Kindle Fire HDX 8.9", HDX Display, Wi-Fi, 16 GB - Includes Special Offers (Previous Generation - 3rd) | Best Tablets 2014

Kindle Fire HDX 8.9", HDX Display, Wi-Fi, 16 GB - Includes Special Offers (Previous Generation - 3rd)

CUSTOMER REVIEW



Updated 12/8/2014



One year in...



This review is for the the no-ad 64 GB wifi-only HDX 8.9.



I use a Galaxy S5 Android smartphone so the HDX is for media / web surfing / offline viewing for travel. Since I had already been using Amazon Prime and Prime Music it was a no brainer for me to use the HDX to fill the role of media / web surfing on a tablet.



Be informed about the download limitations to this device. Amazon has been adding clarification to this which should help would-be purchasers make a more informed opinion. This wasn't as obvious as it should have been when I ordered mine so they're listening which is good.



Be aware that their most popular Prime content *may* not be available to download (and save) to your HDX. You can save certain videos to your HDX but you won't know which ones until you buy an HDX and try it out. *** Edited 12/21/2013 You can now see a list of Prime movies and shows that can be downloaded to the device. That's an improvement and more clearly shows the available downloadable Prime content. +1 for Amazon. ***



I was also under the assumption that you could download as many videos as you'd like with the limiting factor being the memory capacity of the HDX. Also NOT the case. So again, I bought the larger capacity HDX under this assumption. That was dumb on my part as it turns out because you're not limited by storage capacity. You're limited the NUMBER of downloads you can have on your device. Kids' content can be really short so you may find yourself running into that limitation, but most people never will. Many people will opt up for the 64 GB device like I did only to find that 16 GB would likely do fine since it would be hard to download enough content to fill 64 GB, particularly on 'standard' resolution. As another commenter pointed out if you downloaded long movies in full HD perhaps you'd really want the bigger device. Which brings me to the final point.



The final criticism is that once you start watching content you have to finish watching the content within 48 hours or you need to reconnect to the internet. Again, I was surprised to find out that the content I downloaded expired. This is odd since you'd download because you were likely traveling to a location that didn't have wifi. Hopefully these criticisms lead to a more informed purchase decision on your part.



Here is the official word from Amazon which is indeed on their site and the purpose for my edit. I was unable to find this prior to my purchase and learned about it only after I acquired the device.



* Many (but not all as I note above) Prime Instant Video titles are also available for download on Kindle Fire HD 2nd Generation and Kindle Fire HDX devices. The detail page for each Prime Instant Video title indicates whether the title is available for download. You can download available titles to only two separate devices at one time. If you have already downloaded a title to two devices, you need to delete it from one of them before downloading it to another device.



* You can have a maximum of 25 total Prime Instant Video titles downloaded at a time across all devices associated with your Amazon.com account. While not all Prime Instant Video titles are available for download, the same videos may be available for rental or purchase from Amazon Instant Video, and rented or purchased titles can be downloaded to compatible devices.



* Viewing Period: If you have a Prime membership or Prime free trial, you can stream any video that is currently designated as a Prime Instant Video title on its detail page. You can watch Prime Instant Video titles that you've downloaded within a limited viewing period, which varies by title. A typical viewing period is either 48 hours after you start watching the title or 15 or 30 days after the download, whichever is earlier. We'll typically notify you when the viewing period for a title is close to expiring. After your Prime membership or Prime free trial expires or is cancelled, you cannot watch any Prime Instant Video titles unless you've also rented or purchased that title.



For about 9 months the camera on this device caused it to take weird pictures. It seems that along the way a firmware update fixed the camera problems I had earlier so this should not be a concern for users who use their tablet to take photos.



Amazon has made subtle improvements to this device over the past year. It's not 100% Android compliant and doesn't always run YouTube videos very well. Just hangs and you need to restart it. Other times w/ the same YouTube content it works. Weird. The interface has been improved and it has been reliable for the last year as an intermittent toy. This is the perfect device for a person new to tablets or heavily invested in Amazon Prime. The Prime interfaces are outstanding and the device is intuitive and easy to use. Is it better than an iPad? It's different. If you use Amazon a lot I'd give the HDX a try. If you use Apple all the time, an iPad may be a better choice. It's very personal and subjective.



Amazon really owes it to their faithful customers who purchase these devices to continue to clarify the Prime download experience and this will be a home run. I hope these comments help you ask good questions and help Amazon continue improve their product and content experience.