Kindle Fire 7", LCD Display, Wi-Fi, 8 GB

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Kindle Fire Tablet

7" LCD Display, Wi-Fi, 8GB

4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7,558 customer reviews)

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The perfect family tablet, with the best in kids' entertainment

All new — 40% faster, twice the memory, longer battery life Ultra-fast web browsing over built-in Wi-Fi, easy-to-use email works with Gmail, Yahoo! and more The most popular apps and games — Facebook, Twitter, Netflix, HBO GO,Pandora, Angry Birds Space, and more Kindle FreeTime — set screen limits, create child profiles, and more NEW Kindle FreeTime Unlimited - just for kids. Unlimited access to books, games, apps, movies and TV shows. Learn more Massive book selection, vibrant color magazines. Over a million titles less than $9.99 Over 23 million movies, TV shows, songs, magazines , books, audiobooks, apps, and games

The All-New Kindle Fire

All-new Powerful Processor Move seamlessly across apps and open titles quickly at a touch. With a new 1.2GHz processor and 1GB of RAM, Kindle Fire is 40% faster and more fluid than before. Free Cloud Storage Kindle Fire comes with 8GB on-device storage, so you can download favorite titles to view offline, anytime. You'll also get free, unlimited cloud storage for all your Amazon content, so you can rest easy, knowing that you'll never lose the content you love. Extra-long Battery Life Kindle Fire has been re-tuned to optimize power consumption. The result: a longer battery life, with up to 9 hours of reading, surfing the web on Wi-Fi, watching video, or listening to music. Easy to Hold in One Hand Designed to travel with you wherever you go. Small enough to fit in a purse and light enough to hold in just one hand, Kindle Fire is perfect for browsing, playing, reading, and shopping on-the-go.

Perfect for Parents Kindle FreeTime is a new service, built from the ground up to help give parents peace of mind when it comes to tablet use. Parents can create a profile for each of their children and choose what books, apps, games and videos they want to give their kids access to. Kindle FreeTime is free on the new Kindle Fire. Set Screen Limits Many parents choose to limit their kids' screen time, but doing so without the proper tools is difficult. With Kindle FreeTime, parents can set daily limits for Kindle Fire use, or restrict certain categories - like games and video - while leaving unlimited time for reading. ...And Perfect for Kids When kids use Kindle FreeTime, it's like they have their very own, personalized tablet. The background color and fonts change to a kid-friendly design. They only see the titles that they have access to see. The home screen carousel shows their recently viewed titles. And, they can even navigate visually to content based on characters or topics - for example "Cinderella," "Dinosaurs," or "Puppies." Built Tough Kindle Fire is designed to stand up to accidental bumps and scrapes. Our state-of-the art display is 20 times stiffer and 30 times harder than plastic, so you can let your child play, without worry.

A Subscription for Kids (and Parents) Kindle FreeTime Unlimited is the first-ever all-in-one subscription that brings together books, games, educational apps, movies and TV shows - all the types of content that kids and parents love. With unlimited access to thousands of hand-picked titles for kids ages 3-8, parents don't have to spend time (and money) guessing what their kids will enjoy, and kids can explore a world of age-appropriate content on their own – no ads, no in-app purchases. An Incredible Value Kindle FreeTime Unlimited gives kids the freedom to choose from thousands of the most popular books, games, apps, and shows for hours of fun and learning. Unlimited access starts at just $4.99 per month, with special pricing for Prime members from $2.99 per month. Easy Access from Kindle FreeTime When a parent subscribes to Kindle FreeTime Unlimited, thousands of titles appear in the Kindle FreeTime app, sorted by their kids' age and gender, alongside the titles parents have already selected from their own collection of content. Without help from mom or dad, kids can follow their imagination across books, games, educational apps, movies, and TV shows of their choice. Beloved Movies and TV Shows FreeTime Unlimited includes movies from Barney, Thomas the Tank Engine, Bob The Builder, Fireman Sam, and Angelina Ballerina, as well as TV shows your children want to watch, with episodes from Sesame Street, SpongeBob SquarePants, Dora the Explorer,Blue's Clues, Yo Gabba Gabba, Caillou, and many more. E-books for Fun and Education Flip through beautifully-illustrated picture books, including new and classic favorites like Big Nate,Phineas & Ferb, and Kung Fu Panda, as well as books by Caldecott-honored authors such as Chris Van Allsburg's Jumanji and Barbara Lehman's Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel. Enjoy hundreds of eBook apps with Read-to-Me functionality from characters such as Scooby-Doo, Thomas the Tank Engine, Arthur, and Superman, and from award-winning children's author Sandra Boynton (Moo, Baa, La La La!). The Best Games for Kids Featuring dozens of children's games with no ads and no risk for in-app purchases like Cut the Rope andMagic Piano, as well as Disney’s bestselling Where’s My Perry and Where’s My Water, and popular early development games like Kids Learn to Read, My First Puzzles Dinosaurs, and SuperWhy!. Learn more about Kindle FreeTime Unlimited

