The arrival of iPad Mini serves as the green signal for the competition, with all the competitors in tow and in position. The incessant speculations about the latest addition to the iBrand can now be put to rest and the three devices, Apple iPad Mini, Amazon Kindle Fire HD and Google Nexus 7 can be sized up to find the actual winner. Here we offer you a scintillating comparison between the three devices on ten major criterion:
iPad Mini vs Kindle Fire HD vs Nexus 7: Comparisons
Operating System
- Need we remind that the iPad mini runs on the Apple iOS operating system? iPad Mini is capable of efficiently handling the hottest features of the Apple iOS which also includes Siri and 3D maps.
- Android is the chosen OS for the Kindle Fire HD, but a number of features including the organization of the menu have been altered in the basic Android OS to make the tablet easy-going.
- Nexus 7 runs on Android 4.1, which is considered by most experts as a reliable and mature operating system. The only problem being that the Android OS has not been modified like Kindle Fire HD, hence the menus might just leave you confused if you are using it for the first time.
Winner: The iPad finishes this race first merely because of its user-friendliness. You won’t have a problem operating it even if you don’t know much about Apple’s latest mobile operating system.
Processor
- The iPad Mini has a dual-core A5 processor, wherein A5 is based on the ARM Cortex A9 design and supported by only 512MB of RAM, which makes it slightly less powerful than the regular sized tablet.
- Kindle Fire HD comes with a dual-core 1.2GHz OMAP 4460 processor, which seems pretty powerful but users have found it often hit the slower side.
Winner: Nexus 7 with its Nvidia Tegra 3 quad-core processor and 1GB RAM, which as some may say offers raw power to the tablet which effectively overpowers its immediate competitors.
Display
- The iPad Mini’s 7.9-inch display, when compared to the 7 inch display of Kindle Fire HD and Nexus 7, might cajole you to jump into the conclusion that Apple has delivered but the absence of Retina display is very disappointing for the Apple loyalists.
- In contrast the Kindle Fire HD has much clearer and ‘sharper’ display with IPS, 1280 x 800 pixel resolution that provides an impressive 216ppi. But the con here is that Kindle has the conventional backlit LCD display which the device difficult to use in bright/sunlight conditions.
- The Nexus 7 has a 1200 x 800 HD backlit IPS display that delivers 216ppi, the video and reading experiences are good.
Winner: Tie. It is tough to choose between Kindle and Nexus in terms of display as both seem to be equally good while the iPad clearly lags in this area.
Memory
- Nexus 7, has variants with 8GB and 16 Gb internal memory which is the least amongst the current lot, especially since does not have any option for microSD card slot implying no external storage either.
- Kindle Fire moves a little ahead with 16GB and 32GB internal memory.
Winner: Here the iPad Mini takes lead with three variants of 16GB, 32Gb and 64GB as well.
Camera
- Kindle Fire doesn’t fire in this category with a 1.3 megapixel camera, while Nexus 7 does’nt go too far either with 1.2MP front-facing camera.
- Here again the iPad Mini zooms ahead in-style with its 5MP camera at the rear. It comes with standard backside illumination, autofocus and five piece lens better light filtering mechanism that ultimately leads to better picture quality.
Winner: However the video capabilities of the iPad Mini deserve a special mention as it can take 1080p video and stabilize it simultaneously, making iPad mini as a winner in this category.
Connectivity
- The iPad mini has a decent Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n, that is capable of supporting both 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequencies. Alongside the Wi-Fi, the device also has Bluetooth 4.0, which is presently the best in class against its competitors as it allows provision for maximum number of wireless peripherals and audio products at the great speed.
- The Kindle Fire HD on the other hand claims to be the first tablet with dual-band, dual-antenna Wi-Fi, using MIMO (Multiple In, Multiple Out) technology, which makes it 41% faster than the iPad. Users acknowledge the fact that along with speed, the Wi-Fi signal of Kindle is also superior. However the Bluetooth provision is pretty limited here.
- Coming to Nexus 7, it has Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, but it is restricted to 2.4GHz support as against the iPad mini which supports both 2.4GHz and 5GHz band. Bluetooth is also included but the version is strictly not revealed. In addition, the Nexus 7 also has NFC (near field communication) chip supporting Android Beam which serves for exchange of files between compatible devices.
Winner: Reader’s call, So here we let you take the call and decide which one is the best, do try out each of these and let us know too.
Battery
- The Kindle Fire HD offers 11 hours of use with its 4400 mAh internal battery, even with maximum brightness the battery worked around 8 hours which is certainly good news. The Nexus 7also claims to provide up to eight hours of “active use” with its 4325 mAh battery.
- But it is the iPad Mini that won us over wherein it ran up to six hours with maximum brightness, high power apps and download going on in the background.
Winner: In the low power mode it is aid to be doing even better, which leaves the consumers choice when it comes to battery.
Media & Entertainment
Here the primary factor is you, i.e. which group loyalist are you? There is no way anyone can tell which is the better in this category because all three, Google, Amazon and Apple are titans in their own right, it only up to you to choose.
Price
Starting with the lowest the 16 GB Nexus 7 is priced at $199, while the 32 GB variant at $249. That is the lowest price at which the tablets are available in the market, with Kindle Fire HD 16 GB priced at $199. The iPad Mini 16 GB model is priced at $329.
Market Competitors
The iPad Mini, Nexus 7 and Kindle Fire HD are the toughest competitors of each other. There is hardly any space for any other device in the present lot. All the three devices are good in their own way, and the zeroing down to the best option can only depend on what you want of your device.
While iPad Mini is actually much costlier than its Kindle and Nexus counterparts, some features do make you feel that the price is worth it. Choosing between Amazon Kindle HD and Nexus 7 is very difficult though since both are on the same line of fire. Still we prefer Nexus 7 at the end of the day.
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