amazon Fire

File:Amazon-Fire-Logo.png

The Kindle Fire—which includes access to the Amazon Appstore, streaming movies and TV shows, and the Kindle Store for e-books—was released to consumers in the United States on November 14, 2011, after being announced on September 28.{{Cite web |title=Kindle Fire {{!}} Amazon - The Verge |url=https://www.theverge.com/products/kindle-fire/2506 |access-date=2022-08-10 |website=The Verge |archive-date=November 13, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221113023358/https://www.theverge.com/products/kindle-fire/2506 |url-status=dead }}

The original Kindle Fire retailed for {{USD|199}} in 2011.{{cite news|url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/breaking/chi-amazon-unveiling-new-tablet-today-its-challenge-to-the-ipad-20110928,0,2380818.story |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111026062303/http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/breaking/chi-amazon-unveiling-new-tablet-today-its-challenge-to-the-ipad-20110928%2C0%2C2380818.story |archive-date=October 26, 2011 |title=Amazon's Kindle Fire to sell at $199, challenging iPad |date=September 28, 2011 |work=Chicago Tribune |url-status=dead }}

Estimates of the device's initial bill of materials cost ranged from $150 to $202.{{cite web|url=http://www.eetimes.com/electronics-news/4228505/Kindle-Fire-profitable-at-estimated--150-BoM |title=Kindle Fire profitable at estimated $150 BoM|first=Rick |last=Merritt |date=September 28, 2011 |work=eetimes}}{{cite news |url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2011/11/amazons-199-kindle-fire-costs-20170-to-build-report-says.html |title=Amazons 199 Kindle Fire costs 201.70 to build, report says |first= Nathan |last=Olivarez-Giles |date=November 18, 2011 |newspaper=Los Angeles Times }} Amazon's business strategy was stated in 2011 as making money through sales of digital content on the Fire, rather than through sales of the device itself.{{cite web |url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/09/30/amazon_kindle_fire_bill_of_materials/ |title=Amazon's Kindle Fire is sold at a loss|first=Rik |last=Myslewski |date= September 30, 2011 |work= theregister.co.uk |publisher=The Register}}{{cite web |url=https://www.cnet.com/news/amazon-to-lose-50-on-each-kindle-fire-says-analyst/|title=Amazon to lose $50 on each Kindle Fire, says analyst|first=Lance |last=Whitney |date=September 29, 2011|publisher=CNET|access-date=June 26, 2020}}{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2011/oct/02/kindle-fire-ipad-tablet-wars |work=The Guardian / The Observer|date=October 2, 2011|title=Kindle Fire: the tablet that knows your next move|first=John |last=Naughton}}

On September 6, 2012, the Kindle Fire was upgraded to the second generation, and its price was reduced to {{USD|159}}, RAM upgraded to 1 GB and processor clock speed upgraded to 1.2 GHz. On September 7, 2012, upgrades to the device were announced with consumer availability to those European countries with a localised version of Amazon's website (United Kingdom,{{cite web|url=http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=251199&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1732725&highlight=|title=Kindle Fire Comes to the UK—Introducing the All-New Kindle Fire HD and Kindle Fire |date=September 6, 2012 |publisher=Amazon.co.uk |access-date=September 10, 2012}} France, Germany, Italy and Spain).{{cite web|url=http://phys.org/news/2012-09-amazon-kindle-sale-europe.html|title=Amazon's Kindle Fire to go on sale in Europe (AFP)|date=September 6, 2012|work=Phys.org|access-date=September 14, 2012}}

{{As of|2012|10}}, the Kindle Fire was the second best selling tablet after Apple's iPad, with about 7 million units sold according to estimates by Forrester Research{{cite news|url=https://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/19/7-inch-tablets/|title=How Are 7-Inch Tablets Doing?|author=Brian X. Chen|work=The New York Times |date=October 19, 2012 |access-date=October 20, 2012}} and {{As of|2013|lc=y}} Amazon's tablets were the fourth best selling.{{cite web |url=http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2674215 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140303215013/http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2674215 |url-status=dead |archive-date=March 3, 2014 |title=Newsroom, Announcements and Media Contacts {{!}} Gartner}}

The Fire tablet line was not updated until 2015; Amazon only released Fire HD and Fire HDX tablets during that time. In 2015, Amazon made a full refresh of their tablet family where they brought the range down market as a series of budget focused devices, returning to the lower-spec Fire line and cancelling the HDX line.