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Ultra-Fast Web Kindle Fire offers a new version of Amazon Silk, our cloud-accelerated browser, which provides a better than 30% reduction in page load times over the previous version. Easy to Read There are multiple ways to enjoy your favorite web content. With a single touch, the user interface disappears to allow for full screen reading. Or, you can turn on Reading View to enjoy a clean, easy-to-read version of the site that removes all unnecessary images and other website clutter. Trends and Recommendations Looking for the latest news or the next big site? Trending Now alerts you to pages that have recently seen an unusually high level of traffic, which is generally a good indicator that the page or topic may be particularly noteworthy right now.

All Your Personal Email The new email app on Kindle Fire makes sending mail, viewing attachments, and syncing contacts simple. With full support for the world's most popular email providers - including AOL, Exchange, Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo!, and more - it's our easiest-to-use email ever. Connect to Your Corporate Email Read email and attachments, manage calendars, and sync contacts on the go. Kindle Fire features full support for Exchange-based accounts making it easy to stay connected when you step away from the office. Deep Facebook Integration In addition to the free Facebook application found in the Amazon Appstore, Kindle Fire is fully integrated with Facebook, making it easy to connect, share, and play with friends and family. Sync favorite photos at a touch, share quotes and passages straight from your book, or instantly find friends playing your favorite GameCircle titles. Carry and Read Your Documents Your weekend travel plans, the latest office report - keep your essential information close at hand and backed up on the cloud. Email spreadsheets, PDFs, Word docs and more directly to your device or upload from your PC or Mac using Amazon Cloud Drive.

The Greatest Games Kindle Fire is built for the best in gaming. Enjoy best-selling games such as Angry Birds Space,Where's My Perry?, Fibble, and Skylanders Cloud Patrol. Up Your Game with GameCircle Earn achievements, compare scores with GameCircle and Facebook friends, or take on the world with global leaderboards. GameCircle titles with Whispersync automatically store your progress in the cloud, so you'll never lose an unlocked level or saved game, even if you delete it from your device. Your Favorite Apps Kindle Fire gives you instant access to the most popular free and best-selling apps, including titles likeNetflix, HBO GO, Facebook, Hulu Plus, Pinterest,Pulse, Pandora, The Weather Channel, Zillow, andMagic Piano.

Are you a developer? Kindle Fire Developer Resources can help you get your apps and games on Kindle Fire tablets. Learn more

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Massive Book Selection Shop the Kindle Store for over 1.2 million of the most popular books, or explore millions of free, public domain books such as Pride and Prejudice. Vibrant Magazines Enjoy over 500 magazines in glossy, full-color layouts, photographs and illustrations. Double tap an article for easier reading view and starting next month, tap the cover to go directly to an article and bookmark your favorite articles for future reference. Magazines include favorites such asVogue, National Geographic, Maxim,Cosmopolitan, ESPN and Better Homes and Gardens. Lowest Book Prices Over 600,000 books are less than $4.99, over a million are less than $9.99. Read for Free with Prime Amazon Prime members can borrow over 180,000 titles for free with the Kindle Owners' Lending Library, as frequently as a book a month, with no due dates. Exclusive Kindle Titles Over 180,000 Kindle exclusive titles from best-selling authors including Kurt Vonnegut, Stephen Covey, Andy Borowitz and Karen McQuestion.

