FollowWe’ve two recently launched gadgets in our hand to be reviewed – the iPad mini from Apple and the Kindle Fire HD from Amazon. At first glance, both gadgets look cool, and it is quite difficult to determine which one is the best without delving into their features.
The iPad is not unknown to the gadget lovers. The Kindle Fire HD may not feature in the most popular list of tablets, but it has its own niche. The most interesting thing about both the tablets is that they are not completely fresh products; rather they are the younger versions of their predecessors, namely the iPad and the Kindle Fire. The iPad mini is a smaller version of the iPad with many similar features. On the other hand, the Kindle Fire HD is nothing but the HD version of the existing Kindle Fire tablet.
Apple iPad mini
Launched in November 2012, the Apple iPad mini is the most talked about tablet last year. The iPad mini shares some common features with the original iPad. It comes with 16 GB, 32 GB and 64 GB storage capacity options, iOS 6.0.2 operating system, 5 MP rear camera and 1.3 MP front camera, a non-removable Li-Po battery (16.3 Wh), Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi, Edge GPRS and many more. Other than the price, it is the size that makes it different from the iPad. The iPad mini comes with a handy 7.9 inch diagonal, backlit LED multi touch display.
Kindle Fire HD
The Amazon Kindle Fire HD was launched in September2012 and comes in two variants – one with a 7-inch display and the other one with an 8.9-inch display. The gadget has gained huge popularity in America and has started giving tough competition to the archrivals, the Apple iPad and the Samsung Galaxy tab. Kindle Fire HD comes with 16 GB, 32 GB and 64 GB memory options. The 7-inch display variant runs on 1.2 GHz dual core ARM Cortex A-9 processor, and the 8.9-inch display variant on 1.5 Ghz dual core ARM Cortex A-9 processor. It has our very own Google Android 4.0 operating system. With a unique feature of movie Xray, you can know the complete details of any movie you are watching by just tapping on the screen.
Design
With its black metal finish and sleek design, the iPad mini clearly steals the show. It truly represents the legacy of Apple. On the other hand, the Kindle Fire HD is not much impressive with its design. The metal finish is not flashy at all, and the wide thick edges make it look harder as compared to the iPad Mini.
Display
Both the iPad mini and the Kindle Fire HD offer a 7-inch display screen option. There is not much difference between the screen resolutions as the Kindle Fire HD offers 1280/800 screen resolution while the iPad mini offers 1024/768 screen resolution. But, the Kindle Fire HD has an edge over the iPad mini as it offers a pure HD resolution. So, you can watch your favorite movies and play games in true HD, which you will not enjoy in the iPad mini.
Camera
One of the most disappointing things in the Kindle Fire HD is the absence of rear camera. It has only a front 1.3 MP camera that supports video calling and video recording. On the other hand, iPad mini comes with a 5MP rear camera and a 1.3 MP front camera, with abundance of features like Autofocus, Face detection, Backside illumination, Five-element lens, Hybrid IR filter and many more.
Disk Space
Presence of a plethora of features without sufficient disk space makes any gadget nothing more than a toy, since you can’t use all the features. The good news is that both the iPad mini and the Kindle Fire HD offer a great storage space with 16GB, 34GB and 64GB options. It means you will never run out of space. Both the gadgets score well in this regard.
Operating System
When it comes to the operating system, it is the same long haul controversy: which one is better, Google or Apple? The Kindle Fire HD comes with 4.0 Android, which is one of the best Android-based operating systems these days and loved a lot by the users. With more than 250,000 apps, the Android really shines. On the other hand, the Apple’s very own iOS offers more than 300,000 apps to its users. So, it is really tough to determine which one is the best based on the OS.
Battery
The Kindle Fire HD comes with a battery that can provide up to 10hrs of power backup under standard use. The Apple iPad mini features a 16.3 Wh battery that also offers similar backup. Though, watching HD videos and playing HD games in the Kindle Fire HD may restrict the backup to some extent.
CPU & GPU
The heart of any gadget is its processor. The iPad mini comes with a fine 1 GHz Cortex A9 processor that is very efficient for multitasking. On the other hand, the Kindle Fire HD 7 comes with a dual core 1.2 GHz ARM Cortex-A9 processor and a graphic processor of 384Mhz that makes viewing of HD movies as smooth as silk. User interface of the Kindle Fire HD is much better than that of the iPad mini.
Conclusion
All in all, we feel that the Kindle Fire HD is not a bad tablet to purchase, especially when we take the price into consideration. The Kindle Fire HD is 40% cheaper than the iPad Mini. Those who are already used to iPad might not like the Kindle Fire HD with a different interface and Android applications. If you are a first time buyer, you may definitely go for the Kindle Fire HD. Still, we would like to remind you that you will miss a rear camera in the Kindle Fire HD, but overall it will be a worthy purchase for you.
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