Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

As I did with my review of the 7" version of this device, I had the chance to check out my friend's advanced copy of the 8.9" version as well. My conclusion? Simple: I LOVE this device. GO OUT AND BUY IT NOW!!!! You will not be disappointed!!! I am a former Apple fanboy; I had the iPhone, I still have the second generation iPad; but now I am finding myself expanding to other, less expensive options. I now have the Galaxy S II, and am seriously considering switching to this product. You'll find most of my comments similar to the review of the 7", with a few exceptions. DESIGN - I really like how the shortcut bar switches to the right side of the screen when you turn it to landscape mode, so you won't have to look for them. Landscape mode already uses up more vertical space so putting these buttons on the bottom in landscape mode would be silly. It's a bit weird that the home button is now on the right instead of left, but hey, that's fine with me as long as you're not using my landscape space. Attachments download pretty easily. Once you get the hang of things, you'll be using it in no time. FEEL - The fire HD 8.9 was designed very well this time around. So much easier to hold one-handed than a 10 incher or the even bigger 11.6" guys that weighs down your hand. It has a fairly large bezel which does not look so great aesthetically (I would rather have an edge to edge screen with only a tiny bezel for holding, but I'll live!) It has a soft touch back which looks very pleasant. wider bezel as I noted before, and is extremely light. It is somewhat thick - definitely thicker than the ipad, but the 8.9 version feels just right. It weighs 20 oz. so it's the heaviest product in the Amazon kindle repertoire, but it offers the most so that is expected. It is bigger than the original fire and has nice curved edges which makes it much easier to hold than the original fire. It looks very sharp!!! It has volume buttons, a MAJOR improvement on the original fire as well. It is bigger than an iPad mini and feels bigger too - while still keeping a similar price point as the regular iPad but with far more options. SOUND - the sound is clear and fantastic and comes out very crisp. The fire uses dolby digital audio which comes out very clearly. Dolby knows what they are doing. The music plays very nicely and can be stored in the cloud which is great. Amazon allows you to import up to 250 songs which is not very much, but what can you do? SOFTWARE - the device has new programs such as x-ray which is great to learn more about books and movies, and FreeTime which is fantastic for kids. The platform is Android 4.0, but this is Amazon's customized version of the platform. It is based solely to sell products so don't think of this device primarily as a iPad replacement - folks, think of it more as a faster way to line amazon's pockets with other purchases that you will almost certainly make through the device. The home screen is not customizable with widgets, live wallpapers, weather apps, etc., the way an android screen is. Immersive reading is a new feature that allows you to play an audiobook while reading the screen - you can read and listen at the same time, or if you're bored with reading, just listen. I love having the option. They do well with the sound here using the new Dolby digital feature - that is just super neat and not expected in a tablet! While x-rays for movies is super cool, I got bored of it quickly. I enjoy learning about interesting features of the movie, but after the first time, I just want to enjoy the movie. The idea of FreeTime is great for my kids. My daughter can play with her games, and I know she is not doing other things because of the bright, vibrant blue background color of the screen which I can easily ascertain with a quick glance. I can lock them down on time so they can share with each other. Most importantly, the new fire HD is built tougher. The browser runs very nicely. It seems to run faster than the original fire did. I can turn full screen on or their new "reading view" which eliminates all the background junk that wastes space. I was able to download and load PDF files and some of my word documents without any issues, and I'm told by my friend that he had no issues loading his exchange server for work on the 8.9 fire HD. Movie and book titles show up the same way the original fire did, in a library look which seems to work well for Amazon's needs. It displays your titles easily and clearly and allows you to find what you are looking for quickly. The whispersync feature was a great idea - it lets you access your content on any device, so I was able to download a book on the fire HD and see it on my original kindle fire and my iPad's kindle app. Now they have whispersync for movies, games and audiobooks as well!!!! You can use skype which works fine on wifi - it's integrated but is not as full featured as their desktop app. You can also check email - they allow