflix on here ALL the time! Only ocassionally does the picture freeze while the audio continues. I press pause, allow it to buffer, and continue.
Cons:
-Completely un-customizable to the average user. This is so annoying. I don't want to download tons of stuff and change 9 million settings just to have a picture of my choice as my background. (And the generic installed backgrounds are already on my nerves.)
-Freezes ocassionally. Always solved by putting it in sleep mode for a few seconds and trying again.
-No camera. Boo!
-Tethered to wifi. Big annoyance. Definitely in need of a 3G version. Although the benefit to being wifi is that when my children are old enough to have one, I can somewhat control what/when they're downloading stuff.
-
The mods are welcome to delete or lock my other KF thread. Ok - y'all get on my nerves talking all "tech". I don't know what the hell honeycomb or ice cream sandwich or any other sweet deliciousness means - but here's my review:
(my husband surprised me with one right before Thanksgiving...been using it religiously for about a month)
Pros:
-Great e-reader and I love the Amazon Marketplace. I use it to read books as well as magazines.
-Great for games. My kids entertain themselves with AngyBirds and Jewels, I have Majong Tiles, Words with Friends, and a few others on there and all work flawlessly!
-I use Netflix on here ALL the time! Only ocassionally does the picture freeze while the audio continues. I press pause, allow it to buffer, and continue.
Cons:
-Completely un-customizable to the average user. This is so annoying. I don't want to download tons of stuff and change 9 million settings just to have a picture of my choice as my background. (And the generic installed backgrounds are already on my nerves.)
-Freezes ocassionally. Always solved by putting it in sleep mode for a few seconds and trying again.
-No camera. Boo!
-Tethered to wifi. Big annoyance. Definitely in need of a 3G version. Although the benefit to being wifi is that when my children are old enough to have one, I can somewhat control what/when they're downloading stuff.
-
Safety Car
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 4,001
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From: Renton, WA
^^^ 3G would increase the immediate pricepoint, and then likely require a monthly subscription
The only way the kindle 3G devices remain 'free' is that people aren't trying to download/stream movies on it
The only way the kindle 3G devices remain 'free' is that people aren't trying to download/stream movies on it
Drifting
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 2,340
Likes: 249
From: Tucson Az
I was given one for Christmas. I think It's actually a pretty good machine, but having no alternative input (Bluetooth keybaord, or mic) does limit it's possibilities as a tablet.
Perhaps it's because I have the latest update, but the only time it really feels sluggish is when I'm watching flash video. Between the lag and the small screen it's a pain to toggle the comments/ playlists buttons on youtube videos, also the netflix app is pretty nasty while the amazon video app is pretty smooth.
The lack of hardware keys/ soft keys does annoy me a bit. You have to get a menue to show up before you can press a home or back key. I'm also used to the swype keybaord which cannot be installed without rooting the device.
The amazon app market is just stupid. I have plenty of purchased apps on my phone that can't be side loaded because of some drm requirement. This may be the only reason I consider rooting it.
Also, books.
Perhaps it's because I have the latest update, but the only time it really feels sluggish is when I'm watching flash video. Between the lag and the small screen it's a pain to toggle the comments/ playlists buttons on youtube videos, also the netflix app is pretty nasty while the amazon video app is pretty smooth.
The lack of hardware keys/ soft keys does annoy me a bit. You have to get a menue to show up before you can press a home or back key. I'm also used to the swype keybaord which cannot be installed without rooting the device.
The amazon app market is just stupid. I have plenty of purchased apps on my phone that can't be side loaded because of some drm requirement. This may be the only reason I consider rooting it.
Also, books.
Safety Car
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 4,001
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From: Renton, WA
e-ink devices are better for pure reading in my opinion...the Kindle Touch batter life is something like 2 months on a single charge, if the wireless is turned off
Sanest Florida Man
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 46,059
Likes: 11,815
From: Florida
I got to play with one for about 30 mins today. My friend got one for xmas and let me test it out.
It's ok, definitely needs some performance improvements, scrolling and pinch to zoom is a little below par, scrolling in the netflix app was pretty sluggish. Browser was slow, I missed the reader feature in safari (love that thing), and I liked reading with the kindle app on the ipad better than on the fire.
I think reading is just better on the iPad than the fire, bigger, better screen, I think 3:4 is a better ratio than 9:16 for reading, The Fire's screen is too narrow and the text just looked better on the iPad, bigger and more legible.
It was heavier than I thought I'd be (still light than the iPad 2) and screen felt like plastic instead of a nice glass screen.
For $200 it's not bad but I'd spend the extra and get the iPad.
sRlAz.jpg
It's ok, definitely needs some performance improvements, scrolling and pinch to zoom is a little below par, scrolling in the netflix app was pretty sluggish. Browser was slow, I missed the reader feature in safari (love that thing), and I liked reading with the kindle app on the ipad better than on the fire.
I think reading is just better on the iPad than the fire, bigger, better screen, I think 3:4 is a better ratio than 9:16 for reading, The Fire's screen is too narrow and the text just looked better on the iPad, bigger and more legible.
It was heavier than I thought I'd be (still light than the iPad 2) and screen felt like plastic instead of a nice glass screen.
