This is a slick little tablet, no lie. It is not an iPad, but it is a damn good device.
To recap from previous, the downside is that its hardware is bare bones; no microphone, no 3G/4G, 8G storage with no expansion, 7" screen. And stock from Amazon, it is crippled; it doesn't do anything Googly, like Youtube, like all the Google Play Market apps, like Netflix, like the different launchers, and the Amazon Launcher is truly ugly.
The upside is that once it is liberated from Amazon, it is pretty damn slick, especially for $199 retail, or $169 refurbished w/full warranty, or REALLY especially for the $139 refurbished w/full warranty deal that they ran a couple weeks ago. (Note, the "w/full warranty" is for confidence; if you root, you void that warranty.)
Here's the hot ticket. Get the device. Go to XDA Developers and read the guides for the Kindle Fire. Then download the Kindle Fire Utility (KFU) and follow the instructions. Voila, you have root.
(If I can do it, you can do it. The only requirement is a reasonable sense of curiosity and an ability to overcome fear of screwing up. I was totally flummoxed upon first reading the instructions, but the guides explain everything thoroughly, including full explanations of terminology. It is almost impossible to genuinely "brick" a Kindle Fire (but not completely impossible). I pseudo-bricked it a couple times, and muddled my way back pretty quickly.)
Use root access and KFU to install Google Play Market, Youtube, and all the stuff Amazon doesn't want you to have... like Go Launcher, which makes the Kindle Fire look really cool, and is a more intuitive interface for Android users.
But you're not done yet. By getting root, you now have access to Google Market, which means you get the good extras... but you LOSE Amazon Prime's streaming video on demand, which is a pretty nice feature to keep. Download OTA Rootkeeper from Google Market (not available from Amazon, for obvious reasons). OTA Rootkeeper does two things: 1), it protects your root access during system updates, and 2) allows you to toggle between rooted and unrooted. Install it, set "protect root" in the menu, and then toggle it to "unrooted", reboot, and enjoy it all; all the Google stuff works, AND all the Amazon stuff works. You have to take an extra screentouch to launch a book or streaming video, it appears that Go Launcher conflicts somehow. But so what.
To answer an unasked question, you could install a custom ROM. I don't see why I should do that, because I like having Amazon streaming video. If you install a custom ROM, you wipe direct access to Amazon. I think there's a workaround, but I stopped when I was satisfied I'd reached an optimum balance of features and usability.
Highly recommended. In this configuration, it is transformed from a nice toy to to a useful tool (that is also a nice toy when that's what you want).
To recap from previous, the downside is that its hardware is bare bones; no microphone, no 3G/4G, 8G storage with no expansion, 7" screen. And stock from Amazon, it is crippled; it doesn't do anything Googly, like Youtube, like all the Google Play Market apps, like Netflix, like the different launchers, and the Amazon Launcher is truly ugly.
The upside is that once it is liberated from Amazon, it is pretty damn slick, especially for $199 retail, or $169 refurbished w/full warranty, or REALLY especially for the $139 refurbished w/full warranty deal that they ran a couple weeks ago. (Note, the "w/full warranty" is for confidence; if you root, you void that warranty.)
Here's the hot ticket. Get the device. Go to XDA Developers and read the guides for the Kindle Fire. Then download the Kindle Fire Utility (KFU) and follow the instructions. Voila, you have root.
(If I can do it, you can do it. The only requirement is a reasonable sense of curiosity and an ability to overcome fear of screwing up. I was totally flummoxed upon first reading the instructions, but the guides explain everything thoroughly, including full explanations of terminology. It is almost impossible to genuinely "brick" a Kindle Fire (but not completely impossible). I pseudo-bricked it a couple times, and muddled my way back pretty quickly.)
Use root access and KFU to install Google Play Market, Youtube, and all the stuff Amazon doesn't want you to have... like Go Launcher, which makes the Kindle Fire look really cool, and is a more intuitive interface for Android users.
But you're not done yet. By getting root, you now have access to Google Market, which means you get the good extras... but you LOSE Amazon Prime's streaming video on demand, which is a pretty nice feature to keep. Download OTA Rootkeeper from Google Market (not available from Amazon, for obvious reasons). OTA Rootkeeper does two things: 1), it protects your root access during system updates, and 2) allows you to toggle between rooted and unrooted. Install it, set "protect root" in the menu, and then toggle it to "unrooted", reboot, and enjoy it all; all the Google stuff works, AND all the Amazon stuff works. You have to take an extra screentouch to launch a book or streaming video, it appears that Go Launcher conflicts somehow. But so what.
To answer an unasked question, you could install a custom ROM. I don't see why I should do that, because I like having Amazon streaming video. If you install a custom ROM, you wipe direct access to Amazon. I think there's a workaround, but I stopped when I was satisfied I'd reached an optimum balance of features and usability.
Highly recommended. In this configuration, it is transformed from a nice toy to to a useful tool (that is also a nice toy when that's what you want).
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