Can Amazon’s Kindle Fire take on
Google’s mighty Nexus 7? We pitch the two head to head to find out...
It’s a sad but true fact: until recently,
the range of Android tablets was a rather bleak affair. There was, and still
is, plenty of choice for those looking for a tablet fix, but the Android tablet
OS always seemed to stutter behind the seemingly unstoppable force that was the
iPad. The Nexus 7 was a sign of intent from Google to kick-start a tablet
offering that could genuinely compete.
It has sold well, and captured mainstream
attention like no other Android tablet. And now it has its very own direct competitor.
The Kindle Fire HD from Amazon is, like the Nexus 7, a seven-inch device with
an impulse-buy price tag attached. But while it runs Android it is so heavily
skinned that you’d be hard pushed to notice at times. Just as the Nexus 7 was
very much a Google device, so the
Test 1: Design and build
Without having a closer look, you can
easily mistake both tablets for one another. The simply black slab effect is a
tried and tested design that works well on both tabs, with the only noticeable
difference at first glance being the varying location of the front-facing
camera on each tablet. The location of the camera on the Fire HD is quite
deceptive, and although its location is suited for landscape view, the tablet
feels a lot better when you hold It in portrait orientation.
Look a little closer and you’ll soon start
to see the key differences. The Nexus 7 has a thin bezel around its seven-inch
screen, and the metallic look and feel of it screams quality. It's a whole lot
smaller than the wide bezel (and plastic rim) that encompasses the Kindle Fire
HD. The bezel isn’t a massive deal, but it’s certainly noticeable when you
handle the tablet, and makes It feel considerably wider than the Nexus 7.
Around the back of the tablets, both companies have opted for a simple, but
comfortable design. The Fire HD has a soft matte finish, with a thin plastic
spine running through It. Although the more plastic look isn’t as stylish as
the metallic feel of the Nexus 7, the Fire HD is still an elegant design, even
though it won’t win any awards anytime soon.
The stippled back of the Nexus 7 makes it
very grippy indeed, and could be a god send for anyone who has problems with
regularly dropping their devices. Either side of the Kindle’s backplate you’ll
find small speakers, which are far better located than at the bottom of the
device where you’ll find the Nexus’ single speaker. The awkwardly placed
speaker of the Nexus 7 Is easy to cover up without you noticing, which we did
by complete accident on
Kindle Fire HD is an Amazon one. It has a
whole new user Interface, Amazon's software and Appstore and Is tightly
integrated into Amazon’s ecosystem. It’s hard to imagine two devices that could
be so similar yet so different.
So which is the best, and where should your
money go? The friendly, mass-market Amazon, or the pure Android of Google. Read
on to find out. many an occasion. It also lacks the volume and overall power
that the speakers on the Fire HD offer.
The Fire HD is comfortable to hold In both
landscape and portrait mode, but the slightly smaller Nexus 7 is equally as
pleasant to hold, and with Google’s offering being noticeably lighter and
thinner than its competition (340 grams in weight and 4.72 inches wide compared
to the 413 grams and 5.4-inch waistline of the Fire HD) it’s easier to handle
and transport around.
Despite the Nexus 7 being slightly thicker
than the Kindle Fire HD, it’s still small enough to transport around, and it
sure beats having a wider device to carry.
Verdict: Design and build
Kindle Fire HD
·
Large bezel gives old fashioned look
·
Feels quite heavy
·
Buttons in odd places
Nexus 7
·
Slim and stylish design
·
Premium fit and finish
·
Suited to portrait or landscape use
Test 2: Hardware and screen
As you'd expect with devices in this price
range, there have been some cutbacks with the amount of ports on both of these
tablets. Google has included a single micro USB port and 3.5mm audio jack that
can both be found at the bottom of the device. Add just the standard volume
rocker and power button to the right-hand side, and it means the Nexus 7 is a
very, very stripped back affair. The same ports are also found on the Fire HD,
but the addition of a micro HDMI port for streaming content to a bigger screen
Is a welcome addition, and something that Google should’ve included.
Series6
PowerVR GPUs As Powerful As Desktop PCs
Although both companies may have held back
on the amount of ports they include on their devices, they’ve certainly
equipped them both with a modern set of specs. Inside the Kindle Fire HD you’ll
find a 1.2GFIZ dual-core CPU, a PowerVR GPU and a healthy 1GB of RAM. All In
all, the Fire HD is a speedy tablet throughout that handles tasks well.
It can't, however, compare to the Nvidia
Tegra 3 quad-core processor, which alongside the 1GB of RAM, makes the Nexus 7
ridiculously quick.
When you turn on the devices - and it is
surprisingly difficult to turn the Kindle Fire HD on thanks to the way the
power button sits flush to the top of the casing-you’ll be hard pressed to find
much difference between the two displays. Both pack a seven-inch 1,280 x 800
IPS LCD display. Neither can quite match the Retina display of the iPad, but a
pixel density of 216ppi means that neither tablet’s display should be
overlooked. Colours do appear to be a bit sharper on the Fire HD, for whatever
reason, and this Is especially noticeable when you’re watching a movie.
Verdict: Hardware and screen
Kindle Fire HD
·
Supports HDMI-out
·
High-quality, high-res display
·
Solid processor and RAM specs
Nexus 7
·
Excellent display
·
No support for HDMI or micro SD
·
Very fast quad-core processor
|
Kindle Fire HD
|
ESSENTIAL STATS
|
Nexus 7
|
|
193 x 137 x 10.3mm
|
DIMENSIONS
|
198.5 x 120 x 10.45mm
|
|
1,280 x 800
|
DISPLAY RESOLUTION
|
1,280 x 800
|
|
Dual-core, 1.2GHz
|
PROCESSOR
|
Quad-core, 1.3GHz
|
|
Android 4.0
|
OS
|
Android 4.1
|
|
1GB
|
RAM
|
1GB
|
|
8GB, 16GB
|
STORAGE
|
8GB, 16GB
|
|
None
|
EXPANSION
|
None
|
|
1.3-megapixel
|
FRONT CAMERA
|
1.3-megapixel
|
|
Amazon Cloud (Unlimited storage)
|
CLOUD STORAGE
|
Google Drive (5GB
free storage), Dropbox 8GB free)
|
|
$254.4 (16GB), $318.4 (32GB)
|
PRICE
|
$254.4 (8GB), $318.4 (16GB)
|
