Sunday 16 September 2012

Kindle Fire HD 8.9" vs the iPad 3

 So far we talked about the Kindle Fire HD 7 inch tablet and compared against several competitors that threatened to take over Amazon's lead in the low-end tablet sector. There articles were about the Kindle Fire HD vs Nexus 7 and the Kindle Fire HD vs Kobo Arc. Today, however, we are going to compare the Kindle Fire HD 8.9" with the "king of tablets" - the Apple iPad 3.

 Ready for the Kindle Fire HD vs iPad 3 showdown? Let us get started!

kindle fire hd vs ipad 3


 So, once you compare the specs of the Kindle Fire HD 8.9" against the iPad 3, a few conclusion and opinions pop up and one of those to me was: is the Apple rxperience really worth the extra cash? In my opinion and my own analysis the Kindle Fire HD 8.9 is superior to the outdated iPad 3. And to prove my point let me state the following:
  •  Kindle Fire HD has better design features and provides a better physical experience seeing as it is thinner, lighter, and smaller than Apple's iPad 3.
  • The KF HD sports dual stereo speakers. And not just any ol' speakers, they come with Dolby Digital Plus. And the iPad? Meh, just mono speakers... 
  • Then we have the iPad which can do 22Mbps 802.11n WiFi, and then we go back to the the Fire HD which features MIMO antenna that can do 31Mbps. 
 Oh but I am just getting started! But I will skip to the point the Kindle Fire HD with its 8.9 inch screen, 16 GB of storage and its 1920×1200 (254 PPI) Retina-equivalent screen is actually a full 200 dollars cheaper than the 16 GB Apple iPad 3. I think that a lot of people will find this a very interesting point and not just me! The most intriguing thing about the price however is that a receant study showed that both of these devices cost around $300 to produce and transport. So why is the Apple iPad 3 so much more expensive when it is clearly not the better tablet?

 Well it does have everything to do with their policies and the way they plan to make money - Apple sells expensive, luxury products, while Amazon provides us with affordable, quality products with hopes to make up for the lost money via our purchases in the Amazon stores. A fair trade I would say. Alright, but let me continue with the comparison.


 The truth is that the Apple iPad 3 is better in some aspects, but for me these just aren't worth the extra money and the Amazon ecosystem is far better than that of the iPad 3. For example, the iPad 3 has a clearly better camera and the Kindle Fire HD 8.9" cannot even film video, unlike the iPad 3. You can still of course use the KF HD 8.9" for Skype and what not. But who uses a tablet as a camera anyway? The iPad 3 also has a superior battery life by two hours and of course a screen that is 0.8 inches bigger.

 When it comes to pricing Amazon has a far better offer and here is why:
  • The Kindle Fire HD 8.9" with 16 GB of storage costs $299 while the iPad 3 with 16 GB of storage costs $499. You save $200 with the HD!
  • The same Kindle Fire HD 8.9" but with 32 GB of storage and 4G LTE features costs $499 while the iPad 3 with 32 GB and LTE features costs $729. You save $230!
  • The KF HD 8.9" data plan will cost you $50 per year while the data plan for the iPad 3 costs $200 per year. You save $150 per year with the Kindle Fire HD 8.9 inch tablet!

 Oh, but then come the argument that the iPad 3 is faster, has more apps, has a better OS and the like. What do I have to say about this? Alright, those are valid arguments...but...

 Well for one thing the iPad 3 isn't exactly faster as it comes with a 1 GHz dual-core A5X processor while the Kindle Fire HD 8.9 inch tablet runs on a 1.5 GHz dual-core OMAP4470. Some have said that the iPad 3 still performs better when it comes to graphics but the Imagination PowerVR 3D graphics core on the Kindle Fire HD serves to fill this gap.

 And what about the apps? Alright, you got me, the iPad 3 has access to a  lot more apps. But on the other hand doesn't the fact that the Kindle Fire HD provides access to a lot of books, videos and mp3 count for something as well? The addition of Amazon Game Circle also seems to me like there is a bright future for Amazon when it comes to apps so I wouldn't be dissing the Kindle Fire HD just yet!

And OS? The iPad 3 will soon be getting an update to its iOS while the KF HD sports a forked version of Android OS. Between the iOS and Android I would always go for Android, but I dislike the version that Amazon has created on its tablets. I do give the upper hand to the iOS on this one, but I doubt a lot of people care so much.

 But what do you think? Which would you rather choose?

2 comments:

  1. both Amazon and ipad would do well to continue to impress the world with their tablets.The biggest problem selling the Kindle Fire is even though people have the ability to buy a Kindle Fire then and there at their local Target.http://www.tabletpcphones.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. Well I'd have to agree with you here! I definitely think that Apple's major selling point, is it's promotion and selling techniques, rather than the actual quality of their products. Plus, from a 'status' standpoint, having an 'iPad' for one reason or any other, sounds superior than having a Kindle Fire HD. Then again, from a value perspective, there is no arguing that the Kindle Fire HD offers many similar things to the iPad, for a much cheaper price and this can be a true game decider when it comes to either purchasing Apple's product, or Amazon's.

    In fact I've seen another great post similar to this one, which covers this topic, and shows just how much of a price comparison these two devices have!

    http://drspaniel.hubpages.com/hub/iPad-vs-Kindle-Which-Electronic-Tablet-Is-Best-for-You

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