When I set out to purchase a tablet this past holiday season I was not looking for charts or graphs or "tech specs." I found it difficult to wade through the mixed reviews on this device, so I decided to provide readers with my own review here. I am not a PC guru by any means. However, should you ask my husband, he will agree that I am a more difficult person to please with any purchases I make, ever.
All qualifiers aside, I am a week into using this device. It is the first device we purchased which I opened and could use instantly. It was already over 70% battery-life ready. There is no registration and connecting to iTunes. (After we purchased our iPad, that process alone took a while for us non-MAC users, sigh.)
There is no need to set up 3G or 4G billing. The Kindle Fire is set up for Wi-Fi access. There are also no "usage" charges for downloads and therefore no limit to exceed. You can load as much as your Kindle will store. For me this was perfect since we are set up on our own secure wireless network at home. If you do not have Wi-Fi access I admit this could be a draw-back for you.
The home page is relatively straight forward. Your "Newsstand" is your "Home" screen. You can use this to quickly flip through your most recent apps. Across the top of the "home" page you have your standard tablet options: Books, Music, Video, Docs, Apps, and Web. Speaking of Web - did you know that Amazon was smart enough NOT to restrict Flash? I digress with my MAC frustrations. Its browsing speed is top notch. Apps download at a decent speed. You are able to access your local device (which comes with 8GB of storage) or the Cloud assuming connected Wi-Fi access. Setting up your Amazon store is a couple clicks (finger taps really) followed by entering your billing information for anything you would like to purchase.
You have free access to Amazon Prime for one month once you activate your Kindle Fire. I was able to watch "The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo" last night while making dinner. The speaker sound quality is terrific. However the volume does not go as high as it does on other devices. This was not an issue for me since I had my headphones ready to go.
There is only one button, one speaker input, and one mini USB input to operate your device. The rest is done through the touch screen. So far, I have not had any issues with screen function and it has been easy to clean. You do not have volume or brightness buttons, so that needs to be done through settings. You can access your settings by tapping the screen once. Over all, I am in love with this silly thing. I have my family's calendar, access to movies, music, books, and super-quick web browsing with no boot up time. I have no data plan or contract.
Alec Baldwin inspired me to check out a few new addicting games on this as well which load quickly. I am able to remotely access my desktop at the office. For me - this is perfect. Now I just need to figure out what else to add to my reading and movie list. The reading screen is easy to adjust and page turning can be done with a tap or a slide of the finger. The video quality is fantastic. I found myself watching National Geographic films with vivid color and amazing shots of volcanoes and other land masses.
Bottom line, my husband is happy because I am quiet, and I am ecstatic about my new Kindle Fire.