# Why do you hate the Carousel?



## 3pointers (Jan 8, 2010)

I don't have a Fire but am considering getting one.  I keep reading that many of you dislike the Carousel and I'm just wondering why?

Thanks

TJ


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Not everyone hates it, I like it.  But I think an Android device appeals to a lot of people who want to customize their device, and Amazon limits that.  For me, my Fire is for content delivery, so the Carousel works great.  I love spinning through it.

Betsy


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## GeckoFriend (May 8, 2012)

I dislike the carousel because it doesn't allow me to control what shows up.  Every time I "buy" a free book at Amazon it shows up on the carousel even though I have the book sent to my PC, not the Fire.  I would like the carousel if it showed only downloaded items, not everything in the cloud.


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## Linjeakel (Mar 17, 2010)

I can't say I feel anything as strong as _hate_, but I would prefer not to have it and instead have a more traditional, fixed Home Screen where I could put things where I want and not have things I don't want.

I imagine it's supposed to make things easier for you by putting the most recently used things at the front but, for me, never knowing where anything is exactly kind of undermines that. I never sort my e-ink Kindles by 'most recent' either - again I prefer to put things in a particular order so I always know where they are - I don't find a constantly changing list easy to use, or one where only about the first three items are on the screen, or one where anything in the cloud you might have used on another device shows up.

I have an android phone which displays things in a similar way to iThings, with icons and the ability to make folders for groups of similar things. I wold love to have it like that on the Fire - you would have thought that Amazon would give you the choice on these later Fires, similar to the PW e-ink reader, where you can have the book covers or a list if you prefer it.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

I don't hate it.  Yes, it's different than other android interfaces, but fairly intuitive, I think.  And, like Betsy, I kind of like spinning through it when I'm looking for something new.

It's true that if I buy something and send it to another device it shows at the front of the carousel on the Fire as well.  It doesn't automatically download, and it is perfectly easy to remove it from the carousel (touch and hold and select that option).  So, really, with just a little work, it doesn't have to show anything you don't want it to.

It does mean that what you've used most recently shows up nearest the front. . .but if that doesn't work for you, put the things you use a lot in favorites.  They'll be there in the order they're in and that won't change as you use them. Or just always go to one of the tabs rather than selecting from the carousel -- that's just one extra step.

For those who just really don't like it at all, some have found alternate 'launchers' via 1Mobile or other third party app developers.  There are one or two as well on Amazon, but they don't show as compatible with the Fires.  

I think, for me, I use so many different computers and other devices that I've just gotten so I adapt and don't worry about it too much.  At my dad's I use his Mac to help him with his bill paying.  I use a Win 7 or Win 8 computer at home but at work it's XP -- and a really weird web based email client.  I prefer the Firefox browser, but work has IE6. My android devices are stock and Fires -- but the apps I keep at 'home' aren't the same on the tablet and phone. My eInk kindles are 4way controller on the K69 and touch on the PW. I've never come across anything that was so difficult that I couldn't use it -- though I do wish they'd enter the 21st century at work. 

Oh, and the usual suggestion:  if there's a feature you don't like or that isn't there, send feedback to Amazon.  They won't know people want options other than the carousel if those who are unhappy with it don't tell them.  And they do listen: they got negative feedback about the recommendations bar and they changed that on both the Fires and PW kindles.  I suppose there are some things they won't budge on for whatever reason, but, again, if they don't know people aren't happy, they're not even going to think about it!


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## Jesslyn (Oct 29, 2008)

I am trying not to hate it, and here's why.

I want to have a single view of the stuff that I want, not the stuff that amazon wants to give me. Unfortunately, as a longtime Android user, I have gotten used to customizig my screens to both look the way I want and to have the info that I want front and center.

Here is my phone's home screen










I've got the weather, a clock w/ date - both large enough for me to read, % and time left of my battery. Below that I've got my most used apps, some in folders and my favorites on the bottom.

Here is my Samsung 8.9" tablet home screen









It has even more useful widgets showing my RSS, Twitter and Facebook feeds, a play/pause/rewind widget for my videos, time, date and weather along with apps as folders and favorites.