All the Content

Kindle Owners' Lending Library Read for free. With Prime, Kindle owners can borrow any title from the Kindle Owners' Lending Library for free, as frequently as a book a month, with no waiting and no due dates. The Kindle Owners' Lending Library features over 270,000 titles, including all 7 Harry Potter books, and over 100 current and former New York Times best sellers. Prime Instant Video Prime members also enjoy unlimited, commercial-free streaming of over 35,000 popular movies and TV episodes such as Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, Thor, Rango, The West Wing, Glee,SpongeBob SquarePants, and Parks and Recreation. Free Month of Amazon Prime If you haven't tried Amazon Prime in the past, we'll give you a 30-day free trial. Experience what millions of members already enjoy: unlimited streaming of hit movies and TV episodes, reading a Kindle book a month for free, and Free Two-Day Shipping on millions of items. We think it's the best bargain in the history of shopping, and we hope you do too.

Over 120,000 Titles and Counting Rent or purchase the biggest new releases and most popular titles from every major movie studio and TV network including Warner, Fox, Sony, Disney, Lionsgate, MGM, Universal, Paramount, and more. Stream instantly over Wi-Fi or download to enjoy later. Unlimited Streaming with Prime In addition, Amazon Prime members enjoy unlimited, commercial-free streaming of over 35,000 popular movies and TV episodes such as Iron Man 2, Thor,Rango, The West Wing, Glee, SpongeBob SquarePants, and Parks and Recreation.

Huge Music Selection With over 20 million songs from thousands of artists, Amazon's MP3 music store is home to one of the largest music libraries on earth. Music you buy on the Kindle is saved to the cloud for free, and you can play or download it anytime. Your Music. Everywhere. Import the rest of your music library to Amazon Cloud Player and play it wirelessly on your Kindle Fire - just tap Music on the Home screen to get started. Browse and search your library, create and manage playlists, play your music from the cloud, or download for offline playback. All your Amazon MP3 purchases and your first 250 imported songs are stored free.

Audiobooks by Audible Audible offers more than 100,000 titles written by best-selling authors and performed by world-class professional narrators. The collection includes Anne Hathaway's performance of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, Samuel L. Jackson's performance of A Rage in Harlem by Chester Himes, and Susan Sarandon's performance of The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers, as well as many others. Whispersync for Voice Now you don't have to put a good book down, even if you're cooking, running or commuting. With Whispersync for Voice, you can seamlessly switch between listening to the Audible audiobook and reading the companion Kindle book right where you left off. Learn more Experience Immersion Reading With Immersion Reading, Kindle Fire can now synchronize Kindle text with companion Audible audiobooks with real-time highlighting to create a more immersive reading experience, as well as deepen learning and comprehension. Almost 15,000 Kindle books and 15,000 companion Audible audiobooks across a wide array of genres are available.

	No Other Company Offers This Kind of Flexibility At Amazon, we make it easy for you to access your content on other devices. The books, videos, apps, audiobooks, games, and music that you buy for your Kindle Fire can also be enjoyed on Amazon apps for Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, game consoles, TVs and more.

Beautiful, New UI Kindle Fire's new UI makes it easier than ever to find and enjoy your favorite titles. Spin through recent content straight from your home screen. Pin favorites and access at a touch. Whether you're in the mood to watch, read, listen, or play, Kindle Fire gets you started quickly and easily. No Set-up Required Kindle Fire arrives pre-registered to your Amazon.com account so you can get started right away, including having immediate access to any previously purchased content you may have. Read-to-Me With Text-to-Speech, Kindle Fire can read English-language content out loud to you, when available from the publisher. Unparalleled Content Discoverability Kindle Fire makes it easy to find content you'll love by using Amazon's powerful recommendation engine to compare your purchases and favorites with over 15 years of consumer purchase history and suggest content to you, right from your homescreen. 1-Click Shopping No switching between apps, no juggling passwords and profiles - Kindle Fire is seamlessly integrated with Amazon's content stores so you can shop new books, movies, games, and apps with a single tap.

