Amazon's new Kindle Fire tablet: an in depth review

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  • Reply 81 of 157
    noirdesirnoirdesir Posts: 1,027member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Gatorguy View Post


    So what would be the difference between a 7" iPod touch and a 7" iPad. Honest question.



    Essentially only the name. But the name could be used to set expectations, eg, that the UI of a 7" iPod touch would resemble more that of an iPod touch than that of an iPad. On Android and QNX we have seen both, ie, the 2.x-base 7" tablets had a UI that was essentially just a blown up phone UI. The Playbook and now the Fire are more like a scaled down iPad UI.
  • Reply 82 of 157
    ikolikol Posts: 369member
    The 1 gen Touch lacked a speaker not a mic. Come on AppleInsider get it right instead of just cleverly bashing the Fire.
  • Reply 83 of 157
    ikolikol Posts: 369member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by noirdesir View Post


    Essentially only the name. But the name could be used to set expectations, eg, that the UI of a 7" iPod touch would resemble more that of an iPod touch than that of an iPad. On Android and QNX we have seen both, ie, the 2.x-base 7" tablets had a UI that was essentially just a blown up phone UI. The Playbook and now the Fire are more like a scaled down iPad UI.



    Except they can access the entire www whereas an iPad surely can't.
  • Reply 84 of 157
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    video playback and games are its strongest features but are still only good, certainly not excellent



    Amazon appears to be betting that there just might be a market for a device which is good for video and games, is less than half the price of the iPad, and has a larger screen than the iPod touch.
  • Reply 85 of 157


    If Apple were going to release a 7" iDevice they would have already done it!




    If the iPad 1 had been a 7" device the same form factor as the Galaxy Tab, PlayBook at a $500 price it would not have been as successful nor would it been able to usher in the post-pc era and devastate the netbook market.



    Everyone knew that Apple was going to introduce a Tablet for $1,000.



    Most expected it would run OS X and be a MacBook without a keyboard.



    Most expected that the usual suspects (Dell, HP, ASUS...) would follow almost immediately with cheaper models, say, $799 running Windows.



    But Apple fooled them all and changed the way we interface a computer -- at a price, quality, capability level that nobody could match for going on 2 years.





    The iPad defined what a Tablet [computer] is!



    Like making a first impression, you only get one chance to do that.





    Now, almost 2 years later we have some 7" Tablet/jrs, NetTablets, Tablet/castrati (whatever) trying to fill the void between a $200 iPod Touch and a $500 iPad.



    The fact is that there is no money [profit] to be made in the 7" market -- whatever you call the device.



  • Reply 86 of 157
    cmvsmcmvsm Posts: 204member
    The Fire is a clear example of the key difference between Jeff Bezos and Steve Jobs. Steve Jobs was a great businessman AND transcendent visionary. Jeff Bezos is just a businessman.
  • Reply 87 of 157
    rhyderhyde Posts: 294member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mdriftmeyer View Post


    Everything down to the packaging looks cheap.



    OTOH, if Amazon had really nice-looking packaging (say, like the Samsung Galaxy 10.1) we'd probably be hearing about how Amazing is copying Apple in that regard, too.



    I, for one, applaud the cheap packaging. It's a mail-order item. Who cares what the packing looks like as long as it protects the device before you get it (which is its main purpose, as this thing probably isn't ever going to sit on a display shelf somewhere).



    They probably saved some money on the packaging, too. Better to get the end price down for the user.
  • Reply 88 of 157
    chabigchabig Posts: 641member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by rhyde View Post


    They probably saved some money on the packaging, too. Better to get the end price down for the user.



    It's also good if the product meets the buyer's expectations. If you purchase a cheap tablet, you expect to receive a cheap tablet.
  • Reply 89 of 157
    [QUOTE=lkrupp;1991766]
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by emulator View Post


    yeah, ded again



    Well, he gets to write articles and reviews for AppleInsider and you don't. Why don't you get a job at a tech web site or start your own instead. I can't get my head around why so many Apple haters are regulars at an Apple centric web site like AI. I would be bored to tears trying to be a regular at a PC or Android site.