For $200 it's not bad but I'd spend the extra and get the iPad.
sRlAz.jpg
Last edited by #1 STUNNA; Jan 18, 2012 at 01:07 AM.
Sanest Florida Man
Joined: Aug 2007
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From: Florida
Kindle Fire dwarfs other Android tablets in market share after just three months
The Kindle Fire is crushing standard Android tablets in market share after only three months, according to data collected by Flurry Analytics. Measured in application sessions on Android from November 2011 to January 2012, the Kindle Fire went from a 3 percent market share to 36 percent, while the Samsung Galaxy Tab, a brand that has been on sale for over two years, dropped from 64 percent market share to 36 percent.
According to Amazon, over 4 million Kindle Fires were sold in the month of December despite its lukewarm reception. These sales were enough to give the device close to a third of the Android tablet market, as the shares of the Motorola Xoom, Asus Transformer, and Acer Iconia Tab dropped to a collective 18 percent. The Kindle Fire made an even better showing in paid app downloads, representing 2.53 app downloads from a 5-app sample of top sellers for every one downloaded on a Galaxy Tab.
Granted, flipping the numbers in the Android tablet space doesn't take an astronomical number of sales: for instance, Motorola shipped only 200,000 Xoom tablets in the fourth quarter. The Kindle Fire also likely owes much of its success to its $199 price, hundreds of dollars below the rest (the other tablets listed here have starting prices of $350 and higher). Flurry also attributes the Kindle Fire's growth to Amazon's focus on an ecosystem and content for users, an approach closer what Apple uses for the iPad, rather than focusing on hardware specs.
According to Amazon, over 4 million Kindle Fires were sold in the month of December despite its lukewarm reception. These sales were enough to give the device close to a third of the Android tablet market, as the shares of the Motorola Xoom, Asus Transformer, and Acer Iconia Tab dropped to a collective 18 percent. The Kindle Fire made an even better showing in paid app downloads, representing 2.53 app downloads from a 5-app sample of top sellers for every one downloaded on a Galaxy Tab.
Granted, flipping the numbers in the Android tablet space doesn't take an astronomical number of sales: for instance, Motorola shipped only 200,000 Xoom tablets in the fourth quarter. The Kindle Fire also likely owes much of its success to its $199 price, hundreds of dollars below the rest (the other tablets listed here have starting prices of $350 and higher). Flurry also attributes the Kindle Fire's growth to Amazon's focus on an ecosystem and content for users, an approach closer what Apple uses for the iPad, rather than focusing on hardware specs.
Please excuse my ignorance, but:
1) Is there a way to get ebooks purchased and downloaded to my PC?,
2) and then load them from the PC to the Kindle via USB?
Looking for some advice from the Tech savy AZiners.
Thanks.
Sanest Florida Man
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 46,059
Likes: 11,815
From: Florida
We've seen some pretty clear indications that the Kindle Fire was rapidly gaining market share among Android tablets, and ComScore is now out with a new report that indicates it recently crossed a big milestone. According to the research firm, the Fire's market share in the US fully doubled from December to February, with it standing at 54.4 percent as of the end of the month. Counted together, the Galaxy Tab family sits in second at 15.4 percent, while the Motorola Xoom and Asus Transformer come in at 7 and 6.3 percent, respectively. Of course, the Kindle Fire isn't quite your ordinary Android tablet, so this is likely better news for Amazon than Google. In addition to that, ComScore also looked at the browsing habits of tablet users, and unsurprisingly found that larger screens tended to lead to more content consumption, with 10-inch tablets boasting a 39 percent higher consumption rate than 7-inch devices. You can find all the numbers at the source link below.
Safety Car
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 4,845
Likes: 145
I'm in the same position.
Great response; however, from what I understand you can only download ebooks to the Kindle from a WiFi network, which I do not have at the residence.
Please excuse my ignorance, but:
1) Is there a way to get ebooks purchased and downloaded to my PC?,
2) and then load them from the PC to the Kindle via USB?
Looking for some advice from the Tech savy AZiners.
Thanks.
Great response; however, from what I understand you can only download ebooks to the Kindle from a WiFi network, which I do not have at the residence.
Please excuse my ignorance, but:
1) Is there a way to get ebooks purchased and downloaded to my PC?,
2) and then load them from the PC to the Kindle via USB?
Looking for some advice from the Tech savy AZiners.
Thanks.
How to manually download books from Amazon and transfer them to Kindle via PC or Mac?
You can download all the books that you’ve purchased from “Manage Your Kindle” page on amazon.com. Make sure to select the device you plan to transfer the book to as each downloaded book has unique encryption code that is specific to the device. If you own two Kindles, you can’t just copy books from one device to another. After the book file is downloaded, you can transfer it to your Kindle via USB connection. Just copy the file to /documents directory of the Kindle drive following these steps.
You can download all the books that you’ve purchased from “Manage Your Kindle” page on amazon.com. Make sure to select the device you plan to transfer the book to as each downloaded book has unique encryption code that is specific to the device. If you own two Kindles, you can’t just copy books from one device to another. After the book file is downloaded, you can transfer it to your Kindle via USB connection. Just copy the file to /documents directory of the Kindle drive following these steps.
Go Giants
Joined: Aug 2004
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From: PA