Kindle Fire HD Q&A thread (read me)

[Larry Tollman]

Warning- I am not responsible for what happens to your Kindle if you follow these directions. Follow them at your own risk.

The basics of sideloading
Every app has an .apk file, which is the file you use to install the app on your Android device. The 3 basic steps to sideload an app are 1) find the .apk file of the app you want and 2) get it on your Kindle and 3) click on the .apk file. It's the first two steps that people have trouble with, but really it's not too hard.

Except for Google apps.
Why? They use other .apk files like googleservicesframework.apk and stuff like that. In theory, find the right .apk files and you can install Google Play, gmail, any google apps. I haven't fiddled with it, so I'm not the best authority on that. I can use youtube, but I don't have an account so I don't know if you can log in or not.

Where to get .apk files?
- You can download them straight from the internet and other app stores. I'm a bit paranoid and don't quite trust what's out there. Unless it's straight from a developer, i.e. dropbox.
- You can get the .apk of the app you want on an Android device using ES file explorer. This is what I did.

This is the way I sideload apps- there are multiple ways of doing this using different apps. But the basics are the same.

Step 1- getting the .apk files from an Android device
- I installed ES file explorer from Google Play onto my old tablet
- Open ES file explore and click on "AppMgr" on the top
- Long press on the app you want to copy and a menu will pop up- click on "backup" and it will create the .apk file- I think you set the file destination- if not, it will flash a brief message to which folder it saved the .apk file.
- Do this for all the apps you want.

Step 2- Install dropbox on your KFHD- I didn't do this but just found this out. I downloaded the dropbox .apk file to my laptop, plugged in my KFHD to my laptop, and transferred the dropbox .apk that way.
- Go to www.dropbox.com/mobile on your KFHD
- Click on the Kindle Fire app.
- Follow the directions (if a warning pops up saying you can't install the app because it's a non-market app or whatever, click on settings and turn on the "allow for installation of 3rd party apps"

Step 3- Install ES file explorer onto your KFHD
- You can download this from the Amazon app store.

Step 4- Download the .apk files onto your KFHD
- Open ES File Explorer and go to the folder you downloaded the .apk files. Remember to allow the KFHD to install 3rd party apps. Click on the .apk file and you'll get the permissions info page and click on "install."
- Done!

Step 5- Make sure the app installed
- Remember, just because you installed the app does not mean it will show up in the carousel
- Click on the "Apps" menu on the carousel view.
- Still don't see it? At the top of the screen, you'll see the "Cloud/Device" buttons. Make sure you've selected "Device."
- Often the icons are blown up and fuzzy looking. That's normal. You can find .apk files that people have fiddled with so they have a sharp-looking icon.

This is a list of apps I've downloaded that have worked
- NY times
- Youtube
- CNBC
- Dolphin Browser
- Dropbox

I'm not aware of a list of apps that work this way.

Larry, I've downloaded the apk file. When I click on it it says "cannot load". Is that because I have to download the ES file explorer first?

 

[Tadb123]

a lot of them look like stretched out phone apps. Many of the apps were originally scaled for a 3-4 inch screen. I have an Apple Ipad also, and their apps are designed to the scale of the specific device, either iphone or ipad. That's a difference between a closed or open OS. i happen to like the pure Android OS and I wish Kindle's GUI wasnot so modified...but that's another subject.

 

[Astr56]

I have a Kindle Fire HD8. I installed Google play store, and it worked. About 2 weeks ago, it stopped working. Any ideas?

 

[etnpnys]

Wow, zombie thread!! Yeah, I have an idea what would be up with your problem: Google updates their stuff all the time. These updates change how things communicate with their servers, and you probably just need to find a newer apk and overwrite the one you have on there.