    On the other hand AI doesn't hold a candle to MacRumors when it comes to Apple hating regulars.



    I spend time here because I like to stay updated on Apple news and rumors. As a shareholder, its a prudent thing to do.



    I don't hate Apple, I hate Apple fanboys who are so blinded by their love of the products that they cannot admit the products are even in the least flawed. That is what grates me.



    So please keep buying Apple products, I will just keep making money off the stock.



    I will show up on MacRumors next. Thanks.
  • Reply 90 of 157
    It's as painful to read about as I'm sure the user experience sounds like on this device is. This likely will be a waste of money to a heavy mobile device user. Perhaps Amazon will try to do better if they bring out a second generation of this device and/or software update. I believe they can do better, but are by no means our coveted Apple
  • Reply 91 of 157
    bongobongo Posts: 158member
    Most reviews of the Fire I read are pretty good, I certainly don't see where the WSJ called it garbage. I've had a Fire now for a few days and haven't had any issues, navigation is snappy and easy, there are plenty of apps and I side loaded a few that were missing. The cloud storage works well and the Amazon store is easy to navigate. One of the sideloaded apps has crashed a couple times, but I have had plenty of apps on my iPod Touch and iPhone lockup, it happens. IOS 5 is certainly not without its issues as my iPod drained overnight and I had to change a number of settings to get it back to a reasonable battery drain - so there are certainly issues. The point of all this is the Kindle Fire is reasonable product at a good price point and fits the need of a decent e-reader that can do other things and at is very portable. This article points out a number of flaws but the hyperbole and blatant bias detracts from review rather than adds any value.
  • Reply 92 of 157
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    I'm never been able to figure out what that ASCII art is suppose to be.



    It's one of those 3D patterns. You have to stare at it long enough to see it.
  • Reply 93 of 157
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Corrections View Post


    It's just that DED has a really high accuracy rate in calling out success and failure in the face of fanboys who supported everything DED didn't.



    Really?



    This "Dilger" guy claimed Microsoft stole Metro iconography from Apple, that Metro was a "web-based layer" laid over classic Windows 7, that Windows Phone users would be forced to select different app versions in the marketplace based on their OS version and that wrote an entire article about the future product direction of Office based on a quote he miss-attributed to Ballmer.



    And that's just the recent Windows stuff.



    Go back further and you see this "Dilger" guy proclaiming Google would never take on Apple in the mobile space, then when it became clear they would, continually predicted doom and gloom for Android.



    Saying this "Dilger" has a "really high accuracy rate" is far to generous, but "scatter shot accuracy" is probably a little to harsh.



    The truth is somewhere in between, and depends on what he is trying to predict. i.e. If your position is "everything Apple is awesome" (like this "Dilger") would lead to a pretty good decade of predictions about Apple products, but also having the position of "everything non-Apple is crap" (again like this "Dilger") would make you look like a fanboy and a simpleton.
  • Reply 94 of 157
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Firefly7475 View Post


    Really?



    This "Dilger" guy claimed Microsoft stole Metro iconography from Apple, that Metro was a "web-based layer" laid over classic Windows 7, that Windows Phone users would be forced to select different app versions in the marketplace based on their OS version and that wrote an entire article about the future product direction of Office based on a quote he miss-attributed to Ballmer.



    And that's just the recent Windows stuff.



    Go back further and you see this "Dilger" guy proclaiming Google would never take on Apple in the mobile space, then when it became clear they would, continually predicted doom and gloom for Android.



    Saying this "Dilger" has a "really high accuracy rate" is far to generous, but "scatter shot accuracy" is probably a little to harsh.



    The truth is somewhere in between, and depends on what he is trying to predict. i.e. A position is "everything Apple is awesome" (like this "Dilger") would lead to a pretty good decade of predictions about Apple products, but also having the position of "everything non-Apple is crap" (again like this "Dilger") would make you look like a fanboy and a simpleton.



