++++++++++Update:
I was informed by the Grace Digital MatchStick management that the battery pack that makes this product portable will be available in August of 2012. Its part number is AAC-GFDLI and it will sell for $29.99 on Amazon. This seems like a fair price and provides the added benefit of making your Kindle Fire and Matchstick Dock portable and easier to use. This is good news!
Here is my later video review of the Matchstick Battery pack and you can find it here.
Grace Digital Matchstick for Kindle Fire Rechargeable Battery Pack
I also attached the speaker system to my iPad 3 and iPhone using the included audio cable and the system sound was very good. This is ideal for watching movies or listing to music with your Apple devices to get much better sound quality instead of just using your Apple device for the sound. I have included a photo of my iPad hooked up. Make sure to turn-up the volume level on your iPad and then use your volume control on the MatchStick to set the volume. With the battery option this makes a nice portable sound system for picnicking or camping. Just connect your earphone output plug from your Apple device to the audio input plug on the back of the MatchStick and change the input setting of the MatchStick using the remote control.
++++++++++
This is an innovative docking station as this is the first one I have seen for the Kindle Fire. It is well designed and the audio output is very good. I wish I could have played some audio or a video for you in my video review but with the copyright laws I did not want to push the chance of making someone mad. The audio is just great and it provides a loud volume without distortion or cracking. The balance of bass, midrange and highs is well done and you can adjust the bass and treble to suit your needs.
I am convinced that this product is a winner but I am also convinced that having the battery pack is the way to go for people who are Amazon prime members and stream music or videos using Prime or another video streaming system. You could then watch movies and not be tied to the AC power cord. Please watch my video as there more details in it to help you evaluate the product.
If you have any questions please post your comments and I will try to respond to them.
Grace Digital MatchStick Pros
* Very nice sound with a good mixture of highs, midrange and bass.
* Good for watching videos or listening to music.
* Volume is quite good and the sound was still crisp without distortion.
* Remote control provided with bass and treble control.
* Auxiliary input cable provided.
* Landscape and portrait modes of operation.
* 50 and 38 degree viewing angle while in portrait mode.
* A good instruction manual is included.
* A hefty AC adapter to charge your Kindle Fire and the optional AC battery with the same device.
Grace Digital MatchStick cons
* 4 ½ foot power cord on the AC adapter can't reach to the top of a dresser or to the middle of a desk.
* Rechargeable battery option but no price or availability known at this time. If you are an Amazon Prime member this is a must have option to relax and watch movies without being tied to a power cord.
Overall analysis
* Easy to use and adds value to using a Kindle Fire for an entertainment system.
* Good sound for the money. It isn't a Bose system but it also costs 40% of the price of a Bose iPod AC powered docking station.
* If you are an Amazon Prime Member this is an ideal add on to enhance your audio enjoyment while playing music or watching a movie.
* I wish it included the battery and would only cost say $30 more as a package. It would also have been ideal to use some of my rechargeable Sanyo eneloop or 18650 rechargeable power cells instead of a proprietary battery design.
I was provided a free evaluation sample to test and provide an honest and thorough review.
As a speaker dock, the MatchStick is pretty good. With the Fire volume set to maximum, the MatchStick delivers sound that is perfectly satisfactory for a non-audiophile like myself. You get sound that is similar to what you get with the AmazonBasics Portable Stereo System, but a little fuller, with more maximum volume.
However, the MatchStick is not perfect.
ON/OFF SWITCH (KINDLE FIRE): When the Fire is in the holder, you turn it on or off with a button located underneath the dock. In one of the two horizontal positions (with the dock to the right), the button on my device doesn't work properly unless the Fire is pushed firmly against the dock again, or unless the button is held down hard (which usually triggers the "do you want to turn your Kindle Fire off?" query that comes up before you do a full reboot).
ON/OFF SWITCH (MATCHSTICK DOCK): To play music, you must turn the Matchstick on with a button located in the top panel above the right speaker. When the Matchstick is turned on, it automatically charges your Kindle Fire. When your Fire is fully charged, there is no way to turn off the charger. If you wish to listen to music, the charger continues to charge continuously while the speakers play. (The MatchStick dock has an upright plug that connects with the charger outlet on the bottom of the Fire.)
TREBLE/BASS BUTTONS (REMOTE): As I said previously, I'm not an audiophile. However, I noticed very little difference when I pressed the + and buttons for the treble and bass adjustments (on the remote), or even when I pressed the Equalizer button to reset the sound.
VOLUME (MATCHSTICK DOCK, REMOTE): To me, the up/down volume buttons on both the MatchStick top panel and the remote seem sluggish. Holding them down will adjust the volume, though. To get the maximum volume from the MatchStick speakers, you must first set the Fire volume to maximum. (The dock has an upright plug that connects with the Fire's earphone jack when you slide the Fire into the holder).
TEMPERATURE (KINDLE FIRE): When I'm using the MatchStick to play music, my Fire runs at a higher temperature than when I play music with the Fire alone or with the Amazon Basics external, battery-powered speakers. (All of my music comes from a wireless connection with the Amazon Cloud--no music is on the Fire itself.) I don't usually play music for extended periods, but for testing purposes, I played music on the MatchStick for several hours. My Fire, which started around 65 percent at 73 degrees, was fully charged after 15 minutes or so, and the temperature was around 92 degrees (as measured by the excellent Badass Battery Monitor (Kindle Fire Edition) (a free Android version of this app also works with the Fire). After about an hour, there was a music skip, then there were occasional, more frequent skips. Replaying indicated that the skips were not in the music recordings. After three hours of mostly playing music with the display off, the Fire temperature was at 94 degrees. When the music developed a bit of static, I decided to end the test. Playing music with the display off on the Fire alone (plugged in to the USB charger with an outlet adaptor--not the Fire charger), or on the Amazon Basics speakers (noncharging) resulted in temperatures in the high 80s or below. (The Matchstick uses an electrical adaptor like the Fire charger--one with a big black box at the outlet end).
