When we reviewed the Kindle Fire HDX 8.9 “, we said that it blended the best of large and small tablets better than any other slate out there. So why not see how it sizes up next to the most popular large and small tablets around? Read on, as Gizmag goes hands-on to compare the Kindle Fire HDX 8.9 “to Apple’s iPad Air and iPad mini with Retina Display.
«Back to Up close: Kindle Fire HDX 8.9 vs. iPad Air & Retina iPad mini
Catholic Online is excited to offer at no cost to our readers a copy of the brilliant Kindle e-book ‘Fleeting Glimpses of the Silly, Sentimental and Sublime’, written by one of our own blog writers Michael Seagriff OP This FREE e-book can be downloaded by clicking here Tuesday January 28 through Thursday January 30. Coming Soon – Watch for more books from Michael Seagriff OP in Catholic Online Boutique.
It is my hope that the twenty personal stories and reflections contained in this book might bring you laughter at a time you feel forlorn, comfort when you are overburdened with the challenges of daily living, tears of joy when certain words you read or images they generate resurrect thoughts of those you loved and lost, greater appreciation for the gift of life, zeal for the salvation of your soul, and an increased desire to give to God and those He created what He and they deserve.
What others have said about the book:
“entertaining and often thought-provoking.”
“. [these] short stories are brimming with love. “
” inspiring. “
” easy to read and easy to understand, but profound in its message. “
” quick read that sings the praises of our Catholic faith in an easy-to-read style .. “
” It warmed my heart! “
” quick read and pretty enjoyable. “
“includes humor, common sense, and a sense of the eternal.”
“author is entertaining and insightful in his writing.”
Don’t miss out on your free copy. Please tell your readers, friends, family and fellow bloggers to get their free copy as well!
Get your free copy from Tuesday January 28 through Thursday January 30
CLICK HERE FOR YOUR COPY OF OUR FREE KINDLE E-BOOK
Catholic Online is excited to offer at no cost to our readers a copy of the brilliant Kindle e-book ‘Fleeting Glimpses of the Silly, Sentimental and Sublime’, written by one of our own blog writers Michael Seagriff OP This FREE e-book can be downloaded by clicking here Tuesday January 28 through Thursday January 30. Coming Soon – Watch for more books from Michael Seagriff OP in Catholic Online Boutique.
It is my hope that the twenty personal stories and reflections contained in this book might bring you laughter at a time you feel forlorn, comfort when you are overburdened with the challenges of daily living, tears of joy when certain words you read or images they generate resurrect thoughts of those you loved and lost, greater appreciation for the gift of life, zeal for the salvation of your soul, and an increased desire to give to God and those He created what He and they deserve.
What others have said about the book:
“entertaining and often thought-provoking.”
“. [these] short stories are brimming with love. “
” inspiring. “
” easy to read and easy to understand, but profound in its message. “
” quick read that sings the praises of our Catholic faith in an easy-to-read style .. “
” It warmed my heart! “
” quick read and pretty enjoyable. “
“includes humor, common sense, and a sense of the eternal.”
“author is entertaining and insightful in his writing.”
Don’t miss out on your free copy. Please tell your readers, friends, family and fellow bloggers to get their free copy as well!
Get your free copy from Tuesday January 28 through Thursday January 30
CLICK HERE FOR YOUR COPY OF OUR FREE KINDLE E-BOOK
There wasn’t much fanfare surrounding the installation of so-called “Kindle Kiosks”. Amazon chose a soft-launch of the vending machines. However, GeekWire writers came across just such a vending machine at the McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas which had been installed in time for the hugely-popular International Consumer Electronics Show.
While the kiosks will be placed in various locations, perhaps the most obvious is at travel hubs where consumers embarking on a long journey might feel in the impulse to kit themselves out with a reading device. The kiosks are made by Zoom Systems, which makes similar automated retail machines for Best Buy and other prominent brands.