In September 2015, Amazon announced the release of the Fire 7, priced at {{USD|49.99}} for the 8GB version that displays advertisements on the lock screen. {{As of|2016|3}} it was the lowest-priced Amazon tablet.{{Cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_st_price-asc-rank?keywords=amazon+fire&fst=as%3Aoff&rh=n%3A133140011%2Cn%3A2102313011%2Cn%3A6669703011%2Ck%3Aamazon+fire&qid=1457099490&sort=price-asc-rank|title=Amazon Fire tablets|access-date=March 4, 2016|website=Amazon}} List of current Fire tablets on Amazon, sorted by price. In June 2016, its price was dropped briefly to {{USD|39.99}}.{{cite web|title=You can actually get a brand new Amazon Fire tablet right now for $40|url=http://bgr.com/2016/06/13/amazon-fire-tablet-price-drop-sale/|website=bgr.com|date=June 13, 2016|access-date=September 26, 2016}} This fifth generation tablet introduced a micro SD card slot for extra storage.{{cite web|title=Fire Tablets MicroSD Card How To Guide – Everything You Need to Know|url=http://blog.the-ebook-reader.com/2015/10/05/fire-tablets-microsd-card-how-to-guide-everything-you-need-to-know/|website=ebook reader|date=October 5, 2015 |access-date=September 26, 2016}}

A slightly improved Fire 7 was released in June 2017, keeping the US$49.99 price point.{{Cite news|url=http://uk.pcmag.com/amazon-fire/72595/review/amazon-fire-7-2017|title=Amazon Fire 7 (2017)|date=July 5, 2017|work=PCMag UK|access-date=September 12, 2017|language=en-GB}}

An upgraded model of Fire 7 was announced in May 2019, with a scheduled release in June 2019 and keeping the US$49.99 price point.{{Cite web|last=Haselton|first=Todd|date=2019-05-16|title=Amazon just announced a new version of its $50 tablet|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2019/05/16/amazon-announces-fire-7-tablet-price-availability-and-features.html|access-date=2021-10-21|website=CNBC|language=en}}

In 2022, Amazon released a significantly updated model of the Fire 7. New features to the basic Fire line are USB-C, Fire OS 8, a 2 MP front camera, a larger 10-hour life capable battery, and a significantly faster SoC with twice the RAM and storage of the previous generation. Though the tablet still features budget hardware, Amazon increased the base price to $59.99.{{cite web | url=https://www.pcmag.com/reviews/amazon-fire-7-tablet-2022-release | title=Amazon Fire 7 Tablet (2022 Release) Review }}

The Kindle Fire hardware is manufactured by Quanta Computer (an Original Design Manufacturer), which also originally helped design the BlackBerry PlayBook, using it as a hardware template for the Kindle Fire.{{cite web |url=https://www.engadget.com/discuss/the-amazon-tablet-will-look-like-a-playbook-because-it-basically-is-g8d/ |title=The Amazon tablet will look like a PlayBook - because it basically is. |publisher=Engadget |access-date=June 19, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170314174037/https://www.engadget.com/discuss/the-amazon-tablet-will-look-like-a-playbook-because-it-basically-is-g8d/ |archive-date=March 14, 2017 |url-status=dead }}

First-generation Kindle Fire devices employed a 1-GHz Texas Instruments OMAP 4430 dual-core processor. The device has a 2-point multi-touch colour LCD screen with a diagonal length of {{convert|7|in|mm}} and a 600×1024-pixel resolution (160 dpi density). Connectivity is through 802.11n Wi-Fi and USB 2.0 (Micro-B connector). The device includes 8 GB of internal storage—said to be enough for 80 applications, plus either 10 movies or 800 songs or 6,000 books.{{cite web |url=https://www.engadget.com/2011/09/28/amazon-fire-tablet-unveiled-7-inch-display-199-price-tag/ |title=Amazon Kindle Fire tablet unveiled: Android-based, 7-inch display, $199 price tag |first=Darren |last=Murph |date=September 28, 2011 |work=Engadget |publisher=AOL Inc}}{{cite web |url=http://thisismynext.com/2011/09/28/amazon-kindle-fire-vs-ipad-2-vs-nook-color-numbers |title=Amazon Kindle Fire vs. iPad 2 vs. Nook Color: by the numbers |first=Chris |last=Ziegler |date=September 28, 2011 |work=This Is My Next |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110930111558/http://thisismynext.com/2011/09/28/amazon-kindle-fire-vs-ipad-2-vs-nook-color-numbers/ |archive-date=September 30, 2011 }} According to Amazon, the first-generation Kindle Fire's 4400 mAh battery sustains up to 8 hours of consecutive reading and up to 7.5 hours of video playback with wireless off;{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0051VVOB2 |title=Kindle Fire - Full Color 7" Multi-Touch Display with Wi-Fi |publisher=Amazon |access-date=March 18, 2013}} later generations all offered around 7–8 hours{{cite web |title=Fire HD 6 - Amazon site |url=https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KC6I06S/ref=fs_ods_fs_tab_al |access-date=March 7, 2016 |newspaper=Amazon.com}} See "Compare Fire Tablets" section: New HD6, HD8, and HD10 all claim "Up to 8 hours of reading, surfing the web, watching video, and listening to music"; 7" Fire claims 7 hours.

