Kindle Fire HD Kids Edition 7-inch tablet comes with 16GB of storage and gives you full parental controls, while allowing your kids to learn, grow and have fun using the latest portable technology. The tablet lets you personalise screen time limits, set educational goals and gives age-appropriate content. This is a full Amazon Fire HD 6 with extra child profiles and full parental controls for age 3+.
DESIGN:
The tablet is a nice size and weight for smaller hands and with the included lightweight Kid-Proof case, seems to magically reduce the weight of the tablet – it feels much lighter and nicely balanced. The tablet is black and looks and feels very robust with a scratch-resistant Gorilla glass display, which has a wider black edge on the horizontal so your child can hold it without accidentally touching the touchscreen.
PERFORMANCE & USABILITY:
With a quad-core processor and 1GB RAM (memory) the screen is clear and very responsive without any lag. The HD display is a pleasure to read books, watch movies and play games. And the use of a very clean font is easy on the eye offers good usability to navigate around the tablet’s many great features. With the addition of a swipe input keyboard ensures fast and efficient input on the Silk browser, email or Amazon store. The battery capacity is also really good, it lasted over 28 hours on its first full charge, 2.4 hours to charge from flat via mains charger. The tablet connects to WiFi and Bluetooth devices in seconds and works flawlessly with various Bluetooth speakers and earphones I have. Supported Profiles; AZDP, AVRCP, HID, SPP. The Dolby sound is pretty good.
KID-PROOF CASE:
The included bump-proof blue case (also available in pink) is a lovely sky blue colour and the extra padded design ensures the tablet bounces when dropped which protects it from bangs, bumps and bruises. Superb design, not too bulky and has all of the necessary cut-outs for the Power Button, Volume Controls, Rear Camera, Speaker, Mic, 3.5mm Headphone Jack and Charge Port. And for peace of mind the Fire HD comes with a 2 year worry-free guarantee. It’s a seriously good device at a good price and the kids are absolutely loving it.
OUT OF THE BOX:
The first thing you notice is the lovely presentation, the device is beautifully packaged. In the box is the Kindle Fire HD, USB Charge/Transfer Lead, Mains Socket and User Guide. Just opening the box and the kids were more than excited, the whole experience was fun and the product just looks top notch. I have various tablets and kindles and yes I am now officially jealous of the kids’ Fire HD.
PROFILES:
The default adult profile is setup out of the box and linked to your main Amazon account – this is a full Fire HD account with no limitations. In total you can have 2 Adult profiles and 4 Child profiles. Child accounts are set-up and controlled by this main account. Child profiles have 2 options; Under 8 or Age 9 and over and the content is automatically matched for the age group selected. For kids you select a name, password, age group and add a photo.
MENUS:
– Adults Media Menu: Shop, Games, Apps, Books, Music, Videos, Newsstand, Audiobooks, Web, Photos, Docs
– Adults Main: Silk Browser, E-Mail, Help, Fire for Kids, Camera, Shop Amazon, Calender, Firefly, Instant Video, Clock, Contacts
– Child (8 Under): Books, Videos, Apps, Camera, Characters (*no music)
– Kids (9 Over): Books, Videos, Apps, Camera (*no music)
*Amazon say they have received feedback on not having a Music menu within the Child Profiles and will respond accordingly. So we may see ‘Music’ added in a subsequent firmware update.
ADULT CONTROL:
The tablet, offers the ability to control what your child can view and it’s easy to set up educational goals and time limits, so they don’t over use technology, yet get the benefits. For example, if your child will read a book for 15 minutes, they can watch a movie as a reward. With an option for Weekdays or Weekends with different options for each. You can also put a block on browser usage, payments and social media so they don’t hit your Amazon account with unnecessary purchases. This is set up as default and simple to turn on and off in Settings > Parental Controls. There is also an activity monitor allowing you to keep on top of what, when and where your child goes and gets up to on the tablet. Notifications are key to this activity and can be accessed by swiping down from the top of the screen and are displayed on the Quick Actions Menu.
FIRE FOR KIDS UNLIMITED & PRIME:
Included with the Fire HD Kids Edition is a year of Fire for Kids Unlimited, which gives us unlimited access to tons of books, video, games, and apps. Lots of the kids favourite characters (mine too) are available including Angelina Ballerina, Dora the Explorer, Fireman Sam, Lego, Mr. Men, Harry Potter, Noddy, Pingu, Smurfs, The Penguins of Madagascar, Shaun the Sheep, Thomas & Friends, plus tons more. The titles are age-appropriate and match the Kids profiles so you don’t have to worry about approving every title. If you are a Prime member you have access to the full Amazon Instant Video catalogue.
