Review roundup: Amazon Kindle Fire a bargain, but no threat to Apple's iPad

13567

Comments

  • Reply 41 of 126
    People have short memories. You forget that iOS devices have had issues. Apple has come a long way with iOS 5 (and even then, after the upgrade, my iPhone often drops me to the home screen while using Safari or the App Store).



    There's no way the brand-new Kindle Fire is going to be as polished as the iPad 2 out of the gate. Heck, it may never be as polished. Nonetheless, Amazon is going to continue to refine, fix bugs, etc., you know... the same thing Apple has been doing for years.



    If the Amazon Fire can surf the internet, then the millions of people who buy one are likely going to be satisfied. Would they like an iPad even more? Perhaps. But since they purchased a Kindle Fire instead, and considering most won't own an iPad 2, they won't know the difference.



    I mean... if I ever owned a Jaguar, I'd probably never want to drive anything less. But since I've never owned or driven a Jaguar, I don't know or care what I'm missing.
  • Reply 42 of 126
    The Kindle Fire: The Christmas present that gets used once and forgotten in the desk drawer until the next time you open it and say "I forgot I had that".
  • Reply 43 of 126
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bullhead View Post


    Lots of people will be duped into thinking they are getting an iPad for $200



    the Kindle Fire exists in a different market than the iPad. there's no need for you to be so threatened by Amazon's offering.
  • Reply 44 of 126
    rob55rob55 Posts: 1,291member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by DrDoppio View Post


    I wasn't talking about you.



    +1 for sarcastic explanation of the "end sarcasm" tag. I liked the irony.



    You said, "until then, we're stuck paying..." in a response to a comment I made. I assumed, apparently incorrectly, that you meant me too.
  • Reply 45 of 126
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by slapppy View Post


    Sadly, too many experts and bloggers online are reviewing the Kindle and giving the impression that its not like an iPad, "It's better than the iPad". Pretty much labeling it as the real Killer iPad.



    Source? I have yet to see that from anyone.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ConradJoe View Post


    15 inch laptops containing similar guts start at around $250. I'm not sure that the low-priced netbook market is strong anymore. There are now alternatives that work better at the same prices, and alternatives that work better for higher prices. Apple's netbooks start at around $1000, don't they?



    What 15" laptops are selling w/ARM processors? Netbooks have had shrinking sales for awhile now. How is the MBA a netbook? Netbooks used shitty Atom processors and XP, Linux or Win 7 Starter. The MBA has Sandy Bridge i5 and i7 processors and SSD drives, plus a full modern OS w/o limitations. How is that at all similar?
  • Reply 46 of 126
    b9botb9bot Posts: 238member
    Two reviews of the fire make it sound more like a puff of smoke to me. They described it as clunky, uninspiring, extremely slow, and unpolished. For $200 the price seems high. Nothing ran smooth, no interface to let you know when it was trying to do something like a spinning gear or bar. You just had to wonder if it was stuck or really getting onto what you wanted to do next.
  • Reply 47 of 126
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ConradJoe View Post


    I was not addressing the utility of the machine. I was addressing usage patterns.



    "it does 90% of what most people use the iPad for".



    Correcting people's reading comprehension problems is getting boring.



    Not sure how accurate your "90%) is but "usage" is kind of a slippery term when it comes to tablets. One of the things that people use a tablet for is the user experience. In fact, I would guess that 25% of the overall use of the tablet is the experience, not the utility. And so, on that front, this "tablet" would appear to be a bit of a let down. This is, again, just a wireless, hand-held AMazon Prime shopping kiosk. Further, it is probably more useful for children with their smaller hands and will likely be a big gift item for them this holiday season. It's kind of like the "Mattel and Mars Bar Quick Energy Chocobot Hour" disguised as a mini-iPad.
  • Reply 48 of 126
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by skolvikings View Post


    People have short memories. You forget that iOS devices have had issues. Apple has come a long way with iOS 5 (and even then, after the upgrade, my iPhone often drops me to the home screen while using Safari or the App Store).