Of the 8 GB internal storage available in the first-generation Kindle Fire, approximately 6.5 GB was available for content.{{cite web|last=Dawson |first=Christopher |url=http://www.zdnet.com/blog/education/kindle-fire-edu-holy-grail-or-one-more-drm-ridden-toy/4738 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111118160156/http://www.zdnet.com/blog/education/kindle-fire-edu-holy-grail-or-one-more-drm-ridden-toy/4738 |url-status=dead |archive-date=November 18, 2011 |title=Kindle Fire: Edu holy grail or one more DRM-ridden toy? |publisher=ZDNet |date=November 17, 2011 |access-date=March 18, 2013}}{{update after|2015|12|14}}

The first-generation Kindle Fire has a sensor on the upper left-hand corner of the screen. This was widely considered to be an ambient-light sensor, disabled since an early software upgrade.{{cite web|url=http://www.ericbt.com/Blog/169 |title=Eric Bergman-Terrell's Blog |publisher=Ericbt.com |access-date=March 18, 2013}}

Colour display technologies consume much more power than monochrome electronic paper (E-ink) types; Fire offer a typical battery life of 8 hours of mixed usage, while monochrome Kindles offer 15 to 30 hours' use without WiFi—"battery lasts weeks on a single charge"—with a much lower-capacity battery.{{cite web |url=https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00I15SB16?ref_=kods_xs_dp_oos |title=Kindle e-reader – Amazon's Official Site – Learn More |newspaper=Amazon.com |access-date=March 7, 2016}}

The first generation of Kindle Fire devices run a customised Android 2.3.3 Gingerbread OS.{{cite news |url=http://thisismynext.com/2011/09/28/amazon-android-ui-kindle-fire-ux/ |title=Amazon's Kindle Fire UI: it's Android, but not quite |first=Sean |last=Hollister |date=September 28, 2011 |work=This Is My Next |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111031032335/http://thisismynext.com/2011/09/28/amazon-android-ui-kindle-fire-ux/ |archive-date=October 31, 2011 }} The second-generation Kindle Fire HD runs a customised Android 4.0.3 Ice Cream Sandwich OS.{{cite web|url=https://developer.amazon.com/sdk/fire/getting-started.html|title=Getting Started with Kindle Fire|access-date=September 27, 2012|archive-date=October 7, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121007072207/https://developer.amazon.com/sdk/fire/getting-started.html|url-status=dead}} Along with access to Amazon Appstore,{{cite web|last=Tung |first=Liam |url=http://www.itnews.com.au/News/272516,amazon-opens-global-appstore-by-stealth.aspx |title=Amazon opens global Appstore by stealth |publisher=Itnews.com.au |date=September 20, 2011 |access-date=March 18, 2013}} the Fire includes a cloud-accelerated "split browser", Amazon Silk, using Amazon EC2 for off-device cloud computation; including webpage layout and rendering, and Google's SPDY protocol for faster webpage content transmission.{{cite web |url=http://www.eweekeurope.co.uk/news/amazon-ec2-underlies-kindle-tablet-silk-browser-40927 |title=Amazon EC2 Underlies Kindle Tablet 'Silk' Browser |date=September 29, 2011 |first=Clint |last=Boulton |work=eweekeurope.co.uk |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111005152446/http://www.eweekeurope.co.uk/news/amazon-ec2-underlies-kindle-tablet-silk-browser-40927 |archive-date=October 5, 2011 }}{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=hp_rel_topic?ie=UTF8&nodeId=200775440 |title=Introducing Amazon Silk |work=amazon.com |access-date=October 2, 2011}}{{cite web|url=http://amazonsilk.wordpress.com/2011/09/28/introducing-amazon-silk/|title=Introducing Amazon Silk|date=September 28, 2011|author=Amazon Silk team|work=amazonsilk.wordpress.com|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120705154238/http://amazonsilk.wordpress.com/2011/09/28/introducing-amazon-silk/|archive-date=July 5, 2012}} The user's Amazon digital content is given free storage in Amazon Cloud's web-storage platform, 5 GB music storage in Amazon Cloud Drive, and a built-in email application allows webmail (Gmail, Yahoo!, Hotmail, AOL Mail, etc.) to be merged into one inbox. The subscription-based Amazon Prime, which includes unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows, is available with a free 30-day trial period.

