Samsung I9070 Galaxy S Advance review: While-u-wait

Here's one to keep you busy while you wait for the Galaxy S III. One that may help the original Galaxy S finally take the hint and hang up its boots. The Galaxy S Advance is the next in a string of sequels looking to get the best afterburn out of Samsung's top-selling Android flagships.

Samsung I9070 Galaxy S Advance

The Samsung Galaxy S Advance could be spotted at this year's MWC along with other space-fillers like the Wave 3 and the Omnia W. Nothing wrong with either of those but the actual stars of the show were a couple of tablets and a new projector phone. Samsung had a rather underwhelming showing and used the venue to promote the hell out of their Galaxy Note.

Phoneblets and tablets must be higher on Samsung's agenda these days. Or they may've been asked to kindly abstain from major launches to give the Galaxy Nexus a good free run. Whatever the reason, the Galaxy S Advance comes at a dry time for the company in terms of major phone headlines.

Quad-band GSM and dual-band 3G support 14.4 Mbps HSDPA and 5.76 Mbps HSUPA support 4.0" 16M-color Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen of WVGA (480 x 800 pixel) resolution; Scratch-resistant coatingAndroid OS v2.3.6 with TouchWiz 4 launcher1 GHz dual-core Cortex-A9 CPU, Mali-400 MP GPU, 768MB of RAM 5 MP autofocus camera with a powerful LED flash, face and smile detection 720p HD video recording at 30fps Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n support; DLNA and Wi-Fi hotspotGPS with A-GPS connectivity; digital compass 8/16GB of inbuilt storage, microSD slot Accelerometer, gyroscope and proximity sensor Standard 3.5 mm audio jack microUSB portStereo Bluetooth v3.0 FM radio with RDS Gorilla Glass 1.3MP secondary camera Document editor File manager comes preinstalled No 1080p video recordingNo Super AMOLED Plus, pentile matrix display suffers pixelationNo dedicated camera keymicroSD card under the battery coverLaunches with Gingerbread

OK, life is a series of peaks and troughs and the S Advance finds itself at the low end of the oscillation. But it's by no means in need of being comforted and reassured. This is a rather solid package we're looking at, considering it'll be competing in the midrange. The combination of dual-core and Super AMOLED puts it in the elite company of the Note, the Nexus and the Galaxy S II.

Of course there's fine print in just about every deal. The AMOLED screen of the Galaxy S Advance is the PenTile variety and the WVGA resolution isn't the best there is. The NovaThor U8500 chipset is still to prove its worth and there's no commitment to ICS upgradability as yet.

The Galaxy S Advance at ours

Samsung are known for trying to rule any price segment by sheer numbers and the Galaxy S Advance gives them extra penetration in the upper midrange. What we're not sure about is whether they need all that depth. Having already seen the Galaxy R at work, it seems the S Advance doesn't offer that much more.

They're perhaps meant for different markets. The S Advance for example is expected to debut in Russia before seeing wider availability. Anyway, the S Advance and the Galaxy R look very similar on paper save for the screens and the chipsets. But we won't rush to judgments before we've run our usual benchmarks. No need to tell you they're coming up, but first we'll see about the design and build.

View the original article here

Sony Xperia S – Video Review

PhoneArena site has made a very comprehensive review of the brand new Xperia S, the new Android top phone by Sony. Check it out after the break.

[Via]

View the original article here

Sony Xperia S – Video Review

PhoneArena site has made a very comprehensive review of the brand new Xperia S, the new Android top phone by Sony. Check it out after the break.

[Via]

View the original article here

Samsung I9070 Galaxy S Advance review: While-u-wait

Here's one to keep you busy while you wait for the Galaxy S III. One that may help the original Galaxy S finally take the hint and hang up its boots. The Galaxy S Advance is the next in a string of sequels looking to get the best afterburn out of Samsung's top-selling Android flagships.

Samsung I9070 Galaxy S Advance

The Samsung Galaxy S Advance could be spotted at this year's MWC along with other space-fillers like the Wave 3 and the Omnia W. Nothing wrong with either of those but the actual stars of the show were a couple of tablets and a new projector phone. Samsung had a rather underwhelming showing and used the venue to promote the hell out of their Galaxy Note.

Phoneblets and tablets must be higher on Samsung's agenda these days. Or they may've been asked to kindly abstain from major launches to give the Galaxy Nexus a good free run. Whatever the reason, the Galaxy S Advance comes at a dry time for the company in terms of major phone headlines.

