My husband bought me a Kindle Fire HD for Christmas.
I was really pleasantly surprised as most of my Christmas presents have todate so far consisted of nice perfumes and lingerie.
This is actually the first time he has bought me something “useful”. We travel a lot so a light weight mobile device is really handy. I love to read so I normally end up packing lots of books so I don’t run out of reading material so a device which is strong on books and music is a brilliant idea.
My initial impression ofter using for a day was that it is easy to use and has a clear screen. I love the idea that you can have newspapers and magazines delivered to the Kindle. Lots of people have complained about the browser but I have so far found it to be ok.
Technology moves on so fast these days it is really amazing. A few months ago the
Kindle Fire HD was not available in Europe and I was envious of my American friends which seemed to all have taken to the Kindle Fire HD. Now most of my American friends seem to have moved on to Google’s tablet and I am thinking about getting one of those for my husband.
Is it worth investing in a Kindle Fire HD?
Kindle Fire HD is a simpler alternative to iPad or Ipad mini.
I have compared it to my friend’s iPad mini and there are few features but what is there seems to work well. Another friend recently bought the Google Nexus 7 and it seems pretty good as well. The menus are a bit more complex and I suppose the answer is to go to a shop and try before you buy unless you receive one as a present.
The Google Nexus 7 seems to be a bit faster, has more features and I have to be say I prefer the web browser. Also there are no ads and you do get ads on the Kindle.
Android on Amazon
My mobile phone runs Android and the Kindle Fire HD also runs Android but it seems totally different. I have found it much easier to use and the menus are better.
The home screen features a carousel with your most recently opened books, films, apps and more.
I love the home screen on the Kindle Fire HD. It has this really cool carousel which shows your most recently opened items such as films, games, book, apps and other items.
It is not confusing at all and things are easy to locate, and you don’t have to worry about going into the menus again. No silly names or icons which drive you mad.
The web browser and app store
By now you have probably realised the Kindle Fire HD is heavily customized. For instance you have to Amazon app store which is sort of forced upon you in a way.
Facebook and Twitter is there and I like the idea of Netflix plus the BBC iPlayer. There are some apps which are not there but you can get app for free every day from Amazon.
Video, books and rock ‘n’ roll.
Thinking about it I think that the Amazon Kindle HD is sold with a strong focus on media. I would seriously consider this as a good marketing opportunity for Amazon just so they can sell you books, magazines, films and music. It almost feels like an extension fo the Amazon on line store.
The book side of Kindle is great and is good to be able to download new books quickly. As the screen has an excellent resolution and the text is really is to read and your eyes do not get tired even after long term use. On some tablets I have found letters to be blury on other tablets but the letters on Kindle are nice and clear. If you have problems with your eye sight and your main reason for buying a tablet is to have the ability to read books I would definetely go for the Kindle.
The Music function is great and the Kindle Fire HD has a great sound. I enjoy listening to classical music so this part of the Kindle is important to me. You can copy of your own files with a USB cables, buy music from Amazon and what is really neat is that you can transfer files from your computer and store them in the Amazon cloud.
You can transfer as many as 250 files for free however you can upgrade this service by paying £21.99 and Amazon let’s you store 250,000. Great facility of you like to have your music with you but you don’t want it to take up space on your server.
I would like to add that I find it cheapier to download music from Amazon than from iTunes.
I have also uploaded lots of photos to my Kindle and my friends love this part of the Kindle. The reproduction quality is great and colours appear clearly.
You can upload photos through the cloud service as well. The Kindle Fire HD comes 5 GB of free cloud storage space but if you need more you can buy it.
For a content consumption device, though, there is one big problem -- video. Amazon owns Lovefilm and you get a 30-day trial of its streaming service with the Fire HD. Lovefilm's streaming catalogue isn't bad, with a wider selection of new movies than Netflix in my experience, and the streaming quality on the programmes I watched was good.
If you like watching movies on your tablet there is a major problem
Amazon owns Love film and you get a 30 day free trial as part of the package but you cannot download anything for off line viewing. If you are travelling, or without a Wi-Fi connection for other reasons, you cannot watch videos or movies.
Okay so you can transfer MP4 files but if your main reason for buying the Kindle Fire HD is to watch videos you may want to consider your options.
Newspapers and magazines
You can buy newspapers and magazines and there is a dedicated magazine shop. Titles are avilables as one-offs, you can take out subscription and some publications have free trials. The quality leaves a little bit to be desireed on some of the publication but this is not Amazon’s fault. The quality is down to the individual publisher and I think this part needs a bit of work so a better format can be used.
Glossy magazines are not very user friendly at all however newspapers are much better and I now normally read the Daily Mail on my Kindle Fire HD.
Games on Kindle Fire HD
I am not a keen gamer but if I was I think I would consider another option.
I like Google and I do play some games but I mainly use the Google Play Store which I find excellent. Also I have noticed that some of the games which are free in Google Play store you will need to pay for on the Kindle Fire HD.
Wi-Fi connection
I have personally found the Wi-Fi connection very good and I have even been able to use the Kindle Fire HD in places where owners of other tablets have complained about poor conenction. It seems to be very stable and I am really pleased with this part.
The early Kindle Fire HD was supposed to have had problems with the battery but I have found the battery quality excellent.
Would I buy a Kindle HD?
If you are already a keen Amzon user than the Kindle Fire HD is definetely for you but I must admit I rather like my friend’s Google Nexus 7. Sorry Amazon but it feels like a bit of an extended sales opportunity and I feel somewhat tied in.