Features

X-Ray for Movies Explore favorite characters and actors at a touch. Kindle Fire uses the power of IMDb to bring Amazon's exclusive X-Ray service to movies. Simply tap on any scene to instantly see which actors are currently on screen, jump straight to other movies in which they star, and more. X-Ray for Books Tap on any page as you read to access X-Ray, an easy way to uncover more from the books you love. Instantly find chapters and locations that mention ideas, characters, and important places, as well as background info, biographies, and more from Shelfari and Wikipedia. Experience Immersion Reading With Immersion Reading, the Kindle Fire can now synchronize Kindle text with companion Audible audiobooks with real-time highlighting to create a more immersive reading experience, as well as deepen learning and comprehension. Almost 15,000 Kindle books and 15,000 companion Audible audiobooks across a wide array of genres are available. Whispersync for Voice Now you don't have to put a good book down, even if you're cooking, running or commuting. With Whispersync for Voice, you can seamlessly switch between listening to the Audible audiobook and reading the companion Kindle book right where you left off. Learn more Whispersync for Movies Start streaming a movie on Kindle Fire, pause, then resume watching straight from the same scene on your TV. Whispersync remembers your last scene watched across all your apps and devices, so you can avoid the frustration of having to find your spot. Whispersync for Books Kindle Fire uses Amazon's Whispersync technology to automatically sync your library, last page read, bookmarks, notes, and highlights across all your devices. With Kindle reading apps available for phones, tablets, PCs, and Macs, you can keep the story going wherever you are. Whispersync for Games GameCircle titles with Whispersync automatically store your progress in the cloud, so you'll never lose an unlocked level or saved game, even if you delete the game from your device.

Enjoy and Share Relive your most memorable moments. Our new, beautifully designed photo app makes it easy to swipe through albums, or step in to full-screen viewing. And sharing your photos couldn't be easier. Just tap on individual images to email them to anyone you like. Import and Edit Kindle Fire makes it easy to keep favorite photos close at hand. Download your albums from Facebook, or use the Amazon Cloud Drive desktop application to upload photos from your PC or Mac. Editing on your device is just as simple, with many popular photo editing apps available in the Amazon Appstore, such as PicSay Pro, PicShop, and Adobe Photoshop Touch.

Whispercast for Kindle Introducing Whispercast, Amazon's free online tool that helps your school or business manage a deployment of Kindle devices and wirelessly distribute content. Centrally manage your Kindle devices and send eBooks and documents to your students, employees, or customers with ease. Kindle at School Kindle excites students about reading. The same great features that help you lose yourself in a book on Kindle translate seamlessly to the classroom, helping students learn to read or study more effectively. Learn more about Kindle at school Kindle at Work Take advantage of email, calendar, and apps from the Amazon Appstore for Android to stay connected away from the office. Learn more about Kindle at work

Technical Details

Display 7" multi-touch color display; 1024x600 pixel resolution at 169 ppi, IPS (in-plane switching) technology Size 7.44" x 4.72" x 0.45" (189 mm x 120 mm x 11.5 mm) Weight 14.1 ounces (400 grams) System Requirements None. Kindle Fire is ready to use right out of the box - no setup, no software to install, no computer required to download content Storage 8GB internal storage, approximately 5.5GB available for user content Battery Life Up to 9 hours of reading, surfing the web on Wi-Fi, watching video, or listening to music. Battery life will vary based on device settings, usage, and other factors such as web browsing and downloading content. Actual results may vary Charge Time Fully charges in 3.3 hours via the Kindle PowerFast charging accessory, or slightly longer with other micro-USB power adapters that you may already have. Charges in approximately 11.5 hours from your computer via the included USB charging cable Wi-Fi Connectivity Single-band Wi-Fi. Supports public and private Wi-Fi networks or hotspots that use the 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, or 802.11n standard with support for WEP, WPA and WPA2 security using password authentication; does not support connecting to ad-hoc (or peer-to-peer) Wi-Fi networks Ports USB 2.0 (micro-B connector) port for connection to a PC or Macintosh computer or to connect to the Kindle PowerFast charging accessory Audio 3.5 mm stereo jack and integrated stereo speakers Content Formats Supported Kindle (AZW), KF8, TXT, PDF, unprotected MOBI, PRC natively, Audible Enhanced format (AAX), DOC, DOCX, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP, non-DRM AAC, MP3, MIDI, PCM/WAVE, OGG, WAV, MP4, AAC LC/LTP, HE-AACv1, HE-AACv2, AMR-NB, AMR-WB, HTML5, CSS3, MP4, 3GP, VP8(.webm) Sensors Accelerometer Location Services Location-based services via Wi-Fi Accessibility Features Text-to-speech, adjustable font size and color, built-in dictionary. Coming early 2013: Voice Guide, Explore by Touch. Learn more Warranty and Service 1-year Limited Warranty and service included. Optional 2-year Extended Warranty available for U.S. customers sold separately. Use of Kindle is subject to the terms found here Included in the Box Kindle Fire tablet, USB 2.0 cable, and Quick Start Guide. Power adapter sold separately