Quad-band GSM and dual-band 3G support 14.4 Mbps HSDPA and 5.76 Mbps HSUPA support 4.0" 16M-color Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen of WVGA (480 x 800 pixel) resolution; Scratch-resistant coatingAndroid OS v2.3.6 with TouchWiz 4 launcher1 GHz dual-core Cortex-A9 CPU, Mali-400 MP GPU, 768MB of RAM 5 MP autofocus camera with a powerful LED flash, face and smile detection 720p HD video recording at 30fps Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n support; DLNA and Wi-Fi hotspotGPS with A-GPS connectivity; digital compass 8/16GB of inbuilt storage, microSD slot Accelerometer, gyroscope and proximity sensor Standard 3.5 mm audio jack microUSB portStereo Bluetooth v3.0 FM radio with RDS Gorilla Glass 1.3MP secondary camera Document editor File manager comes preinstalled No 1080p video recordingNo Super AMOLED Plus, pentile matrix display suffers pixelationNo dedicated camera keymicroSD card under the battery coverLaunches with Gingerbread

OK, life is a series of peaks and troughs and the S Advance finds itself at the low end of the oscillation. But it's by no means in need of being comforted and reassured. This is a rather solid package we're looking at, considering it'll be competing in the midrange. The combination of dual-core and Super AMOLED puts it in the elite company of the Note, the Nexus and the Galaxy S II.

Of course there's fine print in just about every deal. The AMOLED screen of the Galaxy S Advance is the PenTile variety and the WVGA resolution isn't the best there is. The NovaThor U8500 chipset is still to prove its worth and there's no commitment to ICS upgradability as yet.

The Galaxy S Advance at ours

Samsung are known for trying to rule any price segment by sheer numbers and the Galaxy S Advance gives them extra penetration in the upper midrange. What we're not sure about is whether they need all that depth. Having already seen the Galaxy R at work, it seems the S Advance doesn't offer that much more.

They're perhaps meant for different markets. The S Advance for example is expected to debut in Russia before seeing wider availability. Anyway, the S Advance and the Galaxy R look very similar on paper save for the screens and the chipsets. But we won't rush to judgments before we've run our usual benchmarks. No need to tell you they're coming up, but first we'll see about the design and build.

View the original article here

Review: BlackBerry PlayBook 2.0 OS

(Nokia 5800, N8, E7, C7, N97, 5530, 5230, X6, Sony Ericsson Satio, Vivaz, Samsung i8910 HD, HTC devices etc.)

Visit the wallpaper section

Click here for the latest iPad / iPad 2 Wallpapers (1024x1024)

(Sony Ericsson / LG / Samsung / HTC / Nokia (N78, N79, N82, N85, N86, N95, N96 etc) Sony Ericsson X10 Mini / Pro etc)

Visit the wallpaper section

High-end Android devices such as the Nexus One, T-Mobile G2, HTC Desire, HTC Desire HD, HTC Desire Z, Motorola Droid Incredible, Acer Liquid, Samsung Galaxy S etc.

Visit the wallpaper section

First and second generation HTC products such as the HTC Hero, G1, Aria, Legend, G2 Magic, Aria, G1, Droid Eris etc, Mostly Android devices.

Visit the wallpaper section

Windows Phone 7 Devices including the Nokia Lumia 900, Nokia Lumia 800, Nokia Lumia 710, HTC 7 Surround, Samsung Focus, LG Optimus 7,LG Optimus Quantum, HTC TITAN, HTC TITAN II, HTC Arrive, HTC Radar, HTC Trophy, HTC 7 Pro.

Visit the wallpaper section

View the original article here

Huawei MediaPad review: On the rise

Huawei have been flexing their mobile manufacturing muscle lately and one of their latest creations, the 7" MediaPad Android tablet, is getting its high-res screen and aluminum unibody ready to take on the big boys.

Huawei MediaPad official pictures

The Huawei MediaPad skimps on almost no ingredient in a bid to challenge the best 7" tablets out there. Sure, it would have been great to have Android ICS out of the box, but the screen has WXGA resolution and 216ppi pixel density - almost as high as the 10.1" Asus Transformer Prime TF700T and its 224ppi 1920x1200 screen.