WATCHING VIDEOS OFFLINE:
You can download select Prime videos & TV Shows for Adults and kids to watch offline (without WiFi). But only from the adult account. You have parental controls accessible from the Settings menu found in both the adult account and child accounts (secured with password), look for “Add Content to Your Child’s Library” and here you can determine the content available on each Kids Profile. Unfortunately videos downloaded from Prime or added yourself onto the device are not accessible in the Kids profiles.
CAMERA & PHOTOS:
The Fire HD 6 tablet has a 2MP Rear Camera, VGA Front-Facing Camera & Child-Safe Camera App. The ‘Photos’ menu offers easy to use camera and video controls and quite a few options including; take picture, record video, switch between front and back cameras, view all images and sort by date taken or uploaded, slideshow, HDR (High Dynamic Range), Image Review, Panorama, Lenticular. Plus options to share, edit, print, image info and upload to Cloud Drive (from where you can download to PC or Mac). When editing images you have a myriad of options to do all kinds of fun and creative things. Videos are recorded as MP4.
APPS:
There are a few hundred thousand apps available at the time of writing and you can filter by category such as Free, Games, Kids, Magazines, Productivity, Sports, etc. To download the apps which is done from within the main adult account; From main screen > Shop > Apps … And to allow access to the app within each specific child profile you; Swipe Down from Top of Screen > Settings > Parental Controls > Manage ‘Your Child’s’ Profile > Manage Child’s Content > Check the Box on the App. *At the time of writing (28/06/15) the iPlayer app is not compatible with this device.
I rip DVD’s with Magic DVD Ripper (works for me) and I’ve played .avi, .mp4 and .wmv formats. When you copy them to the device add them to the ‘Movies’ folder and they will appear under the ‘Photos’ menu on the Fire HD, not the ‘Videos’ menu which is reserved for Amazon Instant Video. If you download the VLC app (or other video app) from the Amazon Appstore this is the best way to watch videos. Other ways may fail to play the videos.
FIREFLY:
Helps you identify physical products and use barcodes, QR codes and make purchases. Also music and videos, think Shazam. Adult Account > FireFly > Select Music or Video which is currently playing to identify. Alternatively point the camera at the product or barcode/QR code and it will find your product for sale. You can of course buy it on Amazon or add to your Amazon Wish List. Bar codes are accurate, products not always if the product is not in the Amazon catalogue.
[RAB]
ADD YOUR OWN CONTENT:
Books, Docs, Music and Videos, can be transferred from PC or Mac to your Fire HD and will be stored on the device and will also be added to Amazon Cloud Drive. Music can also be imported to your Amazon Music library. Connect the Fire to your (PC) and the tablet will appear as “Fire” under ‘Computer’ or ‘This PC’ (Windows 8) and copy and paste your supported files into the appropriate folders as seen below. For (Mac) you’ll need to download the Android File Transfer App. Go to Kindle.com/support/downloads for the Mac app. Save the app to your desktop, open it and transfer files onto your Fire. Android File Transfer also shows as a Device under Finder.
STORAGE:
8GB or 16GB? If you plan on adding lots of videos and music to the tablet, I’d consider the larger hard drive option as 8GB of space ran out very fast for me.
VIDEOS:
I rip DVD’s with Magic DVD Ripper (works for me) and I’ve transferred and played .avi, .mp4 and .wmv formats on the Fire HD. When you copy them to the device add them to the ‘Movies’ folder and they will appear under the ‘Photos’ menu on the Fire HD, not the ‘Videos’ menu which is reserved for Amazon Instant Video. If you download the VLC app (or other video app) from the Amazon Appstore this is the best way to watch videos, accessible from the main adult screen. Other ways may fail to play the videos.
FIRE FOLDERS & SUPPORTED FORMATS:
Audiobooks: AA, AAX
Books: AZW, (.azw3), Mobi (non-DRM), KF8
Documents: TXT, PDF, PRC DOC, DOCX, HTML5, CSS3
Music: MP3, Non-DRM AAC (.m4a), MIDI, PCM/WAVE, OGG, WAV, AC-3, E-AC-3, AMR-NB, AMRWB
Pictures: JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP
Movies: MP4, 3GP, VP8 (.webm), M4V, MKV
Note: Remember to switch from ‘Cloud’ to ‘Device’ on the top menu to see content you have transferred from your PC or Mac to the Kindle.
