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Kindle Fire HD |OT|

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pgtl_10

Member
I have a kindle Fire which I uprooted to Jelly Bean. I realize that so little space is available and am running out of space for apps.

Is there any I can wipe the fire's memory clean including the backup kindle software and install Jelly Bean 4.2.1?
 

smr00

Banned
I need some input by someone who has a 8.1 and reads comics but not comics through comixology with the panel-panel viewing.

How is comic book reading on the 8.1 through other comic reading apps? apps that allow you to import your comics and don't have the panel-panel viewing? I returned the original fire because it was too small and i am hoping the 8.1 offers a better experience for comic reading.
 

Somnid

Member
I wish Amazon had better release notes because I just noticed this while playing with the keyboard:

As of the last update Kindle Fire HDs (and the new gen KF) have a Swype Keyboard. It was just stealthy added but it's awesome. For those that don't know Swype you basically draw a line between the letters of a word and it recognizes words based on the gestures. Great productivity enhancer.

Also in that last update they added the ability to take pictures in the photo app for the 7". If you had a 8.9" it was there all along.
 

Darkmakaimura

Can You Imagine What SureAI Is Going To Do With Garfield?
I wish Amazon had better release notes because I just noticed this while playing with the keyboard:

As of the last update Kindle Fire HDs (and the new gen KF) have a Swype Keyboard. It was just stealthy added but it's awesome. For those that don't know Swype you basically draw a line between the letters of a word and it recognizes words based on the gestures. Great productivity enhancer.

Also in that last update they added the ability to take pictures in the photo app for the 7". If you had an 8.9" it was there all along.
So that was what that weird yellow line I saw on the keyboard! I was thinking it was a glitch....
 

Acid08

Banned
I wish Amazon had better release notes because I just noticed this while playing with the keyboard:

As of the last update Kindle Fire HDs (and the new gen KF) have a Swype Keyboard. It was just stealthy added but it's awesome. For those that don't know Swype you basically draw a line between the letters of a word and it recognizes words based on the gestures. Great productivity enhancer.

Also in that last update they added the ability to take pictures in the photo app for the 7". If you had a 8.9" it was there all along.

I noticed the Swype keyboard too, loving it.
 

BrettWeir

Member
I got an 8.9 for Xmas. I can honestly say that I love this thing. The screen is such a nice update from the first Fire, and our iPad 1.
 

this_guy

Member
I got an 8.9 for Xmas. I can honestly say that I love this thing. The screen is such a nice update from the first Fire, and our iPad 1.

I sold my Ipad 3rd gen and have been using the Fire HD 8.9" ever since. It's a great tablet, and the Amazon Prime videos make it worth it for me. The screen is at least equal to the retina display on the iPad at a much lower price point.
 
i brought my 8.9 to the bathroom to listen to the radio. while in the shower i heard a loud thud and saw the kindle fell from the dresser. i think about 3 to close to 4' drop. i thought OMG the screen. the crack. and rushed out the shower. picked it up and saw it had no scratches. or cracks. luckily it was in the official amazon case.
 

otake

Doesn't know that "You" is used in both the singular and plural
Hey guys, what's it like reading books on the Kindle Fire HD 8.9" Tablet?
 

Somnid

Member
Hey guys, what's it like reading books on the Kindle Fire HD 8.9" Tablet?

And here I though it was dead.

From a tablet perspective it's really good, the whole OS is basically designed to put you into Amazon and it puts media on the same level as apps so they are easy to access. The screen is on par with an iPad only a very marginal PPI drop and no weird pentiles or anything. It's also not especially big or weighty either so it's probably about as good as you're going to get on a tablet.

Thats said I would still absolutely recommend a PaperWhite for serious reading even if as a companion device. Also definitely checkout the Nook HD+ which is a very similar device (can still use the Kindle app if that's important) and currently goes for about $140.
 

BrettWeir

Member
And here I though it was dead.

From a tablet perspective it's really good, the whole OS is basically designed to put you into Amazon and it puts media on the same level as apps so they are easy to access. The screen is on par with an iPad only a very marginal PPI drop and no weird pentiles or anything. It's also not especially big or weighty either so it's probably about as good as you're going to get on a tablet.