Not impressed yet? How about an aluminum unibody that's thinner and lighter than the plasticy Kindle Fire? What about some of these specs:

10.5mm slim aluminum unibody7.0" 256K-color IPS TFT capacitive touchscreen of WXGA resolution (1280 x 800 pixels)Weighs 390 gQualcomm MSM8260 chipset: Dual-core 1.2GHz ARM Cortex-A9 processor; 1GB of RAM; Adreno 220 GPUAndroid 3.2 Honeycomb, updateable to 4.0 Ice Cream SandwichQuad-band GPRS/EDGE and dual/tri-band 3G with HSPA connectivity (HSDPA, 14.4 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.76 Mbps)Voice calls, texts and MMS5 MP autofocus camera, 2592x1944 pixels, geotagging720p HD video recording @ 30 fps1.3 MP front-facing camera, 720p video recordingWi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, dual-band, Wi-Fi hotspotStereo Bluetooth v2.1microHDMI TV-out, USB host (adapter required)Standard 3.5 mm audio jack; Stereo speakers; SRS sound enhancement8 GB of built-in memory, 5.8 GB user accessiblemicroSD card slotAdobe Flash 11 supportGPS with A-GPS support; digital compass1080p DivX/XviD/MKV video supportAccelerometer and proximity sensor; three-axis Gyroscope sensorOffice document editor preinstalled4100 mAh Li-Po rechargeable batteryPoor cameraNon-replaceable batteryNo scratch-resistant screen surfaceNo LED flash

The Media Pad is certainly dressed to impress, but the name Huawei just doesn't have a premium ring to it. However, with the super-thin Huawei Ascend P1 S and now the MediaPad, Huawei is sending a clear message that they can successfully compete in the high end too.

Huawei MediaPad live pictures

The MediaPad shows no lack of ambition in Huawei. But how good were they at taking it from the blueprints to a finished product? Jump to the next page where we begin to find out.

View the original article here

Symbian App – Icon Hider – Review and Contest!

‘IconHider’ is a nice little app for your Symbian phones which will allow you to hide icons from your menu. It’s nice and simple app which doesn’t have too many flashy options yet does it’s job pretty well.

Developer: SymbianToys / Version Reviewed: 1.03 / Compatibility: 3rd FP1, 3rd FP2, 5th, S^1, Anna, Belle devices / Score: 80 / Buy

First impression of this little tiny app was pretty impressive as it doesn’t stay in memory to do it’s job and very light on your phone’s resources. It’s pretty quick and the graphics look good to your eyes.

App handling is quite easy as well, except for a few glitches which I will explain later in this review.

Let’s first discuss about the app’s layout. After you open the app, you are presented with two tabs on top.

First tab will provide following options:

Status – By default the app is disabled so this option will allow you to enable or later disable it again. Disabling it will unhide all hidden icons through this app.

Ghost Code – Default code is *0000* which you can only change after you bought the app.

Hidden Icons – This option will provide you a list of available apps icons to hide. Top second tab does the same thing and provide you all available icons to hide.

Trial Version (Buy Full Version) – This option will open a web page where you can buy the app. You may sometimes get Service Unavailable error but that could be just a temporary error and if you try again after some time, it will work. This happened with me.

Register – If you already bought the app, pressing this option will provide you two options to register this app. Using License ID or Using Code.

License ID – Contains 16 characters and is provided when the IMEI is not known. In this case, to complete the registration process an internet connection will be required. During the connection the IMEI will be provided to the server and it will be paired to the License ID. Usually, the License ID is provided for reviews and free licenses.

Registration Code – Contains 8 characters and is provided when the IMEI is known. It is already paired with the IMEI and the registration process can be completed offline without any internet connection. Usually, the Registration Code, is provided to all the regular purchases.

Customers need to put their IMEI while buying the app on the product’s page. After the payment will be completed, they will be redirected on a webpage and they will receive also an automatic email containing the Registration Code and the instructions to transform the Trial version in the Full version.

I tried with License ID which use your GPRS/3G/Wifi Data connection register the app.

Check Updates – Check for the latest version with developer’s server from within the app itself.

About (Icon Hider) – Shows the version number and some other useful info like how to invoke the app in case you hide the app itself.

Second tab as I already mentioned, will show you the list of available icons you can hide with this app.

Each app can be ‘checked’ to mark it as hidden and once you close the app the list of selected apps will be hidden. App will show you a warning pop up reminding you about your ghost code if you select Icon Hider to be hidden in case you forgot and then later start searching for the app’s icon itself.

