summercomfort (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
summercomfort) wrote2011-11-20 11:43 am
summercomfort) wrote2011-11-20 11:43 am
Kindle Fire
So I got the Kindle Fire, and it came on Friday, so I've been playing with it a bit. I wanted to see if it was a good alternative to the iPad, since I never use the iPad that work gave me, especially since it's $199, which is about 1/3 the price of an iPad, and would also be an extra Kindle, in case both Jono and I want to read the same e-book. I was also seeing if it's a good alternative to the iPad for travel purposes.
So, thus far:
Pros:
- Size: It's smaller than an iPad, but much more mobile. It fits easily in one hand, and it's light and mobile enough to make bed-time browsing relaxing. At the same time, it's still big enough to make the touch and browse experience enjoyable
- The web browser is more customizable than Safari on the iPad. For one, it has tabs. Also, there are more settings to fiddle with. For example, I've set the browser to default to desktop browser, with no re-sizing, which means that most websites look normal. Also, videos and stuff play in-browser, which is nice.
- Reading magazines and comics is definitely a good experience on the Kindle.
- The auto-correct is not obnoxious like the iPad. I can actually add words, and it's okay with me typing weird words like "Sushu" or "MSPAndrew"
- I like how it is organized more by media ("Newpapers" "Books" "Music" "Apps" "Web") and consumption thereof. Unlike the iPad, it makes no pretensions of being something more than a media consumption device. By being first and foremost a reading machine, and one that costs just a bit more than my normal Kindle, I feel less desire/pressure to make it be any sort of computer-replacement. On the iPad, it's really easy to have 10 apps that all do something similar, because in a way, you're trying to find all the computer program replacements.
Cons:
- User-interface quirks: sometimes I have to hit a button multiple times before it registers. The navigation buttons are at the bottom (like a cell phone), while other setting buttons are at the top (like a computer), which makes it confusing to figure out where to look.
- The Silk Server or whatever it's called, where they use their servers to load the website, and then send it to you -- it actually makes the loading time unpredictable for me, and there's no indicator of when the web page is loading. (Good thing it can be turned off in the Settings!)
- The battery life is not as long as the iPad. I think it's longer if you turn off the Wi-Fi, but that's not automatic when it's "off". I had to recharge it after 1.5 days of use, which pales in comparison to my normal Kindle, which I recharge about once a month. Even the iPad is about 2-3 days.
- Many of the apps on the Android Market are actually not available. I don't know if it's due to system compatibility issues, or whether the app market is as heavily regulated as the Apple App Store. If it is the latter, it feels rather oppressive. For example, I know there are Manga reader apps in the Android Market, but I can't get them on the Kindle Fire.
- There's only Wi-Fi. There isn't the world-wide 3G that my normal Kindle has. That makes sense as a general matter, since the browsing capability is much stronger with the Fire than with the normal Kindle, so you don't want the users to hog all the bandwidth downloading Youtube videos while travelling in Sri Lanka. Even so, I wish there was a "limited 3G" option available -- maybe with a bandwidth cap or some extra fee when you use it abroad.
In Conclusion:
- I like it more than the iPad
- Wish there were more Apps available
- Would not replace my normal Kindle, since that is (a) lighter, (b) has 3G access, and (c) suits my simple desire to read while walking.
- I would probably consider taking it along for travel purposes in lieu of a computer or iPad.
So, thus far:
Pros:
- Size: It's smaller than an iPad, but much more mobile. It fits easily in one hand, and it's light and mobile enough to make bed-time browsing relaxing. At the same time, it's still big enough to make the touch and browse experience enjoyable
- The web browser is more customizable than Safari on the iPad. For one, it has tabs. Also, there are more settings to fiddle with. For example, I've set the browser to default to desktop browser, with no re-sizing, which means that most websites look normal. Also, videos and stuff play in-browser, which is nice.
- Reading magazines and comics is definitely a good experience on the Kindle.
- The auto-correct is not obnoxious like the iPad. I can actually add words, and it's okay with me typing weird words like "Sushu" or "MSPAndrew"
- I like how it is organized more by media ("Newpapers" "Books" "Music" "Apps" "Web") and consumption thereof. Unlike the iPad, it makes no pretensions of being something more than a media consumption device. By being first and foremost a reading machine, and one that costs just a bit more than my normal Kindle, I feel less desire/pressure to make it be any sort of computer-replacement. On the iPad, it's really easy to have 10 apps that all do something similar, because in a way, you're trying to find all the computer program replacements.
Cons:
- User-interface quirks: sometimes I have to hit a button multiple times before it registers. The navigation buttons are at the bottom (like a cell phone), while other setting buttons are at the top (like a computer), which makes it confusing to figure out where to look.
- The Silk Server or whatever it's called, where they use their servers to load the website, and then send it to you -- it actually makes the loading time unpredictable for me, and there's no indicator of when the web page is loading. (Good thing it can be turned off in the Settings!)
- The battery life is not as long as the iPad. I think it's longer if you turn off the Wi-Fi, but that's not automatic when it's "off". I had to recharge it after 1.5 days of use, which pales in comparison to my normal Kindle, which I recharge about once a month. Even the iPad is about 2-3 days.
- Many of the apps on the Android Market are actually not available. I don't know if it's due to system compatibility issues, or whether the app market is as heavily regulated as the Apple App Store. If it is the latter, it feels rather oppressive. For example, I know there are Manga reader apps in the Android Market, but I can't get them on the Kindle Fire.
- There's only Wi-Fi. There isn't the world-wide 3G that my normal Kindle has. That makes sense as a general matter, since the browsing capability is much stronger with the Fire than with the normal Kindle, so you don't want the users to hog all the bandwidth downloading Youtube videos while travelling in Sri Lanka. Even so, I wish there was a "limited 3G" option available -- maybe with a bandwidth cap or some extra fee when you use it abroad.
In Conclusion:
- I like it more than the iPad
- Wish there were more Apps available
- Would not replace my normal Kindle, since that is (a) lighter, (b) has 3G access, and (c) suits my simple desire to read while walking.
- I would probably consider taking it along for travel purposes in lieu of a computer or iPad.