hate abhor reading. I don’t know what it is. Perhaps it’s because when I was about 3 or 4, my sister insisted reading would be more fun than playing Barbies.
I also have somewhat of a short attention span. In fact, I am amazed any time I can sit through any movie preview without dozing off.
But about a year or so ago, the world of gadgets and reading collided when Amazon’s Kindle Fire 7″ caught my eye. I saw so many people on Facebook talking about it. I knew what a Kindle was (a black and white reading device — *yawn*), but what was this “Fire”?
I had to check it out.
The color. The moving pictures. SOLD!
I purchased the Kindle Fire (ad-free version) as a late birthday gift to myself. What I love about it is that it is small enough to fit in my purse and so easy to use. It’s great to use in the kitchen. I get most of my recipes online, so it’s nice to have my Kindle Fire propped up on the counter.
The Kindle Fire came with a free trial of Amazon Prime. I watched (and nodded off) to a few movies. The picture looked good, though, personally, I think it’s a little too small to be watching videos on.
And yes, I actually have used it to read books. The display is really nice. You can change the font size and the background color of the page. I was really impressed. I even got one for my sister’s for her birthday a few months later.
Then, shortly thereafter, the Amazon gods did the most despicable thing. They came out with the Kindle Fire HD 7.”
What does HD stand for? My guess: Hot DAMN!
I loved my Kindle Fire so much, that I wanted another one more badly than the Kartrashians crave attention. When Christmas songs started filling the airwaves in my household (which was around the time I woke up from my tryptophan-induced coma), I would talk incessantly about the Kindle Fire HD to my boyfriend.
I don’t drop hints. I flooded him with hints.
And by god, like the smart man that he is, on December 25, 2012, I opened up my gift. And without even opening the little black box, I knew what it was. Best. Christmas. Gift.Ever.
I admit, I was a little apprehensive that he got me the “special offers” version. I just imagined I’d be reading Fifty Shades, place my cursor over some word and an ad for the closest adult bookstore would appear.
But nope. That hasn’t been the case. The special offers aren’t annoying like those live ads that cover nearly half your TV screen are. There’s an ad when you unlock the Kindle, then there’s a section of special offers.
One of the features (which I’m not sure is part of the special offers or not) I actually do like is that for every app or book I have in my library, there is a a section below it for other recommendations (similar to the Amazon web site).
My other likes about the Kindle Fire HD:
- Built-in camera – It’s only the front side, which is perfect, because let’s be honest — we only want to take pictures of ourselves, right? :p
- Physical buttons for sound – The Kindle Fire is all touch-screen; the Kindle Fire HD has both options. I like options. The granny in me needs to push buttons!
- Screen quality is great – Of course it is better than the Kindle Fire, but due to this difference, the battery life is not so great. The battery life is what seems to separate the two Kindles for me.
Either way, I love both my Kindles. I use them more for playing games than reading or watching videos. When I do read (which means needing something to do to help me fall asleep), they are always ready by my bed.
Bottom line: Sure, there are other tablets. But if you want something that is compact, easy to use and affordable, you can’t go wrong with the Kindle Fire/Kindle Fire HD.
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