Here is my Kindles (8.9) home screen that doesn't leave enough room for even my favorites. Sigh....









So yes, I'm a bit tired of the carousel. I did send a suggestion to Amazon as follows:

I would love to see the addition of a widget-based home page for the Fire as an alternative or option in addition to the carousel. Perhaps with widgets for Favorites, Books, Apps, etc. You could also add a clock, calendar or weather widgets as options. I'm not suggesting that Amazon add the whole Android experience, but perhaps some really simple customization options for the users who prefer a bit more personalization.


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## Lursa (aka 9MMare) (Jun 23, 2011)

I like it alot on my Fire. OTOH, I will probably stick with List view on my PW.

Different devices, different uses.


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## Meemo (Oct 27, 2008)

I don't "hate" it, but I don't love it either. One issue for me is that there are 4 other family members on my account. One of my daughters is into books that don't interest me at all, which is fine, but some of the covers are a bit embarrassing if someone wants to take a look at my Fire. So I remove them from the Carousel. But if I have to reset, the Carousel repopulates. I don't delete them all, but I'd prefer they stayed off the Carousel. 

I was one who used Go Launcher as an alternate launcher on my 1st gen Fire so I could organize my apps like Jesslyn's pics show. I actually switched back and forth between the two launchers, but I'm mostly an iPhone/iPad gal, so I'm used to being able to group my apps. Unfortunately I haven't been able to make Go Launcher work on my Fire HD and I really do miss being able to organize all those free apps I've picked up from Amazon & elsewhere. It's something I need to send feedback to Amazon about. I don't mind that they have "their" way, and I love that they allow us to install outside apps, but I'm sorry they seem to have blocked the alternate launchers.


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## MicroBeta (Jun 9, 2009)

What I hate is the apps/books in Favorites show up on the Carousel.  It's redundant and just adds to the clutter.  

The other issue is I have on several occasions searched through multiple books and they all go the Carousel requiring me to remove them One-At-A-Time.

I think overall it's an inefficient way of doing things.  It's my only real complaint on the OS. 

I like the idea of access to recently accessed books/apps.  However, having that as the only component of the GUI makes absolutely no sense to me.  

Not to be a Debbie Downer but I've been using GUIs for over 25 years (starting with DOS Shell & Windows 286) and this it one of the worst.  It's very inefficient and it doesn't need to be customizable like a standard Android to fix that problem.

My 2¢ FWIW.

Mike


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## kindlegrl81 (Jan 19, 2010)

I have so many people on my amazon account (and not many of us read the same type of books) that it would be nice if the carousel didn't show every book purchased. I like the looks of the carousel so if it only showed books sent to the Fire and apps that I used then I would be fine with it.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

I may have misunderstood because I don't use it, but I rather thought the point of the 'parental controls' was that you could set up different profiles.  Which would mean different things would show on the carousel depending on who is logged in.  Presumably it would work even if they weren't to be for children?  The Free Time app is part of it too.


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## Sean Patrick Fox (Dec 3, 2011)

The carousel is stupid. It's a backward, dumbed-down, sad excuse for a UI. I really like my Fire, but the carousel is one of the things that really annoys me.


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## Hadou (Jun 1, 2011)

I don't hate it.  If I were using my Fire for just books and videos and such...the carousel works absolutely fine for it.  If I were wanting to use it as more of an all-purpose tablet of sorts, I'd want something more akin to what I see on my phone or Nexus 7.


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## Geemont (Nov 18, 2008)

I've only had the Fire for an hour and don't really like the carousel.  I could live with it, but the Customers Also Bought below must go.  When I get home I'll need to look at the Users Manual to see if I can disable it.  I paid for no Ads and I think this counts as ads.


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## Jesslyn (Oct 29, 2008)

Geemont said:


> I've only had the Fire for an hour and don't really like the carousel. I could live with it, but the Customers Also Bought below must go. When I get home I'll need to look at the Users Manual to see if I can disable it. I paid for no Ads and I think this counts as ads.