However, one disadvantage of the vending machines over, say, pop-up malls that Amazon has previously trialed, is that purchases can’t be tested in-the-hand before deciding on what to buy.
Furthermore, for the GeekWire writers who initially covered their discovery of a Kindle Kiosk the experience wasn’t entirely smooth with an unresponsive interface that was sluggish at times. Another downside was that that purchase could not be linked to an existing Amazon account.
Check out GeekWire’s article for images of the Kindle Kiosks. Have you spotted one on your travels?
Image via Shutterstock
Tags: ecommerce, physical store, vending machine
Amazon’s Kindle Fire line caused a stir when it launched, undercutting the tablet competition and carving Amazon a nice little corner of the then-uncharted waters in the process. It now seems Jeff Bezos’s company is looking to do the same in the games console arena with its own Android gaming machine.
While rumours have previously circulated around an Amazon set-top box, the reality now seems to be that Amazon’s next “bigger than Kindle” product will fall somewhere between that and a home gaming console: An Android-powered gaming machine that also offers access to Amazon’s video streaming services, and presumably the likes of Netflix too.
According to “multiple sources” speaking to VG247, the Amazon box is “grey in colour, oblong in shape and with sharp edges”, not dissimilar to the original PlayStation. As for pricing, it’ll undercut the current next-gen PS4 and Xbox One offerings considerably at around £ 180 (though anyone expecting a similar experience from an Android-powered console at that price as that offered by the next-gen heavyweights might want to keep dreaming).
The prospect of set-top-boxes-come-gaming-consoles seem to be all the rage with the tech heavyweights at the moment. Just last week we heard rumour that the next major update to the Apple TV line would be a gaming-focussed one, allowing for iOS games to be played directly from the Cupertino company’s next wave of boxes. Translating the success of mobile games into a living room unit isn’t easy though – just look at the struggles faced thus far by the GameStick and Ouya, for instance. [VG247 via TechRadar]
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| This undated photo provided by Amazon shows the Kindle FreeTime app displayed on a Kindle Fire HDX. Amazon.com Inc.ís Kindle FreeTime gives parents an easy way to block grown-up content. With FreeTime, kids get thousands of kid-friendly books, games and videos for a monthly fee. (AP Photo / Amazon) Browse for Republican American Reprints |
It’s no secret that kids love tablets, but the devices also can get them into trouble.
By the time my daughter turned 3, she knew how to pull up “Sesame Street” clips on YouTube and scroll through photos of friends and relatives . Although that free entertainment was incredibly helpful at times, there also were times she managed to post old pictures to Facebook or watch an inappropriate movie.
Amazon.com Inc. ‘S Kindle FreeTime gives parents an easy way to block grown-up content. Kindles aren’t alone in offering parental controls, but FreeTime goes further with an optional subscription service. With that, you get thousands of kid-friendly books, games and videos for a monthly fee. The quality is mixed, but the service is hassle-free, safe and relatively cheap – starting at $ 3 a month.
It works only with the 2012 and later models of the Kindle Fire.
BASIC CONTROLS
All Kindle Fires come with Kindle FreeTime already installed. The app itself is free to use. Once opened, all content not placed in your child’s FreeTime account is blocked. That means no access to Facebook, YouTube or Netflix, if you don’t want your child to have it. You need a password to exit FreeTime.
You can also limit your child’s screen time by having access shut off after a specified amount of time. You can even specify how much of a certain kind of media your child can view. For example, you can give a child unlimited access to books, while limiting video and app usage to 30 minutes each.
Different time limits can be set for weekdays and weekends, and “curfews” can be set to keep kids from playing games after bedtime.
You can also require kids to read or use educational apps for a certain amount of time before unlocking other content.
SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE:
Again, the FreeTime app is free. Where you have to pay is to access Amazon’s FreeTime Unlimited service.
Geared toward children ages 3 to 8, FreeTime Unlimited allows kids to download anything they want from its large library of kid-friendly apps, books and videos , largely without the help of an adult. It also suggests content that they might like based on what they’ve already downloaded. Parents get to walk away and not worry about what they’re up to.
