While Apple may be sitting in the tablet industry’s throne right now, there are some enthusiasts that say a tablet as simple and straightforward as the Kindle Fire can offer all the basic functionalities the current generation iPad can provide in a small package, and for much less. Here is a brief rundown of an iPad 2 Vs Kindle Fire review based on their physical attributes, internal aspects, and extras included.
Physical Aspects
The Kindle Fire is lighter and smaller, and it has a smaller display. The iPad weighs in at 1.33 pounds while the Fire barely tops a pound at 0.91lb. Compared to the iPad 2’s 7.31 x 9.5 inches, the Fire measures in at just 4.6 x 7.5 inches.
As for displays, the iPad obviously has a bigger monitor -slash-touchscreen compared to the Fire, though technical specs hint on a slight hiccup where it has less pixels per inch.
Under the Hood
Underneath the equally fine finishes of both tablets lies another realm of specs that might be more worth checking out than their physical attributes: their processors, memory capacity, and RAM.
The Fire uses a TI OMAP 4 processor; the current iPad uses the ARM-based Apple A5. Both are dual core and perform at 1Ghz. Both tablets are also equal in terms of RAM at 512MB. What stands out the most is how Fire offers so much less storage space. You get stuck with 8Gb of space on the Fire, while you have 16, 32, and 64Gb space choices on the iPad. Neither tablet offers SD card slots. Amazon’s cloud services make up for the lack of physical memory on the Fire.
Lastly, the Apple iPad 2 downright trounces the new Kindle on battery life, as well as having front and rear cameras – albeit less powerful than even the iPhone 4′s.
Extras and Goodies Included
The Fire definitely tops the list when it comes to price (est. $199). It also sports the speedy Silk Web browser and a lot of Amazon cloud based services (mostly paid, though some come with free trials). The iPad makes up for the heftier price tag (est. $499) with a robust and established App Store plus the iCloud and iMessage features. And then there is always the option to pay more for 3G data capability, which allows for Internet connectivity without tethered connections or WiFi.
The Verdict
The iPad 2 is a more capable and powerful tablet that rivals laptops, so for people who are after the whole package, it is an ideal tablet. For a good bargain that offers most of the basic functionalities of a personalized tablet you can lug around in your pouch or pocket however, the Kindle Fire does the job. To maximize the Fire’s computing prowess, you also need to take advantage of Amazon’s cloud services, however, and that adds up to the costs.
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Andy, you left out a number of other important features that set the iPad apart from the Kindle Fire.
The Fire lacks Bluetooth so no wireless headsets or wireless audio systems for music or VOIP (Skype).
It also doesn’t have a digital compass or 3-axis gyroscope so no augmented reality apps or precise controls for games and other apps.
No GPS means no turn-by-turn navigation or large screen topographical maps for off-roading.
It also has no microphone so no lecture recording, no music recording apps, or VOIP or wind meter apps, or baby monitor apps, or guitar amp or voice processing apps etc etc.
Also Android has dreadful support for low latency audio, so even if it had audio input, you couldn’t use it for the thousands of guitar amp, voice processing or audio apps available for the iPad.
In addition, with no 3G option Amazon’s cloud storage is useless unless you’re near a wifi hotspot so the limited storage is even more of a problem in comparison to the far more capacious iPads.
Great points. Thanks for adding the aspects that I overlooked.
Just a quick correction on the Kindle Fire. It does have a 3-axis gyroscope and allows for full tilt control options.
I believe Mel brings up some good points about the capabilities of the Apple iPad2. But this is just another apple to orange comparison with regards to these two devices. I say this because there is such a large margin of difference that they’re not even in the same league. I own several Apple products and the Kindle Fire. The kindle Fire is amazing for what it can do. With respect to the 3G, I’ve RARELY been anywhere without the ability to access wifi. So personally that issue is moot and not really a major concern. Additionally, I can safely assume that majority of iPad2′s out there are without 3g as well. In any regard, the Kindle Fire was primarily purchased because I have a cell phone that has almost (minus the larger display) all of the other features that Mel wrote out about the iPad2. I needed something with a larger screen to browse the web, watch videos, play games, and review Excel/Word/Power Point documents. Why should I duplicate processes at a greater expense to my wallet?
Thanks,
Chris
Chris, the Kindle Fire has an accelerometer, but not a 3-axis gyroscope or digital compass.
I use my iPad on 3G all the time as wifi is far from ubiquitous. For example I just got back from a trip where I had the iPad mounted on the car dashboard getting Google Maps GPS satellite photos of my route the entire time on a the gloriously large screen. Far far better than keyhole size view on my Garmin or smartphone.
However, this article is not about personal preferences, it is about a point by point comparison of the two devices. My comment only indicated all the other features that the iPad has that the Kindle Fire lacks so they can make their own decisions as to whether the extra money is justified or not.
The iPad 2 is also jailbreakable as of Friday. Simple to do. The jailbreak community offers hundreds of thousand more even cooler apps and tweaks on top of what the app store offers. The kindle can be rooted to add third party unsigned apps too. Just because they are both tablets doesn’t mean much. I use both. The fire is no comparison when the iPad 2 flexes its muscles sorry. You can’t not compare this area for tAblets. Just go ask the jailbreakers how many downloads of corona have been made in the last 3 days.
The big factor here is that the KFire is only 199.00 The I-Overpriced-Pad is much more expensive. KFire was never advertised as an alternative to the I-Overpriced-Pad. I own three digital cameras, a smart phone, and a laptop. I don’t need an over-priced, over-sized pad with features that I would never use. I definitely don’t need or want another data plan and I’m around hot spots frequently enough that it is convienient for me. If I was so dependant upon GPS that I had to have my pad on while operating a vehicle, I certainly would be driving at all. LOL!
The KFire is great for reading on the go. With hot spots all over these days, I can check email when on the go as well. I’m not one of those fanatics that have to keep my eyes glued to my email. If I need to respone to an email, i’m usually within proximity of a hotspot every twenty minutes or so.
If I need a quick pic, I can use my phone or one of my Rebel’s. With a workstation at home that features a web conferencing cam, I have all the communication that I need. I don’t see myself having to have a video conference in the middle of the mall or in the car. LOL!
Kindle doesn’t need to stand up to the I-Overpriced-Pad, but all of it’s toys are only a reduncancy for me. I bought the Kindle because I just needed a small (but bigger than a smart phone) pad for quick surfing, reviewing documents and books, and occasional email. If I need to do anything else, I can do it on my laptop. My KFire slips in my jacket pocket, an I-Overpriced-Pad will not. My next purchase will be an ultrabook to replace my laptop definitely not a I-Overprised-Pad.
I’m sure that there are other people out there for which an I-Overpriced-Pad is perfect, but KFire fills the gap in my needs perfectly. Also, with FREE cloud storage my laptop has extra storage as well. I have been an Amazon Prime member w;ay before the my purchase of the KFire and all of those perks work on my workstation, laptop, and KFire. So if you’r on the go and don’t want the redundancy among all your gadgets, the KFire is the perfect option.
Bryan, your comment would have been much easier to read if you didn’t pepper it with such immature phrases.
Obviously 15.4 million more iPad users this last quarter felt the iPad is not over-priced for what it provides compared to only 1-2 million Kindle Fire owners.
Sorry Mel, your sales figures for the KFire way off base and low. I assume you used that particular figure to support your facts. My comments (Peppered or not, LOL) are based from comments from many users in several Kindle forums. The Kindle is what it is and wasn’t designed to be an I-Overpriced-Pad. It’s really silly to even try to compare them.