The Kindle Fire 7 is a new tablet from Amazon at a very low price. I only paid $49 for mine.
What kind of tablet do you get for such a paltry sum, you may be asking? Well, it's not going to set any speed records and it isn't the sharpest screen that I have ever seen. But it only lists for $49!
Let's look at the advantages and disadvantages of the new Kindle Fire 7 tablet.
First, the advantages:
1. Very Low Cost. $49 is a hard price to beat. And when you buy a six-pack, you get one free!
2. Good Performance for the Price: It is solid, works well and I didn't find any major bugs.
3. Great Content Consumption Device: That is where the Fire 7 shines. Reading books, watching movies, listening to music (use headphones), light gaming, checking e-mail, shopping and web browsing are its strengths.
4. Perfect for Amazon Prime User: If you paid for an Amazon Prime subscription, this tablet will let you binge on the full-range of Amazon content.
5. Decent Battery Life: About 7 hours. Not great, but not too shabby.
6. Very Durable and Well-Built: I have seen impressive drop tests on You Tube. It seems like it will take abuse better than most tablets.
7. Well Designed UI: Very simple to use and better than the old Fire carousel.
8. SD Card Slot: Since it only has 8GB of storage, you will need it if you want to watch movies. A nice touch at this price point.
9. Pocketable: Bigger than a smartphone. Smaller than most tablets.
Now, the disadvantages:
1. Limited Onboard Storage: Only 8GB, but only 5 GB is usable. This is meant to be a web device so it is an acceptable limitation. I still would have preferred 16GB.
2. Medium Screen Resolution: No retina display here (1024 x 600 @ 171 dpi). More like a typical notebook computer display. I had no problem reading on it, however.
2. Good Performance for the Price: It is solid, works well and I didn't find any major bugs.
3. Great Content Consumption Device: That is where the Fire 7 shines. Reading books, watching movies, listening to music (use headphones), light gaming, checking e-mail, shopping and web browsing are its strengths.
4. Perfect for Amazon Prime User: If you paid for an Amazon Prime subscription, this tablet will let you binge on the full-range of Amazon content.
5. Decent Battery Life: About 7 hours. Not great, but not too shabby.
6. Very Durable and Well-Built: I have seen impressive drop tests on You Tube. It seems like it will take abuse better than most tablets.
7. Well Designed UI: Very simple to use and better than the old Fire carousel.
8. SD Card Slot: Since it only has 8GB of storage, you will need it if you want to watch movies. A nice touch at this price point.
9. Pocketable: Bigger than a smartphone. Smaller than most tablets.
Now, the disadvantages:
1. Limited Onboard Storage: Only 8GB, but only 5 GB is usable. This is meant to be a web device so it is an acceptable limitation. I still would have preferred 16GB.
2. Medium Screen Resolution: No retina display here (1024 x 600 @ 171 dpi). More like a typical notebook computer display. I had no problem reading on it, however.
3. No Google Apps: If you are an avid Googler, you may feel deprived. The good news is that you can still get your G-Mail and use Google search in the browser. But the only way to access You Tube is through the browser.
4. Limited Apps on the Amazon App Store: No access to Google Play. Thankfully, most of the "big hitters" are available on their app store and the included apps are functional and well-designed.
5. Mono Speaker: And the sound isn't that great. Pack some earbuds.
6. Limited Productivity Potential: You can cobble together enough apps to get some things done. I installed Evernote and Wunderlist, for example. DropBox isn't on the Amazon app store but I was able to download it from their web site and side-load it. (Yes, you can side-load most Android apps.)
7. Thicker and Heavier than Most Tablets: Not super slim like the latest iPad. Not annoyingly thick and heavy, though. More like a tablet from 5 years ago.
8. Proprietary OS: Fire OS5 "Bellini". Basically Android Lollipop with the Google removed.
9. Poor Quality Cameras: Low-resolution front and rear. Better than nothing and they will do in a pinch if you have a lot of light.
10. Screen is a Fingerprint Magnet: Be prepared to clean it often.
11. Slippery Back: Plan on getting a case.
12. Limited Screen Real Estate: After all, it is only 7".
13. No Voice Commands: I use Siri and "OK Google" a lot and I really miss them when using the Kindle 7.
What else can I say? It is a $50 tablet and a real bargain for the price. It is cheap enough to be easy to replace if you lose it or break it. You really can't go wrong!
