Kindle Fire vs. Apple iPad

The tablet market is starting to heat up. Amazon has introduced a new tablet called the Kindle Fire, priced at a much more affordable $199 (compared to the latest generation iPad which starts at $499). Andy Ihnatko from the Chicago Sun-Times says in his review that the “Kindle Fire is no iPad killer – but it is a killer device.” In other words, it’s a great gadget in its own right, but it has its own set of strengths and weaknesses. A pastor who is in the market for a portable device will have to determine which has the set of features (including price) that line up with his needs.

The iPad clearly shines in the number and quality of both native and third-party apps — many of which I’ve talked about on this blog. The beauty of Apple’s tablet is in its versatility and its smooth performance of a wide variety of tasks. The Kindle Fire only runs a limited number of Android apps. It clearly was made with content consumption (as opposed to content creation) in mind.

But if that’s all you’re looking for — a handy device you can use for reading books, watching videos, listening to audiobooks, etc. — you’ll probably be happy (and $300 less poor) with the Kindle Fire. Of course, if you limit your needs even further to just reading books, then save yourself an additional $120 and just buy a simple Kindle. Pastor Paul McCain has a good argument for investing in the Kindle platform if your primary interest is reading. But if you need a device that offers more (e.g., word processing, PowerPoint presentations, media creation and manipulation, data recording, etc., etc.,) then you’re going to have to start saving up for an iPad.

Check out the video below for a visual comparison of the two tablets.