No micro sd slot = limited device

[Bob Maxey]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think Amazon streams your music to you at the same quality you upload them.

The Kindle Fire isn't targetted at nerds who want a full featured tablet. It's targetted at people who want to have a media consumption device. I think the Fire is going to be awesome at that. It does like 70-80% of what any other tablet out there will do at half the price.

Because outside the modding world, no one cares at all. None of the average consumers care about how much ram, how many cores, how fast a processor, etc..... Doesn't even matter. They want something that runs, is snappy, easy to use and does what they need it to do which is basically just consume media.

As a media consumption device, the Kindle is as good as most, probably. And Amazon makes it easy, apparently. I have suspected that most users really do not care about the things we debate and discuss on AF. That said, people want social media, they want email and SMS, they want everything their laptop/DT gives them, and they want it in a tablet. This is why smart phones are so popular.

I know a few people with huge collections of music. No way they will rely on storing their files in the cloud. No way will the Fire be of use because it can't begin to hold enough uncompressed music. Not sure what Amazon will do about some of the formats out there that provide extremely high fidelity. For many, good enough is just that.

 

[Bob Maxey]

I think before we start writing the device's obituary, perhaps we should see what the consumers have to say and how many are happy with their choice.

Nobody here really knows the mind of the consumer or what will catch fire and sell well. We can make educated guesses, but until the new device arrives, we just do not know.

 

[A.Nonymous]

I think before we start writing the device's obituary, perhaps we should see what the consumers have to say and how many are happy with their choice.

Nobody here really knows the mind of the consumer or what will catch fire and sell well. We can make educated guesses, but until the new device arrives, we just do not know.

I predict that the vast majority of people don't care about the fidelity of their music, what formats are supported, what kind of screen, etc, etc.....

I will will further predict that this device will sell like hotcakes over the holiday season and people who buy it will generally be thrilled by it. There are always those who buy something, hate it and return it, but I think in this case, they will be a minority. That's my prediction.

 

[EarlyMon]

The device cost them $150 each to make so they are not taking any loss at all.

You may be right, fwiw, this is the only article I've seen on its costs lately -

Amazon Takes Hit on Kindle Fire with Estimated Production Cost of $209.63

 

[DoAndroidDream?]

You may be right, fwiw, this is the only article I've seen on its costs lately -

Amazon Takes Hit on Kindle Fire with Estimated Production Cost of $209.63

I was just about to post that. I went looking for the article I saw before but couldn't find it but saw that as the cost.

Video game console makers lose much more than that. I guess amazon figures $10 is just a few Apps and then the rest is profit after that.

 

[Dex]

I think before we start writing the device's obituary, perhaps we should see what the consumers have to say and how many are happy with their choice.

Nobody here really knows the mind of the consumer or what will catch fire and sell well. We can make educated guesses, but until the new device arrives, we just do not know.

Agreed.

I love Amazon. I am a Prime Member and I use their services. I use my Prime membership to watch some of their VoD stuff. I use their Cloud service to store and stream media. My wife has a Kindle where we have purchased many books and even a couple magazine subscriptions. I love the idea of the Fire!

I would really like to have a tablet, but I just can't convince myself to spend more than 400 dollars on something with limited usage. I was incredible interested when HP had their firesale, but I could easily spend 100 dollars and not care if it was supported. For 200 bucks I could easily be convinced to buy into this from Amazon. I am already invested, for the most part.

It isn't going to be super powerful, it isn't going to have the best screen offered and it isn't going to have a whole bunch of storage, but for it's pricepoint, it is hard to compete. This thing is going to probably crush the Nook and help push tablets even further into a market that hasn't picked them up yet. It may not challenge the iPod, but you better believe that it will take away some of it's sales. Future versions of this tablet will be even better. I can't wait!

 

[rushmore]

I have been considering the A100 and 80 G9, but decided to give the Flyer a chance since the price drop. The Flyer is far better than I thought it would be and is faster than my 4430 Droid 3 and Tegra 2 Thrive. Also plays more video codecs better and charges via the USB port. I bought from BB just to test a smaller tablet, but will probably keep it.

Compared to the Fire:

16gb flash
1gb ram
Micro sd slot
Faster than my Droid 3 that has the same chipset and lower resolution
Google and Amazon market
Already has dev community
USB charging

$100 more is the negative.

