Raz goes North: Part 2

[Razgovory]

Looks like I'm taking the vacation thing seriously causing I decided to ride up with my parents to see my sis, brother in law, and niece up in Wisconsin.  It's a long drive, and I can get kinda fidgeting not doing anything for several hours at a time so I'm thinking of buying some electronic entertainment.  Maybe a Kindle or possibly even one of those hand-held video game things.  I need some suggestions.  I know some of the newerish Kindles can play movies.  Do you download those or do you stream them?  I don't know.  I want something I can play around with in a car.  I'm looking to spend less then 200 bucks if possible.

[MadBurgerMaker]

I think the newer ones do both (streaming and downloading), but I'm not sure about the ones in that price range (Fire HD, Fire).  I don't see why they wouldn't be the same, as long as they have the storage space, but it's something you'll definitely want to research first.

E:   Here you go Raz:  http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000663511&ref_=PIVHPBB_WhereToWatch_TV

Scroll to Watch On The Go.

For the ultimate convenience, you can download any rented or purchased title to your tablet to watch even when you are without a WiFi connection, like in a car or on a plane.

And the Fire HD:  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0083PWAPW  $199 for a 16GB version with ads and shit on the lock screen.

E2:  There are also just the regular Android tablets you can use to get movies and shit off the Play store, plus books and such using the Nook and Kindle apps (and the Play store too).  I think the Galaxy Tab 2 7" are going for less than $200.  Internal storage isn't great and the hardware isn't top of the line, but it'll do what you're looking to do, and you can pop an SD card in there and it'll be good on storage space.

[Razgovory]

I was looking at something like the Kindle Fire.  Not the HD.  That's about 150.

[MadBurgerMaker]

That'll work, I should think.    They have refurbs too for those for a few bucks less it looks like.  Just remember the storage limitations.  You'll have 5.5GBs of offline storage space.  Should be good enough for a couple movies (unless you DL them in SD), plus books and apps. 

E:  "Power adapter sold separately."  Don't forget to get yourself something you can charge it with. 

[derspiess]

Raz, if you don't mind it being a refurb you can get a first generation Kindle Fire for $71: http://dealnews.com/Refurb-1-st-Gen-Kindle-Fire-8-GB-7-Android-Tablet-for-71-pickup-at-Best-Buy/737754.html

[Barrister]

I bought an iPod Touch for the trip to Brazil and was super-impressed with it - watched some hockey games on it, played some games.  Could easily have watched movies too if I had wanted.

Budget is a concern, so here's a refurb 8GB for $129.

http://store.apple.com/ca/product/FC540/refurbished-ipod-touch-8gb-black

And don't forget the 100,000+ apps available for it.



I see you had some specific questions.  Movies - depends.  Easiest way for me to watch movies on it is via Netflix and WiFi - requires WiFi access and your $10 or whatever per month for Netflix, but then you can stream any one of thousands of movies.  Or, you can use iTunes to buy movies and download them onto your iPod.

It probably depends on what you want to do.  If it's primarily reading books, then the classic Kindle is the way to go (there is a bookstore, but this is where the small screen size will be a bother).  But if more interested in games, and even I think movies, I'd recommend iPod Touch.

[derspiess]

I bought an iPod Touch for the trip to Brazil and was super-impressed with it

NO WAY!

[Caliga]

 

[Barrister]

I bought an iPod Touch for the trip to Brazil and was super-impressed with it

NO WAY!

It is an Apple product, after all, so perhaps you're right to be less than surprised.  They just are That Good. 

But rather than go to the ad hom, do you not think  it's not a bad suggestion for Raz's needs?

[derspiess]

I bought an iPod Touch for the trip to Brazil and was super-impressed with it

NO WAY!

It is an Apple product, after all, so perhaps you're right to be less than surprised.  They just are That Good. 

But rather than go to the ad hom, do you not think  it's not a bad suggestion for Raz's needs?

He wants to watch movies, so the Kindle Fire's 7" screen is going to do better than the iPod Touch's 3.5" screen (as nice as it is for a 3.5" screen).  That's a good price on an iPod Touch and I'm half tempted to get one for Tommy to maybe distract him from the wife's iPad.  But for what Raz said he wanted, I think he would be better served by something with a larger screen.

I have a first generation Kindle Fire & it is a really nice device for streaming movies.  With Netflix and/or Prime it's hard to beat for that purpose at that price.  I think you can also buy & download movies, but you're sort of stuck in Amazon's ecosystem unless you do a little hacking.

[Barrister]

I thought the original Fire (no HD) had rather lacklustre reviews - slow processor and the like.  Plus how is it's 'not approved by Google Android fork' for games?

[Grey Fox]

You just need a portable DVD player.

http://www.target.com/p/rca-7-portable-dvd-player-drc99371e-black/-/A-12270542#prodSlot=medium_1_2

Here you go.

[derspiess]

I thought the original Fire (no HD) had rather lacklustre reviews - slow processor and the like.  Plus how is it's 'not approved by Google Android fork' for games?

Yeah, I'm sure it had shitty reviews on your Apple forums

Mine runs fine.  It has a dual-core 1.2Ghz processor that easily handles the customized Android 2.3 & apps, movies, etc.  No, it doesn't have Google Play access by default (can be enabled pretty easily), but the Amazon app store has a good selection-- and lots of free apps.

It's no iPad, but for $71 you get quite a lot. 

[garbon]

My first-gen Kindle Fire runs great. I love it and use it every day.

[Barrister]

Don't spend very much time on Apple sites looking for news about other companies.

Here's a review of the original Kindle Fire:

http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2011/11/dont-call-it-a-tablet-the-kindle-fire-reviewed/

The summary:

Ultimately, the $200 Kindle Fire lacks many features I consider essential in a serious tablet: the ability to work on it using a keyboard, browse the Internet quickly, view whole magazine pages, and so on. But we can't fault it for not being an iPad. It's only a few hundred fewer dollars, and Amazon has never marketed it as a tablet. This is a basic media consumption device.

I wouldn't be discussing pricing if I didn't have some doubts about the Kindle Fire's value. There are no dealbreakers here, but the Kindle Fire is pretty pokey, and the browsing experience is not (yet) what was promised. The Kindle Fire operating system doesn't improve on Gingerbread in any appreciable way, and all it does is put Amazon's services and stores front and center.

I hesitate to recommend that people buy a product that is as unpolished as the Kindle Fire, particularly because I suspect it will end up often as a gift from early tablet adopters to late ones (but remember—this isn't a tablet!). With iPads setting the bar for consumer expectations, I don't like to see usability and responsiveness backslide just because the price is lower. It's not impossible Amazon won't further refine the Kindle Fire with software updates, but there's no precedent for that.

The best way to think of the Kindle Fire is as a decent e-reader that can do some extra stuff—namely, play videos and browse the Internet. For $200, that's not a bad deal—but just make sure that it's one you're willing to make.

Now at $71 perhaps it's an even better value proposition.  That's for Raz to decide.