Thats said I would still absolutely recommend a PaperWhite for serious reading even if as a companion device. Also definitely checkout the Nook HD+ which is a very similar device (can still use the Kindle app if that's important) and currently goes for about $140.

From a completely different perspective, I think the 8.9 HD is a complete piece of trash. We have 3 of them in the family, and they all have the same symptoms. We are constantly having to reboot the damned things due to RAM dumps. Netflix will start to stutter after an hour. I hate the damned thing. Just give me an iPad Mini with an HD screen.
 

this_guy

Member
From a completely different perspective, I think the 8.9 HD is a complete piece of trash. We have 3 of them in the family, and they all have the same symptoms. We are constantly having to reboot the damned things due to RAM dumps. Netflix will start to stutter after an hour. I hate the damned thing. Just give me an iPad Mini with an HD screen.

I've had mine since November and I've never had that issue. It's always been kind of slow and clunky though. I'm waiting for an iPad Mini retina display to replace it. I wouldn't mind the new Nexus 7 but Amazon refuses to release their Prime instant video player for other Android tablets.
 

Somnid

Member
From a completely different perspective, I think the 8.9 HD is a complete piece of trash. We have 3 of them in the family, and they all have the same symptoms. We are constantly having to reboot the damned things due to RAM dumps. Netflix will start to stutter after an hour. I hate the damned thing. Just give me an iPad Mini with an HD screen.

Never had those issues with mine either and I side load a lot of things. Is there a specific app that is causing problems? Netflix?

I've had mine since November and I've never had that issue. It's always been kind of slow and clunky though. I'm waiting for an iPad Mini retina display to replace it. I wouldn't mind the new Nexus 7 but Amazon refuses to release their Prime instant video player for other Android tablets.

The Kindle line is supposed to be getting refreshes sometime in late August/September.
 

jvm

Gamasutra.
My original Kindle Fire (first-gen) is still going strong. Very solidly built piece of hardware.

My day-one Kindle Fire HD 8.9" got sent back after about 6 months because the power button was bad. It was never great, but it got worse and started sticking under the edge of the case. Amazon took it back immediately and sent me a replacement. (I looked over their site and saw that some other folks were having precisely the squishy power button problems and case-sticking that I was having...so I'm guessing it's a known flaw.)

And my son saved up for a KF HD 7" and his first one was busted. It never registered Free Time, it kept rebooting with normal app use (like multiple times in a 30 minute period), and on and on. Went back within 24 hours, and a new one arrived super-fast. That one's been perfect.

Not sure what to say. When you get a good one, it's great. But there are bad ones out there. :(
 

Somnid

Member
Sorry to bump this, but I was wondering if there is a new version of the fire hd expected any time soon?

Rumors and product stock clearance point to September which is when they have announced new hardware for the last few years.
 

jvm

Gamasutra.
Rumors and product stock clearance point to September which is when they have announced new hardware for the last few years.
Have they discontinued new sales of any of the second-gen products yet?

I really like my HD 8.9". Competent browsing and email and reading system. Also good for Humble Bundle games. I use Firefox for the browser and sideloaded Gmail.
 

BrettWeir

Member
Never had those issues with mine either and I side load a lot of things. Is there a specific app that is causing problems? Netflix?

That may be it. All of us use it pretty much exclusively for Netflix, with a little bit of web browsing here and there.
 

jvm

Gamasutra.
Amazon has released their what appears to be once-per-year update of Silk: http://amazonsilk.wordpress.com/2013/08/12/silk-has-a-new-look/

Looks a lot better from a UI standpoint and apparently comes with some performance improvements. Also more official documentation including their experimental Flash video streaming for legacy sites.
Neat. I'm sideloading Firefox but will give Silk another run.

I was hoping the update was about either (a) ending official sales of last year's models or (b) a new model announced. Should happen in ... next month?
 
Sorry to drudge up an old OT, but I was wondering if anyone had a chance to pick up one of the new Kindle Fire 6's. The size is unique, but I somewhat want something that's cheap yet reliable for reading, gaming or whatever might come up.
 
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