[Nickinev]

I just got my fire and I have to say I really love it.  It's definitely exceeded my expectations.  Once I connected to wifi - it welcomed me and started downloading the new software. 

My books were all on there, ready to go.  I opened the last one I was reading and discovered all the great fonts...

Georgia
Caecilla
Trebuchet
Verdana (my favorite)
Arial
Times New Roman
Courier
Lucida

Another bonus is it fit in my K3's Oberon Cover!  I'm so excited about that!

Nicole

 

[krm0789]

Since you are now the resident guinea pig... Did it start doing the update automatically? And did you pre-send books to your Fire? I'm wondering if those pending deliveries will interfere with an update

 

[Nickinev]

Yes, it started doing the update right after I connected to wifi.  The only books that were sent were the ones I had sent to it previously.  The others were in "the cloud."

I just watched a snippet of Grey's Anatomy and the video streaming is very nice.  The web browser is really fast - much faster than my ipad. 

 

[Ann in Arlington]

Moving this to the 'review' board. . .

 

[B-Kay 1325]

What software version did it come with?  Did you have to download the update?

 

[Nickinev]

The software on it now is 6.1.  It automatically started downloading. 

 

[Alice Coyl]

I just got my fire and I have to say I really love it. It's definitely exceeded my expectations. Once I connected to wifi - it welcomed me and started downloading the new software.

My books were all on there, ready to go. I opened the last one I was reading and discovered all the great fonts...

Georgia
Caecilla
Trebuchet
Verdana (my favorite)
Arial
Times New Roman
Courier
Lucida

Another bonus is it fit in my K3's Oberon Cover! I'm so excited about that!

Nicole

Nicole, is it tight in your Oberon cover? I have one too and was afraid it wouldn't fit.

 

[Guest]

Shows what I know. When I saw Trebuchet I thought it was something more like this:

 

[Nickinev]

Nicole, is it tight in your Oberon cover? I have one too and was afraid it wouldn't fit.

I wish I had my camera, so I could take a picture. It is a little tight, but still fits pretty nice I think.

Nicole

 

[TessM]

does it have any apps (likeFacebook etc.) preloaded and that you didn't buy?

 

[Seamonkey]

Hoping for pictures, packaging and all!

 

[Nickinev]

does it have any apps (likeFacebook etc.) preloaded and that you didn't buy?

Facebook, IMDb, Pulse and Amazon were already in my favorites. Also included is Contacts, Email, Gallery, Help & Feedback and I think Quick Office (not pro). I got pro yesterday, so they are both on there right now.

 

[cleee]

Build quality is great. Doesn't feel like a lightweight plastic toy. Very easy to use. My books were all there ready for download. I downloaded one and the page was crisp and tight and I didn't make any adjustments.

I opened up a tv show from Amazon Prime streaming and picture was great.

I don't have anything in the Cloud as I don't buy music from Amazon but do remember a few weeks ago when I bought a couple of downloadable albums that it asked me if I wanted to play them in Amazon's Cloud Player. I chose No because I wanted to get the mp3s on my Ipod but will try to get those albums in there somehow.

The only real issue I have is with the sound. If the volume is all the way up, the volume is good, however, if you lower the volume even just a little bit (say 10%) the device is barely audible. I currently have the volume bar about 90% up and can barely hear anything. Upping it to full volume results in quite a jump in volume. I plan to use external speakers with it anyway so it isn't a big deal.

I LOVE being able to say "Get this App" and not have to authenticate each time.

I'm going shopping in the app store now...

 

[SamIam]

How easy is it to sync your email with it from hotmail?

 

[Nickinev]

How easy is it to sync your email with it from hotmail?

It's very easy to sync your email. Just tap on the email app and then select your email provider from the list (hotmail is listed).

 

[Seamonkey]

That is interesting that it fits an Oberon K3 cover!  I had thought it might fit, but Oberon thought it would not.  I hope they get theirs today (unlike me) and can check it out. 

Also hope to  hear how it fits other covers as well.  But I do have a K3 cover that I love from Oberon.

 

[StephanieJ]

Is there a NetFlix app?  I know I read we can watch NetFlix on it, just wanna know!

 

[Nickinev]

Is there a NetFlix app? I know I read we can watch NetFlix on it, just wanna know!

Not yet, but it's supposed to be coming in the future.

ETA: I was able to sideload Netflix, along with a few other apps using this method....

http://blog.laptopmag.com/how-to-sideload-apps-on-the-kindle-fire

 

[Edge]

OK. First impression: "Wow, this thing is heavy for its size." The K2 and K3 have spoiled me in terms of device weight. The Fire is much, much heavier, but also feels much more solid. The Marware case is really nice, and the Fire fits into it firmly and snugly.

Turn device on: Screen is BEAUTIFUL! Setup wifi (found home network quickly) and connect by putting in password. A firmware update downloads immediately. I plug it in "just in case." I then notice it says "You might want to plug in your device..." lol

Update download complete, Fire turns off. I press power to turn it back on. Now it's updating much like the older Kindles do. I wait.

It says update complete and it reboots. I slide the slider and it looks like it's about to ask me for credentials when it pops to a new screen and welcomes me! It is already on my account! There is a very short 4 or 5 page tutorial to show you where things are on the screen. I do it and it seems as soon as I started the tutorial is over. Now I'm in the Fire's UI!

I flip through my books and decide which ones to download. I then go to music and download some music from my cloud. I go to test a movie: Super Troopers. It's really sharp and response very quick. Screen is great with amazing viewing angles.

I go into the Apps to download apps I've been getting for the past few weeks in preparation for my Fire. All of them install in the background.

I go to read my first book: it started at the beginning and not where I left off on my K3. I will have to sync the K3 to see if the Fire will pick up its location.

I still need to side-load a bunch of PDF's and other books I've acquired from places like BAEN.

All in all, I'm super-impressed with it. It feels high-quality; a lot better than Pogue gave it credit for.

The size is nice. I have a 10" Android tablet, and I feel the Fire is a much better size for media. I thought that the 10" size would be perfect since the iPad is 9.7", but it turns out the 7" really is better. At least so far.

Anyway, I have a lot more to discover and experience. I'll update more later.

To get Netflix (which I couldn't find in the Amazon App Store by searching) I typed this into the browser and got it installed: market.android.com/details?id=com.netflix.mediaclient

 

[BarbraAnnino]

I go into the Apps to download apps I've been getting for the past few weeks in preparation for my Fire. All of them install in the background.

How do you do this? I went to the app store and it seems geared to phones.