FOOTPRINT (MATCHSTICK DOCK): This is strictly personal, but the MatchStick footprint is too large for my available tabletop/desktop space. The MatchStick measures 4" high by 13" wide, so that leaving the unit out with the Fire docked has the effect of converting my mobile device into a permanent, immobile installation. The Fire slides smoothly in and out of the dock, but I don't have space in my small condo to leave the dock out permanently, given that it lacks superb sound quality.
I like the MatchStick dock, but because of its various drawbacks, I won't be using it regularly. For this reason, I rate it at 3 stars ("it's okay" on the official Amazon scale).
This review is based on a product supplied to me by the manufacturer free of charge for review purposes. I have no financial interest, or business relationship with the manufacturer, and this review represents my independent opinion of the product.**UPDATE: I've noticed a few reviewers mentioning that it's hard to turn your Fire on and off. My personal experience has been that this is a very easy process. There is a button at the base of the input port, raised and easy to feel if your Fire is vertical. When I push this, my Kindle turns on immediately. You don't have to use the Kindle's power button.**
I am really impressed with the MatchStick. I don't listen to a lot of music on my Kindle Fire but I like to watch videos. But the Kindle Fire sound system was moderate at best. The MatchStick is a great solution to plug in your Fire and either listen to music, watch videos or whenever you want sound.
It plugs in securely to the audio output and the charging port of your Fire which means that it will charge the Fire while docked. The Fire can be displayed in three positions: vertical, horizontal left or horizontal right. So you can flip it either way. And the plug seems to be secure enough in any direction.
The unit has a great benefit beyond using it for your Fire. It has an auxiliary audio input that attaches to any mp3 player including an iPod. So, in one speaker set, I can use my Fire or my iPod. The best of all worlds!
The sound quality is good. It is not perfect, especially as the volume increases but it is comparable to other smaller speaker sets like this. Unlike some other similar speaker sets this has an added benefit of an equalizer including base and treble control (but only through the remote).
A nice unit with a dual purpose.
(This unit was provided to me at no cost for an honest review.)
Overall, the Matchstick delivers decent sound from a relatively compact footprint while charging a Kindle Fire.
-PROS
--The Grace Digital Matchstick performs its two basic functions very well: delivering sound from Kindle sources (either locally stored .mp3 files or content streamed from the cloud (such as via Pandora or Amazon's cloud player) and charging the Kindle Fire.
--The Matchstick's cradle holds a headset jack (that provides audio input to its speakers from the Fire) and a USB port (that provides charging for the Fire). The Kindle Fire slides easily into the cradle, and the input jack and USB port are nicely aligned. The cradle itself can me manually rotated for either a portrait or landscape view of the Kindle Fire.
--Sound quality is very good (within the normal constraints of the lossy nature of either .mp3 or streaming sources). I judge speakers mostly by midrange sound and the clarity of guitars and vocals. You won't host a party with these speakers, but in a quiet room, they deliver a very good sound quality.
--The unit ships with an auxiliary cable, and will also accept audio output from non-Kindle devices (I tested with both an HTC Evo phone and iPod Nano 5G)
--Includes a nicely written user guide (useful even if it does contain some typos).
--The Matchstick weighs 4 pounds and overall has a solid, hefty field.
-CONS (all minor)
--You will be tethered to an AC power source. The user guide indicates a proprietary rechargeable battery unit is available (and the rear of the Matchstick contains a compartment for it), but I was unable to find the battery for sale on either Amazon or Grace Digital. Battery availability and increased portability would move this item to 5 stars. Contact with the vendor indicates the battery will become available in August 2012. According the the user guide, when installed the battery will power the speakers, but will not charge the Kindle Fire.
--Some controls (treble/bass/EQ) are available only on the remote. The remote is VERY small and very thin, Misplace it, and you'll lose these control features.
--Non-intuitive status indicators from two LEDs: the user guide contains a 31x5 chart of possible combinations of color and flashing/steady indicators from the Matchstick's two LEDs. Unless something is wrong: too hard (especially since many indicators address the apparently non-available battery!).
--Aux audio input is co-located on the rear/bottom of the unit near the AC adapter input. Placing the aux input on the top would have improved access for connecting a non-Fire device.
--Large "wall-wart" for AC adapter.
Overall, I found the Matchstick easy to use and liked the quality of sound from its speakers. This costs enough to not be considered a casual purchase, and at that price I wish the battery capability was available in order to make this unit truly portable.
Note:
This product was provided at no cost to me by the vendor.Ordered 2 days ago. Much intervening regret for spending so much. Arrived 5 hrs ago and since then all regrets vanished. The device is very solid. It can orient your kindle in any direction. Mainly the sound is wonderful. I'm slightly hard of hearing but wish to play it low so as to not impose my music on townhouse neighbors. I think I'm playing no louder than formerly yet I can hear so much better. Don't understand this but am willing to accept it. I agree with all who say this transforms the kindle fire. It does!
Only regret: It's heavy so picking it up from table to lay on my generous midsection to read will require gentle care. There's no handle to lift it so there's the temptation to contact the speaker face with the thumb. This would eventually rub a hole in the fabric covering the speaker. A solid plastic carrying handle would be a nice bonus.
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