    There's no way the brand-new Kindle Fire is going to be as polished as the iPad 2 out of the gate. Heck, it may never be as polished. Nonetheless, Amazon is going to continue to refine, fix bugs, etc., you know... the same thing Apple has been doing for years.



    If the Amazon Fire can surf the internet, then the millions of people who buy one are likely going to be satisfied. Would they like an iPad even more? Perhaps. But since they purchased a Kindle Fire instead, and considering most won't own an iPad 2, they won't know the difference.



    I mean... if I ever owned a Jaguar, I'd probably never want to drive anything less. But since I've never owned or driven a Jaguar, I don't know or care what I'm missing.



    But that only works if a lot of people that you know don't have a Jaguar as well! I think that is why in the age of laptops, Apple has done so much better. Before, when everyone primarily had desktops you rarely saw directly what other people had and could dismiss their choice as irrelevant. However, with laptops and the Apple Stores people see the "competitor" much more often. I think the same thing will be true with tablets, and to a great extent is why a lot of the Android tablets have failed. People could directly see (through stores and friends) that the newer entrants were clearly not as good as the one that reinvented tablets.
  • Reply 49 of 126
    I find it humorous (but expected) that an Apple site would carefully choose to quote from the negative reviews, despite the fact that most reviews agree that despite its shortcomings and the fact that it can only do 80% of what the iPad can do for 40% of the price, it is a great value.



    I really want to get my hands on one - I may actually buy one if it is halfway decent.



    Typing this from an iPad2 provided by my work (which I love, by the way).
  • Reply 50 of 126
    jetzjetz Posts: 1,293member
    It has an audience. There's a huge chunk of people out there that would just surf the web and read books on an iPad. This device is for them. The billion dollar question is how big that segment is. For Amazon this is an essential move. Apple is pushing iBooks on iOS. Google is pushing Google Books on Android. The only way to keep their customers loyal to their content sales stream is to offer them a cheap platform locked down to their content store. It's no iPad killer. But I'll bet that it will do better than most here suggest it would.
  • Reply 51 of 126
    To me the low spec part is the low 1024x600 screen resolution.



    1024x768 would have been more adequate.
  • Reply 52 of 126
    rob55rob55 Posts: 1,291member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Jetz View Post


    ...The only way to keep their customers loyal to their content sales stream is to offer them a cheap platform locked down to their content store.



    Except that we can read Kindle books on virtually anything. I wonder if the same holds true for their magazines or are they exclusive to the Fire?
  • Reply 53 of 126
    Fire for $200?

    I just bought an iPad1 (16 GB) on eBay essentially new for $340 including S/H.

    In the original box, and the iPad and the box in mint condition, not a scratch on them!
  • Reply 54 of 126
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ConradJoe View Post


    I was not addressing the utility of the machine. I was addressing usage patterns.



    "it does 90% of what most people use the iPad for".



    Correcting people's reading comprehension problems is getting boring.



    Why isn't it obvious to anyone that you are a very subtle troll. Just look at the post count
  • Reply 55 of 126
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mdriftmeyer View Post


    Yes, nothing like access to past seasons of TV Shows to really get me excited to drop my Dish account and miss all the shows I currently DVR, Not.



    The vast majority of the content is also non-HD.



    I cancelled my cable/sat service coz the vast majority of content is repeats of old tv shows.



    I'm not willing to pay £60/mth for 500 channels of total crap plus the odd good channel, sports and movies. I can watch the same sports channels in the pub for nothing.



    Non-HD content is not a problem for me. With unlimited streaming for £10 a month I don't care if it is DVD quality.
  • Reply 56 of 126
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Touch1 View Post


    Fire for $200?

    I just bought an iPad1 (16 GB) on eBay essentially new for $340 including S/H.

    In the original box, and the iPad and the box in mint condition, not a scratch on them!



    Yes but you specifically bought an iPad to have an iPad. This isn't an iClone. This is a Kindle, these things practically sell themselves by name alone. People aren't looking at this saying "oh this is cheaper than the iPad." People can do a little more than the orignal Kindles can do. It's no threat to Apple as they have even stated. I can't recount how many people on the train and bus use eReaders over iPads. It's no biggie. Hell I love my iPad but this is for a whole other area of consumers.
  • Reply 57 of 126
    Let's see...