 

[brizey]

This thread had really made me think. I think that the fire will be a hit because of is price point, but I have reconsidered my own purchase. I decided that I am willing to spend the extra $ for more capability. I may just grab a used nook color and let the dust settle and buy something early next year after ces.

 

[rushmore]

This thread had really made me think. I think that the fire will be a hit because of is price point, but I have reconsidered my own purchase. I decided that I am willing to spend the extra $ for more capability. I may just grab a used nook color and let the dust settle and buy something early next year after ces.

For $50 more, the Flyer is a far better device and I have used & tested both the Nook and Flyer. More ram, GPS, more internal storage, faster chipset than current dual cores, nice display with Gorilla glass, better wifi range, dual cameras and just as solid of a build.

The Flyer is an absolute keeper.

 

[A.Nonymous]

I have been considering the A100 and 80 G9, but decided to give the Flyer a chance since the price drop. The Flyer is far better than I thought it would be and is faster than my 4430 Droid 3 and Tegra 2 Thrive. Also plays more video codecs better and charges via the USB port. I bought from BB just to test a smaller tablet, but will probably keep it.

Compared to the Fire:

16gb flash
1gb ram
Micro sd slot
Faster than my Droid 3 that has the same chipset and lower resolution
Google and Amazon market
Already has dev community
USB charging

$100 more is the negative.

I hate to tell you that Best Buy chopped the price on the Flyer down to $99. It's already sold out online, but you may have luck in your stores (I didn't). This is for the 16 GB Wifi only version.

 

[rushmore]

I hate to tell you that Best Buy chopped the price on the Flyer down to $99. It's already sold out online, but you may have luck in your stores (I didn't). This is for the 16 GB Wifi only version.

Thanks. I went to get the price adjusted an buy another one, but the price was an error. The previous $200 drop was applied again, but in error this time. The Flyer has become a big seller for them at $300, but this screw up makes them look plain silly.

There were forty people in line at BB this morning in Lexington

Everyone "seemed" to take the news okay, which surprised me. I think deep down, everyone including me knew it was too good to be true.

 

[Bob Maxey]

Who is touting the device as an iPad killer? If they are, they're fools. Amazon certainly isn't. This device is targeted at the Nook Color, not the iPad.

Here is the odd thing. When you start telling everyone that the Fire is not an iPad killer, it often makes people looking at the Fire unfairly. They start thinking Yup, not comparable to the iPad, that sucks, the Fire sucks.

In an odd sort of way, saying the Fire is not an iPad killer puts it into people's minds that perhaps the device is crap. Then forums blow up and start making comparisons that are not fair because Amazon could have done things differently and created a device to try to topple the iPad.

Personally, a 7-inch device is not for me. I am a confirmed iPad user. The iPad three will likely be amazing and even though Jobs has passed on, do not ever forget that Apple has a way of coming up with astounding products.

We do not know what will happen with Apple now that Steve is gone, but I am betting there are hundreds of Steve Jobs creating the next generation of portable devices the world will love.

 

[A.Nonymous]

Thanks. I went to get the price adjusted an buy another one, but the price was an error. The previous $200 drop was applied again, but in error this time. The Flyer has become a big seller for them at $300, but this screw up makes them look plain silly.

There were forty people in line at BB this morning in Lexington

Everyone "seemed" to take the news okay, which surprised me. I think deep down, everyone including me knew it was too good to be true.

Yeah, apparently it was a pricing order and they're not honoring the price which they're well within their rights to do. They weren't trying to lure people into stores or sucker them into buying other stuff, they just typo'd on the price. I still want a Flyer since I'm an HTC fanboy. I will wait for the price to drop further though.

 

[rushmore]

Makes me wonder to return mine & wait and pick it up later, since could save another $50 to $100. My guess is the would purge them out at $250, since they are already doing well at $300. For $100, it would be worth going through the total process (return, re-set up), but $50 is right on the edge

If you are an HTC fanboy, you will love the Flyer.... Except for the microsd being stuck behind a cover that is awkward to remove. I am putting a 32gb in it and leaving it there. Ordered a case (the kind that has two stand positions) and a 32gb card for $56 from Amazon (ironically).

