I am looking to get a tablet for use with the DnD Beyond app and the web browser version of the service as well. My phone is mighty powerful enough to run both of those but the screen size leaves something to be desired. My budget for a device though isn't very high and the Fire 7 is about the cheapest you'll find, especially with the sales Amazon usually runs. The tablet isn't that great hardware-wise but it's cheap.
Does anyone have experience using the Fire 7 for DnD Beyond? With it's resolution and size how does it render on the screen? Does it load in a reasonable timeframe?
That being said, there is a way to put the Google Play Store onto Fire tablets. Here is a pretty straightforward guide if you want to give it a try yourself.
I have a Fire 7 and it works well. The screen size/resolution is large enough that when it is sideways it shows the full character sheet, not the reduced view that is shown on a phone. You will have to add the google playstore as mentioned above to use the app. Once you go through that it's pretty straightforward to use.
I have a Fire 7 and it works well. The screen size/resolution is large enough that when it is sideways it shows the full character sheet, not the reduced view that is shown on a phone. You will have to add the google playstore as mentioned above to use the app. Once you go through that it's pretty straightforward to use.
Does it only show the full view when tilted horizontally? Does it work fine forcing it into desktop view?
The full view is only horizontal. It shows everything from left to right, and you have to scroll down to see the bottom half of the sheet. Vertically, it shows a slightly expanded view of what a phone shows.
You can't force a desktop view. It's all based on screen size and resolution.
Another +1 here for the Kindle Fire 7, HD 8 and HD 10 - all of which I have personally used. All work wonderfully for DDB via the website and the app works well once you've got Google Play Store on it, which is easy peasy to do. The app initially takes a few seconds to load, but works well once started.
I did end up buying a Fire 7. It works decently enough for the website and the app. If you switch between them enough or run other apps or websites they will have to reinitialize every so often due to the low amount of RAM in the tablet but otherwise it seems to work just fine for the budget price that it is. I do wish that the Fire 7's screen and resolution was a tad higher to fit the expanded view (I'll call it "medium") of the character sheet but it is definitely a step up from my smaller phone screen even though my phone can run circles around the Fire 7 performance-wise. If you really wanted you could force the desktop site page for the character sheet and use that.
I put chrome on it and initially used it to access DnDBeyond, but found that the pre-loaded internet browser (don't remember the name) performs a little better. But yeah, it can be a bit sluggish if you're flipping back and forth between applications.
I have used a variety of tablets over the years. I am not a fan of Apple Products. BUT they do, in my opinion, make the best tablets. I run the DNDB web site and app from mine quite often. Granted I have not used a Surface.
I have used a variety of tablets over the years. I am not a fan of Apple Products. BUT they do, in my opinion, make the best tablets. I run the DNDB web site and app from mine quite often. Granted I have not used a Surface.
Yeah, iPads are very good but also cost a lot more than a cheap Amazon Fire tablet does.
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I am looking to get a tablet for use with the DnD Beyond app and the web browser version of the service as well. My phone is mighty powerful enough to run both of those but the screen size leaves something to be desired. My budget for a device though isn't very high and the Fire 7 is about the cheapest you'll find, especially with the sales Amazon usually runs. The tablet isn't that great hardware-wise but it's cheap.
Does anyone have experience using the Fire 7 for DnD Beyond? With it's resolution and size how does it render on the screen? Does it load in a reasonable timeframe?
I believe that the DDB app isn't available in the Kindle Fire app store, so you maybe limited to the web app version only.
Find my D&D Beyond articles here
That being said, there is a way to put the Google Play Store onto Fire tablets. Here is a pretty straightforward guide if you want to give it a try yourself.
I have a Fire 7 and it works well. The screen size/resolution is large enough that when it is sideways it shows the full character sheet, not the reduced view that is shown on a phone. You will have to add the google playstore as mentioned above to use the app. Once you go through that it's pretty straightforward to use.
I will for sure be sideloading Google Play and services.
Does it only show the full view when tilted horizontally? Does it work fine forcing it into desktop view?
The full view is only horizontal. It shows everything from left to right, and you have to scroll down to see the bottom half of the sheet. Vertically, it shows a slightly expanded view of what a phone shows.
You can't force a desktop view. It's all based on screen size and resolution.
Another +1 here for the Kindle Fire 7, HD 8 and HD 10 - all of which I have personally used. All work wonderfully for DDB via the website and the app works well once you've got Google Play Store on it, which is easy peasy to do. The app initially takes a few seconds to load, but works well once started.
I did end up buying a Fire 7. It works decently enough for the website and the app. If you switch between them enough or run other apps or websites they will have to reinitialize every so often due to the low amount of RAM in the tablet but otherwise it seems to work just fine for the budget price that it is. I do wish that the Fire 7's screen and resolution was a tad higher to fit the expanded view (I'll call it "medium") of the character sheet but it is definitely a step up from my smaller phone screen even though my phone can run circles around the Fire 7 performance-wise. If you really wanted you could force the desktop site page for the character sheet and use that.
I put chrome on it and initially used it to access DnDBeyond, but found that the pre-loaded internet browser (don't remember the name) performs a little better. But yeah, it can be a bit sluggish if you're flipping back and forth between applications.
Yep, Silk browser is much better for DDB website than Chrome on the Kindle range. I conducted extensive testing on that!
Glad you're enjoying your new tablet, Bagel_Bear
I have used a variety of tablets over the years. I am not a fan of Apple Products. BUT they do, in my opinion, make the best tablets. I run the DNDB web site and app from mine quite often. Granted I have not used a Surface.
Yeah, iPads are very good but also cost a lot more than a cheap Amazon Fire tablet does.