Kindle Fire 2
Verdict
Key specs
Critic consensus
“The Kindle Fire HD is your next stop if you're a heavy media consumer or an Amazon Prime member, or looking for a small, cheap device. Also, keep an eye out for the soon-to-be-released Nook HD. Each of those start at $200 and provide very curated and focused experiences. The new 2012 Kindle Fire does not do HD video, does not have an HDMI port, or expandable memory, a camera, or even volume buttons. What it does have is one of the best value ratios out there. At $159, it's the cheapest mainstream 7-inch tablet. If your eyes can stomach SD video, you don't mind some its form-factor limitations, and you are an Amazon Prime member, the Kindle Fire is a great tablet value. It's definitely not the best tablet out there, but is certainly worth a look.”
“Amazon seems like they're playing with fire with this tablet, mainly because it's competing in the space as its more prestigious offering in the Kindle Fire HD. Consumers will no doubt take notice of the Kindle Fire 2's $159 price point for a new tablet, but considering that it's only $40 less than the superiorly equipped Kindle Fire HD, we don't see much value or reason to pay less to stick with the non-HD Kindle Fire. In all honesty, you're better off just spending the extra moolah to move up to either the Kindle Fire HD or Google Nexus 7 running unpersonalized Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.”
“If you’re really focused on budget, and absolutely want the cheapest tablet possible, then priced at £129 you can’t argue with the fact that the Kindle Fire is a great starter slate. It’s also very easy to use, and suitable as a gentle introduction to tablet computing for the family/kids as a result. But I can't recommend it with too much enthusiasm because there are significantly better options for only slightly more money. Amazon’s own Kindle Fire HD is only £30 more, and for that extra bit of cash, you get a lot – a much higher quality screen, longer battery life, a front-facing camera for video chats, better Wi-Fi performance, and improved speakers and volume controls that help make it a stronger entertainment device.”
Watch before you decide
In Depth
The Kindle Fire 2 is more than just another e-book reader from Amazon. It comes from an entire line of Android-powered color screen-equipped tablet computers that don’t cost much but have an accompanying content ecosystem that will likely have you spending money on digital items in no time. It’s cheap and very easy to use. But what else does it have that the models from other tablet computer manufacturers don’t?
One of the first things you’ll notice about the 2nd-gen Kindle Fire is that it’s small and easy to carry around. It uses the same 7-inch touchscreen as its predecessor and has a native resolution of 1024×600 pixels. Also, it weighs just 400 grams and measures 11mm thick. As far as portability is concerned, the Kindle Fire 2 is excellent. This is great especially since it lasts up to 9 hours of video playback or Web surfing with Wi-Fi per full charge.
Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich comes pre-installed as the default OS, as it runs on a 1.2GHz dual-core TI OMAP 4430processor with 1GB of RAM. This means it can handle all kinds of movies and music formats quite well, though you’ll probably need to rely constantly on the cloud since there’s no way to physically expand the 8GB of internal storage. It’s also worth noting that a microSD card slot isn’t the only thing that’s missing from this version of the Kindle Fire. It lacks a built-in camera, Bluetooth, and doesn’t even come with a bundled wall charger. Charging needs to be done with a USB cable through its single USB port.
Despite its shortcomings, the Kindle Fire 2 is still a good choice for an entry-level Android tablet. Plus, at just a little over $150, it’s a steal. Not to mention, Amazon’s expansive digital library will be at your disposal. If you don’t wish to have any high-end features on your device, then you can’t get any better than this for the money.
What people actually want to know
When was the Kindle Fire 2 released?
The Kindle Fire 2 was released on September 14, 2012.
Does the Kindle Fire 2 have a headphone jack?
Yes, the Kindle Fire 2 has a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Questions & answers
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