Gadgets intrigue me so. Especially what Apple does. This is no secret. I’ve switched to the dark side, or the aluminized unibody case side, of the computer landscape ages ago. I’m always curious to see what Apple does that pushes the market like they have in phones and tablets in the last few years.
But things may be changing.
Since the deluge of tablets trying so hard to be iPad killers at CES just made me yawn, and the attempt to load GetGlue on a Xoom on our own AwesomeCast (provided by Chilla) made me shake my head. While our firend Wheelz may be enjoying his Tab 10.1, I can’t see handing one of those to my in laws or parents for the same price.
Why is the Kindle Fire different?
No config. As long as I can get them on the internet. It should just work. Right?
Less complicated. That book shelf front end makes sense to newbies. Apps are fine on an iPad, but many have issues getting started on an Android device. I was trying to help a poor woman figure out texting on a Droid. I needed way more than the minute I had, and still didn’t get it. It seems like Amazon is covering that ugly side of the platform.
They don’t need to create. I expect that they just want a consumption outlet. Something to sit at the table and play on the internet. They don’t need to create videos or Garagband. They want to surf the internet, maybe watch movies or read books. This could be their device.
Angry Birds. And other apps. I don’t have to worry about tech support calls when they download the wrong Netflix app and lose all of their information. I recommend the Android Market like I recommend downloading a random “system cleaner” for your Windows machine. The Amazon App Store brings the same, if not more so, corrugated store where things should just work. Which should mean…
Less tech support. I always love introducing my family to new technology. I just hate increasing the volume of remote help I have to happily give from a state away because of my own introductions.
Price. $200? It’s $300 cheaper and does just about all of the same things? It’s not going to be overly burdensome with the size. It’s just enough to warrant using. A welcome introductory device.
It could make my next iPad better. Only the Kindle Fire seems like any competition or consideration against it. I welcomed the Android and Windows phones getting better to push my chosen platform with iOS. I can only imagine what this may do to Android tablets in general. Maybe more will step away from Google’s take on how the system should behave, which they are fully in their rights to do, of course. Thank you Open Source!
This is one of those exciting projects I can’t wait to see come along and change things, potentially.
What do you think? Does the Kindle Fire open up your options to get into the Tablet game?
I played with a demo model at Best Buy the other night and it just got on my nerves. I couldn’t figure out how to exit any apps or get out of the magazine I tried flipping through. Most things I saw on it were just video demos so I really didn’t get to see how it worked. I’d like to see how one that isn’t in demo mode works out of curiosity. I love Android and have been wanting a XOOM, but my husband keeps trying to push me toward a Kindle Fire or the Nook Tablet (which isn’t bad really & I didn’t like the other Nooks).
I had hoped to have a chance to hit a Best Buy demo or something before posting. But I’ve seen a few video demos and impressions to hopefully get the idea. It’s hard to get a true impression unless you sit with it for a while, but all impressions point to it being a bit better.