SETTINGS MENUS:
There is one in the Adults account and one in the Child accounts. Both menus have a plethora of options including; Set parental controls, manage profiles, change security settings, notifications, sync paid for items to the device, manage your account, get help, manage profiles, update the firmware, edit display and keyboard options, change the language, edit parental controls, find the device serial number, etc. To access this menu from the main adult account, swipe down from the top of the screen and click ‘Settings’.
ADDITIONAL TIPS:
– When you switch the device on from new I recommend a software update. Swipe down from the top of the screen > Settings > Device Options > System Updates. Should remove a few bugs.
– When connecting the device to your PC to transfer files across, you need to enter your password to view the “Internal storage” folder. You may need to disconnect and reconnect the USB lead again, for it to appear under “This PC”.
– Lots of parental control options in ‘Settings’ > ‘Parental Controls’. You can manage profiles and also block or unblock: Web Browser, Email, Contacts, Calenders, Social Sharing, Camera, Maps, Firefly, Amazon Stores and password protect purchases.
– Editing Images: – Remember to click ‘Apply’ to save your photo edits and to continue to view and use the edit menu.
– To Exit full screen mode from apps, books and movies for example; swipe down from the top or right of the screen. Alternatively you may have to tap the centre of the screen once, then click the home icon.
– To Exit child profiles swipe down from the top of the screen.
– To Export a photo from the tablet. Save and upload to Amazon Cloud Drive and then download to your desktop or device.
– User Guide: Adult Profile > Help > User Guide. Be aware the User Guide is generic and I believe covers all Kindle Fires. I’ve found a few features listed which are not on the device.
– Connect to WiFi: In the Adult Account > Swipe down from top of screen > Wireless > Ensure Aeroplane Mode is Off > Wi-Fi > On > Select your network > Enter password if required
– Connect Bluetooth devices such as headphones and speakers: Turn on Bluetooth on your accessory > On the Fire HD Tablet and in the Adult Account > Swipe down from top of screen > Wireless > Bluetooth > On > Pair a Bluetooth device > Select your device.
– Display Mirroring: Even though the manual mentions this feature, it is not available. Your only option to mirror the tablet to TV is by using a SlimPort Adapter.
KEY FEATURES:
– 6-inch HD Display with Gorilla Glass Screen
– 8GB (4.5GB available) or 16GB (11.6 GB available) storage space, plus Unlimited Cloud Drive storage for photos.
– Quad-Core Processor, 1GB RAM
– 2MP Rear Camera & VGA Front-Facing Camera
– Dolby Audio
– 1080P HD Video Recording
– Supported Bluetooth Profiles: A2DP, AVRCP, HID, SPP (with Supported Profiles: A2DP compatible stereo headphones, speakers, microphone, and LE accessories support)
– Free Unlimited Cloud Storage
– Firefly (A Feature That Lets You Identify (And Buy!) Things You See In The Real World). Think Shazam for music and movies. Ability to buy or add products to Amazon Wish List.
– Blocked from Posting Photos to Social Media
– Parents can use normal Fire HD profile (without limitations). This controls the Child accounts.
– 4 Individual Personalised Child Profiles (for multiple kids)
– Fire For Kids Unlimited (selection of kids friendly: books, videos apps and games) based on age group.
– 2 Kids Accounts: Under Age 8 and Age 9 and Above
– Setting of Educational Goals
– Screen Time Limits
– SlimPort-enabled USB 2.0 (Connect your Fire HD to a TV using an additional SlimPort adapter)
– Blocking of online shopping, in-app purchases, web browser, e-mail and social media (Set as Default)
– Boot Time: Approx 20 seconds
– Battery Life: 24 Hours +
– Charge Time: 2 hours 40 mins via mains charger. (0 to 100%)
– Dimensions Tablet: L168 x W101 x D10mm
– Dimensions Case: L188 x W123 x D25mm
– Weight Tablet: 288g
– Weight Case: 67g
– Warranty: 2 Year
IN THE BOX:
– 6-inch Kindle Fire HD Kids Edition Tablet
– USB to Micro USB Charge Lead
– Mains Charge Plug
– User Guide
