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We've clearly got a little bias on the subject, but Android has a long and storied history filled with its own triumphs and pitfalls. It's been well over a decade now since that first HTC G1 landed, the inaugural Android smartphone, and things have changed drastically since then. Being "first" might make you think the G1 was the most influential Android phone — but was it, really?
Amazon made a bevy of announcements today related to FreeTime, their platform that brings kid-friendly content — such as books, games, and movies — to handheld devices. The most interesting news, however, comes in the form of the Kindle Kids Edition: an e-reader aimed at a younger audience.Boasting a six-inch, 167 ppi e-ink screen, a battery that lasts for weeks, and an adjustable brightness level, the new product is essentially a 10th generation Kindle with a kid-proof case. However, it also adds ‘Achievement Badges’ for children to earn, a 'Word Wise' system that automatically displays definitions above tricky words, kid-friendly wallpapers, and a few other new features. The Kindle Kids Edition starts shipping on October 30th, but you can pre-order one starting today. Also included in the purchase price of $109.99 is a one-year subscription to FreeTime Unlimited and a 2-year warranty.The Fire HD 10 Kids Edition was also announced, but it's really just the Fire HD 10 tablet with a 2-year warranty and one year of FreeTime. These are also available for pre-order with a price of $199.99, with a shipping date of October 30th.
I had a chance to spend some time with Amazon's new Kindle Fires today at the company's event in Los Angeles, so I'm going to share a few thoughts about Amazon's newest Android-based slates. Disclaimer: Yes, I only spent about an hour with this tablet today, but I'm going to give you a sense of where I think the Kindle Fire HD is headed, who it's targeted to, and whether or not you should be interested in buying it.
We just received an invite from Amazon to a press conference in Los Angeles 2 weeks from now, and it's sounding like it could finally be time for the company to unveil some new iterations of its Kindle line. No details were provided as to the content of the event, but really, what else would it be?
Just two short weeks after the Kindle Fire received its first dose of Android development goodness (read: root), the first full custom ROM has made its way to the device. The ROM is question is, of course, CyanogenMod 7, the most widely distributed custom ROM among Android devices.
When the Amazon Kindle Fire was announced, we were all pretty excited about its tablet-meets-e-reader form factor, low price, and powerful hardware. Barnes & Noble has fired back this morning with an equally impressive device (and in some aspects even more so), albeit with a slightly higher price tag. As always, both devices offer features that make them unique from each other -- but, at the end of the day, which one is the better choice?
What do you do if you're a known patent troll and a major company announces a new device that is sure to sell millions of units? Try to sue the heck out of them, of course. That's exactly what's going on with Amazon's upcoming Kindle Fire, the still-unreleased tablet from the online retail giant.
There's no doubt that the Kindle Fire is hot commodity right now, and the device hasn't even hit shelves yet. In fact, it's still roughly six weeks away from launch. Still, pre-order sales have been absolutely staggering for Amazon, with over 250 thousand in just a few days. They're averaging around 2,000 per hour, and, if they continue coming in at that rate, this puts the Fire on track to easily top the iPad's record for first-month sales.
Amazon's new tablet, the Kindle Fire, has been grabbing all of the headlines following Amazon's press event yesterday, and rightfully so. Priced at an aggressive $199, it has virtually alienated all other Android tablet manufacturers in one fell swoop, offering potential buyers a great piece of hardware and all of the content Amazon has to offer to back it up.
It has been a long time coming, and even though we already knew basically everything about the device, Amazon just officially unveiled its very own Android tablet: the Kindle Fire.