Kindle Fire

[Alecx]

I was thinking of buying a tablet for reading manga and watching some anime while travelling but I do have some questions about it :

1. Do you need to zoom-in in order to be able to read? (because of the 7" screen I am a bit afraid of this) - this is my main concern
2. Can you put in it like in any android device any files you want? (for example, I have a LG Optimus One and I can put .rar archives in it and extract them with it's built in program - I use Comic Reader MOBI to read but it's annoying , because I have to zoom in to see what's written in there...)

Also, a picture of the screen with a manga file open would be deeply apreciated!

[mrdkreka]

1. Size of screen doesn't make much different whatever you need to zoom in or not, what makes the different is the resolution on the display. 7 inch will give the screen a size close to that of a normal manga page, so this shouldn't be your concern. What you should aim after is a high resolution on the display, since that will give you enough pixels to display the pages. What decides if you have enough pixels are the resolutions of the images, and if the app know how to scale images correctly, the standard gallery in android does it pretty good, but I don't know if Comic Reader MOBI does it as well.
2. Not sure if it support all the different archive versions, since amazon are using a heavily modified and outdated version of android, that locks you to amazon services, and block google services like Play store.

I would recommend you to get the nexus 7 instead, it surpasses kindle fire in every way, and the more pixels will diffidently help you, when reading manga on your tablet. It cost the same and will be out in mid July, you can see a comparison here.

[Triltaison]

I would recommend you to get the nexus 7 instead, it surpasses kindle fire in every way, and the more pixels will diffidently help you, when reading manga on your tablet. It cost the same and will be out in mid July, you can see a comparison here.

That thing looks pretty snazzy. Thanks for the linkage. 

[Alecx]

I see. Thanks for that link. Unfortunately the Nexus ain't available in my country yet so I have to wait for it some more. Looks good though. Quad-Core + IPS screen at the same price of the Kindle. Thanks again!

Now. I would love to see a picture of the Kindle Fire with a manga opened in it. xD (to get a good impression of the screen size)

[FlyinPenguin]

I find 7" works splendidly for reading manga because it is easy to hold and I can still make everything out just fine. I find bigger devices just feel awkward to hold for a long time.

Have you looked at the Nook Tablet? It starts at the same price as the Fire but for an extra $50 you can get 16GB of memory (not sure if that option is available on the Fire). The Nook also has 1GB ram instead of 512.

Regardless of what you get. I would get rid of all that Amazon or BN crap. I'm not sure what roms are available on the Fire but I know CM7 is already on the Nook Tablet. Installing a custom rom will completely transform these devices into a much more functional and capable tablet. I removed the BN crap the first day when I bought my Nook Color and installed CM7. It is a completely different machine.

Installing a custom rom will release you from all the restrictions placed on you and will allow you to use a greater variety of file formats. Then you can use your .rar archives. If I'm not mistaken, the Play Store is blocked on both devices using the factory rom.

[wizisi2k]

there is no option for more storage on the Kindle Fire.  You get 8 GB and of that you can only use 6 GB.  It is worth nothing that IF you wanted to watch anime on it, you CAN watch 1080p stuff but I think only 1 audio track and if you want subs, you gotta hardsub.  I tested this out and it worked on the Kindle Fire we have (it downscales the 1080p to 1024x600)

[MTR]

I recently traded in a Samsung Galaxy Tab 7+ for a Netbook, but when I did have the tab, it was decent for manga and artbooks. Like wizsi2k said though, don't expect to play much anime on a tablet PC. Although space wasn't so much of an issue with the Galaxy Tab (16GB onboard with a 32GB MicroSD), the processing power just isn't there, and to my knowledge, the 7+ had more power than the Kindle Fire does. My netbook now plays anime much, much, much better than the tablet did. It did play semi-decently when I was streaming using Emit (it's an Android app similar to the Air Video feature in iOS products), but local playback left a lot to be desired, even with standard definition stuff. And multi-audio/soft subs were a mess both streaming and local.

I don't know how much you are for/against reading ebooks and manga off of a computer screen (I'm assuming you must not care that much if you are looking into the Kindle Fire since it doesn't use e-ink), but I suggest possibly looking into a Netbook. They are nearly as lightweight as a tablet would be and much more functional for just about everything.

[GoGeTa006]

from what I read apple is releasing a smaller-sized iPad for this holiday season, now before people start raging against apple, this rumor came out after the announcement of quite a bunch of 7-8" tablets that will be released by the end of the year. which means competition, which means lower prices, which means more options. . .

[Freedom Kira]

Seeing what Apple's been doing lately, I'd expect them to just try to sue all the competitors instead of making a competitive product.

[mrdkreka]

from what I read apple is releasing a smaller-sized iPad for this holiday season, now before people start raging against apple, this rumor came out after the announcement of quite a bunch of 7-8" tablets that will be released by the end of the year. which means competition, which means lower prices, which means more options. . .

It is the same rumor that came out last year, so probability of it being true are close to zero, since Apple won't bring out an Ipad mini, unless it is priced as the same as ipad 3. It would also be stupid to wait on something that haven't been confirmed, and considering it comes from a company that gets its main profit from hardware, they won't sell with loss like amazon, google and nook are doing with their tablets.

[lapa321]

from what I read apple is releasing a smaller-sized iPad for this holiday season, now before people start raging against apple, this rumor came out after the announcement of quite a bunch of 7-8" tablets that will be released by the end of the year. which means competition, which means lower prices, which means more options. . .

It is the same rumor that came out last year, so probability of it being true are close to zero, since Apple won't bring out an Ipad mini, unless it is priced as the same as ipad 3. It would also be stupid to wait on something that haven't been confirmed, and considering it comes from a company that gets its main profit from hardware, they won't sell with loss like amazon, google and nook are doing with their tablets.

Difference is that this time, the guy that says 'no', is six feet under. There a chance he took his policies down with him.

[Alecx]

Thanks to all of you! I really appreciate your help.

I will look into that Nook tablet (is the same price as the Fire , so I might give it a go). Regarding watching anime on a tablet. Even my LG Optimus One can play 720p videos pretty decent with a custom rom and 800mhz OC. I don't plan putting 1080p anime on my tablet  because I have my PC for that.

I won't buy Apple products because ITunes it's really restrictive.

[Alecx]

I eventually bought a Samsung Galaxy Tab2 7" . Unfortunately ,the Nexus 7 won't be available here until October..

The manga is easy to read if the tablet is around 20 to 30cm distance from my eyes. I don't feel the need to zoom in (only on the translator notes). I am quite joyful with the choice I made.

If there's interest , I could take pictures (12MPX) for future reference on 7" tablets.