In the Kindle Fire HD, Amazon took its
popular ebook reader and attempted to turn it into a media tablet. It was meant
to compete with the likes of the iPad Mini and the Nexus 7 and Nexus 10 Android
devices. It was certainly cheap enough to compete with the latter and the
choice of two screen sizes, the 7 inch and 8.9 inch, meant there was a choice
that was suitable for virtually everybody that might be interested in parting
with their hard earned cash for one.
The screen is something that Amazon has
really been bigging up, claiming it to be better than the screens of all its
rivals. It certainly has the numbers to back up this claim with the larger of
the two models proving the pick of the pair – it has an impressive 254 pixels
per inch. Whether you are reading an ebook, as is traditional with this family
of devices, or you are browsing the Internet you will appreciate the extra pop
that comes from these pixels.
In terms price you should expect to pay
about £160 for the 7” and £230 for the 8.9” screen. Unless you require the
smaller version for some reason or the £70 difference is a deal breaker for you
then we would opt for the bigger of the two devices. Not only does it have the
better screen but it packs slightly more punch with a dual core 1.5GHz
processor. The 7” version only offers dual core 1.2GHz. The difference isn’t
massive but there are considerably more powerful devices out there and you
will, eventually at least, start to find apps that may struggle.
One criticism that we would have with the Kindle
Fire HD, from our own perspective, is that its User Interface (UI) appears a
little too basic. Think Xbox 360 dashboard rather than PC laptop screen. Where
the Nexus and the iPad will give you an experience that is akin to owning a
laptop you should expect to concentrate almost solely on the content when you
fire up the Kindle Fire HD. This may not be a bad thing for everybody, of
course.
Internet access is pretty impressive on the
devices. Apparently Amazon servers will deal with the majority of the work that
you do which means that, when you log on to the Silk web browser you will enjoy
faster browsing. It’s not lightning quick but it’s certainly not sluggish
either and you should find the design of the browser to be comfortable, whether
you are a regular user of Internet Explorer, Chrome, or Firefox on your laptop
or PC.
Where the Amazon KindleFire HD really excels is in its presentation of media, and that shouldn’t
come as a surprise if you’re seriously considering buying one. You will not
find access to a better library of content, for a start off, and the content
that you already own or have rented is quickly and easily accessible. It is
instantly obvious that this is where the hearts of the manufacturers truly lay
and if you’re looking for a good quality and affordable media tablet then this
is it.