    From The Verge review:



    Quote:

    Still, there's no question that the Fire is a really terrific tablet for its price. The amount of content you have access to ? and the ease of getting to that content ? is notable to say the least. The device is decently designed, and the software ? while lacking some polish ? is still excellent compared to pretty much anything in this range (and that includes the Nook Color). It's a well thought out tablet that can only get better as the company refines the software. It's not perfect, but it's a great start, and at $200, that may be all Amazon needs this holiday shopping season.



    From Mashable.com's review:



    Quote:

    Most of these gripes are minor, and to fully appreciate the Amazon Kindle Fire, you have to step back and look at all you?re getting for $199 (the base 16GB iPad is $499, the Nook Tablet $249). This is a highly polished device and collection of services. It bakes in books, music, movies, apps/games, magazines, multi-tasking, universal search, easy access to anything you have in Amazon?s cloud, and a sense that this device and Amazon know you. It is the closest tablet I?ve seen yet to an Apple iPad: a consistent, well-thought out marriage of hardware and services that offer an almost frictionless environment for app purchase and content consumption. This is why the iPad has been so successful and why I think the Kindle Fire, despite its imperfections, is a winner, too.



    From the PCMag.com review:



    Quote:

    The Amazon Kindle Fire puts the Apple iPad on notice. The Fire is the first small tablet that average users can pick up and immediately use, with a simple, clear interface. Then there's the price: Android along with amazing specs for just $199. It's open enough to attract geeks, too. While the user interface occasionally gets sluggish, we're willing to have a bit of patience to get a first-rate tablet for half of what most competitors charge, thus the Kindle Fire is our first Editors' Choice for small tablets.



    From the MSNBC.com review:



    Quote:

    This won't be one of those long technical reviews. You're reading this to make sure that the Amazon Kindle Fire you already know you want is up to snuff, and well, it is. I've had it since Thursday ? reading, watching video, listening to music, checking email, even playing some games ? and I can say it's tight. Turn it on and you know what to do, like with an Apple product. So much like an Apple product that Apple should be scared.



  • Reply 58 of 126
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by skolvikings View Post


    People have short memories. You forget that iOS devices have had issues. Apple has come a long way with iOS 5 (and even then, after the upgrade, my iPhone often drops me to the home screen while using Safari or the App Store).



    There's no way the brand-new Kindle Fire is going to be as polished as the iPad 2 out of the gate. Heck, it may never be as polished. Nonetheless, Amazon is going to continue to refine, fix bugs, etc., you know... the same thing Apple has been doing for years.



    If the Amazon Fire can surf the internet, then the millions of people who buy one are likely going to be satisfied. Would they like an iPad even more? Perhaps. But since they purchased a Kindle Fire instead, and considering most won't own an iPad 2, they won't know the difference.



    I mean... if I ever owned a Jaguar, I'd probably never want to drive anything less. But since I've never owned or driven a Jaguar, I don't know or care what I'm missing.



    This is a tablet not a phone. Plus it's 2011. iOS had its own issues but it was the best game in town when it came out. Fire is not.
  • Reply 59 of 126
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ConradJoe View Post


    This is what I said:



    "It doesn't work as well as a device costing (up to) more than 4 times its cost."



    The "why would anybody say such a thing" question is left as an exercise to the reader.



    You're the only one doing contortions.
  • Reply 60 of 126
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Sector7G View Post


    Can't you see this is not a tablet. It's not a iPad competitor. Amazon is charging its customers 200 dollars to buy there content. What a slap in the face this will be to there customers when there iPad killers tiny screen lags while changing pages



    First it isn't Amazon's content. It is their marketplace. Second you are paying $500 to use Apple's marketplace when you buy a low end iPad 2, so what exactly is your point?



    I am an Amazon user. They have great deals on a lot of tangible items and with Prime membership it is a deal no one else in the marketplace can match. There will be plenty of satisfied Amazon users more than willing to spend $200 on this device with all that Amazon offers.



    Get your head out of the Apple tunnel and open your eyes a bit.
Sign In or Register to comment.