Missing for the moment are options to sort system apps and manually installed apps or the apps already installed in phone’s software (Rom Apps).

Let’s talk about how the app works now.

If you are using a Trial version, app will only allow you to hide a single application’s icon and won’t allow you to change it’s security code/ghost code. Select the icon you want to hide and exit the app, icon will be hidden. Pretty simple, huh?

More fun begins after you buy the app as then you can hide unlimited no. of application’s icons and set your Ghost code to anything up to 6 digits. You can hide the Icon hider application icon too. Now to run it again, simply dial your ghost code using the phone’s dialer putting a * in front and in the end and dial the code, dialing will stop and Icon Hider will open.

I highlighted few missing areas or bugs in this version so that they can be fixed or incorporated in the future coming releases of this app.

Help Option – There should be a help option in each and every app whether it’s a simple or highly advanced app which up to certain points explain the functionality of the app as well as explain the available options to user. E.g. there is no info about how long the Ghost code could be set by user which I guess is 6 digits as when I tried to set it for more then that, app crashed. So in such cases a help option or a pop up asking user to enter only a limited number as Ghost code could be useful.

Unwanted application icon comes up as soon as you close the app very first time – (This may happen on selected firmware versions or Symbian OS versions)

When you first run Icon Hider and set the options, as soon as you close it, there will be an extra app in your menu named Signal Boost which I guess it a system app and needs to be hidden always as it’s for no use for a normal user because as soon as you click on that, it will show you a system error and disappear. If you are using a trial version, you can only hide it or the app itself or any other individual app as that’s the limit of the app itself. What I would suggest is when app first runs, it will save the list of already hidden apps and let them hidden always until the user selects them to unhidden and that’s why I suggested to have a category based list view where System apps and user installed apps can be categorized.

In developer’s words:

In some devices, like N8, Nokia have hidden some apps icons (don’t know exactly why, those app are still in beta stage).

After you install IconHider it will show them and you’ll be able to hide them again by marking them in the Hidden Icons panel.

NOTE: The Trial version can only hide 1 icon, so, in some devices like N8, users will not be able to hide them all again…

Of course, it is not intended to force users to buy the Full version, they can just uninstall the Trial version and the original configuration will be fully restored and those new icons will be hidden again.

The device will appear exactly as it was before the installation of IconHider.

The only purpose of the Trial version is just to give to the users the chance to try the software to verify that it does what it claims to do…

One last suggestion would be to put only one restriction on the trial version, either it’s to hide only one icon or disabling of changing ghost code.

Thanks to Marco Bellino (Il.Socio) for making this review possible and nicesoni_ash for making it.

The greatest news to our members is that Marco Bellino also gave us 11 licenses to giveaway to our members! If you want to win one of these licenses, head to this Topic and read the Rules on How to Participate in this Contest!

View the original article here

App Review: Lloyds TSB Mobile Banking Android App.

I cannot remember when last I stepped into a bank and that is because I do all my banking online.

I have been banking with Lloyds TSB for the past 12 years and have never experienced a problem with them. Over the years their website has changed with the times and has become very user friendly and a pleasure to use. So naturally when I got my Samsung Galaxy S II, I was hoping there was going to be a Lloyds TSB Android App.

I logged into the Android Market and searched for Lloyds TSB and up it came, but to my dismay it only had a 3 star rating. I was slightly disappointed to read through the comments and see people complaining about the user interface and performance.  I decided I would install it and keep an open mind. Here are my thoughts on the Lloyds TSB Mobile Banking Android app.

The app loads up into a pleasant green screen that is synonymous with the Lloyds TSB theme colours.  The front page has some useful quick links such as:

An ATM near me (uses the GPS to find automatic teller machines).A Branch near me (uses the GPS to find a Lloyds TSB branch).ATM/Branch by address or Postcode.

Clicking into the Advanced Search menu gives extra options for ATM’s or Branches or Both which can be checked such as:

Open now, open on weekends, No fee to use ATM,Accessible via wheelchair, Mobile Phone top-up, Audio assistance & Tactile assistance.

The Login screen is exactly the same as the desktop website with a User ID and Password. There is a checkbox that allows one to save the User ID (useful). After successfully entering the username and password there is an added security screen asking for 3 characters of a memorable password. On my SGS2 accessing the letters or numbers was very easy and it was difficult to make a mistake because each character had to be accepted before moving onto the next one.  I know other banking sites do not have this level of security, instead have a unique pin for quick access. Lloyds TSB take their security very seriously, and I am glad they chose to stick with the same security formula as their desktop website.