I believe that the latest update will allow you to remove the other Customer recs


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Geemont said:


> I've only had the Fire for an hour and don't really like the carousel. I could live with it, but the Customers Also Bought below must go. When I get home I'll need to look at the Users Manual to see if I can disable it. I paid for no Ads and I think this counts as ads.


You paid not to have the special offers show on the sleep pictures.  The recommendations are seen as 'value added' by amazon and, in fact, for books and apps it can be just that. For books, it may show an Xray link, for movies and music it shows an imdb link, and for some apps it shows alternate views -- for instance when the email app is front and center you also see direct links to start a new message, look at the calendar, or find a contact.

However, you CAN make all that go away -- including the 'customers also bought' which is what you see if there's nothing else more useful to show. From the home screen drag the menu bar and tap 'more'. Go to 'applications' and tap 'Amazon Home Recommendations'. You can toggle it on or off as you wish.

Note that when it's OFF, nothing appears in that area as a substitute -- it's just blank.


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## kindlegrl81 (Jan 19, 2010)

Ann in Arlington said:


> I may have misunderstood because I don't use it, but I rather thought the point of the 'parental controls' was that you could set up different profiles. Which would mean different things would show on the carousel depending on who is logged in. Presumably it would work even if they weren't to be for children? The Free Time app is part of it too.


Kindle Free Time works great for kids (I'm much closer to buying one for my daughter now) but I don't want to have to sign in and out of it just so I can add what I want to my profile. This is why I never liked using the other app that people sideloaded on to make the Fire look more like a normal android device (can't remember it's name), the switching back and forth just wasn't worth the hassle IMO.

I just can't for the life of me figure out why Amazon insists on having everything on the cloud show on the carousel. I'm sure Amazon has a reason (since they have rectified other issues people have with the Fire but haven't really touched this one) but until they let me in on that reason I'm going to continue putting in suggestions to get rid of it.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

kindlegrl81 said:


> Kindle Free Time works great for kids (I'm much closer to buying one for my daughter now) but I don't want to have to sign in and out of it just so I can add what I want to my profile. This is why I never liked using the other app that people sideloaded on to make the Fire look more like a normal android device (can't remember it's name), the switching back and forth just wasn't worth the hassle IMO.
> 
> I just can't for the life of me figure out why Amazon insists on having everything on the cloud show on the carousel. I'm sure Amazon has a reason (since they have rectified other issues people have with the Fire but haven't really touched this one) but until they let me in on that reason I'm going to continue putting in suggestions to get rid of it.


Hmmm. What about the basic 'parental controls' -- I thought they allowed for profiles too? Or maybe not.

Well, you know, at least, that you can remove things individually, right? Just touch and hold and 'remove from carousel' is one of the options. Tedious, I know, but at least it's available.


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## Geemont (Nov 18, 2008)

Jesslyn said:


> I believe that the latest update will allow you to remove the other Customer recs


Excellent! I'll take the blank screen. Thanks.


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## Jesslyn (Oct 29, 2008)

Hehehe, this reminds me of the frustration that we as Kindle 1 & 2 users had over what we termed 'folders' back then, but turned out to be collections. 

I would be happy with a setting that turns off all carousel updates except what we place there explicitly, but with how nicely folders turned out, I will just hope that Amazon is working on correcting the issue and that it will be better than what we are currently imagining now.

One thing, IMO, they need to fix immediately is the look of the carousel on the 8.9. That thing is HUGE and looks really stupid taking up the whole screen like that. What were they thinking? THere is plenty of room for favorites on that screen if they reduce the size of the thing. Even if it was smaller, I don't think anyone but Wreck-it Ralph could fat-finger the wrong app.


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

I have the original Fire and I have always liked the carousel. For me its like a time capsule of the things I do on it. But I only have one other person on the account who never uses his Kindle, so its all my stuff I see.


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## Cardinal (Feb 24, 2010)

kindlegrl81 said:


> I just can't for the life of me figure out why Amazon insists on having everything on the cloud show on the carousel.


My feelings exactly.

I had the original Fire and I like the carousel well enough if it was just what was loaded onto the device. Since I have thousands of Kindle books the carousel was a never ending parade.

Also, I'd like to be able to customize it a little and have the ability to exclude items such as apps or movies from the carousel.


