Amazon says that its Kindle Fire tablet is ”the most successful product we’ve ever launched” based on sales. But early adopters have had a mixed reaction to the sometimes jerky graphics, and an off button on the bottom that some users say they frequently hit by accident. The Fire gets a so-so 3.8 stars out of 5 from 3,477 reviewers at consumer electronics site Retrevo — and 4 stars out of 5 from nearly 5,000 reviews on Amazon itself. The online retailer now says it’s on the case: “In less than two weeks, we’re rolling out an over-the-air update to Kindle Fire that will improve performance, touch navigation, and give customers the option to choose what items display on the carousel.” (Nothing they can do about that off button, though.) Consumers shouldn’t be surprised. Our colleagues at BGR.com warned in their review last month that ”prospective buyers should expect the occasional hiccup from first-generation software running on $200 hardware. Every computer, smartphone and tablet on the planet stutters from time to time.”


I just hope they block the one touch purchases so my 8 year old doesn’t put me in the poor house.
Rick, S, My nephew has an iPod touch linked to my account and he has to ask every single time he makes a purchase, even though it’s as good as one click on Amazon. He knows it would be taken away IMMEDIATELY if he made a purchase without asking me first. You can also get around the one click coming off your credit card by loading an Amazon Gift Card. I do the same with my nephew if I’m going to be unreachable. I load a $10 card and tell him his budget and he’s responsible for staying under. So far, he’s done a great job of it. I think it’s good for them to be responsible and know that all those aps cost money.
Disable one touch purchases on amazon
I have owned my Fire since day one, and the biggest issue with it isn;t the hardware or software (which can be a bit buggy) it is the Amazon tech support team, who is completely clueless and doesn’t even seem to know their own product.
Sure the bugs are annoying, but we bought in on the first generation, so it was bound to happen. The device will improve as time goes, making its upside quite good for the low price.
I don’t care, I still want one!!! I can’t afford an iPad 2 and this will suit my needs just fine. Glad they’re fixing the problems though.
I’ve had a Kindle Fire since day 1 and I’m be more than happy with it. Is the Fire perfect, well no, but what first gen product is? Could Amazon have waited, sure, but why? Many of the 1-star complaints on Amazon are silly at best, whining at worst. People are constantly comparing it to the iPad even though Amazon had been pretty clear the Fire was never considered an iPad killer. As for the on/off button, here’s an easy fix: turn it so the button is on the top. That’s why you have that trusty screen rotation.
I won one at work and I have been happy with it so far. It is not an Ipad killer because the Ipad is basically a personal computer and the fire is just a device that can access the amazon store.
I did a search on amazon for the kindle fire which now has 3.8 stars. My search supposedly filtered out anything below 4 stars but somehow the kindle fire still showed up in my search results. How is that?
Needs to support flash and more vidoe types. Also better graphics support needed. Otherwise, good!