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Consumer Reports joined Into Tomorrow this week to talk about Amazon’s $50 Fire Tablet:
After taking a first look at the 7-inch Amazon Fire tablet—by far the least-expensive tablet so far—we can tell you it’s a great deal. It’s no iPad, of course, but it stands up to other tablets that cost much more.
The Fire is not the most elegant piece of hardware. Its case is made of textured black plastic and feels kind of thick at 0.4 inches. But like many of the top tablets, the device weighs just under 0.7 pounds.
The display dims by about 50 percent when viewed at a 45-degree angle, and it didn’t do well in bright sunlight, but beyond that, it has a lot to offer. The color quality compares favorably to that of the Samsung Galaxy Tab S 2, a $400 tablet with an OLED display. And the 1024×600 resolution provides a respectable HD picture. Finally, it has enough processing power to play HD videos without a glitch.
Speaking of power, the Fire performed as well in our benchmark test as the Samsung Galaxy Tab A 9.7 ($300) and the LG G Pad F 8.0 ($250). It also displays better graphics than you’d expect from an inexpensive tablet.
For more info on this story, visit ConsumerReports.org.
Chris and listener Karl recommended their favorite apps:
MyIdol, FREE
I have not quite found the real use for this app, but MyIdol is probably one of the coolest apps I have found in a while. It allows you to make a 3D animated avatar using your face and interact with friends that have also used the app to create avatars. Basically, you import a picture of your face which it uses to create the general shape of the face, then you select a hairstyle, eye color, facial hair and so forth. Then it creates your avatar. You can also use the app to create animated emojis of yourself that you can send to your friends. One of the coolest things, though is that you can insert your avatar into some of their many pre-built scenes. Ever wanted to see yourself play the piano or pole dance? You can, in this app!
Google Keep, FREE
Google’s Keep for all those that have Google accounts it’s shareable notes. You can use them from an Android app, an iPad app, or from your Safari browser on your desktop. Share notes, grocery lists, music lists, book lists, very handy to do it on keep on all the different platforms.