Customer Reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars

(7,558)

4.2 out of 5 stars

5 star

4,490

4 star

1,481

3 star

672

2 star

400

1 star

515

See all 7,558 customer reviews

“Christmas gift for my 12 year old daughter, she loves it! ”Cathi A. Larios  |  757 reviewers made a similar statement

“I have enjoyed using the Kindle Fire, reading books, watched a movie, check email, facebook, play games. ”Sue  |  785 reviewers made a similar statement

“I decided on this one, because I really thought I'd like the immersion reading. ”Me  |  372 reviewers made a similar statement

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7,350 of 7,490 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Compare FIRE HD to the KINDLE FIRE GEN 2 September 14, 2012

By clickz4

Configuration:With Special Offers|Amazon Verified Purchase

Length: 2:29 Mins

UPDATE: I bought both a Fire HD and a Gen 2. (as a present to my mother in law) My initial reviews were written after playing with them for like 20 minutes. I merged both reviews into one to really compare the two products. I'm still answering questions in the comments if you have any. And see the video that compares the two and gives a mini tour of the Kindle system.

My Background: I've had 4 android phones, I've had multiple e-readers and my latest 'touch' device is the Le Pan II Android tablet. I've worked on several iPads but never been compelled to spend the extra money for one myself. Wife has a first generation Fire.
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The new Kindle Fire and Fire HD are the second generation color kindle e-reader/media player/tablet devices. The original Fire received a lot of well earned 4 star reviews. It was a great product but at the end of the day, it was a first generation product. It was no iPad slayer. The Fire HD raises the bar and raises it quite a lot. Jeff Bezos said they set out to make the best tablet available period and -in some regards- they did that in spades. In other ways not so much. (more on this below in the closing thoughts)

HARDWARE:

BUILD QUALITY:
- BOTH are top Notch. I didn't expect anything less from Amazon but they really are solid feeling.
- FIRE HD lighter and while it is about the same thickness, the edges are rounded more like an iPad. sleeker look and more comfortable to hold.
- FIRE GEN 2 is heavier and 'boxier' built to more fit existing covers I guess. It's heavier too.

SIZING:
The HD is just a bit taller but a decent bit wider than the Fire. --- NOTE pay attention to accessories because THEY ARE NOT THE SAME SIZE. The cover from my wife's Gen 1 Kindle will fit the Gen 2 kindle (sorta) but NOT THE HD.

THE SCREEN:
- FIRE HD SUMMED UP IN TWO WORDS Oh. My. The Le Pan, the iPads and the Gen 2 Fire all have great screens. The Fire HD takes them all out. I read somewhere there was polarizing a filter over the Fire HD screen. Polarizers reduce glare by only letting 'straight' light though not off angle bounced light. This makes an enormous difference to this display. The off angle viewing is probably the best I have seen in any flat screen. 6 stars.
- FIRE GEN 2 Still a high quality screen. I'd same the same or better than any other high end tablet on the market.
- NOTE A few people in the comments asked about the touch response. - I do not have a problem except in the browser, it is sorta too sensitive. If you move your finger smoothly you can avoid the jitters.

THE WIFI.
- FIRE HD I admit only the geeky probably care but the wifi rocks. I have a mimo router and one quick copy from my server and I was getting almost 30MB/s. To put that into perspective, that's about as fast and an external USB Hard drive can push data to your computer. (USB 3.0 will be faster but they are rare today) -- The other thing is that I have a long skinny house and when I'm in the back bath, the Le Pan drops off. (ahem not that I surf on the potty or anything, just when I test it, you know.) With the Fire HD I can surf in the back yard.
- FIRE GEN 2 still got 20MB/sec. But consider this... at that speed you can fill the entire memory in 5 minutes. Seems good enough to me.