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## mlewis78 (Apr 19, 2009)

My KF HD 7" did not come with all my cloud items on the carousel.  Whenever I see something on the carousel that I don't want on there, I remove it.


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## krm0789 (Dec 21, 2010)

I find it to be very inefficient & therefore frustrating. On my phone, something I don't use frequently can be stored on my 3rd or 4th page-- even in a folder, it's very quick to navigate to. On the carousel, if it's something I don't use frequently I wouldn't favorite it, so to find it I'd either need to scroll for a while in the carousel to find it, or navigate to its tab/page & then find it in a massive list of all things (ex. apps). I don't want to hunt for my content.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

On my old Fire, since I'm an


Spoiler



app slut


,  and have tons of apps, I just clicked in the search box which was on the home screen and typed the name in, and then clicked on the app in the list. You cn still do that on the new Fires.

My iPad/iPod I do much the same way, as I have tons of apps. Even though they're organized as krm described, it's still quicker most of the time for me to click twice on the home button to bring up the search screen and type in the app name.

Edit to add: Now, if you can't remember the name, then yes, you do have to search through the App page. So I wish there were a way to put your apps in collections.

Betsy


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## KindleGirl (Nov 11, 2008)

mlewis78 said:


> My KF HD 7" did not come with all my cloud items on the carousel. Whenever I see something on the carousel that I don't want on there, I remove it.


Mine didn't come loaded either. The only thing showing on my carousel so far are the things I've bought or used since I got the 7" HD, not my entire archive. But everything is there if I tap on the corresponding name at the top, such as "apps", "books", etc. to pull them up to download. I just clean my carousel every time I get on and delete what I don't want to show up. That way it doesn't get too messy.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

mlewis78 said:


> My KF HD 7" did not come with all my cloud items on the carousel. Whenever I see something on the carousel that I don't want on there, I remove it.


Hmmm...the original definitely came with all the books on the carousel. Not the apps, but the books. I kind of liked that.

Betsy


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

As I recall, what was on my HD Fire when it showed up was anything I'd bought since I bought it.  So, it didn't have ALL my books, but it did have everything back to early September when I bought it.

Of course, other books accessed do, then show up, as do apps, videos, music, etc.

I have noticed, however, that if I have a notification -- like that someone has played a word in WwF -- and I use that notice to access the app, then the app doesn't end up on the carousel.

Sent from my Kindle Fire  HD via tapatalk


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Nope, mine went all the way back to the beginning of my Kindle library.  I remember skimming back to stuff I'd bought when I first bought my original Kindle.

Betsy


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

My original Fire showed everything that was in my Archive, going back to 2008.  . I did go through and delete stuff off I will never read, or stuff I got for the husband. 
Once in a while I spin the carousel like crazy to see where I end up.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> Nope, mine went all the way back to the beginning of my Kindle library. I remember skimming back to stuff I'd bought when I first bought my original Kindle.
> 
> Betsy


Yes, my original Fire did that, but the HD only went back to early Sept. when I bought it.

Not sure why the difference.

Sent from my Kindle Fire HD via tapatalk


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## novembersfyre (Nov 10, 2011)

My original Kindle Fire also had all of my content on the carousel. I had been acquiring free Kindle books for a while to use on my ipod touch so there were over a thousand things there! 

My new HD only had a few things on the carousel - mainly things I have purchased in the last couple of days or so. This is a good thing as I now have close to 3000 Kindle books. I did download all of my magazines as Amazon only keeps 6 to 7 months for each in the cloud. I now have a couple that will only be available on my old Fire unless I can figure out a way to transfer them. Yes, I hoard them! But, most of them are mainly mags that are more like books of short stories - Asimov's, Fantasy and Science Fiction and Analog.

I like the carousel and I also like the "other customers purchased" area along with the X-ray feature. This is particulary useful to me in terms of music as sometimes I don't realize that a favorite band has a new album out until I see it suggested for me on Amazon.


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## 3pointers (Jan 8, 2010)

Thank you for all the reasons you do or don't like it.  Since I'd be buying this for my parents, I think it would work fine.  For me, I'd probably prefer a customizable screen also.