access to aol, gmail, etc. Facebook is set up with the device, and you can easily view photos as well. In short, it's a pretty full featured tablet just as all the others on the market, but at a fantastic price point. HARDWARE - The 8.9" version costs $299 and $369 respectively (add $15 if you can live with special offers), as well as 32gb and 64gb ($500/$600) with LTE, plus you can get a fantastic 250mb data plan for only $50 a year on the LTE version. As my previous review noted, the 7" kindle HD comes in 16gb (only $200!!!) and 32gb for $50 more. So you are getting a pretty fantastic deal. In comparision, the 64gb version of the iPad is $659 not including the data plan, so you're saving some money on this guy. Additionally you get 5 gb of amazon cloud storage free, plus you can pay more for more cloud storage (for files: 10/20gb, $25/50gb, $50/100gb, $100/200gb, $250/500gb, and $500/1k gb, plus for music: free/250 songs, and $25/250,000 songs). The data plan, if you get the LTE version of the 8.9" fire HD, blows away the competition. Consider any smartphone you own - for instance a Galaxy S 2 - you have to pay at least $10 a month premium for the data plan alone, and this is only $50 a year! Not to mention the data plan includes 20gb cloud storage and a $10 Amazon app store credit! It has dual band wi-fi with 802.11 a/b/g/n that makes it much faster than the competition. It also has an amazing screen and dolby digital sound! It can handle WPA2, WEP and WPA security. The processor is a speedy 1.5 Ghz dual core processor with 16 gb integrated flash memory, which is almost as fast as my desktop PC... time to upgrade... :) It is a capacitive touch screen with fantastic resolution. The video playback is 720p. The device also has Bluetooth (A2DP) and HDMI port, as well as text to speech which is great for my blind friend. It comes pre-registered to my account which is a good and a bad thing. I have to be sure not to give it to anyone else without undoing that! It also has a USB 2.0 and 3.5mm stereo jack. It has an accelerometer and gyroscope and front facing HD camera with built in microphone for Skype! It also has an ambient light sensor as well which is a fantastic feature. As noted in my other review, I was able to check out the cover for the 7" (haven't seen it for the 8.9" yet) which has a nice leather grain. The interior is made of nylon which has a bit of a plasticky feel. I love the iPad 3 magnetic locking feature and they seem to have utilized that here which turns the device off (sleep) when you close it, and turns it on when you open it. Simple. Uncomplicated. I assume the cover is the same for the 8.9" version. SCREEN - They have reduced the screen glare on the device using IPS technology, a polarizing filter and anti-glare, which is pretty nice. IPS is a big deal as you don't want to be looking at it from a sharp angle and not be able to see the screen. I don't have as much trouble seeing it in direct sunlight. Also, the screen is much sharper and crisper than the original fire. I can lay the screen down flat on the table and still see what's being played pretty well. The color is vibrant and the magazines show up fantastic similar to the iPad's retina screen. It has vibrant blacks and a display resolution of 1920 x 1200 which is about 255 ppi so that does lag a bit behind the iPad with retina display. PERFORMANCE - The HD 8.9" seems to run a bit more efficiently than the 7" version that I tested earlier, and it certainly runs much faster than my current kindle fire. It has a hardware called MIMO (multiple input/multiple output) which is increased antennas that work together to transfer data and improve data performance without taking up more unnecessary power or even adding any bandwidth to the spectrum! It uses all antennas provided to improve the connection quality as well. Not only that, the processor needed can be the same one without requiring an updated one. Downloads are pretty fast. I have Prime so I am able to run movies and shows for free and they ran fantastic on the device. On Wifi they just scream OWWWWWWW FAST. Much better than the iPad 3 as I've cross tested them. Netflix and YouTube ran seamlessly with no stuttering as sometimes happens on wireless devices like the iPad. I was able to get about 8 to 9 hours of battery life with VERY heavy usage, a bit less than the 7" version since I had the LTE running, I think they say over 11 hours but that did not happen for me. It charges pretty fast - it took only a few hours using their "powerfast" charger. ADVERTISING - The device DOES have advertising, which is displayed on the lock screen only. I found this did not bother me too much, but now Amazon allows you to pay $15 to turn this feature off. If you care so much, then you probably should not be wearing that shirt with the polo logo on it. I'm sure most of you don't and would rather spend that $15 on a new app for the device. OPENING THE BOX - It has a USB 2.0 cable and the quick start guide, as well as