Amazon to update Kindle Fire in two weeks

While Amazon’s Kindle Fire Android tablet might be receiving some mixed reviews from the tech community, the 7-inch tablet seems to be a success among consumers.

But the device isn’t without criticisms, most notably, from users complaining that its performance is leaving something to be desired. Users have trouble with the touch interface on the device, which is reportedly too small and results in tapping the wrong thing a little too often. The device’s web browser, which uses Amazon’s cloud-based Silk feature to help speed its performance, is also still slow enough that it has users complaining. Amazon is addressing those concerns, though, and says it plans to roll out some software updates for the device in the coming weeks.

The enhancements coming to the tablet will fix up a variety of things about the tablet, in areas like its web browser and touchscreen navigation responsiveness.

The over-the-air update to the Kindle Fire is due in less than two weeks, Amazon says. It’ll also give users the ability to choose what appears on the device’s navigation carousel and generally improve performance everywhere.

Amazon still isn’t saying just how many Kindle Fires it has sold, but it has said the number is “millions” and that it’s the most successful product the company has ever launched. It says it’s also building more to tablets to meet continued demand. The Kindle Fire is a cheap alternative to other Android tablets, and recently overtook the iPad to become Best Buy’s best-selling tablet.

Regardless of the reviews, the Kindle Fire has a lot going for it including its affordable price tag of $199, which undercuts almost every other tablet on the market by a couple hundred dollars. It also has a lot of brand recognition and the leverage of Amazon’s entire retail empire behind it, making it a solid way to consume media sold by Amazon.

It seems that Kindle Fire users are mixed on the tablet, but that’s apparently not slowing down sales. If Amazon can address some of the more fixable user-experience concerns, like the interface troubles and the browser speed, it seems likely that the Kindle Fire could become even more popular. Amazon has opened a door with the tablet, now it needs to keep that door open by patching the software and keeping customers happy.

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