# Liberating my Kindle Fire **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 12, 2019, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/liberating-my-kindle-fire/832436 "2019-04-12T12:28:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2019, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/liberating-my-kindle-fire/832436/1 "2019-04-12T12:28:39Z")
My company gave me a large Apple iPad for work. I have mastered it, but I do not like the intrusive nature of the Apple IOS, nor its cost. I did some poking around. Without a doubt your best buy in a tablet computer is a Kindle Fire. You can imagine my surprise as I have an Generation 2 Fire. I was gifted it by Amazon. I have been using it for video games. Now I will have to look at it with more respect. But of course there is a reason for the low price. The Fire is locked into the Amazon ecosystem. Out of the box there is no way to put an app on it except from the Amazon app store. No Brave browser for example. No real word processor. OK smart people. How can I (hack? Jailbreak?) adjust my Kindle Fire to behave like a regular old Android tablet? Can such a thing be done? ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2019, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/liberating-my-kindle-fire/832436/2 "2019-04-12T13:53:28Z")
Here is a video on how to do it. [How To Root Your Amazon Kindle Fire - "Jailbreak" It - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksY-Iy2QDR8) ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2019, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/liberating-my-kindle-fire/832436/3 "2019-04-12T15:36:24Z")
> [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](#): > > But of course there is a reason for the low price. The Fire is locked into the Amazon ecosystem. Out of the box there is no way to put an app on it except from the Amazon app store. No Brave browser for example. No real word processor. This isn’t quite true. You can sideload apps on Fire Tablets out of the box if you allow it in settings. That will let you install anything that doesn’t require Google Play services. Once you’ve allowed sideloading, adding the Play store is just a matter of installing 4 APKs in the correct order as explained here: > **[Install Google Play on Kindle Fire to Get Access to More Apps](https://www.lifewire.com/install-google-play-kindle-fire-4570988)** > > To install Google Play on a Kindle Fire without rooting your device is as simple as installing the Google Play store APK. Here's how to do that so you can start accessing more Android apps. That will give you access to two ecosystems with no rooting necessary. You may not be able to get those APKs to work on a second gen model, but you can get a current model for $50 (for a 7 inch with 8 gigs) to $150 (or a 10 inch with 32 gigs). ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2019, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/liberating-my-kindle-fire/832436/4 "2019-04-12T16:43:25Z")
I have given it a go. I am unable to create a folder in the Root. (Nor do I understand what that means.) But I have a underemployed IT department who will handle it on Sunday for a dozen donuts. Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![ZonexandScout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zonexandscout/32/544_2.png) [@ZonexandScout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZonexandScout)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2019, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/liberating-my-kindle-fire/832436/5 "2019-04-12T17:26:37Z")
Sideloading the Google APKs should work fine on a Gen 2 Fire. I had a Gen 3 and it worked without problems. One warning…write down the actual names of the APKs when you download them. The names are very similar and you want to install them in the correct order. The easiest way to do this IMHO is to write them to the Downloads folder through a USB connection, though you can download them directly using the Amazon browser. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2019, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/liberating-my-kindle-fire/832436/6 "2019-04-12T17:27:32Z")
Yes, sideloading will let you get most regular Android software installed. If you want to install some more specialized apps or want to change the UI, rooting is the way to go. The former is harmless if you don’t go to malware sites, the latter requires you to follow more directions but it’s not like you have a warranty at this point. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2019, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/liberating-my-kindle-fire/832436/7 "2019-04-12T19:32:16Z")
The best place to find information about Android type devices is the XDA-Dev forums. Your use of the phrase very old phrase “Kindle Fire” might be misleading. If you mean the 7" Fire tablet, [here](https://forum.xda-developers.com/amazon-fire) is the forum for that. Plus there’s a ton of YouTube videos. Note that there are small differences between models and OS versions. As noted, most Android devices like Amazon’s have a trivial method to “jailbreak” them and load any suitable app you want. (It’s done under “Settings”.) It doesn’t sound like you need to root it. I have an older model 7" Fire tablet which I rooted immediately and never looked back. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2019, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/liberating-my-kindle-fire/832436/8 "2019-04-12T19:43:48Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Your use of the phrase very old phrase “Kindle Fire” might be misleading. If you mean the 7" Fire tablet, [here](https://forum.xda-developers.com/amazon-fire) is the forum for that. If OP indeed has a Gen2, then “Kindle Fire” is an accurate name for that time period. Gen4 (2014) was the first to drop “Kindle.” > [@](#): > > As noted, most Android devices like Amazon’s have a trivial method to “jailbreak” them and load any suitable app you want. (It’s done under “Settings”.) > > It doesn’t sound like you need to root it. > > I have an older model 7" Fire tablet which I rooted immediately and never looked back. Rooting **is** jailbreaking, it’s just that the latter term is more associated with iOS. Sideloading is not forbidden by Amazon or Android, it’s just not immediately apparent without wading through menus and apks. ---
**Author:** ![ZonexandScout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zonexandscout/32/544_2.png) [@ZonexandScout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZonexandScout)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2019, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/liberating-my-kindle-fire/832436/9 "2019-04-12T20:39:29Z")
I’m not sure if anybody has mentioned this yet, but the current Fire 10 HD (which I own and you may be considering) uses the Fire OS that is modified from Android 5.5.0.0. The newest Fire 8 uses the Fire OS based on Android 7.1. In both cases, there are some features that are “missing.” One of those is the ability to cast video to an external wireless display adapter that is NOT a Fire Stick (or one of its many versions). This is actually the feature I miss the most, as I take my Fire 10 when I teach classes and it won’t work with any of my cast devices. If you go back a few generations, the Fires DID work with cast devices. This is the only reason I’ve come across so far to possibly justify jailbreaking my Fire. The other features you gain from a newer/different flavor of Android are not that big of a deal to me. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/liberating-my-kindle-fire/832436/10 "2019-04-13T13:07:24Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > If OP indeed has a Gen2, then “Kindle Fire” is an accurate name for that time period. Gen4 (2014) was the first to drop “Kindle.” > > Rooting **is** jailbreaking, it’s just that the latter term is more associated with iOS. Sideloading is not forbidden by Amazon or Android, it’s just not immediately apparent without wading through menus and apks. Jailbreaking means being able to install apps and such that the device will not naturally install. OSes like Apple’s need to be jailbroken to do something like this. But some Android device makers also go to significant lengths to prevent installing apps from other sources. It is _not_ universal for Android. So those need to be jailbroken as well in order install apps of your own choosing. Ditto other device like Rokus. (Kodi is a popular app that many want to install on a device but which by default may not be allowed.) [Cite](https://www.groundedreason.com/jail-breaking-streaming-devices-faq/). So jailbreaking a Fire tablet and such is quite easy. Rooting is a noticeably harder thing. E.g., there is currently no known software rooting method for Amazon Fire TV 4k Sticks. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2019, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/liberating-my-kindle-fire/832436/11 "2019-04-14T18:03:58Z")
FWIW, I got a Fire HD 8 a year or two ago and did the thing with sideloading the Google Play store. I have absolutely zero expertise with the Android OS but following the instructions for installing the APKs in the correct order and whatever else needed to be done was pretty easy. Amazon would obviously prefer you to use their own ecosystem but they’re also obviously not interested in blocking the ability to sideload Google Play which would be trivially easy for them to do if they wanted to. It works flawlessly and I found that having access to the Google Play store was immensely valuable for all kinds of cool apps. I don’t believe that either the Firefox or Chrome browsers are available from the Amazon store, and I use Firefox all the time on my Fire HD.