Content formats supported by the first-generation Kindle Fire were Kindle Format 8 (KF8), Kindle Mobi (.azw), TXT, PDF, unrestricted MOBI, PRC natively, Audible (Audible Enhanced (AA, AAX)), DOC, DOCX, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP, PSD, EPUB non-DRM AAC, MP3, MIDI, OGG, WAV, MP4, VP8.{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0051VVOB2%7C |title=Kindle Fire - the Amazon Tablet with Full Color 7" Multi-Touch Display, Wi-Fi |publisher=Amazon.com |access-date=October 2, 2011 }}{{update after|2015|12|14}}{{Cite web |title=Fire Tablet Specifications: Fire Models {{!}} Fire Tablets |url=https://www.developer.amazon.com/docs/fire-tablets/ft-device-specifications-fire-models.html |access-date=2023-01-16 |website=developer.amazon.com}}

Because of Amazon's USB driver implementation, the first-generation Kindle Fire suffered from slow USB transfer speeds. For example, transferring an 800MB video file may have taken more than three minutes in 2011.{{cite web |title=Storage Performance: Slightly Faster Than USB 1.0?! : The Amazon Kindle Fire: Benchmarked, Tested, And Reviewed |date=November 24, 2011 |author-link=Andrew Ku |first=Andrew |last=Ku |url=http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amazon-kindle-fire-review,3076-11.html |access-date=December 4, 2011|publisher=Tom's Hardware: Hardware News, Tests and Reviews}}{{update after|2015|12|14}}

It is possible to convert a Kindle Fire to a tablet running standard Android, with some loss of Amazon-related functionality, and lacking features such as Bluetooth, microphone, camera, and memory expansion.{{cite web |url=http://www.cnet.com/uk/news/turn-your-kindle-fire-into-an-android-4-2-tablet/ |title=Turn your Kindle Fire into an Android 4.2 tablet |newspaper=Cnet.com |date=June 21, 2013 |author=Rick Broida |access-date=March 7, 2016}}

In May 2022, Amazon announced the company were updating the foundation of the Fire Operating System. Amazon's next Fire 7 Tablet will come with the company's Fire OS called Fire OS 8, while Fire OS 7 has run on Android 9 since 2018, Fire OS 8 will be based on Android 11, described in the press as "a pretty significant upgrade to the foundational software currently powering Amazon tablets." With this development the company aims to introduce new user features such as a system-wide dark mode.{{cite web|website=The Verge|url=https://www.theverge.com/2022/5/20/23132470/amazon-fire-os-update-android-pie-10-11-tablets|title=Amazon's updating the foundation of Fire OS to something a bit more modern|date=20 May 2022|access-date=25 May 2022}}

Analysts had projected the device to be a strong competitor to Apple's iPad,{{cite web |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970204422404576597141076634146 |title=Amazon to Challenge iPad |first=John |last=Letzing |work=The Wall Street Journal |access-date=October 1, 2011 |date=September 28, 2011}} and that other Android device makers would suffer lost sales.{{cite web |url=http://www.thewrap.com/media/column-post/amazons-kindle-fire-will-vaporize-android-leave-apple-unscathed-33340 |title=Amazon's Kindle Fire Will 'Vaporize' Android But Leave Apple Unscathed |date=December 6, 2011 |website=The Wrap |access-date=March 18, 2013 |archive-date=March 13, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130313133617/http://www.thewrap.com/media/column-post/amazons-kindle-fire-will-vaporize-android-leave-apple-unscathed-33340 |url-status=dead }}{{Cite book |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2011/09/28/gene-munster-samsung-others-should-worry-about-kindle-fire.html |title=Gene Munster: Samsung, Others Should Worry about Kindle Fire |date=September 28, 2011 |editor=Lee Brodie |publisher=CNBC |access-date=September 9, 2017 |archive-date=October 27, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141027100223/http://www.cnbc.com/id/44707441/Gene_Munster_Samsung_Others_Should_Worry_about_Kindle_Fire |url-status=live }}