Once logged in successfully the interface is very much like the desktop be it in a smaller compact view. It is very easy on the eyes and on the fingers. One is able to see all your accounts in a clear order (current account at the top and all subsequent accounts below). I have a quite a few accounts with Lloyds including a loan, a credit card and various savings and an ISA accounts and they all listed. Each view shows the account name, the sort code, account number and the balance.

Tapping into an account shows a bit more detail such as the Money Available, Overdraft limit and there are options to Make Payment, Make Transfer and extend overdraft. Below this is statement showing the latest 10 entries and there is an option to see even more statements. There is also some quick links at the bottom to my other accounts, help, a link to the desktop view, a contact us link and a log out button.

One thing I noticed is that the app adopts the three-click rule, which according to Wikipedia is;

The unofficial web design rule concerning the design of website navigation. It suggests that a user of a website or app in this case, should be able to find any information with no more than three mouse clicks. It is based on the belief that users of a site will become frustrated and often leave if they cannot find the information within the three clicks.

Since every option has less than 3 taps the user experience is perfect and movement around the screens is very quick. I am not sure what people are complaining about in terms of speed and performance. I found I could do everything the desktop version could do with the added advantage of banking where ever I had data access, for example on the train, in the car park, in a coffee shop, in a waiting room etc, the possibilities are endless. Failing all of the above I have the option to access the desktop version.

My rating for the Lloyds TSB Banking app is 5/5. If I were to ask Lloyds TSB for one thing it would be to have the ability to send money from my mobile phone number to another mobile phone number. Barclays are currently rolling out Pingit, which is exactly that. I am sure Lloyds will see this app to be very popular and will follow suit.

You can download the Lloyds TSB Mobile Banking app in the Android Market.

Mike Bowen
A late nighter, formula 1 mad, a married man, a N900 geek, Android, a gaming man, a website builder, an honest man, a UK citizen, a music lover, a positive person, a logical thinker, a practical joker, an application support team leader, a gambler, my Smartphone is a SGS2, a keen photographer, a hard worker, a world traveller, a cat man, a blogger, a patient man, a beer drinker, a simple eater, a fun person to be around!
http://www.mysgs2.com

View the original article here

Amazon Kindle Fire review: Midnight oil

Like the world needs another 7" Android tablet. Well, maybe it does. Or (more likely), it doesn't. No matter where you stand, the Kindle Fire couldn't be less relevant to this debate. It isn't just another Android tablet. It's a hardware Amazon account, 7 inches tall by 5 inches wide. If tablets are for fun and laptops are for work, the Kindle Fire is for shopping.

Amazon Kindle Fire official pictures

If you put Amazon and the Kindle Fire in a multiple choice question, the answer won't be A) Because everyone else is doing it. It's more like B) We need to do for music, videos, apps and games what Kindle does for books. Simple as that.

The Kindle Fire isn't about versatility in an ultra-portable form factor. Some tablets are. The Fire isn't desperate to unsettle Apple's iPad. Some Android tablets are. We'll say it again. The Kindle Fire isn't your average Android tablet. In a way, it isn't your tablet. Well, yes, it's yours to have but the content to enjoy on it is Amazon's to sell.

7" 16:9 IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen of WSVGA resolution (1024 x 600) pixels Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n connectivity1GHz dual-core Cortex-A9 CPU, PowerVR SGX540 GPU, TI OMAP 4430 chipsetLicense-free Android-based OS8GB of on-board storage, free cloud storage for all Amazon contentWeight of 413 gramsAccelerometerExcellent HTML5 browser Adobe Flash support, Flash videos up to 720pStandard microUSB port, mass storage 3.5mm audio jackNo 3G No memory card slot, limited inbuilt storageReflective screen of poor brightness Very limited video codec supportNo cameraNo physical volume controlsNon replaceable batteryNo native Google apps, no access to the Android MarketSome features unavailable without an Amazon Prime accountVideo streaming not available outside US

The Kindle Fire is not an e-reader. It's a multimedia device with web browsing and email - and that's a lot more than an e-book reader. Yet, the backlit LCD screen is obviously no match for e-ink. The Kindle Fire is touted as a reading device - as much as it's for Internet browsing, listening and watching. If it's mags and comics, we'd agree. For e-books, any other Kindle would do a much better job. The Fire is actually for users who have a Kindle already. It's an addition - not a replacement - to any generation of Amazon's e-ink devices.

