Still, for those who have taken the plunge, Amazon continues providing software updates. Fire OS 4.6.1 includes a fair number of changes, but the largest is one Amazon doesn’t mention – it updates the underlying version of Android from 4.2 Jelly Bean to 4.4 KitKat. KitKat is still a year-and-a-half old at this point, but that’s a year newer than Jelly Bean, and it’s still the most-used version of Android according to Google’s developer dashboard.
Why anyone would buy these outdated Amazon frankendroid devices is beyond me.
I have a Fire phone I got for $199. I also subscribe to Amazon Prime. My reasoning was that I got a high quality phone for $100 since I was already going to renew my Amazon Prime.
Sure, at $649 it’s not worth it, but at $199 with a year of Prime it’s a bargain.
I’m with you. I don’t own a Fire Phone, still hanging on to my 3 year old Galaxy Nexus that I got for $350. Why part with $600 of my hard earned money on something like a phone? The Fire Phone does exactly what I want: makes phone calls, sends and receives texts, has a GPS and does basic web browsing. Why would I pay $600 for those things when I could pay only $200?
I’ve considered a Fire Phone, but will keep my Nexus until it dies.
Why anyone would buy these outdated Amazon frankendroid devices is beyond me.
Because it is an absolute bargain at $189 outright.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OC0USA6/ref=ods_gw_d_s3_phone?pf_rd_m=A…
Why anyone would buy these outdated Amazon frankendroid devices is beyond me.
Isn’t that the problem, no one is?
It’s because of Amazon Prime mostly, but I do use Kindle reader almost exclusively here.
It’s not the hardware, software or any of this that matters but what you can do with it and what services are offered to you as a consumer.
Is it possible to install a different software image on it? I would buy it in a heartbeat if it were to run Sailfish, FirefoxOS or Stock Android even…
I haven’t done this yet, but http://www.rom-lollipop.org/mp3-0/amazon-fire-phone-6453.html yes, it is possible to install Lolipop on it.
That was the final reason I bought the phone. I have had prime for years, and will have prime for years so to me the phone was $89. 89 bucks to try out Fire, and if all else fails I just install Lolipop is a no brainer for me.
That website does not look right. Those links don’t even point to an actual ROM when I click them. They talk about XDA without giving a link to all the info on XDA. I know the Fire Phone has been rooted but don’t know if the boot loader is unlocked. Including those screenshots can be from any Android phone. I really wouldn’t trust it.
You are correct. There are no “third party” roms for the Fire Phone yet. The boot loader is fairly locked down.
XDA Dev pages here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/fire-phone
Snap. You’re right.