Tj


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## HappyGuy (Nov 3, 2008)

Does anyone know if there is a limit on the number of items that can be put on the favorites page? I don't care for the carousel, but I don't find it overly difficult to tap the favorites button after swiping to wake up my Fire.    What I do find tricky is typing on this teensy keyboard - can't wait for my bluetooth keyboard to arrive!!


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## Michael Cavacini (Aug 2, 2010)

I don't hate the carousel. The only thing I dislike about it is that I can't set a wallpaper.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Now that I have a Fire again, I have to say, I actually really like the Carousel.  I love spinning it...I love that the most recent app is there so I can go "back" easily.  I know, I'm apparently an outlier....  I think it's because I had no previous Android experience so I could come to the Fire fresh.

To me, the Carousel is like the "open apps" band that one can access at the bottom of the iPad, only I don't have to swipe up to see it.  I use that to move from app to app far more than I do the app collections that I have set up.

And, since I'm typically using apps full screen, not just staring at the home page of my device, I've come to think that the wallpaper, even though I have some set up on the iPad, is not a big deal for me.  A phone would be different, I think.

Betsy


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## Zorrosuncle (Nov 11, 2008)

I would rather see the favorites in a carousel format.

ZU


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Bottom line is Amazon needs to allow a little more customization on what is shown and what is not in the Carousel.  I don't need favorites in the Carousel; I have Favorites for that.   For me, "Favorites" should be a relative small number of apps and the Carousel would be overkill.  (Though, of course, they are in the Carousel, too, by default since everytime I use a Favorite it appears in the Carousel.)  But everyoe is different....

Betsy


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## GhiiZhar (May 23, 2010)

3pointers said:


> ....I keep reading that many of you dislike the Carousel and I'm just wondering why?....


I can't answer your question because I LIKE the carousel. It adds a a bit of personality to the Fire 

I wouldn't mind a bit more control/configuration of the items displayed on it.

I also understand how this could be a problem on a shared Fire, some folks might be embarrassed for others to see what they have been up to


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## Jesslyn (Oct 29, 2008)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> Bottom line is Amazon needs to allow a little more customization on what is shown and what is not in the Carousel. I don't need favorites in the Carousel; I have Favorites for that.  For me, "Favorites" should be a relative small number of apps and the Carousel would be overkill. (Though, of course, they are in the Carousel, too, by default since everytime I use a Favorite it appears in the Carousel.) But everyoe is different....
> 
> Betsy


When it comes right down to it, if I end up returning my Fire, the carousel will have a LOT to do with it. * Everything-always-in-my-face!  * Ye gods! I could probably handle it if I could put the Favorites on top of the Carousel instead of always having to click back to it. It would also have helped if I had never seen (or configured) an Android home screen.


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## Meemo (Oct 27, 2008)

Jesslyn said:


> When it comes right down to it, if I end up returning my Fire, the carousel will have a LOT to do with it. * Everything-always-in-my-face!  * Ye gods! I could probably handle it if I could put the Favorites on top of the Carousel instead of always having to click back to it. It would also have helped if I had never seen (or configured) an Android home screen.


I'm holding out hope that GO Launcher will come out with an updated version that works with the HD. It made my original Fire much easier to use. And you're right - if I'd never had an iPhone/iPad, or a rooted Nook Color, it would've been easier to live with. It's not that I don't like the Carousel, it comes in handy at times. It's that I don't like not being able to organize my apps.


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## Brodys Mom (Nov 8, 2009)

I don't like the Carousel. It's annoying and in the way. I want to set wallpaper and configure the screen like I do on my phone.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Jesslyn said:


> When it comes right down to it, if I end up returning my Fire, the carousel will have a LOT to do with it. * Everything-always-in-my-face!  * Ye gods! I could probably handle it if I could put the Favorites on top of the Carousel instead of always having to click back to it. It would also have helped if I had never seen (or configured) an Android home screen.


Everyone's different. I have an iPad, love it. Love my Fire. As long as I can find the app I need quickly, that's all I care about, and I can. They're both tools. But I agree that Amazon should allow more customization.

Betsy


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