 

[A.Nonymous]

Makes me wonder to return mine & wait and pick it up later, since could save another $50 to $100. My guess is the would purge them out at $250, since they are already doing well at $300. For $100, it would be worth going through the total process (return, re-set up), but $50 is right on the edge

If you are an HTC fanboy, you will love the Flyer.... Except for the microsd being stuck behind a cover that is awkward to remove. I am putting a 32gb in it and leaving it there. Ordered a case (the kind that has two stand positions) and a 32gb card for $56 from Amazon (ironically).

I'm a Sense fanboy and an HTC fanboy. I love my Dinc dearly and can't imagine buying a phone that's not an HTC phone. I've currently got a 7" CDMA Galaxy Tab that I've been giving thought to selling to buy the Flyer. I think I'm still going to wait and sit on it the Tab though.

 

[HoPPy785]

This thread had really made me think. I think that the fire will be a hit because of is price point, but I have reconsidered my own purchase. I decided that I am willing to spend the extra $ for more capability. I may just grab a used nook color and let the dust settle and buy something early next year after ces.

If you have the ability to store most everything in the cloud then what do you need the extra space for? I can understand wanting a few movies and songs for offline purposes while on a plane or etc., but you won't need everything stored locally will you. Some have embraced the cloud while others don't, I guess it's a personal choice. To each his own.

 

[Saltine713]

I think Amazon got rid of the SD slot so you HAVE to use their cloud services.

 

[Bob Maxey]

If you have the ability to store most everything in the cloud then what do you need the extra space for? I can understand wanting a few movies and songs for offline purposes while on a plane or etc., but you won't need everything stored locally will you. Some have embraced the cloud while others don't, I guess it's a personal choice. To each his own.

No Internet connection means no data access. With SD Cards and Flash drives for things like Doc files and PPTs, I have learned to flip the Cloud the e-bird. At least as far as my iPad is concerned.

IMHO, not having extra storage is a huge deal killing minus.

 

[echoes106]

I did worry that the 6.5 GB of available on-deck space is limited, but honestly, it's just a mentality thing. I don't need to put an entire season of a TV show on the Fire at one time. Also, between my 5GB of Amazon Cloud storage (20GB+unlimited music if you upgrade) and 2GB+ of Dropbox storage that brings me a heck of a lot closer to 16GB than I was before. I'm not so stressed about it.

 

[bobbrown89]

I think Amazon got rid of the SD slot so you HAVE to use their cloud services.

I disagree. I actually think they didn't have enough space to fit the SD card slot in there. Look at the Playbook, it is the same thing. The future Amazon tablets will probably have the sd card slot.

 

[Cares]

I think any device coming out now without expandable memory is a huge shortsight or poor business decision.

 

[travelerdawg]

I can see the majority of Kindle users out there looking at the Fire as a way to get a little bit of the tablet hype without the cost. The further Android is integrated into the public the better the experience is going to be. Sure, the smaller storage will hamper power user a bit but for the average Joe the cloud and Amazon's native environment will be media and feature rich. Where is everyone traveling that airports don't have WiFi? Who is flying more than a couple of hours every day that they can't load new music or videos in-between flights while they charge their battery?

 

[bobbrown89]

I think any device coming out now without expandable memory is a huge shortsight or poor business decision.

Think about how many actual consumers (not those of us that frequent tech news sites and/or forums) that actually use expandable memory in their phones or tablets?

I bet that answer is not many. Heck, most common folk don't even know the difference between a SD card and a microSD card or what it does.

We have to remember that Amazon's main target is the average person who would buy things to use them and not the person who wants to hack, customize, move files from one device to another.

To this way of thinking, Amazon has really done just enough to make it a worthwhile product for this holiday season, and I'm pretty sure that was their goal all along with this first Fire

 

[slbailey1]

No SD card slot or the limited storage space does not worry me. It's the lack of the Android Market that worry me. If I didn't have the Galaxy Tab 7" and apps from the Android Market that I depend on, I would have pre-order the Kindle Fire. I may still get the Kindle Fire after I get my Galaxy Nexus and see how well the apps I I only run on the Tab works on the Nexus. I also do a lot of impluse buying around Christmas and if I play with a Kindle Fire at Best Buy and like it, I will more than likely buy it - $200 is within impluse buying price range.

 

[Aslar]

I think the majority of users will find 8GB to be just fine. There are plenty of people out there who never come close to filling up their portable devices that are around this size. Sure this locks the Fire down, but that has got to be a key point for Amazon. They are trying to sell more content not the latest hardware. In the end people looking for a more open tablet will have to go somewhere else.