But the suggestions are based on what’s already stored in your child’s account. I wish the app did a better job at filtering content based on a child’s age. My daughter, now 4, doesn’t need to be watching Batman cartoons or playing “Plants vs. Zombies.”
Amazon touts the service’s “all-you-can-eat” pricing, noting that it eliminates the need to negotiate with your kids what and how much content you’re willing to pay for. It also helps with buyer’s remorse. If your kids don’t find a book or app particularly entertaining, just delete it and let them find something else. Plus, it protects your wallet from kids who might not understand they’re spending real money on virtual toys.
Another plus: It strips out advertising included in other versions of the apps.
A single-child membership costs $ 3 per month for Amazon Prime members and $ 5 for others. If you want to set up separate profiles for multiple children, you can opt for a family membership, which costs $ 7 per month with Amazon Prime, or $ 10 without.
Although FreeTime Unlimited isn’t as intuitive as some of the apps on our family iPad, it didn’t take long for my daughter to figure out how to download books and apps on her own. She added so much content that it ate up all of the storage on my otherwise largely empty Kindle Fire.
In addition to being organized by form of media, the content is also indexed by character. My daughter can’t read the words “Apps,” “Books,” and “Video” yet, but she knows exactly who Elmo, Sponge Bob and Curious George are. FreeTime Unlimited makes it easy for her to find and download content featuring them.
The icons also are fairly large, which helps kids with small hands. The number of icons displayed on the screen can still be dizzying, which can make it tough for both children and adults to find what they’re looking for. There’s a search function, but most young kids would need an adult’s help for that.
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– RANGE OF OFFERINGS:
Although most young kids aren’t particular when it comes to books and TV, I was disappointed by the quality of the offerings.
According to Amazon, more than half of the content available through the service is “educational.” Indeed, there were picture books by notable children’s authors such as Eric Carle and Chris Van Allsburg. But many of the books focused on TV characters such as Sponge Bob, Dora the Explorer and Scooby Doo – not exactly classic children’s literature.
The videos included a lot of Nickelodeon and PBS shows currently popular with small children. I appreciate the inclusion of classic “Sesame Street” and “Reading Rainbow” episodes I loved as kid.
The same videos are already offered free to Amazon Prime members, though. You don’t need FreeTime Unlimited, or even a Kindle, to watch them.
You do need FreeTime Unlimited and the Kindle Fire for the books and the apps.
For me, $ 3 a month is a small price to pay to keep my daughter’s account stuffed with content she likes, so she won’t notice that she can’t access potentially problem-causing apps such as YouTube and Netflix. The peace of mind that comes from knowing that she’s is not watching the zombie drama “The Walking Dead” is priceless.
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Bree Fowler can be reached at http:/ / twitter.com / APBreeFowler
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Summary: Regular readers will know that I’m a big fan of Amazon’s Kindle Fire HDX. A huge fan. I like it because I feel that Amazon now makes a better tablet than Apple. While I think that the fifth-generation iPad Air is a great tablet, I feel that Apple is iteratively evolving the iPad as opposed to giving it a full revamp it deserves.
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Regular readers will know that I’m a big fan of Amazon’s Kindle Fire HDX. A huge fan. I like it because I feel that Amazon now makes a better tablet than Apple. While I think that the fifth-generation iPad Air is a great tablet, I feel that Apple is iteratively evolving the iPad as opposed to giving it a full revamp it deserves.
Before I go any further, I want to point out something. I’m not saying that the iPad is rubbish. Far from is. It’s an awesome tablet, and Apple’s App Store offers the best ecosystem out there. But over the past few years it has become clear to me that Apple is resting on its laurels, relying more and more on the iPad to sell because it’s the iPad, as opposed to it being the best tablet it could be.
Also, for the purposes of this piece, I’m comparing the iPad Air with the 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HDX.
So, how exactly is the Apple’s flagship tablet lagging behind Amazon’s flagship product?
