I’ve just read a Kindle vs. iPad comparison from amazon.com and it seems a little bit odd for me.
Let’s analyse the comparison:
| Item | Kindle | iPad | My comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $199 $300 less than iPad 2 |
$499 | true |
| Screen | 7”, in-plane switching display | 9.7″, in-plane switching display | +1 for iPad |
| Pixel Density | 169 ppi & more than 16 million colors 28% higher pixel density than iPad 2 |
132 ppi & more than 16 million colors | +1 for iPad – More readable on a bigger screen, text |
| Weight | 14.6 oz iPad 2 is 46% heavier |
21.28 oz | That’s what the size takes – more weight |
| Content | Movies, shows, songs, games, apps, magazines & books from Amazon |
Movies, shows, songs, games, apps, magazines & books from iTunes |
Seems like the same to me |
| Breadth of Ecosystem | Most Amazon content can be enjoyed on your Kindle Fire and many other devices, including iPhone, iPad, Android, BlackBerry, Windows 7 phones, internet-ready TVs, Roku, TiVo, and through your web browser |
Most Apple content can only be used on select Apple products |
I would look at this from a different angle – this means, that Kindle can only read amazon content, but iPad can read amazon content AND apple content. +1 for iPad |
| Buy Once, Enjoy Everywhere |
With Whispersync, your book library, last page read, notes, and highlights sync across your devices and you can stream a movie on one device and finish it on your TV, without losing your place |
iBooks syncs only on Apple devices – no sync for movies |
As amazon says – all amazon content can be viewed on iPad too. And also iBooks, so +1 for iPad |
| Yes | Yes | Looks the same. Although I’m pretty sure that iPad has a better e-mail client | |
| Web Browser | Amazon Silk, the cloud-accelerated web browser |
Safari | Safari is a real browser, Silk is something virtual. +1 for iPad |
| Flash Support | Yes | No | This is where Kindle wins for sure |
| Storage | 8GB flash memory + free cloud storage for all your Amazon content so you never run out of space |
16GB flash memory + free cloud storage for iTunes content excluding movies |
Excluding movies? How long would you store your movies in your iPad? Once you watch it – you remove it. Or upload it to youtube 🙂 +1 for iPad – it also has 32GB and 64GB models |
| Battery Life | Up to 7.5 hours of video playback, with wireless off |
Up to 10 hours of mixed use | +1 for iPad – no limitations about WiFi being off |
| Multitasking | Yes | Yes | |
| Wireless Capability |
Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi | |
| Speakers | Stereo | Mono | How is stereo better from a single device? I’ve never felt any difference |
| Prime Instant Video |
Amazon Prime members can instantly stream nearly 13,000 popular movies & TV shows at no additional cost |
N/A | Amazon Prime is $79 / year. You can watch NetFlix on the iPad for $7.99 a month – not much more expensive. |
| Kindle Owners’ Lending Library |
Amazon Prime members can borrow from thousands of popular books at no additional cost |
N/A | You can still have Amazon Prime membership and use a Kindle app on the iPad. |
After all this I don’t see many benefits of Kindle, apart from the price, but iPad is totally a better device – that’s what it takes.