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Kindle Fire HD 7"Having been an Android and iOS user for the past few years (iPod Touch, iPhone, Motorola Droid2, Samsung Galaxy S3, Kindle Touch, Motorola MotoACTV), I've been anxious to try a Kindle Fire. Going in, I knew it wouldn't be a pure Android ecosystem nor would it have the latest in hardware. I looked at the Google Nexus 7 (Asus) and a Google Nexus 10 as well as the Asus Transformer tablets. The positive aspects of those tablets mainly focus on the Android operating system. Since I'm a fairly heavy consumer of Amazon products and services, the Kindle Fire HD (KFHD) isn't a bad choice.It's easy to navigate, although the Carousel is rather annoying than useful. I prefer Android Ice Cream Sandwich or Jelly Bean as it allows far more flexibility and customization. That said, KFHD 7.2.3 is actually based on Android Ice Cream Sandwich, according to Antutu Benchmarks.The Silk Web Browser works much like any other Android browser, and the Kindle Fire integrates seamlessly with your Amazon Cloud services (books, music, movies, etc...) As a Prime member, I can also watch Prime movies in HD. For some unknown reason, Amazon does not allow Prime movies to be played in HD if using a PC - only devices such as the Roku, PS3, Xbox 360, and Kindle Fire allow playback in HD.The KFHD has a micro-USB and micro-HDMI port, with 3 buttons on the side for volume and power. I have a Belkin Chambray case that I first used, but it made the KFHD look and feel cheap. There are lots of cases on the market that use straps to hold the KFHD in place, and then another elastic strap to keep the cover in place. That just looks and feels cheesy. I opted to buy the Amazon KFHD leather case that uses the magnetic closure system. It is perfect! The magnetic flap is exactly what I was looking for! In addition, the buttons work perfectly through the case.The experience of watching a movie on the 7" screen isn't that great. I prefer watching movies on a larger TV. I also found that reading a book on the KFHD hurt my eyes almost immediately. The lighter background on a LCD causes more strain than the e-ink/pearl screen on the Kindle Touch/Paperwhite. So essentially the KFHD is really more useful for reading magazines, browsing the web, playing games, and perhaps watching a movie/listening to music on the go.The KFDH 7" has a dual-core 1.2 GHz processor with only 1GB of RAM. I can detect that it is slower than my Samsung Galaxy S3 (1.5 GHz dual-core with 2GB RAM), as it scores only about 6,500 points in Antutu while my Galaxy S3 is at 11,000 points. The screen on the KFHD is crisp. I am able to read magazines using Zinio. In the full page view, the text can be too small although it is good enough for me to skim to find interesting articles.Speaking of Zinio, the Amazon Appstore is probably the sorriest excuse for a marketplace that I've seen. Google Play has far more updated apps. The same apps in the Amazon Appstore are sometimes outdated by several generations, or they simply aren't in the Appstore. I had to sideload Zinio onto my KFHD.I opted to use a regular USB charger, and it takes awhile to fully charge the battery. However, in standby mode it sips power. Another good aspect with the Amazon Onyx case is that the magnetic closure puts the Kindle to sleep (or rather turns off the screen) when the cover is closed without having to do anything else. The battery life is acceptable - the screen is what uses the most power.Overall: 4/5 stars. I have to admit that it is overpriced for what it is, there are better Android-powered tablets (Nexus 7) at the same price point with more hardware power. The Amazon Appstore is sorely lacking compared to Google Play. The 1.2 GHz processor is fairly slow, and there's only 1 GB RAM. The lack of a SD card slot is also a mistake. If you want to read magazines without ever having to zoom in, the KFHD 8.9" or a 10" tablet is the answer, but I felt the 7" is suitable because it is smaller, lighter, and easier to handle.Bottom line is that if you're interested primarily in Amazon content, the Kindle Fire HD is for you. The 8.9" is best for reading magazines but the 7" suits me fine. If you plan to root the KFHD, you're better off just buying an Android Tablet like the Nexus 7. The Nexus 7 and other tablets have better hardware (more RAM, faster processor, SD card slot, etc...) 