In a 2012 review published by Project Gutenberg, the Kindle Fire was called a "huge step back in freedom from the Kindle 3"; the reviewer noted that Amazon introduced a "deliberate limitation" into the Fire that didn't exist in the previous version: it is no longer possible to download free e-books from websites such as Project Gutenberg, Internet Archive and Google Books and have them stored permanently in the same places where books from Amazon are kept.{{cite web |url=http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Gutenberg:Kindle_Fire_Review |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130112063444/http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Gutenberg:Kindle_Fire_Review |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 12, 2013 |title=Kindle Fire Review |date=December 21, 2012 |publisher=Project Gutenberg |access-date=March 17, 2013 |quote=You can get free ebooks to the Fire too, but the process is so cumbersome that it isn't worth the trouble given the alternative of buying a Nexus 7, which handles free ebooks with ease. To be specific, there is no way to download free books from the web and have the Kindle Fire store them permanently or in the same places where your books from Amazon are kept. This was easy with the Kindle 3. No more.}}{{update after|2015|12|14}}

Customers began receiving Kindle Fires on November 15, 2011; in December 2012, customers had purchased over a million Kindle devices per week.{{cite web|title=Amazon Appstore Presentation at CES|url=http://www.amazonappstoredev.com/2012/01/amazon-appstore-presentation-at-ces.html|work=Amazon Appstore Developer Blog|access-date=January 7, 2012|date=January 6, 2012|archive-date=January 19, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120119092336/http://www.amazonappstoredev.com/2012/01/amazon-appstore-presentation-at-ces.html|url-status=dead}} International Data Corporation (IDC) estimated that the Kindle Fire sold about 4.7 million units during the fourth quarter of 2011.{{cite news|url=http://www.informationweek.com/news/hardware/handheld/232800453|title=iPad Mini: 6 Reasons Apple Must Do It|author=Thomas Claburn|work=InformationWeek|date=April 7, 2012|access-date=April 13, 2012|archive-date=April 9, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120409150724/http://www.informationweek.com/news/hardware/handheld/232800453|url-status=dead}}

The Amazon Kindle Fire helped the company beat their 2012 first quarter estimates and boosted the company's stock in extended trading.{{cite web|last=Nakashima|first=Ryan|title=Kindle Fire helps Amazon beat 1Q estimates|date=April 26, 2012 |url=https://news.yahoo.com/kindle-fire-helps-amazon-beat-1q-estimates-224100088--finance.html|publisher=Yahoo News -Tech|access-date=April 28, 2012}} As of May 2013, about 7 million units had been sold according to estimates. Statistics for FY2014 or Q1&2 2015 are not yet available.{{update after|2015|12|14}}

Up to the present, there have been many generations of Fire tablets spread across three different feature design lines: Fire, Fire HD, and Fire HDX.

Beyond this usage, Fire is also used for a range of media devices and for one generation of smart phone.

Overview on generations and models for all Fire (including Fire HD) tablet devices:{{cite web |title=Fire Tablet Device Specifications: Overview |url=https://developer.amazon.com/docs/fire-tablets/ft-device-specifications.html |website=developer.amazon.com |access-date=May 31, 2021}}

{{AmazonFireGenerations}}

Detailed specifications for Fire tablets:

Kindle Fire models (2011 - 2013)

Amazon Fire models (2014 and newer)

File:Wikipedia Kindle Fire 1442.JPG|The Kindle Fire in horizontal position displaying web page

|Kindle Fire {{Convert|7|in|abbr=on}} size relative to a hand

File:Wikipedia Kindle Fire & iPad 1439.JPG|The iPad (left) compared with the Kindle Fire (right)

File:Wikipedia Kindle Fire & iPod 1441.JPG|The Kindle Fire (left) compared with the iPod Touch (right)

File:1st gen Comparison iPad Mini & Google Nexus 7 & Kindle Fire Wikipedia screen 03 2013 6262.jpg|The Kindle Fire (left) compared with the iPad Mini (center) and the Nexus 7 (2012 version) (right)

{{Timeline of Amazon Fire Tablet models}}

{{reflist}}

• Fire HD, the 'mid-market' version of the Kindle Fire, with improved specifications, including higher resolution screens and improved processors running Fire OS since 4th generation and Android for the early models.
• Fire HDX, the 'high-end' version of the Kindle Fire, the mostly highly specified Fire, with improved resolution and faster processors running Fire OS for all models.
• Comparison of:
• Tablet computers
• E-book readers

{{Commons category|Amazon Kindle Fire}}

• [https://www.amazon.com/b/?ie=UTF8&node=6669703011 Fire Tablets] – home page on Amazon site
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20150926005631/https://developer.amazon.com/appsandservices/solutions/devices/kindle-fire/specifications/01-device-and-feature-specifications Amazon Fire - Device and Feature Specifications]
• [https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970204190504577040110511886588 Kindle Fire Review] at The Wall Street Journal

{{Amazon}}

{{Android tablets}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Amazon (company) hardware

Category:Android (operating system) devices

Category:Tablet computers introduced in 2011

Category:Touchscreen portable media players