Amazon Introduces the Kindle Fire HD With Great New Features for Kids

by littleones.com, on September 7th, 2012

Make way for the Kindle Fire HD! This hot product just keeps getting hotter! Amazon has officially announced the new 2012 Kindle Fire HD, and updated the existing Kindle Fire, with great new features for kids. Amazon has improved the bestselling, kid-friendly tablet with not one, but 4 new and updated models. The new Kindle HD includes expanded children's book offerings, parental controls, a faster processor, stereo speakers, physical volume controls, improved color screen and best of all…a built-in front-facing camera. The new processor and graphic capabilities make the Kindle Fire HD even better for book reading, web browsing and support for the latest apps and games.

The Kindle Fire HD has improved upon many of the desirable features that were part of the original Kindle Fire. For kids this means a super easy to use, extra durable High-Definition wide touchscreen. With the newest updates, this tablet supports thousands of favorite children's books with vivid, full color illustrations. This improved display boasts an awesome 16 million colors. There are classics like Brown Bear, Curious George, numerous children's bestsellers, comic books, color magazines and more. In fact, the Kindle Fire has over one million books available for readers of all ages and abilities, and over 22 million movies, TV shows, books and other reading materials, apps and games.

Not only will the Kindle Fire HD be a great reading machine, it is a one stop source for children's entertainment. The Kindle Fire HD is designed to support the latest child's favorite apps and games, and the faster processor will improve gaming performance. And don't forget the choice of over 100,000 movies and TV shows including a wide selection of children's shows that you can download and enjoy. If your child still wants more, he can listen to selections from his very own music library or spend some time surfing the web using Silk, Amazon's super fast and easy to use web browser. With the new front-facing camera, Amazon has included Skype, making it possible to make high-definition video calls, great for staying in touch with friends and family. The Kindle HD models also include Dolby stereo speakers, improving the sound quality for movies, music and games.

Amazon has also updated the original Kindle Fire with a faster processor, improved battery life, and a new lower price of just $159.

For parents, Amazon will ship all new Kindle Fire models with Kindle FreeTime. Available in October 2012, Kindle FreeTime helps parents set limits on the use of the Kindle for their children. Parents can set daily limits on use, restrict games and videos, while leaving other capabilities available such as book reading. Further, parents can create a custom profile for each child, making it possible for children to have their own set of books and other titles. This is a great new capability, especially for families with multiple children that share a Kindle Fire at home or on the road.

Amazon has also included a new capability called Immersion Reading. With Immersion Reading, the Kindle Fire HD can synchronize a Kindle book with a companion audio book, provide real-time highlighting, and word-by-word synchronization between the audio and the text. Amazon offers almost 15,000 Kindle books with this capability that helps improve learning and comprehension.

Here is a rundown of the new Kindle Fire HD models as well as the updated Kindle Fire:

Kindle Fire HD 7"

Price: $199 (16GB version), $249 (32GB version)

Availability: Pre-order now, released on September 14, 2012

Less than one pound, 1280×720 (720p) widescreen, built-in front-facing camera, Dolby stereo speakers, 16GB or 32GB of storage, dual-band, dual-antenna Wi-Fi, dual core processor, 11 hour battery life.

Kindle Fire HD 8.9"

Price: $299 (16GB version), $369 (32GB version)

Availability: Pre-order now, released on November 20, 2012

8.9", 1920×1200 (1080p) widescreen, built-in front-facing camera, Dolby stereo speakers, 16GB or 32GB of storage, dual-band, dual-antenna Wi-Fi, 1.5Ghz dual core processor with Imagination PowerVR 3D graphics.

Kindle Fire HD 8.9" 4G LTE Wireless

Price: $499 (32GB version), $599 (64GB version)

Availability: Pre-order now, released on November 20, 2012

8.9", 1920×1200 (1080p) widescreen, built-in front-facing camera, built-in 4G LTE wireless, Dolby stereo speakers, 32GB or 64GB of storage, dual-band, dual-antenna Wi-Fi, 1.5Ghz dual core processor with Imagination PowerVR 3D graphics.

Updated Kindle Fire

Price: $159

Availability: Pre-order now, released on September 14, 2012

Less than one pound, 7" LCD display, 16GB of storage, built-in Wi-Fi, 40% faster performance than 2011 model, dual core processor, stereo speakers, 8.5 hour battery life.

As always, the Kindle Fire HD and Kindle Fire models are portable and are great for kids on the go. The 7" version weigh less than one pound and the 8.9" versions weigh 20 ounces, small enough and light enough to fit in children's backpacks, mom's handbags or just about anywhere. In addition, the bright, high-resolution screen is well-suited for young, developing readers, movie watchers and so much more.

Parents will love that the Kindle Fire is a sophisticated device that continues to grow with your child. It is so versatile that it can span the ages from tots to teens, making it a worthwhile investment for the family.

Best of all, the Amazon Kindle Fire costs less than its competitors, with a starting price of $159 for the 7" version, and $299 for the larger 8.9" version. Plus, if you subscribe to Amazon Prime, you gain access to wide selection of movies, TV shows, the Kindle Lending Library with over 180,000 titles, two day free Amazon shipping all the time, and your first month of Amazon Prime free! Amazon continues to offer a "premium product for a non-premium price." Still not convinced? Get all the details and see a demo for yourself at the Amazon Kindle Store.

On a final note, the Kindle Fire is once again guaranteed to be a hot holiday pick. Order yours at the Amazon Kindle Store before the 2012 holiday rush. If you're seriously thinking about purchasing one for your child or for yourself, move on it today before they are all gone. Still not sure… simply check out all the glowing reviews and newest product features for yourself.

Also see:

Kindle Fire: Recommended Full Color eBooks for Children (Ages 1-3)