Kindle Fire HD 8.9″

“Like the 7-inch version, the Kindle Fire HD 8.9 offers great value for money. There’s a lot of quality hardware on offer here at a reasonable price, with the high-resolution screen being a stand-out feature. However, you do pay for those Amazon subsidisations elsewhere. The Kindle Fire software is much slower than vanilla Android at this point, making it more frustrating to use than non-Amazon tablets.”

“Which Kindle Fire HD you should buy is dependent on a single question. Which do you do more, read or watch movies? If you're a reader, the 7-inch model's smaller size and one-hand usability makes it the better device. If you're a cinephile (I fall into this category, at least when it comes to how I use a tablet), the HD 8.9 is a better buy thanks to its bigger, higher-res screen. I watched a lot of movies on the Kindle Fire HD 8.9, and it's a pretty fantastic experience. To be clear, though, both devices are good at both things, and they're incredibly similar overall — it's just a matter of tipping the balance slightly one way or the other. Neither tablet, though, is as good as the iPad, iPad mini, or Nexus 7. It's the apps: Android's ecosystem is already a giant leap behind iOS's, and Amazon's is like a knockoff Android store. If you get most of your content through Amazon (and that's totally possible), the Kindle Fire HD is the best way to get it – the Prime Video experience is better on this device than any other I've tested, and if you make use of the HDMI port the tablet becomes a great Amazonian set-top box for your TV as well. But for the content omnivore, or a person who wants a good email experience or a better browser or a more powerful suite of apps, Apple and Google's tablets are a better bet.”

“Amazon’s expansive content and shopping ecosystem has always been a strong draw and it’s just as good in this large screen tablet as it was in the very first Kindle Fire. Still, you have to compare it with the equally strong iOS ecosystem, which is no slouch in the content shopping department. Apple doesn’t connect you as seamlessly to physical products, but there’s nothing difficult about shopping on Amazon.com via your iPad. It’s also notable that tablet competitor Barnes & Noble has added movie and TV viewing, rental and purchase. Ultimately, all of these tablets are offering more and more of the same content options, apps, and features. The decision will likely come down to price, app selection, interface and overall ease of use. The Amazon Kindle fire HD 8.9 scores well on all of these, but does not always lead. For the price, it’s a great value, but I want Amazon to focus on hardware and interface design for the next big update. Then, they may get my full endorsement.”

“Our bottom line here is pretty much the same as it was for the Kindle Fire HD 7: this is a good device for people deeply invested in Amazon’s products and services. It ties the books, apps, audiobooks, music, and other content together with a nice bow. Plus, no other tablets (except the iPads) offer access to Amazon’s video content. The $300 base price seems low, but isn’t as competitive as the Nook HD+, and that’s not even taking into account the No-Ads tax. Even for a low-cost device, the performance issues lower the Fire HD’s desirability. There aren’t many tablets in this size range available right now, here’s hoping the Nook HD+ offers better performance.”