THE SOUND:
- FIRE HD ok I'm a bit of an audio snob. The sound is fantastic for being a tablet. Which is to say it's still only marginally acceptable. You can still buy a $15 pair of Koss KSC75 headphones and blow the speakers away BUT I will say this is the first device I would actually listen to music on. The rest I simply don't even bother. I suspect most people would call the sound excellent.
- FIRE GEN 2 still have a very good sound. For the spoken word it would be very fine. For music it is lacking in my book.

SPEED: Both are quick with the HD being quicker. The Le Pan II is no slouch but I think the HD edges it out. Since the Le Pan apparent died this morning it's hard to compare. :-(

NOTE: IT DOES NOT COME WITH A WALL WORT CHARGER It comes with a micro USB cable that can be used with your existing USB wall worts. (ie your cell phone charger) You can buy a rapid charger for it or even plug it into your computer to charge. This is an odd choice from Amazon IMO.

NOTE 2: Unlike the Gen 1 Fire, (and contrary to what you might have read) the new Kindles DO NOT support flash. Rumor has it you can hack it to install Flash I have not tried yet. I'll try to run this down by this weekend.

NEW FEATURES (as promised)

EXCHANGE CALENDAR SYNC:
BOTH - Exchange on the Fire (both) just rocks. I really like the calendar app. The contact manager can't keep up with the one on the iPad but it is sufficient. Ditto the email. But the setup was easy and it seemed fast. Love it.

SKYPE:
- FIRE HD Spent way too long video skyping today. It worked as well as skype ever works. (long time skype users will understand that) yes it was glitchy but less than other platforms so no complaints. The sound really made a difference here.
- Fire GEN 2 I don't think Skype came with it. I'll update with a definitive later.

HDMI
- FIRE HD ONLY I promised someone in the comments to test this soon but I misplaced my HDMI cable. (drat) I guess I'll order a new one and update when it arrives.

BLUETOOTH
- FIRE HD ONLY worked very smoothly pairing with LG tone. (great product btw) I'll be using that for Skype in the future.

FREETIME: BOTH This is a widely requested feature that allows multiple users (i.e. kids) to log in and have their own customized tablet experience. It also allows parents to limit the time kids spend on certain tasks, like watching movies, while giving them unlimited time to read. Parents have been asking for this forever. (Are you listening Apple?) I wasted 20 minutes looking for it before I looked it up and Amazon is not shipping it until next month. The existing parental controls are pretty decent actually.

CLOSING THOUGHTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS:

If you're new to Kindle make sure you understand what you are buying here. Kindles are made -and sold at a highly discounted price- to allow you to purchase media from Amazon. Don't think of this as an android tablet, because it really isn't. Yes Amazon uses the Android operating system but you'd never know they hide it so well. This device is made (basically) exclusively to read/watch/listen to media you buy from Amazon. In that regard this device is about as great as they could make it. HOWEVER. The Kindle Fire (first generation) was notorious for not playing well with many Android apps. If you're a app monster or looking for something to replace your laptop to allow you do work on the road and occasionally consume media, you need to look at an Android tablet or an iPad. But don't let that discourage you:

Via Amazon Prime, you get 25,000 streaming movies and T.V. shows you can watch 24/7 unlimited. We dropped Netflix because Prime Instant Video was so good. Amazon gives you a free month with the either Fire so you'll get to see the value before you buy. (it's a no brainer btw) There are also over a million free books available for the Kindle. I try to limit how many I buy/download but I have over 100 books on my previous Kindle that are waiting to be read, all but like 4 of them were free. Also if you own a Kindle and subscribe to Prime, you can borrow one book per month from the Paid section. And big name books too... all 7 Harry Potter books are up there. If you figure that is worth at least 10 bucks a month, you're getting $120 of content per year and Prime only costs (I think) $79. Or looked at another way, that's $240 in content in two years and the Fire HD is only $199.

