The Coding Wand is fully compatible with the Amazon Fire tablet HD8 (2016) and HD10 (2017) or newer.
First, ensure your Amazon Fire tablet is running 5.6.2.0 or higher as this is required per the specifications here.
Download and use the Kano App for Amazon Fire tablets from the Parent Zone or an Adult Account – rather than Freetime or the Kids Area. You can create a new adult account by following these steps, by Amazon.
To set up your Coding Wand with your Amazon Fire tablet, you need to enable Location-based Services.
- On your Amazon Fire tablet, go to settings (pull down from the top)
- Go to "Safety and Privacy"
- Turn on "Location-based services"
Still not working?
- Make sure Location-based services are turned on
- Try uninstalling and reinstalling the app, from the Parent Zone
- Try restarting your Amazon Fire tablet
- Try creating a new Kano account by clicking on the ⚙️icon inside the app
- Use the account from an Adult profile – for tips on switching Amazon Fire tablet profiles from Kid to Adult, click here
Why are location services needed?
The Coding Wand needs to know its very rough location (hundreds of yards) during setup only. This is part of the Bluetooth standard, as implemented by Google on Android (code here), and included on the Amazon Fire tablet.
Note: We do not store your location data after this setup process on our servers.
This article by Amazon may also help you exit to a full account.
Amazon does not allow Amazon Freetime accounts to use the Location-Based Services that Google's BLE implementation requires – so you need to change profiles to an "adult" account, with Location-Based Services turned on. This affects other kids products too, including connected Lego on the Amazon Fire tablet. But changing accounts, and enabling Location-based services, will get the app running smoothly, instantly.
I'm still having trouble with the app on my Amazon Fire tablet!
Try uninstalling and reinstalling the app. If your Coding Wand is still not connecting, please feel free to Submit A Request and we will get back to you within 1 business day.