An older-gen Kindle e-reader and a Fire combined cost less than most tablets out there. The Kindle is so cheap because it lacks many basic features. The sub-200 dollar price tag is meant to encourage Amazon subscribers to keep on shopping for music, video, apps and games as they've been for books on their Kindle readers.

Amazon Kindle Fire live pictures

On the other hand, the shocking lack of features (in what's technically an Android tablet) is meant to discourage bargain-hunters who have no intention of ever buying Amazon's content.

The Kindle Fire is not competing with Samsung, LG or any other maker of Android tablets. Amazon's profit is not in the hardware they ship, they sell digital content. Amazon is not racing with Apple's iPads and iPod Touch. They're after Apple's iTunes.

We know this doesn't make the Kindle Fire's limitations more palatable. But maybe it helps have the right kind of expectations about the device. The Fire is a nice and easy gadget, which is meant to bring a huge catalog of digital content a click away. Not the dirty cheap tablet some may have been hoping for.

View the original article here

Amazon Kindle Fire review: Midnight oil

Like the world needs another 7" Android tablet. Well, maybe it does. Or (more likely), it doesn't. No matter where you stand, the Kindle Fire couldn't be less relevant to this debate. It isn't just another Android tablet. It's a hardware Amazon account, 7 inches tall by 5 inches wide. If tablets are for fun and laptops are for work, the Kindle Fire is for shopping.

Amazon Kindle Fire official pictures

If you put Amazon and the Kindle Fire in a multiple choice question, the answer won't be A) Because everyone else is doing it. It's more like B) We need to do for music, videos, apps and games what Kindle does for books. Simple as that.

The Kindle Fire isn't about versatility in an ultra-portable form factor. Some tablets are. The Fire isn't desperate to unsettle Apple's iPad. Some Android tablets are. We'll say it again. The Kindle Fire isn't your average Android tablet. In a way, it isn't your tablet. Well, yes, it's yours to have but the content to enjoy on it is Amazon's to sell.

7" 16:9 IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen of WSVGA resolution (1024 x 600) pixels Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n connectivity1GHz dual-core Cortex-A9 CPU, PowerVR SGX540 GPU, TI OMAP 4430 chipsetLicense-free Android-based OS8GB of on-board storage, free cloud storage for all Amazon contentWeight of 413 gramsAccelerometerExcellent HTML5 browser Adobe Flash support, Flash videos up to 720pStandard microUSB port, mass storage 3.5mm audio jackNo 3G No memory card slot, limited inbuilt storageReflective screen of poor brightness Very limited video codec supportNo cameraNo physical volume controlsNon replaceable batteryNo native Google apps, no access to the Android MarketSome features unavailable without an Amazon Prime accountVideo streaming not available outside US

The Kindle Fire is not an e-reader. It's a multimedia device with web browsing and email - and that's a lot more than an e-book reader. Yet, the backlit LCD screen is obviously no match for e-ink. The Kindle Fire is touted as a reading device - as much as it's for Internet browsing, listening and watching. If it's mags and comics, we'd agree. For e-books, any other Kindle would do a much better job. The Fire is actually for users who have a Kindle already. It's an addition - not a replacement - to any generation of Amazon's e-ink devices.

An older-gen Kindle e-reader and a Fire combined cost less than most tablets out there. The Kindle is so cheap because it lacks many basic features. The sub-200 dollar price tag is meant to encourage Amazon subscribers to keep on shopping for music, video, apps and games as they've been for books on their Kindle readers.

Amazon Kindle Fire live pictures

On the other hand, the shocking lack of features (in what's technically an Android tablet) is meant to discourage bargain-hunters who have no intention of ever buying Amazon's content.

The Kindle Fire is not competing with Samsung, LG or any other maker of Android tablets. Amazon's profit is not in the hardware they ship, they sell digital content. Amazon is not racing with Apple's iPads and iPod Touch. They're after Apple's iTunes.

We know this doesn't make the Kindle Fire's limitations more palatable. But maybe it helps have the right kind of expectations about the device. The Fire is a nice and easy gadget, which is meant to bring a huge catalog of digital content a click away. Not the dirty cheap tablet some may have been hoping for.

View the original article here