the tablet itself. I wish it came with the power adapter up front. I would have to go out and buy one - the iPad comes with one so why not this device? I would rather pay the extra price up front, although I guess it's better to have the option than the choice made for me. The micro-USB cable is nice for plugging it into the computer. No headphones, although I just plugged mine in from my iPad and was fine. WARRANTY - this comes with Amazon's 1 year limited warranty but you can buy a 2 year warranty as well. ACCESSORIES - You get a $3 mp3 credit with any kindle accessory you buy, so that's a bonus. You can and probably should buy two products with the device. Most importantly, pick up a powerfast charger which allows for superfast charging in only 4 hours and costs $20 which is not unreasonable. Amazon Kindle PowerFast for Accelerated Charging (for all Kindle Fire models, not included with device). I did not get a chance to see the cover for the 8.9" but I DID see it for the 7", so I assume they are very similar. You can get it here for about $55 Amazon Kindle Fire HD 8.9" Standing Leather Case, Fuchsia (will only fit Kindle Fire HD 8.9") which is a bit pricey but attaches magnetically, will wake and put your iPad to sleep, and serves as a built in stand. CONS - Very minimal issues - no charger included. No microSD port. No rear camera (most have dual cams now). But let's consider these things - you save money with the absence of a charger - remember, Amazon is already selling these at cost. If you have any USB charger (most people have a smartphone so you can reuse that charger if it's USB), you'll be fine. No rear camera is fine - you aren't holding a larger device like this at all times and if you really need to take a photo, you'll have your smartphone or camera for that. The only real negative I found was the lack of a microSD port, but given that Amazon is generous with the significant memory capacity of the 8.9", this isn't a desktop replacement so you probably wont need to use up all of that storage. Conclusion - Price is great in comparison to the competition (i.e., the iPad) but you may still want to get a charger and almost certainly a case to protect your baby. Definitely a worthwhile buy if you are looking for a functional tablet and you want to be at the forefront of the technology line. I LOVED IT and recommend it!!! I hope you enjoyed this review. Please feel free to post any comments and I'll be happy to answer! ***UPDATE 11-19-12 - Still loving it. I play with it every day. Noticed that the browser does predictive linking. Cool! Screen is super clear and immersive - those pixels are put to great usage and the IPS with a variety of angles is simply fantastic (although it's included with many devices, it's still a great feature for those not used to the future of tech!). Gotta love that x-ray tech - it's so nice to download something on my kindle then switch to my phone when I dont feel like holding it, without having to redo everything. Makes life SO much easier! Amazon, you're a blessing!*** ***UPDATE 11/23/12-have been playing with it for a few more days and i am still very happy with it. When I'm on wifi, movies load super fast and snappy, even better than the 7" version. It seems like the wifi is just much better on this model. Also, when watching movies, the sound is fantastic and crisp, due to the speakers on each side, almost like surround sound! One thing you should know is that the device does have a tendency to get a bit warm, nothing extremely unusual, pretty typical in fact but you should just be aware of that fact. Minor issue. Still love it and reccommend it!!!*** ***UPDATE 12/17/12 - Sorry this is a bit behind the 8-ball but better late than never!!! Just so you are aware, Amazon has posted an update for the Kindle. Doesn't work on the lower end models. This is the text of the update taken from the forums: "We have a new, free software update available for Kindle Fire HD and Kindle Fire Second Generation. The software update will be delivered automatically via wireless to your Kindle in the coming weeks. These software updates will include: *Kindle FreeTime, a tablet experience just for kids allowing parents to set daily screen time limits, and give access to appropriate content for each child. *A setting so customers can control whether or not personalized recommendations appear below the carousel on the device homepage. *Ability for customers to set the default device language to one of six languages, including English (US), English (UK), German, French, Italian, and Spanish. We will be delivering this update over wireless connections in the coming weeks. Customers who prefer to receive the update immediately can manually download and install the software update from: http://www.amazon.com/kindlesoftwareupdates. If you have any questions related to this release, please visit the Kindle Help Forum - http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/forums/kindleqna/ref=kindle_help_forum_gd."