Google Nexus 7 or Kindle Fire HD? Created 11 years ago2012-12-07 01:50:00 UTC by Alabastor_Twob

I've been told that I will be getting a tablet for Christmas, and have been asked to decide which one I would want. So far I've narrowed my choices to the Google Nexus 7:And the Amazon Kindle Fire HD (7"):And I'm not sure which I should choose. In terms of technical specifications they seem to be quite similar (the exception being that the Nexus 7 had a quad core 1.2 GHz processor, while the Kindle Fire has a dual core 1.2 GHz). However the Kindle Fire supposedly has a slightly better screen and better speakers (although I would almost always be using headphones, leaving that less important). As for software, or pretty much anything else about them, I don't really know anything about.

Initially I wanted the Kindle, as I read a lot of books and since that was the original point of the Kindle line I figured it would be more suited to that, but I have since realised that reading on an LCD screen wouldn't be ideal. (The original Kindle has a perfect screen for reading, but my dad already has one so I wouldn't have great need of one).
At the moment, my main interest in them is for internet browsing, listening to music and watching movies or TV shows on the bus to and from college. I have an iPod touch which I use for this, although the tiny screen makes internet browsing and movie watching less comfortable, and frankly I just don't like how you have to do everything through iTunes.

That unrelated point aside, would anyone have any experience with these and be able to assist? Or can anyone see any notable differences between the hardware of the two, as I may have missed some?

I was looking at both of these a while back, and got the Nexus 7. I have to say, it's better than the Fire in almost every way in my opinion:

1. Google updates the Android version on a regular basis, Amazon do not
2. The Nexus can access all the Android stores, the Fire is locked to the Amazon store
3. Amazon has a pay-to-opt-out advertising scheme, Nexus has no ads
4. You can still download the Kindle app and read Kindle books on the Nexus (which makes your one advantage of the Fire meaningless)
5. You can also download other e-reader apps and read books from other sources on the Nexus (I use FBReader)

The only "downside" I know of is that there's no 3G version of the Nexus. But if you're getting a Wifi one anyway, the Nexus is by far the better choice.

On a side note, I have no issues reading on the LCD screen.

I guess that probably settles it then. Thanks.

Amazon has a pay-to-opt-out advertising scheme

hey let's pay a fuckload of money to use a device to look at ads that will only go away with more money

I've been pointed towards the Samsung Galaxy Tab2 10.1It's more expensive, but it has quite good reviews, and almost all the specs are superior. The thing I'm worried about, however, is that the processor is less powerful; the Nexus 7 has a quad-core 1.2GHz CPU, whereas the Tab2 has a dual-core 1GHz CPU. While I likely will use it to play games, they wouldn't be among my main priorities, so I don't really know how significant the smaller processor is. I also like the increased battery life and the fact that you can use an SD card.
So does anyone know anything about this one,or how much the slower processor would affect the performance for movie watching/web browsing?

There's a 10" Nexus tablet that came out recently, so take a look at that as well if you're going for a larger size tablet (personally I'm not a fan of them myself, they're too heavy!). Google updates their software much faster and on a more regular basis than Samsung do.

A bit of a late reply, I've been spending too much time worrying about the exams.

I had been looking into the different types of tablets, trying to figure out which had the best value (taking into account both features and price), but I was apparently taking too long. I came back from college to find I had been bought the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1.
It's a bit much I think, considering I originally wanted a tablet so I could read books. That said, I do appreciate it, although I don't know why going for the most expensive one was deemed the best choice.

My boss at work has that one. I like the stylus input touch screen, even though I don't know when you would actually use it on a tablet

I suppose it could come in handy at times. I sometimes wish my iPod had a stylus, although the fact that the tablet has a much larger screen might render that point moot.

I got the Kindle Fire HD for my birthday. Personally, I would probably picked the Nexus over the Kindle.

It all comes down to what you are planning to use the device for. If you are going to do mostly reading and watching movies, the Kindle Fire is wonderful at those. The speakers are very impressive.

I haven't used the Nexus, but based from what I know, it's much more versatile.