If you're new to e-readers, owning one might just change your life. I had probably read 8 book length books in the last decade. (I'm a periodical junkie.) I now read at least one book per week. I was a big reader before but I'm reading more than I ever have in my life. Many studies show that people are reading as much as 3X more when they get an e-reader. If you're a parent looking to inspire a love of reading in a child, STOP. DO NOT PASS GO, DO NOT COLLECT $200. Buy them an e-reader.

SO THE BIG QUESTION, WHICH ONE DO I BUY?
- If you're on a VERY tight budget the Fire Gen 2 is a great product at a great price point. Coupled with Prime, you have access to mountains of cheap content.
HOWEVER. When you look at what you get for the small difference in cost, the Fire HD blows it away... You get a better screen, better sound, bluetooth, it's faster, thinner and lighter than the Fire. You also get double the memory, better wifi and over 2 hours more battery life. All for $40. I guess Amazon wants to make color Kindles as affordable as possible but I don't even know why they made the small one. I'm not sorry I bought it but all things considered, I would buy two big ones if I had it to do over.

I'll be taking questions in the comments for the next week or maybe more, so feel free to ask.

Hope this was helpful.

1,404 of 1,450 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful product and incredible support from Amazon! October 1, 2012

By Lisa

Configuration:With Special Offers

I purchased the Kindle Fire ten months ago for my daughter. Three weeks after she got it, it was stolen. Amazon worked with our police department to find the person who had taken it. Amazon first put a hold on the person's account and shut down the Kindle Fire so it wouldn't work. Then, once Amazon had a subpoena, Amazon gave the police all the information the thief had registered to my daughter's Kindle Fire and the police were able to recover it and get it back to us. Since that time, we have purchased an additional Kindle Fire and, just recently, a Kindle Fire HD. We use them like iPads at a fraction of the cost and the number of free books and apps available is unmatched by their competitors. Our oldest Kindle Fire (ten months old) just stopped charging and I contacted Amazon via Live Chat. Immediately, they said they would send me a replacement Kindle Fire and would also email me a printing label for free shipping to return the defective one. Their customer service is incredible! The Kindle Fire itself is amazing. The internet is fast; connects perfectly to all wi-fi; the graphics are clear and sharp; the books and apps offered are endless. My teenager listens to Pandora on it constantly. I'm always reading. My husband checks the sports scores. My young sons are always playing the game apps. We have them protected in KlearKase protectors and have found them to be well-made, quality devices. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend a Kindle Fire to anyone of my friends and family.

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1,216 of 1,262 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Best value September 21, 2012

By Me

Configuration:With Special Offers|Amazon Verified Purchase

I just received my kindle fire today. I had a hard time deciding between the HD, this, and the paperwhite. I decided on this one, because I really thought I'd like the immersion reading. I have an audible account and I've been reading along to the audiobooks. It's amazing how fast I can get through the books (at 3x speed) and I really retain the info. The immersion reading is super-easy to use and definitely worth upgrading to this. The whole point of the kindle is to read more, and this new feature makes it possible to read 2 or 3 times as many books in the same amount of time. I'm an average-speed reader and was able to read 4 books (with the help of the audiobook reading pace) in the last 30 days and one was the 800+ page Stephen king, "11/22/63".

I also tested out the text to speech. It's a lady's voice and much, much, easier to understand than the text to speech on my kindle keyboard. It also has many speed options and I think it reads faster than my kindle keyboard version. I am very, very pleased with it.

It is much more responsive than the previous kindle fire I'm upgrading from.

If you are worried about the free offers, don't be. I DETEST commercials and advertising so much, I quit reading magazines and watching television. The offers only show on the startup, no big deal. I already took advantage of a $5.00 credit for amazon video. I was able to rent two movies and it only cost me 89 cents, when it was said and done, and I was planning on renting Hunger Games tonight, anyway. So, so far, I don't mind the offers at all.

My favorite feature is the immersion reading and the text-to-speech improvements. I also downloaded all the free kindle books with the free audiobooks for the immersion experience. These are books I always wanted to read,but never had the discipline to just read them. Reading and listening to those books are worth the price of this new gadget, IMO.

Way to go, Amazon, for a great product and a great price!

P.S.
I have an iPad, and the last time I went on vacation, I left it at home and brought only my fire and kindle keyboard. I didn't miss my iPad at all and this new gen fire is even better. Seriously, it's that good.

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