    That's a pretty accurate assessment -- though your way of arriving at is interesting, to say the least...
  • Reply 95 of 157
    esoomesoom Posts: 155member
    The fatal error here is assuming the Fire won't be further refined, it will most assuredly be reimagined after they've had it out for a few months.



    I do suspect that it will remain a somewhat bland device, and always remain a step or two behind in technology to keep the entry price low.



    IMHO, the Fire will help the iPad essentially destroy the tablet market, it will be for the immediate future an iPad and a Fire market. The other tablets will have to remain in a fairly tight price range between the iPad and the Fire, and there's little profit in that range.



    The other manufacturers will be forced to add cameras, microphones, faster CPU's and GPS chips to differentiate themselves from the Fire, so they're looking at a $300-$400 BOM's to build a 10" device with a 20% mark up that's further eroded by R&D costs, marketing and retailer's mark up so they can keep the lights on and pay employees.



    They're also going to have to contend with using Android to keep costs low, and deal with paying Microsoft to stay out of court, plus avoid the minefield of Apple lawsuits.
  • Reply 96 of 157
    tylerk36tylerk36 Posts: 1,037member
    This device is a toy. It really doesn't have a practical application in the manner an iPad does. We see iPads being used in medical, educational, music, corporate and other venues. This Amazon device is strictly a low level entertainment device. I honestly think the other guy's (I mean every one other than Apple) cannot produce anything without copy right infringement. I think that Apple has really done the research on this iPad and iPhone to where it is almost impossible to make one outside Apple without copyright violation. So we will see these little nibbles like the Kindle Fire and not see the real fish on the hook.
  • Reply 97 of 157
    jlanddjlandd Posts: 873member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by thesmoth View Post


    The iPad is an expensive toy and all I see on these boards are people desperately trying to justify their expensive and unnecessary purchases. You spent a lot of money on a nearly useless toy, accept the fact and deal with it, stop making up pathetic justifications. iPads are really cool, pretty, trendy, well advertised, fun to interface with, have cute games, etc... But that is all they are and all they will be. They are great to have around for those odd occasions where you don't want to use your laptop or you are traveling, etc... but they are worth about $200 in the functions they return.





    LOL. You speak from ignorance. You obviously don't get out much.



    Want one example? iPads have revolutionized recording studios, specifically where scripts are the order of the session, which is my line of work, day in , day out. We no longer get nor accept printed scripts from clients. Every time a narrator reads a 300 page script they are using our iPad in the booth reading a pdf, either autoscrolling or manually flipping a page at a time. We could never do this before because never before was there such a versatile completely silent tool for $500 that had a zero learning curve. (Disk drives and anything not nearly silent need not apply). When the client would send one script instead of the three we'd request we had to copy two more, and at 300 pages that's a huge PITA and expense. No longer. We use iPads for the scripts for the audio engineers as well, which frees up the Mac monitor for more valuable use.



    This is not just us. This is how recording studios do it. Printed scripts are over and it's only thanks to the iPad, not the ASUS EEEpad or the Galaxy or the Xoom. The smoothest, most responsive interface is the only one that gets used. iPads are ALL OVER recording studios in NYC, and no one is wishing they'd get their money back or that they'd bought something else.



    Every session I do with ours (which is daily) I'll be thinking of your funny post.
  • Reply 98 of 157
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Dick Applebaum View Post


    That's a pretty accurate assessment -- though your way of arriving at is interesting, to say the least...



    Well I'm an interesting kind of guy!
  • Reply 99 of 157
    jlanddjlandd Posts: 873member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by chabig View Post


    It's also good if the product meets the buyer's expectations. If you purchase a cheap tablet, you expect to receive a cheap tablet.





    It's also good if it makes the owner feel it does plenty, and plenty well enough for what they paid for it. Most of the complaints I see about the Fire are like complaining about fish because they can't fly.
  • Reply 100 of 157
    rybryb Posts: 56member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by cycomiko View Post


    lol ded



    What else do tou expect him to say? Nothing? You must explain. You have knowledge? He bought one, he tried it. I think he has described his perspective. What's yours? LOL?
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