35-inch frame is still thicker than the iPad mini. The larger model is thinner than the smaller Fire HD, and even slightly slimmer than the most recent iPad – though its. It's a pretty inconspicuous device, without a lot of visual flair, but I actually like it the matte black device has a similar soft-touch feel to the Nexus 7, which I like much more than the cold metallic feel of the iPad. Speaking of the bezel, it's exactly the same size as the 7-inch, but it doesn't look as big because the device itself is larger. The two devices are virtually identical, too - if you cut the bezel off the 8.9-inch model you'd have a device almost exactly the size of the 7-inch Fire HD. I was surprised – this is a content company and a retailer, not an electronics manufacturer, and its previous devices hadn't been overwhelmingly impressive.īoth Kindle Fire HD models are a significant step up from what Amazon has made before, well-built devices that don't have any of the blocky feel of the original Fire. Do the better screen and omipresent connection make the Kindle Fire HD 8.9 into an even better Amazon machine? How about a better overall tablet?Īt that event in September, Bezos spent an incredible amount of time talking about Amazon's hardware prowess. There's also a version with AT&T-supplied LTE connectivity, which comes at a hugely discounted price. The $299 Kindle Fire HD 8.9 takes the 7-inch model's formula and puts it into a bigger package with an even better screen - all the more space to enjoy Amazon's massive content ecosystem with.
But as a tablet overall, compared to the iPad and Nexus 7, it faltered thanks to some performance issues, lacking app selection, and a few absent features. As a platform, a service, an appliance - a window into everything Amazon is and offers - it's a phenomenal success. When we reviewed the smaller of the two Kindle Fire HD siblings, we found it to be a mixed bag. But with the larger Kindle Fire HD 8.9, "we made the best tablet at any price," Bezos said, in a not-so-subtle jab at the iPad. The Kindle Fire HD 7, he said, was the best tablet at a certain price.
#Amazon kindle reader app dowsnt do multitasking series
In September, inside an airplane hangar in Los Angeles, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos made a series of bold statements about the company's two brand-new Kindle Fire HD tablets.